Buses
Basics
Uber’s Latest Feature Reinvents the Wheels on the Bus
Uber is rolling out a new feature that will encourage people who use its shared-ride service in New York to walk to the nearest intersection, instead of getting picked up at their door. The company hopes that by avoiding looping through congested Manhattan to pick up and drop off multiple people, it will make trips faster and easier -- but Uber is trying to solve a problem that buses solved generations ago.
May 24, 2017
It’s No Red Line, But These New Transit Lanes Will Speed Up Trips for Baltimore Bus Riders
Bright red bus lanes are being painted in downtown Baltimore as the city prepares to launch a revamped bus network in just over a month.
May 16, 2017
Detroit’s Big Transit Success Story Isn’t Its New Streetcar — It’s the Buses
Today is the grand opening for the QLine, Detroit's 3.3-mile, mixed-traffic streetcar on Woodward Avenue. It's getting tons of local press attention, but TransitCenter reports that the Motor City's true transit renaissance is not due to the streetcar, but the city's successful, under-the-radar turnaround of its bus system.
May 12, 2017
Can Memphis Turn Around Its Struggling Bus System?
The current level of transit service in Memphis is bleak. So a week ago, 11 Shelby County public defenders took part in Bus Rider's Day, which Commercial Appeal columnist David Waters called "an exercise in empathy and, as it turned out, endurance" to understand the transportation challenges facing their clients.
May 5, 2017
Columbus Just Launched a Completely Redesigned Bus Network
This week, Columbus, Ohio, became the latest city to flip the switch on a redesigned bus network, changing a decades-old route map in a bid to jump-start flagging ridership. The updated routes bring huge numbers of people and jobs within closer reach of frequent transit service.
May 2, 2017
As Nashville’s Mayor Pushes Light Rail to Win Referendum, What Will Happen to Buses?
sustained Koch Brothers-funded attack. Since then, the city has elected a new mayor and decided on a new vision for transit. Yesterday, Mayor Megan Barry said a light rail line would be the first project funded under her plan, which is likely to go before voters next year. While that moves forward, there is a lot Nashville can do in the meantime to improve its lackluster bus network.
April 27, 2017
Trump Budget Threats and the Local Anti-Transit Brigade Spike Lansing BRT
Eight years in the making, the project was undone by suburban opposition. Now, transit advocates in Michigan's capital are figuring out what can be done to improve transit while their opponents take a victory lap.
April 21, 2017
Talking Headways Podcast: The Battery Powered Electric Bus
This week's guest is Matt Horton of Proterra, a company that designs and manufactures battery powered electric buses. We cover the basics of electric buses, power consumption and recharging, the benefits and costs, as well as potential environmental effects.
April 20, 2017
A Swedish Transit Agency Cuts Through the Autonomous Car Hype
The ad uses car commercial cliches — tight shots of a sleek exterior, an overbearing soundtrack — to express a point that doesn’t get made often enough: We already have the technology to address a lot of the problems that self-driving cars purport to solve.
March 29, 2017
The Big Beneficiaries of Rhode Island’s Plan to Cut Car Taxes Would Be Rich People
The "regressive" label often gets trotted out by proponents of cheap motoring, whether they're opposing a gas tax, tolls, or car fees. The problem with this argument is that many poor people don't own cars and are harmed by a transportation system that prioritizes driving instead of transit.
March 9, 2017
