|
|
|
Integrating Paratransit and Fixed-Route Transit Services By Richard Weiner
In 2008 Nelson\Nygaard authored TCRP Synthesis 76, “Integration of Paratransit and Fixed-Route Transit Services.” The report highlights the experiences of transit agencies nation-wide that are seeking a variety of ways to integrate their fixed-route and paratransit services. One form of integrated service that has received some attention is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) paratransit to fixed route feeder service. Although the ADA allows transit agencies to limit trip offerings to feeder service, 18 years after the passage of the ADA only a handful of transit agencies nationwide have implemented mandatory feeder service. The report examines the reasons for resistance to implementation and success stories at a variety of agencies.
Additional examples of integrated service included in this study are the provision of community bus or circulators, connectors, fixed-route fare incentives, and route deviation. Based on web research and stakeholder interviews, this report identifies 46 examples of integrated service. These include feeder and connector service at Pierce Transit in Tacoma, Washington, feeder and route deviation services at UTA in Salt Lake City, Utah, and feeder, connector, community bus and route deviation services at ACESS in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Smaller systems such as Agency for Community Transit offer mandatory feeder service in Madison County, Illinois.
Significant cost savings are a compelling reason for transit agencies to set up integrated service. The study describes policies and associated program features encouraging successful implementation of integrated services including in-person eligibility screening processes, operational procedures, travel training, education and outreach, marketing, and technology.
........................................
Parking Pays for
Itself in Downtown Ann Arbor By Tom Brown and David
Fields, AICP
Ann Arbor, home of the University of Michigan, benefits
from both big city and small town attributes, including
a compact downtown, vibrant public spaces, and the
ability to get around town on foot, bike, or bus.
So it's not surprising that this city of 114,000 has
attracted increasing residential interest from outside
its traditional, university-centered populations —
particularly among empty nesters looking for a pleasing
retirement community.
Download
the full article(PDF less than 1 MB)
.....................................................
Roadway Network for Qunli New District in Harbin, China
In 2008 Nelson\Nygaard, on a team with the Guangzhou
Municipal Technology Development Corp. and the Institute
for Transportation and Development Policy under contract
to the City of Harbin (China) refined the design of
the basic roadway network for the new district of Qunli.
This new district will have a total land area of 27
square kilometers with an expected population of 320,000.
Previous consultants had proposed superblocks averaging
800 meters square and 40-70 meter wide roadways with
10 motor vehicle lanes and limited pedestrians or non-motorized
vehicle facilities.
Our team took the basic network and:
- Reviewed the existing traffic
analysis
- Established design concepts
intersections, crosswalks, bus stops, and BRT stations
- Established cross-sections
for all major roadways
- Designed the three major boulevards
- Sketched the BRT system
- Sketched the internal street
network (inside the super-blocks)
- Reviewed the parking analysis
and sketched a parking management system
This work built on a report entitled Sustainable
Urban Transport - Harbin written by the team for the
Asia Development Bank in 2007.
..................................................... Coordinated Public Transit Human Services Transportation
Plans
by Connie Soper
In August 2005, President Bush signed into law the Safe,
Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users,
commonly referred to as SAFETEA-LU. This legislation
authorized the provision of $286.4 billion in guaranteed
funding for federal surface transportation programs
over six years through Fiscal year 2009, including $52.6
billion for federal transit programs.
Starting in Fiscal Year 2007, projects funded through
three programs included in SAFETEA-LU, including the
Job Access and Reverse Commute Program (JARC, Section
5316), New Freedom (Section 5317) and the Formula Program
for Elderly Individuals and Individuals with Disabilities
(Section 5310) are required to be derived from a locally
developed, coordinated public transit and human services
transportation plan. SAFETEA-LU guidance issued by the
Federal Transportation Administration (FTA) in May 2007
indicates that the plan should be a “unified, comprehensive
strategy for public transportation service delivery
that identifies the transportation needs of individuals
with disabilities, older adults, and individuals with
limited income, laying out strategies for meeting these
needs, and prioritizing services.”
Read
the full article
.....................................................
Easter Seals Project ACTION Toolkit
by Richard Weiner
Nelson\Nygaard was commissioned by Easter Seals Project
ACTION to produce a toolkit to measure the accessibility
and safety of bus stops in a variety of settings--urban,
suburban, and rural--and provide information on best
practices and pertinent regulations. Since the toolkit
was completed in Spring 2006, hundreds of copies have
already been distributed to transit agency and public
works department staff responsible for bus stop placement
and design. The toolkit, which was field tested in
six varied locations, includes a web site and checklists
for conducting assessments in the field.
Download
the full report (PDF - 3.9 MB)
.....................................................
Crediting Low-Traffic Developments by Adam Millard-Ball
Traffic studies are at the heart of many fundamental
decisions on land use, street design and urban form.
By analyzing the number of trips expected from a new
development, and the consequent impact on traffic congestion
at neighboring intersections, the traffic study is a
driving force behind roadway widths, street and intersection
design, and the level of fees that a developer must
pay to upgrade the transportation infrastructure.
Read
the full article
....................................................
Overcoming the "Last Mile" -
BART's Station Access Guidelines
by Jeffrey Tumlin and
Adam Millard-Ball
The "last mile" from the station or bus stop to a passenger's
final destination is often the weak link in a transit
system. An agency will find it difficult to attract
new riders if pedestrian connections feel unsafe, parking
lots are filled to capacity, and feeder bus stops are
poorly located.
full
article
.....................................................
King County Keeps Moving: Evaluating
Best Practices in ADA Paratransit Eligibility by Richard Weiner
King County Metro in Seattle, Washington, has been recognized
as a trend-setter and leading innovator in the evolution
of paratransit practices and procedures. Faced with
dramatic projected increases in paratransit demand and
costs, the agency implemented significant refinements
to their paratransit eligibility procedures in November
2000.
full
article
.....................................................
How to Involve the Community
in Containing Paratransit Demand: the Santa Cruz Metro
Eligibility Case Study by Richard Weiner
Between 1997 and 2000, ADA paratransit ridership almost
doubled in Santa Cruz County, California, and registration
increased to over 7,500 - a remarkably high number for
the population of less than 200,000. In the ten year
history of registering applicants, no applicant had
ever been turned down, and the files had never been
purged. When the proportion of Santa Cruz METRO's budget
allocated to paratransit began to exceed 10%, the Board
decided to overhaul the entire registration process,
and involve the community at each step of the way.
full
article
.....................................................
Bus Stops: It´s all about
the "curb appeal" by Paul Jewel
One of the best ways to attract customers is to make
sure your system has excellent curb appeal. Curb appeal
starts with the bus stop... the "front door" to your
system.
full
article
.....................................................
Focus on Older People: Maintaining
Senior Mobility by David Koffman
Transportation planners around the country are working
to ensure the mobility of the rapidly increasing population
of older people. Not only is the size of the senior
population expected to grow rapidly, the most rapid
growth is expected to occur in the oldest age groups,
which have the most severe mobility problems.
full
article
.....................................................
Making Transit Oriented Development
Work
by Jeffrey Tumlin, Patrick Siegman and Adam
Millard-Ball
Even a cursory glance around the country reveals almost
exponential growth in interest in transit oriented
development (TOD). Many developments that are touted
as transit oriented development, however, fail to
live up to their potential - even if they are located
close to rail stations or frequent bus routes. As
a result, the potential benefits, including increased
transit ridership, are often lost.
full
article
.....................................................
Parking Policies for Smart Growth
by Adam Millard-Ball
As cities across the country continue to grow, many
are faced with often competing goals regarding parking
policy and Smart Growth. Nelson\Nygaard has conducted
a study that addresses these conflicting goals and
found that parking policies may also affect access
to affordable housing.
full
article
.....................................................
Making Taxi Service Work in San
Francisco
by Adam Millard-Ball
How can we realize the full potential of taxis as an
integral part of an urban transportation system? Nelson/Nygaard
has developed a package of recommendations to improve
reliability and increase taxi use, in a project for
non-profit think-tank the San Francisco Planning and
Urban Research Association.
full
article
.
|
|
