Project Connect’s staff and consultants recommended against using Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) in large part because of its inability to meet peak time needs as the Austin of 2030 and beyond keeps growing. However, upon closer inspection, BRT seems to have plenty of capacity to meet system needs.
Here …
[MORE]The initial ridership and cost estimates are in for the proposed Grove-Highland Rail (GHR) route. And they are thoroughly disappointing. Simply put, GHR will consume an enormous amount of our transit borrowing capacity without providing mobility at a meaningfully lower rider subsidy than regular bus service.
Previously, I’ve argued …
[MORE]Given the underwhelming ridership and cost figures estimated for the Grove to Highland rail proposal, some proponents are deploying a "political" argument on behalf of the route. Below is a real-world specimen that captures the main points of the political argument:
Let’s address these points individually.
1. “Unique consensus …
[MORE]I sent the following note to all Council Members earlier today.
"Dear Council Members,
As of this morning, Project Connect has not publicly released the methodology or source data for the ridership and cost estimates behind its LPA recommendation.
These have been repeatedly requested by many advocates, including myself.
The …
[MORE][This post is intended to serve as background reading for my portion of the upcoming transportation session of the 2014 Leadership Austin Engage Series. For best results, please review "Austin Transportation in 20 Slides" before diving into this post. And remember, these are my views, not those of the fine …
[MORE]