Comments on: New Tappan Zee Project Numbers Underline Need for Suburban Transit

By: 280 Public Meetings Later… | Mobilizing the Region

280 Public Meetings Later… | Mobilizing the Region — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 17:43:44 +0000

[...] was selected because it was the most effective transit mode for suburb-to-suburb commuters and thus predicted to do the most to reduce traffic in the [...]

By: What We’re Thankful For in 2008 « Mobilizing the Region

What We’re Thankful For in 2008 « Mobilizing the Region — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 21:59:01 +0000

[...] it’s done right, the BRT system could set a precedent for fast, flexible, and cost-effective suburban transit. Among the remaining questions: can stakeholders work together to make sure development sprouts [...]

By: tim sevener

tim sevener — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 03:45:20 +0000

What is left out of this analysis is what is really needed more than ARC – rail lines along Route 287 in New Jersey
which could connect all the hubs of the NJ Transit spoke
rail lines from Port Jervis to the Coast Line AND provide
a connection across the Tappan Zee Bridge to Metro North
and Amtrak. Once again I was forced to drive on the awful NJ 287 and had a delay of almost an hour due to an accident after Bridgewater. Yet to take public transit
would require 2 trains and 2 buses and 2 hours and 25 minutes minimum travel time.
It is not just about going to Manhattan anymore – the traffic in the suburbs is horrendous but unless your points are along the spokes of all lines going to Midtown you cannot reasonably take mass transit.
If you look at 287 a rail line along its corridor could connect the Coast Line, Northeast Corridor, Raritan Valley, Gladstone, Morris, Boonton and Port Jervis rail lines. With shuttle vans and buses from rail stops on these rail lines people would be happy to be done with the monstrous traffic and use mass transit to get to all the Corporate offices and malls long these points.
To extend this to MetroNorth and Amtrak would be a major boost to transit connectivity.

By: Clark Morris

Clark Morris — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 01:19:10 +0000

If there is going to be a rail commuter option which incidentally would be more productive than the ARC connection for the Port Jervis Line, extending the rail line through White Plains and then east to the New Haven region would be a far better use of limited dollars. The major rail infrastructure will already be built between the east side of the Hudson River and Suffern. If rail is extended to the Stewart Airport, this could be a good way to connect Westchester to it. Electrification could be 3rd rail DC, 12.5KV AC or 25KV AC. There is a Swiss line with 11.5 KV AC that has street running so there are some very interesting possibilities. For allowing connections, rail works better because multiple bus routes can easily feed the trunk. The origin destination pairs are so diverse within the region that serving them with direct bus routes becomes an exercise in futility. Instead look at the S-Bahns of Germany and Switzerland which are integrated with the bus services so that a single ticket (or for most people a monthly or annual pass) is good for rides on all forms of transportation within a given area or set of areas. This makes better use of both bus and rail and can reduce the need for park and ride.

By: Cap'n Transit

Cap'n Transit — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 03:06:52 +0000

Here's my attempt at crunching the numbers to see which scenario would do the best to increase relative transit value.