[davehogan]

bvpcvm: As I understand it the problem is more that they're building smaller scale systems than other cities, so building stations like Harold St (designated as a future station of the Orange Line) get left off the current plans because they're really just too expensive.

A subway to connect the Robertson and Banfield sections was estimated in the billions last time I saw it estimated. Like, more than the CRC billions. There are reasons that we can't afford a fully grade separated system in most corridors yet.

The reason a BRT-Light for Portland makes sense is that with the new bridge, a few buses and a few more drivers we could make the 9 have twice as much service while skipping some stops that are lesser used. The 9MAX (for example) could then go from SE 52 to SE 39 and use the existing left lane to pass local service buses, giving it a slight speed advantage.

It wouldn't be perfect, but for someone who lives just far away that a 15 minute transfer can screw up their morning it might increase the catchment for an existing bus line that would serve certain stops at least twice as often.