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Executive Summary By 2013, King County Metro Transit’s bus rapid transit (BRT) service, known as RapidRide, will be expanding to six lines covering 64 miles of high-use corridors. The Bus Rapid Transit and Land Use Initiative is the product of a partnership between ULI Seattle, King County Metro Transit, the city of Se­attle, the city of Shoreline, and the ULI/Curtis Regional Infrastructure Project. The partnership formed a team of ULI members and transit professionals to analyze and make recommendations about connecting RapidRide and land use opportunities. The team developed case studies of similar BRT service in other cities and ana­lyzed three station areas in Seattle and Shoreline. From the perspectives of multimodal corridors, neighborhood design, housing, jobs/workers, market­ing, and stakeholders, the team developed specific recommendations for RapidRide and initiative partners, as well as recommendations for each station area. Three overarching themes emerged: Focus on…

Project Overview Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) has gained attention as a potentially cost-effective form of highcapacity public transportation. This is particularly the case in small to medium-size cities that do not have high enough densities or serious enough peak-period traffic congestion to justify fairly expensive fixed-guideway transit investments. BRT is widely embraced for providing potential rail-like services at a fraction of the cost (Wright, 2011). This study explores possibilities for advancing BRT systems and associated higher density land development in the Central Valley of California. It uses photo-simulations and stakeholder reactions to visual images to gauge public attitudes toward what would be a fairly radical transformation of urban environments in traditionally car-oriented settings. Due to the comparatively low development densities found in the Central Valley relative to California’s larger metropolitan areas, the kinds of transformations that would be needed to…

With the uncertainty of future energy supplies and the impacts of global warming, rapid transit is becoming increasingly important as part of the transportation mix in North American cities. The conventional choice for rapid transit alignments are off-street corridors such as rail and highway right-of-ways. More recently, cities are locating rapid transit projects along arterial street right-of-ways, to influence more transit-supportive development rather than low-density, single use environments common throughout North America. Promoting transit alignments that provide the best opportunity for this type of development, known as development-oriented transit, is essential for influencing a change in urban transportation habits and building more resilient cities.

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) uses different combinations of techniques to improve service, such as bus-only lanes and roads, pre-boarding fare collection, transit priority at traffic signals, stylish vehicles with extra doors, bus stops that are more like light rail stations, and high frequency service. This study examines five approaches to BRT systems as implemented by public transit agencies in California, Oregon, and Ontario.

Summary Transit preferential treatments are a key component to the provision of travel time savings and improved on-time performance for bus and rail systems operating in mixed traffic on urban streets. Rail systems operating on-street include both light rail transit and streetcar. Enhanced bus operations where transit preferential treatments are particularly critical include bus rapid transit and express bus. Although transit preferential treatments on urban streets have been presented and reviewed with respect to their application and impact in several documents over the years there has not been a single, recent document that has addressed all of the potential treatments that have been or could be applied. This synthesis report provides such a document. Treat•ments that are addressed relate to both roadway segments and spot locations (intersections) and include the following: Roadway Segments Median transitway, Exclusive lanes outside the median area, and Limited stop…

Overview of the FTA’s New Starts project development process and the legal issues associated with it

Foreword  The development of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems is relatively recent in the United States, but several systems are in operation and more are advancing.  There is a need for a more comprehensive understanding of the relationship between land use and BRT system development, particularly in comparison to other fixed-guideway modes such as heavy and light rail.  While recognizing that existing land uses have an important and complex influence on the development costs and benefits of fixed-guideway projects, this research focuses primarily on the impact such projects have had on existing and future land uses and economic development, as well as the policies and practices that have been used by local governments that have the potential to affect development.  Finally, additional note has been taken as to whether the benefits and incentives offered along transit corridors between Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and Light Rail Transit (LRT) are equitable in cities where both modes…

The development of bus rapid transit (BRT) systems is relatively recent in the United States; however, several systems are operating and many more are being planned. A more comprehensive understanding of the relationship between land use and BRT is needed, particularly in comparison to other fixed-guideway modes. This report documents an effort to quantify the impacts of BRT stations on the values of surrounding single-family homes.