BUS RAPID TRANSIT: AN INNOVATIVE TRANSIT STRATEGY FOR MEDIUM-SIZED CITIES

This paper describes an innovative transit strategy for small and medium-sized cities that provides a cost-effective alternative to rail-based rapid transit systems. Bus rapid transit is a strategy that is being developed in Eugene, Oregon to meet the community's need for an enhanced transit system, without making the capital investment required for a rail-based system. Small- and medium-sized communities struggle with the challenge of providing efficient transit service that can attract choice riders by being competitive with the automobile. While many larger communities have turned to light-rail systems as the solution to getting people out of their cars, smaller communities have neither the population base nor the financial resources to support these systems. Lane Transit District has identified a bus rapid transit (BRT) system as the most cost-effective means of achieving the community's goals to increase the use of transit. BRT is most easily envisioned as using buses to emulate the speed, comfort, and convenience of rail systems. The proposed BRT system is composed of high-frequency, fast transit service along major corridors, with smaller buses providing access from neighborhoods to the BRT lines, as well as to nearby shopping and employment. System features include exclusive bus lanes, transit signal priority systems, barrier-free fare collection and limited stops with improved facilities. BRT is well suited to medium-sized communities because it can be implemented incrementally, as funding becomes available. BRT also uses existing technology that may be easier for smaller communities to implement in the absence of planning funds. Because it emulates rail in terms of exclusive right-of-way and land use patterns that develop along the transit corridor, it can be a precursor to an eventual rail system as population continues to grow. This paper describes the benefits of BRT to medium-sized communities, focusing on the ability to implement this system easily without huge planning or capital investments. In addition, the paper describes some of the challenges to overcome in the planning process, including political issues and inter-jurisdictional coordination.