The Transportation and Mass Transit Megathread

[grilled_cheese]

MTA is rebranding as WEGO?

Two new buses hit the streets today.  They include technology improvements like onboard WiFi and USB charging.

[Guest]

Good news....Now if they could only perfect 2009 technology and provide a working app derailing location and time to pick-up....

Edited July 12, 2018 by Guest

[grilled_cheese]

3 minutes ago, nashville_bound said:

Good news....Now if they could only perfect 2009 technology and provide a working app derailing location and time to pick-up....

The onboard GPS API has been open to the public for a few years now and the Transit App and Google Maps are very accurate.  I doubt they are going to create their own.

I just want CC/Debit swipe payment and/or reloadable fare cards.

[Vrtigo]

1 hour ago, grilled_cheese said:

MTA is rebranding as WEGO?

Two new buses hit the streets today.  They include technology improvements like onboard WiFi and USB charging.

A surprise to me as well! Though the updated branding is long-overdue in my opinion.

More details here.

[e-dub]

Yep. I only use Google Maps for my bus trips. It works beautifully. I'm looking forward to all the changes rolling out!

[Dale]

Is the BRT Lite considered successful ? Also, is Gallatin the only such line operating ?

[e-dub]

Murfreesboro Rd, Charlotte Pk and Nolensville RD have BRT Lite lines, too.

[Dale]

51 minutes ago, e-dub said:

Murfreesboro Rd, Charlotte Pk and Nolensville RD have BRT Lite lines, too.

Thanks!

 

[rookzie]

One of the most dramatic improvements that the Nashville MTA really could undertake to enhance the riding experience and usability, would be to replace the current onboard  audible stop-annunciator system, as the system in use now is quite old and outdated. 

The agency urgently needs to adopt a more sophisticated onboard automated voice annunciator (AVA) system, which announces better detail of major intersections as well as the stops, and which is outfitted with an LED "evolving" map of the current or next (upcoming) stop, as well as previous and upcoming one, two, or three stops.   I have seen these deployed for quite some time in many other transit districts, such as in Las Vegas (RTD), Albuquerque (ABQ), Boston, MBTA, and New Orleans (NORTA).   The visual annunciators are mounted within the interiors and positioned for relatively clear visibility by most riders, and in the case of Las Vegas RTD "Max", "Deuce", and "SDX" routes, two or more such devices are installed for better visibility in crowded and/or its double-deck coaches.  I was even was impressed with the system installed in more modest transit agencies, such as in Harrisburg (Pa. - Capital Area Transit [CAT]).

The LVRTD system Deuce, SDX, and MAX buses have one of the most detailed and descriptive onboard GPS-based text-to-speech annunciator systems, for assisting in identifying transfer points and local landmarks [e.g. "The 7-Eleven at Las Vagas Blvd and Oakley Blvd.]" and real-time display of upcoming and passed stop points, of any bus transit system that I have experienced. (CAD/AVL - computer aided dispatch/automatic vehicle location system, integrated with an Audio Visual Annunciation System - AVAS).
______________________
Realtime Visual Annunciator in a NORTA (New Orleans) streetcar, on its Rampart - Saint Claude Line.
6-24-2018

[volsfanwill]

after traveling to DC, NYC, and London in the past month I will add that our fare system desperately needs to be updated to tap type cards.  NYC was the only one of those 3 that still used magnetic strip paper cards and they are about to start changing over to plastic tap cards soon. 

the tap cards are so easy to use, impossible to mess up, and very convenient. 

and because they are reloadable, i now have them for 4 different cities when I travel so that will speed my trips.

[Bos2Nash]

Similar to London's oyster card, Boston implemented the "Charlie Card" almost a decade ago. They still have the magnetic strip tickets for temporary passengers (ie tourists) so that they can throw them away, but the MBTA hands the hard plastic ones out for free for people. The hardest thing with tap to reload here in Nashville is where do you put the reload machines. Quite honestly, you can't put them outside, unprotected unless the machines are ultra durable and vandal resistant. Boston took to essentially leasing space in convenience stores for the reload machines near the major stops. The biggest thing to implement will be how the fare system works. Boston has a one price fits all system, while London is tap to enter and then tap to exit and you pay based on the distance travelled. that way, someone going from Centieninnal Park to Broadway is paying a bit more than someone going from Edleys on Main to Broadway.

[PruneTracy]

13 hours ago, volsfanwill said:

i now have them for 4 different cities when I travel so that will speed my trips.

[Dale]

I was astonished to learn that Nashville's 7-Day Pass is cheaper than larger city's One-Day Pass. How does that work if it's not a tap card ?

[bnacincy]

On 7/12/2018 at 9:59 AM, Vrtigo said:

A surprise to me as well! Though the updated branding is long-overdue in my opinion.

More details here.

Don't care for the new look-it's way too generic.

I was hoping for something like Music City Link-after all, Nashville already has Music City Star and Music City Circuit.

This could be Anytown USA.

Nashville is not Anytown USA.

[MLBrumby]

It's also extremely childish. I mean, really?  Who wouldn't know what the MTA means? And for how much does this makeover cost? 

[Rockatansky]

19 minutes ago, MLBrumby said:

how much does this makeover cost? 

$100k

[Jamie Hall]

17 minutes ago, MLBrumby said:

It's also extremely childish. I mean, really?  Who wouldn't know what the MTA means? And for how much does this makeover cost? 

Sorry MTA, but this logo does not inspire me to use public transportation. And I'm sure they paid an agency way too much for this logo, much like the state did for that bland red box with a white "T" in it a few years ago.

[BnaBreaker]

Yeah, this name and logo sounds and looks like it was designed by a pharmaceutical company.  

[titanhog]

2 hours ago, BnaBreaker said:

Yeah, this name and logo sounds and looks like it was designed by a pharmaceutical company.  

"WE-GO...the #1 doctor's recommended urinary assistance drug on the market.  One pill...and suddenly, I go...you go...we all go...with WE-GO!"

[Bos2Nash]

On 7/13/2018 at 5:04 PM, Jamie Hall said:

Sorry MTA, but this logo does not inspire me to use public transportation. And I'm sure they paid an agency way too much for this logo, much like the state did for that bland red box with a white "T" in it a few years ago.

Logos are not meant to inspire you to use the system, but rather recognize the system. In terms of recognizing what the system does it at least alludes a bit more to being transit. But other systems around the world and country don't have ridership inspiring logos, they just have recognizable ones. In that sense, this is an improvement to me.

[PruneTracy]

59 minutes ago, Bos2Nash said:

Logos are not meant to inspire you to use the system, but rather recognize the system. In terms of recognizing what the system does it at least alludes a bit more to being transit. But other systems around the world and country don't have ridership inspiring logos, they just have recognizable ones. In that sense, this is an improvement to me.

I'm not sure having a recognizable logo makes that much of a difference. There's only one organization running transit buses around Nashville.

When my firm works with transit agencies (admittedly, of which branding is an afterthought in the planning process), the emphasis is towards finding a consistent motif. For example, you may want to paint all of your buses a single, bright color, and continue that through bus stop infrastructure, route maps, etc. It can be a stripe, pattern, whatever, it just needs to be something you could pick out of your peripheral vision. You don't necessarily get that with just a logo.

(As an aside, it would be my preference if the FHWA, via the MUTCD, designated a single sign color for public transit. Light blue and coral are left as available colors. They did this a few years ago with purple being reserved for tolling facilities, with many tolling companies such as E-ZPass changing their branding to suit, and it's made a world of difference. In fact my first thought in seeing the WeGo branding was that it was a highway tolling company.)

Anyway, maybe MTA wants to own the color purple in Nashville, I don't know. But if it's just going to be a logo change, especially if they continue to run branded services like the Music City Circuit, then it's not going to provide an improvement.

I will however give them tons of credit for managing not to make a single music reference in their branding package.

[Bos2Nash]

17 hours ago, PruneTracy said:

I'm not sure having a recognizable logo makes that much of a difference. There's only one organization running transit buses around Nashville.

When my firm works with transit agencies (admittedly, of which branding is an afterthought in the planning process), the emphasis is towards finding a consistent motif. For example, you may want to paint all of your buses a single, bright color, and continue that through bus stop infrastructure, route maps, etc. It can be a stripe, pattern, whatever, it just needs to be something you could pick out of your peripheral vision. You don't necessarily get that with just a logo.

(As an aside, it would be my preference if the FHWA, via the MUTCD, designated a single sign color for public transit. Light blue and coral are left as available colors. They did this a few years ago with purple being reserved for tolling facilities, with many tolling companies such as E-ZPass changing their branding to suit, and it's made a world of difference. In fact my first thought in seeing the WeGo branding was that it was a highway tolling company.)

Anyway, maybe MTA wants to own the color purple in Nashville, I don't know. But if it's just going to be a logo change, especially if they continue to run branded services like the Music City Circuit, then it's not going to provide an improvement.

I will however give them tons of credit for managing not to make a single music reference in their branding package.

Whether its a logo or a consistent signage or color scheme throughout, what is used to brand the system is what makes it recognizable. The portion that inspires one to ride the system is the reputation that comes with a reliable, clean, operating transit system. That's what I was alluding to with my initial comment. We need a recognizable brand/motif/logo (think London Underground or Boston "T" or Berlin S-Bahn or U-Bahn) to become more successful

We want our transit system to be known in the city no matter how big/dense/active it is and we want a reliable and clean operating system too. If that means painting all our buses purple so people recognize them and we become known as the rolling purple people eater transit system, it is still going to be more recognizable than the current branding lol.

[GregH]

8 hours ago, Bos2Nash said:

it is still going to be more recognizable than the current branding lol.

Nah, Bart Durham is very recognizable.

[grilled_cheese]

Okay, which one of you was this?

https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2018/07/18/mercedes-driver-rams-joyride-cart-broadway-road-rage-incident-nashville-police/797017002/

[PaulChinetti]

Good lord. I don't mind any of the "alternative modes" of transportation on the streets except for the Tractor hay rides (that's more of a Nashville doesn't need more help to look country bumpkin).

But rant about it on a message board old timer, don't run them over!