Read more here: https://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/The_First_Subway
https://bc.ctvnews.ca/strike-averted-last-minute-deal-reached-in-skytrain-labour-dispute-1.4723144
https://doi.org/10.1016/0191-2607(88)90026-X
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/019126078890026X
Thank you very much in advance.
Just thought I will put this out there since people here say they care about mass transit and a big mass transit project will start to bear fruit soon. Commuter Rail is still being planned FYI.
What is BRT:
"Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is a high-quality bus-based transit system that delivers fast, comfortable, and cost-effective services at metro-level capacities. It does this through the provision of dedicated lanes, with busways and iconic stations typically aligned to the center of the road, off-board fare collection, and fast and frequent operations.
Because BRT contains features similar to a light rail or metro system, it is much more reliable, convenient and faster than regular bus services. With the right features, BRT is able to avoid the causes of delay that typically slow regular bus services, like being stuck in traffic and queuing to pay on board."
https://raleighnc.gov/bus-rapid-transit
City of Raleigh is planning at least 4 BRT routes as part of the first phase:
BRT New Bern : Construction starts this year!
BRT Northern Corridor : Construction expected in the next 3 years.
BRT Southern Corridor : Construction expected to start in the next 4 years.
BRT Western Blvd : Connecting Raleigh with Downtown Cary this will likely be a very busy route in the future.
BRT Western Blvd earlier planning presentation: https://cityofraleigh0drupal.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/drupal-prod/COR22/WesternBRTKickoffBoards.pdf
RUSBUS project has also reached a milestone and will be ready to go forward this year. This will connect the BRT system with the AMTRAK station and future Commuter Rail System and add hundreds of new apartments, hotel rooms, and retail. Current plans shows that this will have a tower that will be the second tallest in Raleigh.
I was recently watching an RMtransit video on automated light metro being an effective way of bringing high quality transit to car dependent suburbs since while initial capital costs are high, these can be amortized over a long period of time and since there is no driver so you can run very frequent service without causing your operating costs to skyrocket.
The thing is, the costs of full grade separation, especially tunneled systems like much of the Canada line (a fully automated light metro system) in Vancouver, are still extremely expensive.
Light rail costs significantly less than subway/light metro because of the fact that it’s at grade. Flyovers at intersections can mean that it is just as fast as subway too, and can be fully automated because of the exclusive right of way with no intersections without massively increasing cost.
Fully automated light rail with grade separated crossings seems to be the most bang for your buck imho.
Same goes for BRT.
These are the ones closest to being constructed/finished.
- NYC Subway (including Staten Island Railway): Second Avenue Subway Phase 2 (extending the Q Train from 96th Street to 125th Street, adding 3 stations in East Harlem.
- Washington Metro: Silver Line Extension, adding 6 stations to the Silver Line and connecting it with Dulles International Airport
- Chicago L: Red Line extension from 95th Street to 130th Street, adding four new stations in southern Chicago
- MBTA subway (Red, Orange, and Blue lines only): Red-Blue Line Connector, which would extend the terminus of the Blue Line from Bowdoin station to Charles/MGH station, where it would provide a transfer point to the Red Line
- BART: Expansion into San Jose/Santa Clara, which would add 4 stations in the Silicon Valley area and expand the southern terminus to Santa Clara
- SEPTA (Broad Street, Market–Frankford, and Norristown High Speed Lines): King of Prussia Spur, which would add 5 stations in an extension of the Norristown Line to the KOP mall
- PATH: Extension from Newark Penn Station to Newark Liberty International Airport
- MARTA rail: extension of Green Line to Cobb County (depends on 2022 referendum to have 1% transit tax)
- LA Metro Rail (B and D lines only): D Line extension from Wilshire/Western to Westwood VA Hospital, adding 7 stations on LA's densest street (will hopefully lead to Santa Monica extension)
- PATCO Speedline: recently-proposed extension to University City, providing further access to Philly as well as SEPTA commuter rail
- Miami Metrorail: North Corridor extension up to border of Miami-Dade County and Broward County, with a possible stop at Hard Rock Stadium (so if you are a Dolphins fan, campaign to get this done so u can avoid traffic)
- Baltimore Metro SubwayLink: None (if anyone has any info on a possible expansion, lemme know in the comments)
- Cleveland RTA Rapid Transit (Red Line only): None (same as Baltimore)
What do you think? Which ones will be done first and which ones did I get wrong? Let me know in the comments.
