Three city organizations met in a public meeting Monday night to address the continued pursuit of a Bus Rapid Transit system in the city of Madison.
Metropolitan Planning Organization, Capital Region Sustainable Communities and Capital Area Regional Planning Commission presented its study on a new bus service and received feedback from the community for the first time on the prospects of the project.
According to a MPO pamphlet, “BRT is high-frequency, limited-stop service that offers an improved rider experience on busy streets and highways.”
Joe Kern, Project Manager of SRF Consulting said the purpose of last night’s meeting was to perform an initial screening with the community, and the next step will be to define specific system-wide components of the proposed BRT system, including span and frequency, stop spacing and stop amenities.
The study done by the groups evaluated the possibility of an integrated transit project which would feature high-capacity transit with fewer obstacles than rail, MPO member Bill Schaefer said.
“BRT has the potential to vastly improve transit in the Madison area,” Schaefer said. “Madison is very well positioned to be able to capture federal funding for BRT.”
Some of the goals of BRT include reducing travel times, attracting new transit riders, improving connections between low income and/or transit dependent neighborhoods and centers of employment, Kern said.
Kern said technology would allow customers to know when the next bus would arrive. Buses would come to stops every ten minutes in the peak hours and every 15 minutes in off hours, he added.
Kern said if things continue on the right track after developing more concepts, the final report for the project would be finished in early 2013.
“This is the starter of the discussion, not the conclusion,” Kern said about the study.
Schaefer said there would be trade-offs when it comes to automobile traffic, bicycle facilities and parking if BRT were implemented in Madison. The purpose of the study is to weigh the benefits of BRT as well as the cost and impact of these trade-offs, he added.
According to an MPO pamphlet, CARPC and CRSC were able to fund the study through a three-year, $1.975 million Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
MPO member Chuck Camp presented annual fixed-route ridership figures from 1970-2011, which showed ridership at 14.9 million last year and predicts the ridership to be over 15 million this year.
Vice Chair of the Capital Area Regional Planning Commission Peter McKeever said the BRT would make routes faster, more frequent and friendlier.
BRT would better connect housing, jobs and other destinations with higher capacity tools, he said.
Kern compared the BRT in Minneapolis to what could become a reality in Madison. The Minneapolis BRT is solid in terms of the results it is producing, he said.
According to the pamphlet, other features of the new BRT system would include electronic pre-pay smartcards and pre-payment kiosks, allowing for off-board fare collection to speed up boarding and make it more convenient.
Kern also added that the BRT would average 15 mph, decreasing the amount of time to go long distance by 20 to 25 percent.
MPO member Mike Cechvala said BRT capacity would hit 75-80 with standing spaces.
MPO member Ken Golden stressed the flexibility of BRT, adding it would reopen the availability for students to live farther off campus and save money.
