ssiguy2
Senior Member
Yes I do think this is an excellent addition to rapid transit.
They didn't go cheap and just make it a bus with fewer stops but real rapid transit with it's own roadways, real stations and not just stops and they are well spaced, and it is well connected to other transit systems. This is truly a rapid Rapid Transit route. Not all systems have to create a lot of TOD. It often desirable but sometimes it makes sense to use existing corridors not only due to money saved and ease of construction but also by using it's own complete ROW it guarantees the sytsem with both fast and reliable.
Also remember this a true BRT system. BRT systems do not have to rely as heavily on TOD for ridership than do rail systems. This is because the buses can use all or just part of the BRT and then go back to a regular route. TOD is popular because it gets rid of the "last mile" problem and hence makes access to rapid transit easy but bus rapid transit doesn't have that problem. It also faster than a bus-rail system because even if the buses from your street leave at the same time the BRT will still be faster because you don't have to transfer and wait for the train but simply stay on the same bus and away you go.
They didn't go cheap and just make it a bus with fewer stops but real rapid transit with it's own roadways, real stations and not just stops and they are well spaced, and it is well connected to other transit systems. This is truly a rapid Rapid Transit route. Not all systems have to create a lot of TOD. It often desirable but sometimes it makes sense to use existing corridors not only due to money saved and ease of construction but also by using it's own complete ROW it guarantees the sytsem with both fast and reliable.
Also remember this a true BRT system. BRT systems do not have to rely as heavily on TOD for ridership than do rail systems. This is because the buses can use all or just part of the BRT and then go back to a regular route. TOD is popular because it gets rid of the "last mile" problem and hence makes access to rapid transit easy but bus rapid transit doesn't have that problem. It also faster than a bus-rail system because even if the buses from your street leave at the same time the BRT will still be faster because you don't have to transfer and wait for the train but simply stay on the same bus and away you go.