I appreciate it when national blogs get into the weeds of Seattle or Washington State issues. And while I think the elimination of the free ride area is a net good, I’m also skeptical that Rapid Ride line D is going to be, um, rapid.
The fact that it’s still on the road means it’s only going as fast as traffic. And it’s going to have problems with signal priority and, initially, with paying before your board. So it’s not going to be as fast as it could be. But hopefully those other things can be ironed out eventually.
All that said, even a small change in the bus can make a net positive benefit. I grew up in Lake Forest Park, and I can tell you the 522 is such a better way to get from North KC than the 307 was. It’s not winding and it doesn’t take a random stop at Northgate. The 15 isn’t nearly as bad as that was, so I’m not sure it can make it up.
Yeah, I’m not sure they should have called them ‘Rapid’ per se, it’s more like they’re street cars on wheels. Cheaper than a street car, and easier to move lines, but run on simple straight forward ‘lines’ that are easy to find or figure out (easy stations to see). While they can’t magically whisk through traffic, I love the idea of a bus that doesn’t stop every 120 feet to pickup or let off someone. It’s not a taxi, more like a train that has only certain ‘stops’. That’s nice. And if they really have enough for the lines that they come by on a frequent schedule (not having to wait 30-45 minutes for the next bus) then it’s useful. Again, maybe they won’t work, but I give them credit for trying something new.
Elevated platforms, level-load coaches with multiple doors, and pay-at-the-platform.
That’s BRT.
The “rapids” in Los Angeles use a transponder system that makes red lights ahead of the bus turn green and green ones stay that way until the bus has passed. I think they’re supposed to have that here but the changes to the signal system haven’t been implemented yet–at least not on the B line on the Eastside which I ride every day. Some of my SoCal friends say riders get a little frightened sometimes when there’s a red light ahead and the driver floors the accelerator instead of braking.
There’s another problem here that’s partly due to our rapids being hybrids with a relatively small diesel (the ones in SoCal are non-hybrids powered by natural gas) and the fact that we have more hills. On level ground they move along just fine, but they’ll slow way down climbing a grade of any length.
The first RapidRide line was just an old route(the remains of the 174, south of Sea-Tac) that seemed to be re-branded, and re-named, still, an improvement, as some stops have ORCA readers. I also like the three doors on the side vs. the 2 the current Hybrid-buses have. Could have come in handy on the Seafair Shuttles.(Loading at Genessee Park would have been faster) As for tackling the hills, a trolleybus is better around here. The Ballard RapidRide bus one drawback to it that nothing can fix(although the BAT(Business Access-Transit) lanes south of the Ballard Bridge help), the 19-teens era Ballard Bridge, and it’s frequent openings. I take the 18 on average about once a month(sometimes more) to go buy some train magazines at a model train shop(supporting a small business), and I try to take the 18X because of the traffic can make the trip last nearly an hour.
I ride public transit in many cities. Seattle is the only one I’ve seen with this goofy setup where the time you pay depends on which direction you’re headed.
Why assume that eliminating the RFA and requiring payment on entry will create delays? I don’t see such delays in any other city I bus around.
I did not see any delays caused by front-door boarding in Everett or Tacoma.
One thing about Light Rail, is that most new systems use the proof of payment system, but one legacy system, the Boston MBTA Green Line, which I believe’s underground segment is the oldest Subway in America(beats NYC by a few years), does not, and just went to Front-door only. Been some issues, and it’s driver discretion on whether they open the back doors to let off passengers. The Breda Low Floor LRVs were built to one of the weirdest specs I have ever seen. They are not full low-floor, but 70% Low Floor like most Low Floor LRVs in the US, but the farebox is by the driver, in the high floor area, so there has to be a door there.