BRT
Streetsblog LA
Metro Board Quickly Moves on Green Construction, Position on HSR, Bike Share and Bus Studies
This morning, Mayor Villaraigosa's last term as Chair of the Metro Board of Directors got off to an efficient and relatively controversy-free start as Supervisors passed motions on studying the impacts of Metro's bus cuts and Bus Rapid Transit expansion, a second study on the costs and benefits of a bike share program, the approval of a green construction program and even a preferred route for California High Speed Rail. The only real debate among the Board Members came when Director Diane DuBois challenged Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas on the definition of "local" in the local jobs program and on whether or not to give free Metro passes to uniformed Girl Scouts during the group's 100th birthday party.
August 4, 2011
Can the U.S. Make Bus Rapid Transit Work as Well as Latin America?
In suburban Maryland, the debate about transit has often been cast as a decision between a light rail "purple line" and bus rapid transit. Democrat Martin O’Malley and local environmentalists lobbied for light rail while Republican Bob Ehrlich’s push for bus rapid transit was largely seen as an effort to “obfuscate, alter, study and delay” the progress on light rail. So in the D.C. area, BRT is sometimes seen as the choice of people who don’t really want transit to succeed.
March 9, 2011
Battle Lines Drawn in Battle Over Fate of Wilshire BRT in Condo Canyon
Late yesterday afternoon, the news broke that the federal dollars needed to construct the Wilshire Bus-Only Lanes project would not be put in danger if the one mile just west of Beverly Hills were excluded.
December 2, 2010
Wilshire Bus-Only Lanes Move the Environmental Review Stage
Sometimes I enjoy having dinner at the Wilshire/Western Denny's for the
opportunity it affords to watch the amazing dynamic transit action
occurring at that intersection. This includes frequent and very busy
bus lines (local and Rapid) along both streets plus hoards of people
entering and exiting the rail station. It reminds me how tremendously
heavy transit use in the Wilshire corridor is. And partially
explains why a Wilshire Bus Rapid Transit Project has been in gestation
and has now reached the draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental
Assessment stage.
June 16, 2010
Transportation Committee Agenda: Bike Corralls, Bus Rapid Transit, and Measure R
This week's Transportation Committee hearing doesn't have all of the agenda items that we hoped to see, but does have an interesting one concerning use of Measure R funds to widen a road in the San Fernando Valley. Along with a report on the Wilshire Bus-Only program and one directing LADOT and City Planning to move on Bike Corrals, this item is a highlight on an unusually small committee agenda.
April 12, 2010
Streetsblog Responds to City Watch Columnists Attack on Bus-Only Lanes
(editor's note: A couple of weeks ago Joe Linton wrote an update on Los Angeles' support for the Wilshire Bus-Only Lane. A City Watch Columnist, Harold Katz, responded with an article attacking the project.)
October 14, 2009
Council Approves Moving Forward With Wilshire Bus Lanes
The city of Los Angeles' Wilshire Boulevard Bus-Only Lane project
took another step forward at this morning's full city council hearing.
The project would implement peak-hour bus-only lanes from Pico Union to
Santa Monica. It's calculated to speed bus times by about 25%. More information at Metro's project website.
September 22, 2009