This plan looks great. When are they going to get it started?
It seems like a tight fit east of MSU. Am I right in reading that the BRT will travel in the same lanes past Bogue as the traffic out to the mall? While it is understandable in terms of space and cost, I can't see how this is going to be an improvement in traffic flow and volume if the BRT is in the same lanes and traffic that the buses are in now. While I am sure it would be expensive, one way to help the flow, create small one way local lanes to the right of the sidewalks on each side that connects what are really just a lot of parking lots that front Grand River. That way there would be less turning into the traffic and the main lanes could be more free for through traffic and the BRT line. Traffic going to local businesses and side streets would enter from the local lane and re-enter the main lanes at traffic lights on major corners.
Just a thought as I have often tried to figure out how to make East Lansing more pleasant and functional along Grand River.
The mixed traffic sections are a 0.8 mile stretch between Bogue and Brookfield Drive, and the other mixed traffic section is a tiny section dealing at the end of the route around the mall, this along a route of 8 miles. The improvement have already been calculated, so it will definitely make the trip significantly faster than the current Route 1. As for your idea, quite a few buildings on both sides of the street in this section are basically built to the sidewalk. There is not really any room for additional traffic lanes.
But, yeah, it could have been even better. The part in between Bogue and Brookfield will definitely slow the trip down, but it was one way of compromising with the businesses and the existing heavy traffic in the area, I guess. Fortunately, it seems to be the only place where the businesses really revolted, I guess. They were able to work in Lansing with the concern of keeping center left-turn lanes by making the lane job north of south just before key intersections.
It looks like it is just a short section of the whole route, it's kind of a mess there so I hope it does improve the traffic flow. I can't tell from the plans, do they plan turn out's for the station or stops maybe that would take the bus out of traffic while it is stopped. I was wondering if other CATA buses will be traveling in the regular traffic lanes when the routes cross. I guess they would have to.
Yes although maybe I used the wrong term. Here on S. Washington in REOtown anyway the bus can pull out of the traffic lane to pick up passengers in the lane also used for parking. I know there is no parking lane there to use for a bus stop, I was thinking getting those big long buses out of traffic while stopped might help traffic flow.
I was also wondering what does constrained row mean?
Those turn-ins/outs end up slowing down bus traffic though. There was one by the MSU Union on Grand River and the buses occasionally would not use it because they said it was too hard to get back in to traffic (instead they would just stop in the lane of traffic).
So, the usual suspects came out to CATA's community meeting on Tuesday. lol Not all the criticisms are illegitimate, but as with most of these meetings, the supporters didn't come out to actually support the plan. Now that the costs have come down, they are complaining about other things.
OKEMOS – A proposed new public transportation service will cause more problems than it solves, attendees at a community conversation told Capital Area Transportation Authority staff Tuesday.
“This is a boondoggle. This is not going to help,” George Tesseris said, while delivering a petition Tuesday evening to Meridian Township board members from what he said were more than three dozen business owners.
The proposed Bus Rapid Transit line, or BRT, would run from the Capitol to Marsh Road via Michigan Avenue and Grand River. The project’s cost has come down over time, with the current estimate at $133 million.
As to the make-up of the audience:
BRT supporters included Chris Buck, who described himself as a business owner and as a “fan” of the BRT. Noting the near-lack of anyone under 30 in the audience, Buck said backing the BRT was a “decision for the future.”
Anyway, with missing out on federal grants, last year, the schedule for the start of construction is late next year or early 2018.
I do like this plan, and I hope they will not let these few business owners decide for the whole community. The difference between saving time and offering an easier to use transit is about even here. It will be a lot easier to use the BRT but since Lansing is so compact, everything is no more that twenty minutes from from anywhere, there is not much time to save. I think the benefit will be more from the ease and convenience of using the BRT system. In an eight mile route how much faster could you go? I think it will just be nice to be on a modern smooth running bus, rather then in a car. The left turn lane issue is not really that big of a deal, it will be just like Michgan or MLK with turn around left lanes, that is not difficult to do.
While a big selling point of this is to increase ridership and capacity as well as for economic development purposes, the time shaved off the current Route 1 is not insigificant for people who rely on the bus to get to work or daily appointments. Being that time is money and in an industry (transit) where minutes can account for millions of dollars in productivity, the 10-12 minutes that will be shaved off the current Route 1 times during peak hours is also a major selling point.
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It seems like a tight fit east of MSU. Am I right in reading that the BRT will travel in the same lanes past Bogue as the traffic out to the mall? While it is understandable in terms of space and cost, I can't see how this is going to be an improvement in traffic flow and volume if the BRT is in the same lanes and traffic that the buses are in now. While I am sure it would be expensive, one way to help the flow, create small one way local lanes to the right of the sidewalks on each side that connects what are really just a lot of parking lots that front Grand River. That way there would be less turning into the traffic and the main lanes could be more free for through traffic and the BRT line. Traffic going to local businesses and side streets would enter from the local lane and re-enter the main lanes at traffic lights on major corners.
Just a thought as I have often tried to figure out how to make East Lansing more pleasant and functional along Grand River.
But, yeah, it could have been even better. The part in between Bogue and Brookfield will definitely slow the trip down, but it was one way of compromising with the businesses and the existing heavy traffic in the area, I guess. Fortunately, it seems to be the only place where the businesses really revolted, I guess. They were able to work in Lansing with the concern of keeping center left-turn lanes by making the lane job north of south just before key intersections.
I was also wondering what does constrained row mean?
As to the make-up of the audience:
Anyway, with missing out on federal grants, last year, the schedule for the start of construction is late next year or early 2018.