What the heck is Bus Rapid Transit aka BRT
Where did it come from and why?
Many may remember Uncle Plato who said that new-cessity is the Mother of Invention. In more modern times it's likely that money, or the lack thereof is important.
According to Wikipedia
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Bus rapid transit (BRT), also referred to as a busway or transitway... public transport bus service system designed to have much more capacity, reliability, and other quality features than a conventional bus system.
The second BRT system in the world was the Rede Integrada de Transporte (RIT, integrated transportation network), implemented in Curitiba, Brazil, in 1974.
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Over the years various attempts were made to create a higher quality bus service because it was much cheaper than rail.
Note: the authors use of "BRT" is our contemporary reference but wasn't used by others in the early years. The system in Curitiba, Brazil was a noteworthy step forward but it was at best BRT-lite - until is was later updated.
It was in Bogotá, Colombia where the quality reached BRT status. Per Wikipedia
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TransMilenio is a bus rapid transit (BRT) system that serves Bogotá, the capital of Colombia, and Soacha, a neighbouring city. The system opened to the public in December 2000.
Before TransMilenio, Bogotá's mass transit "system" consisted of thousands of independently operated and uncoordinated mini buses. There was also a plan for a network of elevated highways throughout Bogotá, and plans to build a subway as Medellín had done seven years prior.
When Enrique Peñalosa was elected mayor he cancelled these projects and oversaw the construction of the initial TransMilenio system at a fraction of the cost.
Prior to construction, a 30 km trip by public transport would take 2 hours and 15 minutes in 1998; the same trip using TransMilenio now takes 55 minutes.
Bogotá won the first Sustainable Transport Award in 2005 due to the BRT system and urban cycling strategy.
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Fast Forward to 2016.
Bogota's Bus Rapid Transit System Eyed By U.S. Urban Planners
March 21, 2016 By Lorne Matalon -- KPBS
Photo courtesy Lorne Matalon -- KPBS
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BRT replicates light rail and underground subways —with dedicated lanes and rail-like stations—at far less cost. And that is why BRT is a technology that U.S. urban planners are studying at a time of stressed public budgets. And the system that is often cited by mass transit advocates is the BRT in Bogotá, Colombia, one of South America’s major metropolises.
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