| Renewable Richmond-- Richmond.com |
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| 2008-10-07 |
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David Martin
Richmond.com
Tuesday, October 07, 2008
I appreciate the responses from last week抯 column "Who Killed the Electric Streetcar." I sense some sentiment for what was once a part of Richmond抯 culture.
I抦 happy to tell you that Richmond will once again become an innovator (just like the electric streetcar) of public transit抯 most up-to-date technology. There is a catch: we must be patient.
For the past several months I have read numerous articles, columns, opinions and letters to the editor about transportation issues in Richmond. Many of these folks mention public transit in their discussion. Some call for an improved bus system, light rail, commuter rail, ridesharing and even underground transit (such as the D.C. Metro) and they want it now!
I agree with them for the most part. Richmond is in need of improvements and additions to what it currently has to offer in the transit sector.
From an environmental standpoint, transportation currently emits more than 30 percent of the carbon that humans expel into the air. This carbon has the potential to trap heat within our atmosphere, causing an accelerated warming of the earth.
The effects of this warming trend are disappearing glaciers, rising sea levels, changes in water availability, lower crop yields, more destructive storms and increased illness/disease. The world is already experiencing these trends.
The population of the Richmond area will grow to over 1.3 million by 2010. More cars on the road driving more miles to/from their destination means more pollutants exhausted. From an economic standpoint this growth can cause more transportation costs to fix road and traffic problems.
As I stated in last week抯 column, one solution to mitigate the effects of climate change and the future rapid growth in Richmond is the public transit options of the GRTC and Amtrak in Richmond.
GRTC has been a Richmond hub for public transit for over 30 years. Among their future plans are to replace portions of their current bus fleet with hybrid vehicles. Also, they are in the process of building a new operations facility in Southside, which will be certified by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system by the U.S. Green Building Council.
The most exciting news is the new form of transportation that will be making its way to Richmond: Bus Rapid Transit.
Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is a new bus system explicitly designed to give commuting priority to its users. A traffic control system is used to give the buses extended green lights or a quicker light change at intersections through the use of GPS and on-board transmitters. The buses travel in special express lanes and the whole system is monitored by computerized control at a central station.
I met with John Lewis, Chief Executive Officer of GRTC, who confirmed their top priority of bringing BRT to Richmond.
According to Mr. Lewis, Phase I of this proposed action is a bus only lane on Broad Street between the East End and Willow Lawn. Phase II includes extending the Broad Street line to Innsbrook and eventually to Short Pump.
"Our goal is to be ready to take this plan to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) next year," Lewis said.
He states that the FTAs Small Starts Program may pay for up to 80 percent of the capital costs of a public transit project such as this. The other 20 percent will come from the state transportation trust fund, a portion of which comes out of our state taxes.
Part of the proposal is for the BRT buses to be hybrid vehicles, lowering emissions and gasoline requirements. Each uniquely designed bus will carry between 70 to 100 people which is twice the efficiency as today抯 GRTC buses.
I enjoyed hearing Mr. Lewis explain the benefits of BRT over other public transit options. 揑f money was not an option, we would choose light rail. The challenge is that it costs $22 million per mile to construct.� Mr. Lewis explains that light rail is still an option for Richmond, just over a longer time frame and after other developments become established.
Minneapolis, Las Vegas and Los Angeles are among other American cities that have launched BRT projects.
Timothy Beatley, author of "Green Urbanism: Learning from European Cities", states that 揳bout 5 percent of home-to-work trips are made on public transit, and only 2 percent of all urban travel.� Nationwide, public transit saves around 1.4 billion gallons of gasoline annually which translates into 1.5 million tons of carbon dioxide.
The benefits of public transit are not only environmental but economic and social. With a reliable and strong public transit system, Richmond will hopefully not have to spend more money on building roads and creating more traffic. Also our city will be safer for its citizens with less motor traffic and more attractive streets.
It may take three years for FTA approval to start construction of BRT in Richmond. So, please do not think that this is something that can happen overnight.
In the meantime let抯 take responsibility and support the transit options we have in Richmond. Ride the GRTC, Greyhound, or Amtrak the next time you go to Washington D.C. or New York. Did you know that GotoBus.com offers extremely cheap transit options between cities?
Mass transit is a part of the future of Richmond; support it!
David Martin is an environmental consultant in Richmond. David agrees with the Zombie Survival Guide憇 claim that the speed and quiet mobility of a bicycle is the best way to stay safe from the undead. Oh, and it抯 environmentally friendly too.
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