Category: Maryland

RELEASE: Transit Supporters Petition for Bus Improvements

Posted on by Claire Jaffe

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 10, 2016

CONTACT
Pete Tomao, Montgomery County Advocacy Manager
(516) 318-0605
pete@smartergrowth.net

Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director
(703) 599-6437
stewart@smartergrowth.net

With Metrorail Shutdowns Looming, Transit Supporters Petition for Bus Improvements

Montgomery County, MD — On Monday, transit advocates at the Coalition for Smarter Growth submitted a 1000-signature “Better Bus Petition” to the Montgomery County Council and County Executive.  The petition calls for dedicated bus lanes and frequent, reliable service. With thousands of citizens impacted by the future Metro closures, transit supporters say it’s more important than ever to make major bus system improvements.

“With Metrorail disruption imminent, thousands of Montgomery residents will have their commutes impacted. If we don’t want hundreds of new cars on our roadways we need to invest in a faster, more frequent, and more reliable bus network. There has never been a better time to do it than now,” said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth.

“Volunteers and Coalition for Smarter Growth staff spent hours collecting hundreds of signatures in every part of Montgomery County, from Shady Grove to Silver Spring, between August and October 2015. With the impending Metrorail shutdowns, there seemed no better time to present the petition to officials,” said Pete Tomao, Montgomery County Advocacy Manager for the Coalition for Smarter Growth.

“Riders everywhere told us the same thing. We need more reliable bus service, including dedicated lanes. Clearly the demand exists for better service, and that demand will only increase with the Metrorail disruptions,” said Tomao.

“Wherever WMATA has introduced express bus service in Montgomery County, it has been successful. Ridership on the K9 along New Hampshire Avenue has increased 79% since 2011, and the J4 from Bethesda to Silver Spring is up 34% since 2012: when you offer riders frequent, reliable service, they use it. With dedicated lanes, the speed, frequency, and reliability of buses would be even better. With 20 extra WMATA buses sitting at the White Flint Bus Depot, we have the opportunity to put them to work in express corridors,” Tomao continued.

“A single lane of auto-traffic can carry about 1200 people per hour, versus the 3700 a dedicated bus lane in Pittsburgh is now carrying. Dedicated space allows us to make the most of our roadways.”

“We’ve been encouraged by recent steps that the County Executive and Council have taken to improve service and advance bus rapid transit on Route 29, Route 355, and Veirs Mill Road. With this petition and with the impending Metrorail shutdowns, we hope that the county will accelerate investments in dedicated lanes and more frequent service on key corridors throughout the county,” said Tomao.

“They say to never waste a crisis. The challenges presented by Metrorail disruptions present an opportunity to improve our regional bus service and to implement the dedicated bus lanes we’ve needed for some time. Our conversations with transit riders show the demand for improved bus service and we urge regional officials to seize the opportunity.” concluded Schwartz.

60 cars V 60 Buses

About the Coalition for Smarter Growth

The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington DC region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Its mission is to promote walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies and investments needed to make those communities flourish. Learn more at smartergrowth.net.

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RELEASE: Reaction to County Executive Leggett BRT Annoucement

Posted on by Claire Jaffe

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 2, 2016

CONTACT
Pete Tomao, Coalition for Smarter Growth
516-318-0605
pete@smartergrowth.net

Montgomery County – Earlier today, County Executive Ike Leggett released an update to his proposed transportation budget, adding funding to make near term improvements to bus service and continue Bus Rapid Transit studies.

“When the County Executive’s first proposal came out in January it didn’t have the funding needed to make important transit improvements, so we are very pleased to see the changes he and his staff have made,” said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth. “It’s not everything we had hoped for – it depends on state funding to complete the Route 355 BRT study and to add priority bus service on Veirs Mill Road for example, but the County Executive has certainly responded positively to our requests, and those of the Council, to keep moving forward on Bus Rapid Transit, while also providing near term improvements.”

“I’ve ridden just about every route in Montgomery and it’s clear to me that the demand for better transit in the county is strong and we need to be making these investments,” said Pete Tomao, Montgomery County Transit Organizer for the Coalition for Smarter Growth. “Demand for transit crosses socio-economic boundaries, from new immigrants, to seniors, to millenials – including a young mother, Gretchen Goldman, whom I met during my outreach and regularly rides the bus with her young son, Thomas:

“One of the reasons my family and I chose to live here was for the county’s convenience to the city. We’re lucky to live along one of the county’s few express bus routes—the K9 on New Hampshire Ave. Thomas and I ride it regularly. For us, bus access is convenient and quick. It allows us to be a one car family, since we can quickly get to work and social activities in downtown DC or elsewhere in the county.

BRT is about access, it’s about freedom and it’s about equity. In Montgomery County, many do not ride the bus by choice, but by necessity. For them, BRT increases options and decreases burdens. It enhances quality of life and creates opportunities.

When I think about what I want for Thomas’ future, I have a new vision for Montgomery County. I want Thomas to live in a place where he has mobility and independence; where he doesn’t need a car to get around; and where he can have access to safe and affordable transportation options.”

The County Executive is proposing to the Council important investments along Route 355, US29, and Veirs Mill Road, the three primary corridors for the BRT, including:

  • Route 355: Instituting a new Ride On Plus priority service from the Lakeforest Transit Center to Medical Center Metrorail and adding $5 million to the planning budget for the Route 355 BRT proposal. If the state government matches that, it could ensure enough funding for the next phase of the Route 355 planning process.
  • US29: Adding $6.5 million to the planning budget for BRT along US29, with the goal of getting the route up and running within four years.
  • Veirs Mill Road: Requesting that the state prioritize $1.8 million in annual funding for rush hour express bus service along Veirs Mill Road – the busiest bus route in Maryland. The proposed Veirs Mill BRT route already has enough funding to complete planning.

“Looking ahead, our group will continue to work for the funding necessary to build the BRT to the standard necessary to support rapid, efficient and frequent service – service that will attract new workers and new companies and improve access to jobs,” concluded Tomao.

About the Coalition for Smarter Growth
The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington DC region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Its mission is to promote walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies and investments needed to make those communities flourish. Learn more at smartergrowth.net.

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Virginia Wants To Talk To Maryland About A New Potomac River Bridge — Again

Posted on by Will Reckley

Virginia’s influential Commonwealth Transportation Board wants to open discussions with officials in D.C. and Maryland about improving congested Potomac River crossings, with priority given to expanding the capacity of the American Legion Memorial Bridge and Metro’s Rosslyn tunnel, which is the bottleneck for the Silver, Blue, and Orange lines.

The long-running idea of building a new bridge west of the American Legion — which carries I-495 over the river — also was included in the board’s resolution, although Maryland repeatedly has refused to go along with it. Opponents of adding a bridge west of the American Legion derisively say it would be part of an “outer Beltway.”

“We have had indications from Maryland that they are not opposed to discussion,” said Gary Garczynski, the Northern Virginia representative on the Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB), which voted Wednesday in favor of opening discussions again.

“There should be dialogue about any one of those crossings or all of them, because in total they would certainly effectuate a much more connected region,” he said.

Studies by the Virginia Department of Transportation have identified the American Legion Bridge as the most important choke point for car commuters. A study of 11 Potomac crossings released in July recommended extending Virginia’s HOT lanes on I-495 across the bridge north to the I-270 spur.

More than 300,000 commuters per day use the bridge, the study said. More than 44,000 people travel through the Rosslyn tunnel on Metrorail into Virginia.

Opponents of an “outer Beltway” say there is relatively light demand for a new bridge upriver.

“There are certain lobbyists who continue to push this. There are certain parts of the business community that keep putting pressure on Gov. McAuliffe and Gov. Hogan. They are totally off base,” said Stewart Schwartz, the executive director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, a long-time foe of building a new bridge between the American Legion and Point of Rocks bridges over the Potomac.

“There is no funding available for upriver bridges and no demand based on VDOT’s own study. So to us it is a waste of time,” he added.

A spokesman for the Maryland Department of Transportation said the agency would continue to talk to Virginia officials about its concerns with a new crossing.

Also on Wednesday, the CTB formally approved VDOT’s plans to toll I-66 inside the Beltway staring in 2017, accepting a deal with the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission to allow local representatives to decide where to spend toll revenues to improve mobility in the I-66 corridor.

Read at WAMU >>

Montgomery County Planning Board testimony re: White Flint West Transportation, Phase 2, CIP No. 501116 Mandatory Referral No. MR2015029

Posted on by acustis

Montgomery County and other jurisdictions in the Washington DC region are in the midst of a transformation from wholly auto-dependent development to the creation of networks of walkable, bikeable, transit-oriented centers and neighborhoods. County Executive Leggett, the Montgomery County Council, and the Planning Board have committed to this vision and the market is responding with nearly unlimited demand to live and work in walkable, mixed-use, transit accessible locations. The CEO of Marriott recently created a stir when he unequivocally stated that the company would be moving to a Metro station location within the next five years. Not only do his young employees want to live and work near Metro, but according to a recent article, he too appreciates the convenience of walkable, mixed-use and transit.

Ruling could make building projects easier in Prince George’s

Posted on by Will Reckley

A recent appeals court decision could make it significantly easier for developers to build projects in Prince George’s County by limiting the ability of county lawmakers to intervene.

Maryland’s Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court’s ruling that the Prince George’s County Council exceeded its authority to review and revise development decisions made by the county planning board.

The ruling involved a proposed retail center in Adelphi that was approved by the planning board but later put on hold by the council, which wanted the developer to make design changes, including the number of trees to be planted on the property.

“The District Council possessed only appellate jurisdiction to review the Planning Board’s decisions,” Judge Glenn T. Harrell wrote. The council “was authorized to reverse the decision . . . only if the Board’s decision was not supported by substantial evidence, was arbitrary, capricious, or illegal otherwise.”

Developers and their attorneys say the decision will bring Prince George’s in line with neighboring jurisdictions, putting an end to an era in which county residents could turn to their council representatives to try to stop projects that they didn’t want in their neighborhoods.

Until now, interference by the council has made development in Prince George’s “sort of an ‘Alice in Wonderland’ experience,” said attorney Timothy Maloney, who represented Zimmer Development Company in its bid to build the retail strip.

“The council adds years to the development process,” Maloney said, “and has harmed the [county’s] economic development reputation.”

County-elected leaders requested the unique, quasi-judicial authority from the Maryland General Assembly decades ago, arguing that “the public needed to have a bigger voice in development decisions,” said Council Chair Mel Franklin (D-Upper Marlboro). He said lawmakers are assessing the implications of the appeals court’s ruling.

Citizens can still participate in public hearings held by the planning board. But civic activist Kelly Canavan, who has fought several developments in southern Prince George’s, said that she and other activists often leave those sessions feeling powerless.

“The planning board kind of does what it wants and is extremely developer-friendly,” she said, adding that the council “was one of the few ways a citizen could ask for help when a real awful development was coming to their community.”

Cheryl Cort, policy director for the Coalition for Smarter Growth, disagreed, saying that planning board members are professionals who are guided by zoning rules that offer little room for outside influence.

Cort said the court ruling offers the board a chance to invite more citizen participation, because residents no longer have the council to turn to except in certain circumstances. She said she hopes the planning board will schedule more meetings in the evening, so residents can attend more easily, and will publish its public notices more widely.

Longtime observers said one reason the council came to play such a major role in development decisions was that the county’s zoning rules are complicated and antiquated, and in some cases ill-suited to guide modern-day development.

The county is rewriting the nearly half-century-old code to reflect the jurisdiction’s changing needs and improve public participation. Planning officials say their goal is to simplify a code that, over the years, has grown to include more than 50 zones detailed on more than 1,200 pages.

“The zones have not kept up with the modern economy,” Franklin said. “There is not a great deal of confidence in our zones. The rules are not very clear.”

The county wants to require higher-density development around public transit and establish clearer boundaries for its rural and agricultural sector.

Planning and zoning officials are asking for public input and expect the rewrite to be approved by the summer of 2017.

“We should have more robust ways for citizens to get involved in the development review process early,” Franklin said. “Then, when you get to the end stages of the process, it will be much clearer to everybody the direction that the development is going. That’s the ultimate goal: to have stronger rules and more certainty on the front end.”

Read this at The Washington Post >>

Questions remain on bus-rapid transit in Montgomery Co.

Posted on by Will Reckley

SILVER SPRING, Md. — As the Purple Line gets closer to construction next year, transit advocates are pushing for a bus-rapid transit network to relieve congestion in Montgomery County.

The Coalition for Smarter Growth and Communities for Transit have released a guide that examines how other cities have successfully built such networks.

Montgomery County wants to build an 80-mile network; the first phase would be limited to Md. 355 (Wisconsin Avenue and Rockville Pike), U.S. 29 (Colesville Road and Columbia Pike) and Md. 586 (Veirs Mill Road).

The distinguishing characteristic of a bus-rapid transit system is the bus-only lane, where cars are not allowed to travel. Northern Virginia residents are familiar with this concept; the Crystal City-Potomac Yard Transitway provides similar benefits to local bus service.

“It can produce a 25 percent travel savings for commuters,” says Pete Tomao, of the Coalition for Smarter Growth. “Without other traffic, it can move much faster and reduce delays.”

Bus-rapid transit systems need a couple things to be successful. First, service needs to be predictable and reliable: Commuters are well aware of the regular delays on Metrorail and Metrobus.

“I think every Metrobus rider has experienced the phantom [ghost] bus on their WMATA app,” Tomao says. “That’s why making sure that you have frequent, reliable service is so important. You need to know buses are coming every five to 10 minutes.”

Second, bus-rapid transit systems should offer amenities to make the buses attractive — such as bike racks, Wi-Fi and outlets to charge smartphones and tablets. If the buses are comfortable and modern, people are more likely to give them a chance, Tomao says.

While some people would rather see new lanes everywhere, the biggest controversy has to do with the locations in Four Corners and Bethesda. In both places, there are proposals to take away a current lane for cars and re-purposing it for buses. The concept doesn’t sit well with many drivers.

The timetable is also unclear. For now, county transportation officials are focused on starting construction for the Purple Line. Once that’s off the ground, Montgomery County must decide what it wants to do with the Corridor Cities Transitway. The bus-rapid transit system is likely third on the county list, since it’s still in the early stages.

Money is another hurdle. Like the Purple Line and the Corridor Cities Transitway, the bus-rapid transit system would require state money and state approval, given that the routes would be on state roadways.

Some have privately suggested that while Gov. Larry Hogan supports the Purple Line, he’s unlikely to back any more major transit-based projects in Montgomery County. He prefers road projects to relieve congestion.

Read this at WTOP >>

Bus Rapid Transit Boosters Unveil Wish List for Unfunded Montgomery County System

Posted on by Will Reckley

Two of the groups pushing hard for bus rapid transit in Montgomery County don’t want officials weighing difficult funding questions to forget the features that could make the system a success.

The Coalition for Smarter Growth (CSG), a Washington, D.C.-based smart growth advocacy organization, and the Communities for Transit on Tuesday released a 23-page report titled “Best Practices In Rapid Transit System Design,” to guide residents, transit advocates and policymakers in the county.

The CSG argued for the proposed 81-mile bus rapid transit system, officially known as the Rapid Transit System or RTS, back when it was approved in 2013 as part of a countywide roadway master plan.

Now, the group is pushing for dedicated bus lanes, frequent and reliable service, properly spaced stations, boarding areas on the same level as bus entrances and other features it says are hallmarks of successful bus rapid transit projects around the country.

“Those are the devils in the details that we just don’t want to get lost in the conversation about funding,” coalition member Pete Tomao said Tuesday. “This is an equally important task.”

That conversation about funding is now in full swing as a task force organized by County Executive Ike Leggett considers its final recommendations due at the end of the month.

The latest cost estimate from the county for just the first four RTS corridors (state Route 355 north, state Route 355 south, Veirs Mill Road and U.S. Route 29) pegged construction of the system at $1.6 billion and annual operating costs at $51.6 million.

The county’s Transit Task Force is considering recommendations for how to fund that system through an Independent Transit Authority, including the possibility of a countywide property tax increase, special county sales or gas tax and special taxing districts that would tax property owners closest to the RTS stations.

The CSG report examined more than 30 bus rapid transit systems operating across the U.S. and Canada to look for best practices in station design, dedicated lane placement, branding and other operating procedures.

The report didn’t delve quite as deep into funding mechanisms, though it did recommend a dedicated funding source and showed how each system was paid for.

Almost 48 percent of the Los Angeles Orange Line was paid for by state funds. Almost 42 percent came from a voter-approved half-cent sales tax. The City of Los Angeles and the federal government contributed most of the rest of the funding.

That system, which consists of just one line and runs only 18 miles, has seen an average weekday ridership of 29,845 people this year, according to the report.

It also cost $21 million per mile to build, almost half of the $41.1 million per mile projection the county and an engineering consultant made in July about the first four local RTS routes.

Leggett’s first attempt at state legislation to enable an Independent Transit Authority (ITA) failed earlier this year after staunch opposition from civic groups, the main county employee union and some residents wary of a potential tax increase to fund RTS.

Last month, county officials on the Transit Task Force and Gino Renne, president of the county employee union that represents Ride On workers, hammered out an agreement that would mostly keep Ride On employees as government workers and not put them under the control of the ITA.

With many expecting Leggett to make a second attempt at a state bill to authorize the ITA, transit advocates are planning a “Transit Day of Action” Sept. 9 at the Silver Spring, Rockville and Shady Grove Metro stations.

Tomao, who’s helping to organize the effort, said too many people who currently use transit in the  county aren’t aware of what’s being discussed when it comes to bus rapid transit.

The CSG and the Communities for Transit have also been doing advocacy work in other areas. A few weeks ago, Tomao and others were at the Bethesda Central Farm Market, held in the parking lot of Bethesda Elementary School.

“We had a great response from some people who didn’t take transit very much or who only take Metro to go to work,” Tomao said. “When we showed people the proposal, what bus rapid transit does and how it could complement existing systems, people were very receptive.”

Read this at Bethesda Magazine >>

RELEASE: New report identifies key ways to make Montgomery County’s bus rapid transit succeed

Posted on by acustis

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 1, 2015

CONTACT
Pete Tomao, Coalition for Smarter Growth
202-675-0016
pete@smartergrowth.net

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD — In 2013, the Montgomery County Council unanimously approved a plan for an 81-mile Rapid Transit network based on modern bus rapid transit. Today, appointed citizen task forces are working with county and state staff and consultants to design the network’s first three corridors. But the success of the system depends on getting the details right in order to provide high-quality, frequent, reliable and rapid service.

A new report, “Best Practices in Rapid Transit Design,” provides a roadmap for what’s needed to make Montgomery County’s Rapid Transit System a success.

DOWNLOAD OR VIEW THE FULL REPORT [PDF]

RTS-Best-Practices-thumbnail

The report, released jointly today by Communities for Transit and the Coalition for Smarter Growth, draws lessons from successful bus rapid transit systems throughout the US and Canada. “As of 2015, there are more than 30 bus rapid transit systems in operation across the US and Canada and more than 25 others in planning. Many have been running since the early 2000s, and have greatly exceeded expectations for ridership and service,” said Pete Tomao, the Coalition for Smarter Growth’s Montgomery County Advocacy Manager. “In Eugene, OR, for example, the Emerald Line has doubled transit ridership in the corridor it serves.”

“Our report is designed to assist the citizen task force members, elected officials and staff in their deliberations,” said Tomao. The report identifies and describes over a dozen features of successful bus rapid transit, including:

  • dedicated lanes for vehicles to bypass traffic
  • frequent and reliable service
  • stops spaced farther apart than local buses
  • 10’ general travel lanes
  • comfortable stations
  • offboard fare collection
  • level boarding
  • easy, safe access for people walking and bicycling
  • real time arrival information.

“BRT systems can produce travel time savings of up to 25% compared to other transit and can move far more people between home, work, school and services along our crowded arterial corridors than can single-occupant vehicles,” said Tomao. “The county’s ability to manage growth and traffic, and to attract the next generation workforce and companies, depends on investing in a well-designed system that attracts passengers because of its quality, efficiency, speed, and reliability.”

“In our research, we’ve found that successful systems around the country consistently share the same features, which we outline in our report and which we hope will be incorporated into Montgomery’s system,” Tomao concluded.

Earlier this year, Montgomery County appointed citizen task forces for each of the network’s first three bus rapid transit corridors: Route 355, Viers Mill Road, and Route 29. The task forces began meeting in Feb 2015 and are split into five groups — MD 355 North, MD 355 South, US29 North, US 29 South, and Veirs Mill Rd. Key decisions include whether to provide dedicated right-of-way, street and station design, fare collection, stop locations and more.  The corridor task forces are separate from the Transit Task Force appointed to recommend how to finance the system and who should operate it.

About the Coalition for Smarter Growth

The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington DC region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Its mission is to promote walkable, inclusive and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies and investments needed to make those communities flourish.  Learn more at smartergrowth.net.

About Communities for Transit

Communities for Transit (CFT) educates the public on the planned & unanimously-approved Rapid Transit System for Montgomery County, MD. CFT focuses on community outreach to build awareness of the compelling case for rapid transit as an effective response to our unsustainable traffic problems.  Learn more at communitiesfortransit.org

 

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