Transit
Streetsblog Basics
Transit Union and Sierra Club Join Forces for Earth Day and Beyond
Earth Day is a week from tomorrow. How many people will drive to their local environmental festival without even a second thought to how they got there?
April 15, 2014
Klein Backs Off Bill to Restore Flashing Lights on Select Bus Service
Flashing lights on Select Bus Service vehicles are designed to help riders distinguish between pay-before-boarding SBS and pay-onboard local service. After years of operation without issue, Staten Island lawmakers exploited a minor state law to have the MTA turn off the lights 16 months ago. Bills in Albany to find a solution are stuck in committee, and now the bill's most powerful sponsor is backing away.
April 11, 2014
When Will Select Bus Service Get Its Flashing Lights Back?
When Select Bus Service launched in 2008, the program included blue flashing lights on the front of each bus to help riders distinguish the service from local buses. This is particularly important for Select Bus Service, since most SBS routes require riders to pay their fare at a machine before boarding. The flashing lights help riders know whether they're boarding an SBS bus, with its special payment system, or a local bus.
April 10, 2014
Long Arm of the Koch Brothers Extends to Nashville to Slap Down Transit
On Tuesday, Nashville Mayor Karl Dean announced that he might do away with dedicated transit lanes on two stretches of the Amp, the proposed seven-mile bus rapid transit line that could set an important precedent for the car-centric city. Dean is the main political backer of the project, so the fact that he's buckling says something about the mounting pressure to water down or kill the Amp. And that pressure isn't going to let up any time soon, because Dean and other supporters of effective transit in Nashville are up against opponents with very deep pockets.
April 3, 2014
Will de Blasio Make Good on His Pledge to Build Great Bus Rapid Transit?
During his campaign for mayor, Bill de Blasio called for the creation of a citywide, "world-class" Bus Rapid Transit network consisting of at least 20 routes. These new routes would provide a crucial link for communities beyond the reach of subways and speed trips that are poorly served by the city's Manhattan-centric rail system.
April 1, 2014
What Transit Riders Could Get If Cuomo’s Transit Raid Doesn’t Go Through
How much transit service could the MTA add if Governor Cuomo's proposed $40 million transit raid doesn't make Albany's final budget? Here's a taste, courtesy of the Straphangers Campaign and the Riders Alliance.
March 24, 2014
With Ridership on the Rise, Will Congress Step Up and Invest in Transit?
Yesterday the American Public Transportation Association reported that Americans made more transit trips in 2013 than in any other year since 1956. Of course, per capita ridership is still low compared to the 1950s, and we're nowhere near the ridership peaks of the 1940s. But when transit trips increase 1.1 percent while population rises 0.7 percent, you know change is afoot.
March 11, 2014
Report: NYC’s Density and Transit Set Citi Bike Apart
Even when adjusted for its size, Citi Bike's ridership numbers have quickly surpassed comparable systems. While there are many factors shaping Citi Bike's success, a new report from NYU argues that the program's connections to transit could be a key to its strikingly high ridership.
March 10, 2014
American Transit Ridership Hits 57-Year High
The last year transit ridership was this high in the United States, Dwight Eisenhower signed the Federal Aid Highway Act. Not since 1956, according to the American Public Transportation Association, have Americans logged as many transit trips as they did in 2013: 10.7 billion. It was the eighth year in a row that Americans have made more than 10 billion transit trips.
March 10, 2014
In Obama Budget, a Glimpse of What Beefed-Up Transit Funding Could Do
The budget proposal released by President Obama yesterday fleshes out the transportation ideas put out by the White House last week and includes specific grants for transit upgrades and expansions in 2015, but many of them won't be part of this budget unless Congress agrees to increase funding for transportation.
March 5, 2014