 ABOVE: This newly delivered AC Transit transbay bus is a prototype for a new generation of top-of-the-line vehicles designed to attract commuters to a regionwide network of rapid bus routes. (Photo: Dino Vournas, Oakland Tribune) Bay Area Rapid Bus Proposal |
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INTRODUCTION:
WHAT IT IS, HOW IT WORKS A RBT system basically removes buses from mixed flow traffic and allows buses to move in their own right-of-way, improving travel times for patrons and simplifying service delivery for transit operators. Stops are limited, which allows a bus to move quickly through a corridor. Vehicle designs allow for quick passenger boarding and unloading and more passenger seating. Passenger facilities are of a higher quality to make waiting more comfortable. Buses are of a higher quality with more comfortable chairs and passenger amenities. Local streets and the regional High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) system function as the guideway for the regional express bus service, thus eliminating the need for the expensive design, engineering and construction of a fixed guideway facility. This transportation option offers Bay Area commuters and the region a new choice in the transportation marketplace. RAPID BUS TRANSIT - HOW DOES IT WORK?
EXCLUSIVE BUS LANES Grade-separated transitways also provide the advantages of busways and increase the overall performance of the transit system. Transitways are physically separated from roadways or freeways and are dedicated exclusively for bus use. Along a given corridor, passengers board and alight transit vehicles at transfer centers similar to boarding BART or SCVTA vehicles at rail stations. FREQUENT SERVICE INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS (ITS) INCLUDING SIGNAL
PRIORITY AND REAL-TIME PASSENGER INFORMATION HIGH QUALITY PASSENGER AMENITIES LIMITED STOPS AND DIRECT TRANSFERS BETWEEN SYSTEMS HIGH-QUALITY VEHICLES The regional express bus network for RBT should utilize a series of
Park-and-Ride lots and key bus transfer points to move people from
outlying areas with limited local bus service to major activity centers
and key transit transfer points. Buses can enter and exit the HOV network
to travel throughout the region and pick up or drop off passengers
at key distribution points. Buses would then continue back on the HOV
network to the destination to regional activity centers. RAPID BUS PROGRAMS IN OTHER
METRO AREAS Curitiba, Brazil: The most famous RBT example is the city of Curitiba, Brazil. In Curitiba, the RBT system is known as the "surface subway." This system carries an average of 1.9 million passengers a day on local and regional bus service. The city has a series of different types of RBT lanes providing for express, regional express and local bus service all of which are separated from automobile traffic. The system of lanes created an "express bus only" middle lane with two outer lanes for local traffic and outside lanes for automobiles. There are now 36 miles of exclusive lanes which crisscross the city along its north, south, east, west and southwest axes. The impacts of this system are significant. While Curitiba is one of the wealthiest cities in Brazil and has the highest rate of automobile ownership per capita, vehicle fuel consumption is 25% less than other urban areas and it has the cleanest air of any urban area in Brazil. Los Angeles: Los Angeles has the oldest busway in North America, the El Monte Busway. It travels along the I-10 corridor linking downtown Los Angeles to eastern LA County. The busway is a shared right-of-way with carpools. Three bus companies use the busway and currently carry over 45,000 passengers daily, translating to 11.5 million annual weekday passengers. Along the busway corridor are several transit stations where patrons transfer from local to express bus service, where local buses become express and enter the transitway and where transit patrons can park their cars to board regional express bus service. The El Monte Transit Center marks the beginning of the El Monte Transitway. The Center provides connections between nineteen different bus lines serving local and regional needs and three Greyhound bus services. The Center also offers 2,095 parking spaces for residents of the El Monte area to park and then use a regional bus service to reach downtown Los Angeles or other stations on the Transitway. In addition to the El Monte Busway, Caltrans recently completed construction of the Harbor Freeway Transitway. Constructed in the median of the I-110 freeway, four bus routes currently serve transit stations along the freeway. These median stations are located within the grade separated HOV network which allows buses to pick up and drop off passengers without leaving the HOV network, speeding travel times through the corridor and making for a smoother ride. In addition, the LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is currently developing a regional bus network that will be built on old railroad right-of-way and in the median of Wilshire Boulevard - one of the busiest bus corridors in the country with over 70,000 passengers per day. Ottawa: Canada's capital also demonstrates the potential for bus rapid transport. Ottawa's busway is among North America's most successful new rapid transport systems, carrying 200,000 riders daily, and nearly 10,000 per peak hour in the peak direction. The busway links downtown Ottawa to several of the region's major activity centers and offers three-minute service intervals during the peak periods. Houston: Houston's Metropolitan Transit Authority was one of the first agencies in the US to use competitive rapid bus transit. Nearly 100 commuter express buses operate on Houston's extensive busway and HOV network. The Houston system enjoys nearly 20,000 boardings per day on their regional rapid bus transit system. Vancouver: Vancouver, British Columbia is implementing a different type of RBT system. Unlike many cities in North America, Vancouver has very limited freeway facilities. Most transport occurs on local streets and arterials. The B-Line was developed to serve regional trips between the University of British Columbia, the Sky Train, and major cross-town bus routes on local arterials. This service utilized 22 new articulated buses and carries 18,000 passengers a day with minimal capital expenditures and right-of-way acquisition. The B Line service proved so popular that lobbying efforts by residents of Vancouver and the surrounding suburbs yielded the development of another new RBT service known as the Richmond - Vancouver Rapid Bus. Similar to B-Line bus service, the Rapid Bus will offer frequent, reliable, limited-stop service linking downtown Vancouver, the Vancouver International Airport, Richmond City Center and points in between. Forecasts indicate over 30,000 trips a day will be served on the new RBT line. Other cities in North America that have implemented some form of RBT
system or are planning RBT system expansions include: Miami, Seattle,
Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Eugene, San Diego, and Toronto. SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA
PROPOSAL The concept includes a number of elements, such as buses on carpool lanes, improved bus access into and out of carpool lanes, expanded Park-and-Ride lots at convenient locations to the freeways, hubs for timed transfers, long-haul bus service in lengthy corridors, and late-night service in certain corridors. In a number of corridors, the buses also provide local circulation at the origin or destination end of the route. At the Super Hubs, the rapid buses connect to suburban bus systems, BART, Light Rail Transit (LRT), commuter rail and ferries, depending on the location. The rapid bus system takes advantage of the regions investments in the HOV network. The HOV network is detailed in Figure 1 following this proposal. The total capital cost of our proposal is about $178 million, including $108 million for comfortable buses with high back seating, and $70 million for Park-and-Ride costs and direct HOV access facilities. In terms of operating costs, we have estimated over a 15-year period, the rapid bus system would need about $722 million in net operating subsidy, or approximately $48 million per year. The system as a whole would generate about 26,600 new daily transit riders in 2020, which means the bus system would convert this number of daily trips from autos to transit. The actual number of passengers boarding the bus system would be larger, but our analysis has focused on the new rider number as a measure of the comparative effectiveness of different transit investments. We next describe the rapid bus concept in each individual corridor in terms of the services provided, support facilities required, and costs.
Bay Area Rapid Bus Corridors GOLDEN GATE Costs: Costs include vehicles ($14.1 million) and funds for upgrading Park-and-Ride lots and transit centers ($10 million). I-80 Fairfield's Transportation Center would be the "anchor" Super Hub in the corridor with supporting hubs at such locations as the Vacaville Downtown Transit Center, Vallejo Ferry, and Curtola Park-and-Ride lot. Cost: Costs include new vehicles ($19 million), a slip ramp at University Ave. in Berkeley to provide easy bus access into and out of the I-80 carpool lane ($10 million), and a set-aside to improve Park-and-Ride facilities and transit centers ($5 million). SR 92/84 Cost: The main cost is for vehicles ($14.1 million). I-680 HOV lanes would extend from the Benicia Bridge down I-680 to the Silicon Valley. Construction of a southbound carpool lane over the I-680 Sunol Grade is on a fast track, and there is also interest in expediting the construction of a new northbound HOV lane in the opposite direction. The rapid bus system would be enhanced by an HOV gap closure project from Route 84 through the I-680/580 interchange to connect with the existing carpool lanes at the Contra Costa County line. This extension will permit express buses originating as far north as Concord/Pleasant Hill to use carpool lanes to Milpitas where the buses would branch off to major employment destinations along I-880, Route 237, and the Montague Expressway. The only HOV gap would be a short stretch through the I-680/24 Interchange in Walnut Creek. In addition to the Bay Area buses, the San Joaquin SMART buses would also use the carpool lanes over the Sunol Grade. The major support facilities in this corridor include a super hub in Pleasanton at Bernal Ave. which will provide parking space for Tri Valley residents and provide intermodal transfers with suburban buses and ACE commuter rail. There would also be slip ramps off of I-680 to access the Bernal hub and the Montague Expressway HOV lanes in Santa Clara County. Costs: Costs include vehicles ($14.1 million), the cost of the Bernal Super Hub, direct access to/from I-680 ($10 million), and the slip ramp between I-680 and the Montague Expressway ($5 million). I-880 Costs: The main cost would be for vehicles ($8.7 million). SANTA CLARA VALLEY Support facilities include freeway HOV-to-HOV connectors on Route 85, one in South San Jose and one in Mountain View. A number of existing transit hubs would be further developed for timed transfers and real-time transit information, including Eastridge Mall, Great Mall Light Rail, Mountain View Light Rail/Caltrain, Diridon intermodal, Stevens Creek/Wolfe Park and ride, and others. Costs: The main cost is for vehicles ($15.8 million). STATE ROUTE 4 Cost: Costs include vehicles ($6.2 million), and Park-and-Ride lots ($10 million). I-580 CORRIDOR Costs: Costs include vehicles ($2.5 million) and the cost to develop new and improved Park-and-Ride lots along I-580 at future BART station sites ($10 million). PENINSULA CORRIDOR The main infrastructure needed would be additional park and ride lot development along I-280. Cost: Costs include vehicles ($13.3 million) and the costs for park and ride lots on I-280. |
Exclusive
bus lanes remove buses from mixed flow traffic and allow buses to
move unimpeded by traffic throughout a corridor. Bus lanes are typically
marked with special striping and are signed to indicate that only
transit vehicles are allowed. Bus lanes are in certain transit rich
areas of the region. HOV lanes also function as bus lanes. The HOV
network for the Bay Area is detailed in Figure 1 at the end of this
proposal.
In
this corridor, rapid buses would provide service from the Fairfield
Transit Center, down the I-80 HOV lane expanded from the Carquinez
Bridge to the Bay Bridge, connecting to BART at the del Norte station,
and terminating at the San Francisco Transbay Terminal. This key
commuter route would operate with extended hours and serve Park-and-Ride
lots adjacent to I-80 throughout the corridor. Additional components
of the service include a route between the Vallejo Ferry Terminal
and Sacramento and strengthened linkages between local Solano County
communities along the I-80 corridor. A new West Contra County line
in the East Bay is envisioned, traveling on San Pablo Ave. and the
I-80 carpool lane, connecting to employment and activity centers
in West Berkeley and Emeryville, and continuing on to San Francisco.
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