From the inbox:
You spoke, and METRO listened. Beginning Jan. 24, 2016, METRO will put in place a series of route and schedule modifications based on feedback received from riders and bus operators since launching the New Bus Network Aug. 16, 2015.
These service enhancements are expected to reduce overcrowding and improve on-time performance, and are the next phase in METRO’s five-year plan to create a more comprehensive transit network with bus and rail. Click here to see a complete list of changes.
Like Chris Andrews and several other folks, I got to attend a presentation by Metro about its redesigned bus network – how it has gone so far, what the changes that are to come at the end of this week are about, where they go from here. I can’t compete with Chris’ detailed writeup about the conversation we had with Metro, so let me encourage you to read his post. I do have a few observations to add:
– The most common statement on the list of changes is “Adjusted running times to improve service”. What that means is that Metro scheduled departure times from each endpoint for all routes, based on estimates and test drives of the routes. In some cases, the actual amount of time it took for a bus to get from one end of the route to the other was less than Metro expected, so rather than have buses sit and wait before heading back out again, they adjusted the official schedule. The end result of this should be more frequent departures from endpoints.
– As has been previously reported, Metro has already seen a significant increase in bus ridership, only a few months into the new system. I asked if they could tell if it came from regular riders who were now using buses more often, from completely new riders, or some combination of both. In reply, Metro Board member Christoph Spieler pointed out that they turn over about 20% of their ridership every year, just due to people moving, reaching teenage years or dying, and other life changes. The key for them is to capture a larger share of the people whose changed life situations – new home, new job, retirement, new school, whatever – has them at a point where they are considering how they will get to the places they need to go. In an ideal world, more people will consider those things, and will choose transit-conducive options, as these changes approach and before they happen.
– Other challenges Metro faces: Sometimes, destinations that are frequently used by transit-dependent populations get moved without Metro knowing about it. And sometimes, the new locations for said destinations are not at all conducive for being served by transit; they’re on side roads far away from main arterials, there are no sidewalks, etc. Social Security offices and HCC campuses were cited as examples. In general, communication between Metro and other government agencies has improved greatly, but there is still room for improvement.
– Sidewalks in general are a challenge for Metro, because people can’t or won’t use Metro bus service if they can’t easily or safely get to and from the bus stops. Chris Andrews had a detailed look at the sidewalks and street crossings along his to-be-changed route back in May of 2014. A lot of the routes and numbers he discusses there are different now, but the challenges are the same. Building and repairing sidewalks isn’t Metro’s job, it’s the city and the county’s job. The more that can be done to fix and improve sidewalks at and around high-use bus stops, the more people will ride.
– In a way, the fact that Metro is just tweaking these routes has buried the lede. As Spieler put it, the fact that there are no major changes to be made means that they basically got it right the first time. That’s an amazing accomplishment, and the ridership increase numbers bear out the reasons for making the change. In my exit interview with Mayor Parker, I said that Metro and its many accomplishments over the past six years are something she deserves a lot of credit for. You can add in the bus system reimagining to that, because as well as it has gone, it was a huge risk to undertake. A whole lot of things could have gone wrong, and if they had they would have landed at the Mayor’s feet. That she had the confidence in Metro and its ability to pull this off says a great deal about them both. Now transit agencies around the country, which had been closely watching Metro and not quite believing that they “had the guts” (as Spieler put it) to do this are thinking about doing it themselves. Having the political will to go through with this was key.
– Yes, these changes have come at a cost to some people. It’s been documented, and it was openly acknowledged at the meeting. I don’t think that anyone can credibly argue that the benefits have not outweighed the costs, however real they are to the people who were directly affected. Still, this is another indicator of how well the whole process has gone, and how good a job Metro did at designing and implementing the new system. You may note in the article that was linked in that post that one of the louder critics of Metro and the system reimagining project, a man who predicted widespread disaster as implementation approached, said he was preparing to file a Title VI complaint with the Federal Transit Authority, accusing Metro of discrimination by diverting transit resources away from minority neighborhoods. That was back in September. I checked with Metro on this, and they confirmed that no such complaint was ever filed. Make of that what you will.
So that’s my impression of where things are now. I hope some of the other attendees write up theirs as well. I have some further thoughts about what Metro ought to be working on over the next few years, but this post is long enough and I’m still working through it. I’ll post that at a later date. Has the new bus map changed how you use transit? Leave a comment and let us know.