NYCDOT and NYC Transit have already started using bus rapid transit to speed up New York City’s notoriously slow bus system. But where should the plans go from here? To answer that question, the Museum of the City of New York will hold a panel discussion between transportation planners and advocates on April 1 starting at 6:30 pm. The panel includes:
- Joan Byron of the Pratt Center for Community Development and COMMUTE, which has developed a plan for a citywide BRT system.
- Walter Hook of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, an international organization which produces the massive Bus Rapid Transit Planning Guide.
- Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign, which annually issues the “Pokey Awards” recognizing the slowest bus routes in the city.
- Bruce Schaller, NYCDOT’s deputy commissioner for planning and sustainability.
The panel will be moderated by Aaron Naparstek of Streetsblog. Tickets are normally $9, but will be discounted to $5 if you mention the Tri-State Transportation Campaign (if ordering online, pay for a $5 senior/student ticket and mention us at the door). The museum is at 1220 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.
It shouldn’t expand until the streetcar alternative has been tested and found wanting. A well designed streetcar line will carry more passengers at lower cost per passenger mile.
Don’t settle for Bus Rapid Transit! Light rail is far superior to BRT for several reasons:
1. Light rail vehicles are less expensive in the long run, with useful lives of 40 to 60 years. Reconditioned LRVs from the 1950s are still running in San Francisco and Philadelphia. Where do you see a 40 year old bus in regular service?
2. Light rail vehicles have better acceleration than buses do, and can run a route much faster than buses. This means that you need fewer LRVs and fewer drivers to cover the same route.
3. Light rail vehicles can run in much narrower lanes than buses can, so they take up less space. This is especially important in crowded urban areas.
4. Light rail vehicles only use energy when they are accelerating. When they decelerate, the momentum is turned back into electric energy. When they’re at rest, their motors use no energy at all. Most buses use energy continually, whether they are accelerating, decelerating, or standing still.
5. Light rail vehicles give a smoother, bump-free ride far superior to the bouncing around bus passengers are subject to.
6. Operating expenses for light rail vehicles are significantly less than for buses, according to the Federal Transit Administration’s 2001 National Transit Database. Boston’s light rail line had costs of $1.25 per trip vs. $2.04 for buses. If you want the figures expressed as costs per passenger mile, Boston spent $0.51 for LRVs and $0.71 for buses.
7. In city after city (St. Louis, Denver, Phoenix, Boston, Philadelphia, Charlotte, Salt Lake City, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas ……) people prefer light rail to buses. Ridership on the entire transit system increases when even a single light rail line is opened.
8. Light rail stations often spur development around them that doesn’t happen around bus rapid transit stations.
For extensive information about the benefits of light rail, go to http://www.lightrailnow.com.