Richmond Region Transportation

[cltbwimob]

DRPT recommendation for dc2rva HSR out today.  They recommend full service operation (i.e. All passenger trains in RVA go through both stations) at both Staples Mill and Main Street Stations.  

They rejected Dr. Tranni's push for a Boulevard Station at least in part because it was not in the CBD despite his comical effort to argue that it was the new CBD.  Also the Boulevard Station concept was estimated to have a price tag similar to the RVM/RVR plan put forth by DRPT, undermining Dr. Tranni's argument that a hypothetical Boulevard Station would be cheaper.

http://dc2rvarail.com/about/recommendations/

[Wahoo 07]

Glad to see this is moving forward.  I don't think that it's possible to overstate the impact that HSR will have on Richmond and the Commonwealth as a whole.  Staples Mill definitely needs a renovation/upgrade.  I am curious to see how they configure MSS for the increase in capacity that will surely follow -- whether they expand the elevated lines with more platforms or something else entirely.  While it would probably be prohibitively expensive, moving the platforms underground, coupled with a James River tunnel would be interesting an interesting concept.  It could be like RVA's Penn Station.

[jbjust]

2 hours ago, Wahoo 07 said:

Glad to see this is moving forward.  I don't think that it's possible to overstate the impact that HSR will have on Richmond and the Commonwealth as a whole.  Staples Mill definitely needs a renovation/upgrade.  I am curious to see how they configure MSS for the increase in capacity that will surely follow -- whether they expand the elevated lines with more platforms or something else entirely.  While it would probably be prohibitively expensive, moving the platforms underground, coupled with a James River tunnel would be interesting an interesting concept.  It could be like RVA's Penn Station.

What impact do you think it will have?  As I understand it, it will only cut the transit time from it's current 2 hr 15 min to around 1:30 minutes.  

[blopp1234]

As expensive as it would be, I'd love to see the northeast maglev corridor extended to Richmond. Maglevs could cut the trip easily in half of what they are proposing with high speed rail and maglevs cost much less to operate and are better for the environment. They could build an underground terminal below Main Street station that connects it to DC in less than an hour. While this probably will not happen for over 50 years if ever, it would be amazing to see an investment of that proportion in rva.

Edited December 7, 2016 by blopp1234

[Wahoo 07]

59 minutes ago, jbjust said:

What impact do you think it will have?  As I understand it, it will only cut the transit time from it's current 2 hr 15 min to around 1:30 minutes.  

Speaking as one who travels between DC and RVA, ninety minutes is a colossal improvement over Amtrak's current schedule or I-95 (which can be two hours or four depending on the situation).  A reliable high speed connection to DC/NOVA will be a boon for both the business and legal communities in Richmond.  It facilitates greater transit ease to the northeast, especially to New York.  HSR through MSS will spur greater development in downtown Richmond.  HSR is a major, permanent investment and will serve as a catalyst for growth in the city and region.  Looking beyond DC to the greater Southeast HSR plan, Richmond is poised to be a major junction in the Upper South; a sub-region in which Richmond should be and has historically been the principal city.

[blopp1234]

http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/richmond.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/68/36896c95-f297-5660-961b-e625af137e4a/5854401246afa.pdf.pdf

http://m.richmond.com/news/article_b7566fcd-e6cb-502a-8417-fad19e6633b5.html?mode=jqm

Cant believe this wasn't already posted but RTD posted an article about the pulse and the plans to expand BRT to the surrounding counties. The article was great and I love what they are planning to do with this in the counties. Hopefully it will decrease the rate of sprawl and encourage development around stations in poorer areas. Still wondering why they won't extend it down Jeff Davis as that area needs it more than probably any other suburban area. Anyway, they project costs at up to around 1 billion to build the entire network and hopefully the counties see the success the city is having with it and hop on board immediately. BRT definitely is the key to building up RVAs transit system, but we need to get chesterfield on board for this vision to become reality.

Edited December 18, 2016 by blopp1234

[tparkerzut]

http://www.richmond.com/business/article_8fbbbd79-a597-580e-9cb6-c178a952b034.html

Great news for the airport! Very excited to see traffic keep growing. I'm hoping 2017 will be the biggest year yet.

[eandslee]

I'm hoping the airport hits 4 million next year!  This would mean more options and more direct flights. Keeping my fingers crossed!

[eandslee]

Sorry...deleted. Was trying to post photos of BRT construction, but it didn't work. 

Edited February 9, 2017 by eandslee

[drayrichmond]

1 hour ago, eandslee said:

Sorry...deleted. Was trying to post photos of BRT construction, but it didn't work. 

Don't worry about the picture because they set up a web cam to follow one of the stations being constructed!!!

http://www.richmond.com/news/local/city-of-richmond/article_80540b56-21e9-59c6-89ad-effa7b616559.html

http://www.pulserva.com/

 

[tparkerzut]

10 hours ago, hikendesign said:

Seeing a lot of activity on Broad street for the pulse and beyond broad down to main towards rockets.  I think it will look good and in particular will help the roads, infrastructure near rockets, which will help a lot. I've said before, oh, I'm going to ride the bus but I have to be honest, am I really going to?  Are people going to ride a bus?  

Are people going to ride the bus? That's a great question and brings up a lot about public transportation in this country right now. It's a popular topic and a lot of people want public transportation. However I think a lot of people like the idea of it, but most middle class people who have the means for a car aren't going to use it... ever. They want it in their city because its viewed as a good thing but I don't think they will use it. Will people use the BRT? I really don't know.

With that said I do use the bus and bike everywhere as I don't have a car. If you are interested in using the bus find an easy route that is convenient for you, one that you don't need to make a transfer, and make the jump. I think a lot of people will find that the bus can be quite relaxing and not nearly as long you think it will be. Time goes by a lot quicker when you can just play on your phone for 20 minutes. 

[Wahoo 07]

15 minutes ago, hikendesign said:

The straight line option of the Pulse may work and there are a lot of people living along the route so hope they use it.  The hole transfer issue can be avoided which get's rid of the "where's this thing taking me" problem.  VCU grad here and city dweller for more than a decade, though years ago, no car, rode bike or walked everywhere, never got on a bus but to be honest, there wasn't much to go to other than Willow Lawn and I'd just go with a friend that had a car or something.  I did ride the bus when living in new england, but preferred to walk or bike there too.  Was easier than waiting...if walking, biking, easy parking, cars easy available, uber, make it easy, still not sure this will be the top option.  I like it, don't get me wrong, just wonder how well it will do, i hope it's a huge success!

I've been using mass transit for almost two years and once you make the adjustment, it's great.  You reclaim so much time during your commute.  It's also as mindless as transportation is going to get for the short term.  Many Richmonders will need some time to adjust, but, once they do, BRT will be successful and hopefully a prelude to more mass transit investment.

[RiverYuppy]

There used to be a very popular "drunk bus" that went up and down Cary.  It kind of faded away due to lack of funding.  Many people didn't know about it (except through word of mouth) and figuring out when it was going to come was a pain.

However, the people that rode it loved it (it being free probably helped).

I think that the Main Street Station stop is going to be very popular for people going out for the night.  Hopefully it will bring more people to the bars/restaurants near the 17th st. Market and also be within close enough walking distance for people to use it to get to Cha Cha's and Society (two very popular clubs).

I think the 17th St. Market is going to get more popular from foot traffic soon too, with hundreds of apartments going up within walking distance of it.  That's going to increase the desire for transportation to it.

If I lived along the BRT, I would certainly at least use it for the ride downtown (then maybe Uber back depending on if it's still running).

Edited March 1, 2017 by RiverYuppy

[Shakman]

Speaking of Uber.  Is their a strong demand for Uber in the Richmond area?  What are the surge amounts during evening rush in Downtown?

[RiverYuppy]

There is certainly a decent demand for Uber; however, I don't use it as much now that I live in Shockoe and can walk downtown.

You'll often see surges during specific hours, but they don't get to be unreasonably high unless there is a holiday or huge event going on.

Checking my phone from my apartment right now there is an Uber 2 minutes away and no surge charge.

[eandslee]

1 hour ago, hikendesign said:

Went by 15th & Franklin - had seen this being built and wasn't sure what it was, thought it may have been another welcome to Richmond sign when it was being constructed, but it's an entry sign for Main Street Station, looks like this is to be the main entry - under 95 and into the station?  In comparison to what this area looked like, this is a huge change, what do you all think of this as the main entry - assuming that's what this is? 

 

 

I like it and it looks great!  I just worry that they won't be able to fill the large space inside with enough vendors/tenants. I'm envisioning something similar to the Reading Market in Philadelphia.  Only thing is that I'm not sure there is enough population in the area to support it.  The only tenant thus far is a visit Richmond welcome center if I recall correctly. 

[wrldcoupe4]

It's all pretty. - but I think the city has botched the execution. Oh well - At least we have spent 10s of millions of dollars on a pretty fish bowl with a visitor's center inside. Aesthetically it's a great improvement, I'm just so incredibly underwhelmed with what they've put together. If this was the private sector, heads would roll. Since the city is in charge they are patting one another on the back. 

[wrldcoupe4]

I don't mind the cost. What bothers me is that they have had years to program tenancy for this amazing space and we have virtually nothing to activate this space save for a small visitors center kiosk. Part of the problem is that this is not and should not really be the core compentency for the economic development folks. The sea change we hope for in this location (land surrounding the station) won't happen until the city lays out what can be done to alleviate the numerous site challenges most notably that the surrounding land lays in a flood zone. The ballpark plan that remedied it is not coming back, so until the city steps up I fear it will continue to remain fallow, regardless of how cool the train shed comes together. 

Edited March 31, 2017 by wrldcoupe4

[RiverYuppy]

I think the important thing to note here is that a significant amount of the funding was non-city dollars.  Whether good or bad, if you want to get your slice of the money pie you have to take the money when it comes along.  

I think that is what Richmond did here.  We don't have a high traffic train station or anything to warrant that amount of development there IMO.  However, when the government comes along offering to spend millions to fix an eye sore, you take it or some other city/county will.  

There are a lot better places that we could have dropped that $30mm, but Main Street station is what we got.

[wrldcoupe4]

It's not about the money, it's about what's being delivered. 

[Wahoo 07]

The reopening of Franklin Street should help inject some life and traffic into the area.  Perhaps that will bring about some interest in MSS retail.

[wrldcoupe4]

Not vehicular traffic correct? Cyclists and pedestrians. It will be good to relink the grid. 

[Wahoo 07]

16 minutes ago, wrldcoupe4 said:

Not vehicular traffic correct? Cyclists and pedestrians. It will be good to relink the grid. 

Not sure.  Either way, it helps break down the massive partition between that part of Shockoe Bottom and downtown.  If the MSS rehabilitation does that, then it will be no worse than a partial success.

[DJCortesRVA]

https://www.facebook.com/captrailbikeshuttle/

This is bike/transportation relevant, so I'll just post here. The new Capital Trail Bike Shuttle is having an introduction/opening event at Triple Crossing in Fulton on Sunday from 2:00pm-? This will offer cyclists (and maybe pedestrians) transportation to and from various points along the trail so folks won't have to worry about getting back to their starting destination. it doesn't launch til some point in April, so they're just promoting it Sunday and giving more information.

[eandslee]

Does anyone on this board keep up with, or have a heavy interest in, The Pulse BRT system?  I'm excited for this system to come online (the sooner the better), but I just read somewhere that instead of opening in October this year, it will probably be sometime next year before it is operational and fully running.  Is someone keeping up with, or know the reason for the delay?  Also, there appears to be very little in the way of photographic progress - does anyone have any recent photos?  I know there is a webcam, but it only shows one station and the picture is grainy.  Does anyone know if the dedicated lanes will be painted or be a different color than the regular pavement (like concrete)?  I know that up here in Alexandria, the dedicated BRT lanes are concrete and colored concrete - looks very nice (is black asphalt in as it gets into Crystal City).  Was just wondering.

Here's link to some photos of the system.  The place is blossoming with development around it.  These photos illustrate that very well:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/beyonddc/sets/72157646815803931/

Also, I'm curious to know what's up with the bike rideshare project that was supposed to be up by now...the Bee or something like that?  Does anyone have an update or know the status on what to expect at this point?