Rapid millage passes

[Khorasaurus1]

Airports should be a big part of any metro area's transit plan simply because they represent millions of people arriving in the city without a car. These systems have to be well-thought-out, efficient, and connect with the larger system, but they should create their own demand if designed correctly.

I think the problem with airport transit from GRR is that it competes directly with hotel shuttles, many of which are complimentary and take travellers directly to their destination. Right now Grand Rapids is small enough that these shuttles work for the people who have to use them. In larger cities, that isn't the case and transit from the airport is a crucial part of the system (Chicago and Philadelphia are good examples of this).

And then you have Detroit Metro, which basically strands passengers a $40 cab ride from anywhere, but I digress.

[francishsu]

I like the author's analysis of Indianapolis, but I wonder if the reasons he uses (traffic congestion, ease of parking) are given too much weight. The question is whether you can create a route that will generate a high degree of ridership, more than what a bus can handle. St. Louis has the Metrolink, and I wonder if Indianapolis is that much different. Monthly parking rates in the two cities are similar, and I wonder if congestion in St. Louis is much worse than in Indianapolis. In my view, if you have enough people going into the central city to get to work, then something like light rail can succeed.

As for Grand Rapids, maybe someday.

[AlexPKeaton]

I think that article is spot-on. Thanks for the link. In that context, the Rapid millage is probably the best bang for our transit buck: a more effective bus system rather than a giant white elephant. If gas prices remain high ridership will increase and further investments might be justified, but we're not quite there yet.

[metrogrkid]

KUDOS to Lansing's Capital Area Transit Authority (CATA)! They have done it again! Check out their BRT vision as presented in their "Michigan-Grand River Avenue Transportation Study":

http://www.migrtrans.org/documents/onepagers/pager9.pdf

Their leadership soundly has a far better way of showing their public how their proposed BRT corridor will be enhanced and how development can be attracted to the Michigan Avenue/Grand River Avenue BRT corridor. The Board of ITP/The Rapid apparently has some sort of mental block or deficiency that prevents them from showing readily available and positive BRT-related development and ridership increases in other existing communities including with Cleveland's Healthline BRT, with San Bernadino CA's E Street BRT, with San Francisco's Van Ness Avenue BRT and Oakland CA's East Bay BRT.

CATA is even pushing for a more robust system out of the gate; even using language like "all the bells and whistles". There is MUCH GR can learn from CATA's example of vision and leadership on BRT use even before one piece of equipment is moved to begin the construction of GR's Silverline BRT.

Egad, here GR goes AGAIN - actually being development-wise a "young adult" city that at its pivotal moment of transit opportunity is acting development-wise like a "tight-wound insecure little kid that does not inwardly believe in its potential to live up to its GRAND moniker". The Silverline better come with all the bells and whistles too or it will vindicate the transit naysayers by becoming the costly redundancy of ITP Route #1 that it was seen by them as being. Said more plainly: IF THE SILVERLINE DOES NOT BRING IT, METRO GR TRANSIT EXPANSION WILL BE A GLOOMY AND NEARLY PERPENDICULAR PERMANENT UPHILL BATTLE.

We have great opportunity in our hands now. We just need the courage to produce something that minimally has the vision of Lansing. Good grief - WAKE UP GR!!

[metrogrkid]

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[metrogrkid]

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) at its most robust and useful:  BRT - Bogotá, Colombia

[metrogrkid]

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) at its most robust and useful: BRT - Bogotá, Colombia

http://www.streetfilms.org/bus-rapid-transit-bogota/

[joeDowntown]

Feds green light $32M for bus rapid transit Silver Line in metro Grand Rapids:

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2012/10/feds_green_light_32m_for_bus_r.html#incart_2box

Joe