Metro ridership is up. Bus ridership is down. What gives? Photo by Teo.
The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) released their ridership numbers for the first quarter on Monday, and there’s some very interesting news for D.C. and for the nation.
Let’s start at the national level. Total transit ridership is down 1.2% from the first quarter of 2008. That sounds like bad news, except by comparison with the 1.7% decrease in vehicle miles traveled. In other words, it appears the recession has caused people to drive less more than it has negatively affected the use of public transit. APTA further points out that this is true even despite lower gas prices than a year ago, a factor that would ordinarily shift commuters back into their cars.
Ever thought your public bus could feel like a “lounge or living room room on wheels,” with an electric motor, low-floor entryways, a glass roof, reconstituted-leather upholstery and recycled-wood floors?
High-Design Public Bus? Maybe in London
Tim McKeough
June 2009
Commuters using London’s public-transit system probably never dream of being picked up in an Aston Martin, but it may not be long before that happens. The storied automaker has teamed with architecture superfirm Foster + Partners to give the famed double-decker Routemaster bus a makeover.
Galen Lawson, EMBARQ’s print designer from Communications Visual, passed along this neat film about an advertising campaign in Sweden which urged drivers to step out from behind the wheel and take the bus.
The playwright imagines a Purple Line train platform like this one, at MARC Brunswick Line’s Barnesville station. Photo via Tracks: The Musical.
The Purple Line, a proposed 16-mile transit line in Maryland’s D.C. suburbs, has inspired a new musical, titled “Tracks,” written by Paul Stregevsky, a Department of Homeland Security employee, and Marshall White, a high school music teacher. (Check out performer bios and audition videos–”Third Car, Seventh Row” is particularly catchy–at the official “Tracks” Web site.)
EMBARQ and the World Resources Institute studied the proposal and found that bus rapid transit (BRT) along the route would actually cost less, offer similar services, and fight global warming better than light-rail cars.
Despite this analysis, which generated a lot of debate, Stregevsky and White envision a light rail scenario for their song and dance tribute.
“Tracks” is set in 2014 when the Purple Line, a 16-mile proposed light rail project [Editor's note: Maryland's Governor has not chosen a preferred alternative, yet, but light rail seems to be the local favorite.] running from Bethesda and New Carrollton via Silver Spring, has supposedly been completed. Most of the action and the 23 musical numbers take place on the platform of an isolated station at the extreme end of the line. The transit authority has announced that unless at least 18 riders use the station every day, it will close. Read the rest of this entry »
The Federal Transit Administration recently released an updated edition of “Characteristics of BRT for Decision Makers” (PDF). This 400-page report is a very complete compendium of the bus rapid transit (BRT) experience in the United States, but it does not stop there — it also includes data and profiles of BRT systems in the rest of the world. This is an extraordinary resource for agencies and planners considering transit options and shows the versatility of the BRT concept. Read the rest of this entry »
This is not good news. The concept of creating dedicated lanes for buses is very appealing, especially since, currently, the Circulator buses and other routes on this stretch operate below 10 miles per hour at commercial speeds. Retrofitting the corridor could be a low-cost, rapidly implemented solution in the heart of the nation’s capital. It would be important to upgrade it as one item on the list of infrastructure projects in the capital region, as part of the nation’s “economic stimulus package” (but this could just be wishful thinking.) Read the rest of this entry »
Rails or wheels? Maryland planners are still deciding what to choose for the Purple Line. Map by the Maryland Transit Administration.
After more than 20 years of debate, Maryland planners are getting closer to making a decision on the Purple Line, a proposed 16-mile east-west transit corridor running parallel to the (infamously congested) Capital Beltway surrounding Washington, D.C.
The hot debate involves two main options: 1) light rail transit, featuring electric streetcars, or 2) bus rapid transit, in which high-capacity vehicles operate in designated lanes to bypass traffic. Elected officials are expected to make a decision by March or April, after reviewing public comments made in response to the Maryland Transit Administration’s draft environmental impact statement.
Why? Because it is the only option that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, plus it costs less and is less risky than right rail, even though it offers comparable services, according to a recent analysis. (To learn more details, read the full report.) Read the rest of this entry »
The bus rapid transit (BRT) corridor in Delhi is one of the most controversial projects in Indian urban transport. It encountered several problems during the first week of its implementation, stirring up a great media outcry. But the Delhi Government was able to recognize the positive impact of the project for pedestrians, bikers and bus commuters, and it decided not to scrap the pilot corridor.
The Delhi government elections in November largely ran on a platform that included going ahead with the busway expansions, but some media outlets and transport experts urged the city to ditch the project altogether. The Times of India, for example, reported that the Standing Committee in Parliament recently said plans for BRT system would be a “nightmare” for Delhi residents and should be abandoned.
But it looks like the media reports may not have been telling the whole story, says Sanjeev Lohia, director of the urban transport division for the Ministry of Urban Development.
With the average price per gallon of gas down to $1.75 - the lowest in nearly five years - it may come as a surprise that Americans continue to ride buses, subways and commuter rail at record levels.
The American Public Transportation Association today announced that more than 2.8 billion trips were taken on public transportation from July to September this year - an increase of 6.5 percent over the same time period in 2007.
According to APTA:
This is the largest quarterly increase in public transportation ridership in 25 years. Meanwhile, vehicle miles of travel (VMT) on the nation’s highways declined in the same period by 4.6 percent according to the Federal Highway Administration.
These trends are also notable considering that unemployment has increased (to 6.7% in November), which usually means people are less likely to take public transit. For example, during the Great Depression in the 1930s, transit patronage nationwide declined by more than 25 percent (see study: “The Factors Influencing Transit Ridership.”) A similar decline occurred among big cities that experienced job losses during the fiscal crisis of the 1970s. Read the rest of this entry »
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