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Originally Posted by J.OT13
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Why is it that a highway is deemed "overcapacity" when traffic slow down at rush hour, but transit has to be crush load for it to be considered a success?
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Just out of curiosity, why do you imply that an “overcapacity” roadway is NOT a success?
If a new road is built and it becomes very crowded, is that not an indication that a lot of people want to use that roadway? That there had been a pent-up demand for travel along that corridor that had not previously been satisfied?
Of course, there are those who will claim that it is purely induced demand, caused by the appearance of the new road. Basically, that the majority of the trips along that road would not have happened, via any route, unless that specific road existed. But that still agrees with the previous statement; that a lot of people want to use that corridor.
Take, for instance, the person who had heard of that great new restaurant, but couldn’t be bothered to travel to it until the way became direct and easy. That is induced demand, but it was also an existing desire. (Albeit, not a strong enough one to drag the person on a less desirable drive.) And, think of it from the restaurant’s point of view. Now they have diners traveling in from a new area, which increases their sales.
The ‘Sunday Drive’ is very uncommon these days. Virtually every trip, whether in a car along a new road, or in a transit vehicle, is now one that supports the economy. It can be someone going to work, or going to a friend’s house for dinner, or any other reason; generally, it means that money is getting spent. (Even the odd ‘Sunday Drive’ will require the purchase of fuel, if nothing else.)
Personally, I consider a crowded road and a crowded bus BOTH successes – but at the same time problems. Once either gets too crowded, it begins to throttle economic growth. However, I would say that the more successful of the two is the congested road.
I do realize that there SHOULD, ideally, be a shift of people’s movements away from their private cars to public transit, but that is not (generally) realistic. Unless public transit is as fast and convenient as a car, then it will not win in the decision. If a couple make a last-minute decision to visit a restaurant on the other side of town, they want to get there in an expeditious manner, not take a long expedition on slow, crowded, public transit which will force them to wait an unknown period of time in a harsh environment while they wait to transfer vehicles.
IF we expect people to choose the crush-load bus, which may or may not show up, then we are dreaming. Even if traveling by car takes the same length of time as a bus (which is a wildly unrealistic assumption), sitting in a private car, away from the crush-load and transfers, is infinitely preferrable. If public transit became easier and faster than a private car, then it would become the preferred transportation. For example, I believe that it was Honeywell which took the vans away from some of their technicians in London, England, and provided them with a portable tool-kit and a transit pass. It turned out that in downtown London, it is much easier and faster to get around using the Tube, verses a van. The number of service calls completed per day increased and customers were happier with the faster response.
Unless Ottawa makes the decision to really, drastically, redesign its failing transit system, it is doomed. At one point, Ottawa provided fast, reliable transit for workers to travel between the suburbs and downtown. The Transitway provided a one-seat ride past most of the road traffic, and the premium-priced Express buses were not overly crowded. It was the choice for over half of the commuters going downtown. From there, it has been a steady decline.
But the Transitway was a radical change in thinking for Ottawa’s transit system. It didn’t happen overnight, and it took large sums of money to get it (mostly) realized. With all of the environmental (in the grandest sense of the word, not simply limited to the ‘Green Shift’) changes taking place now, Ottawa will need to again look for a radical solution. That, too, will take a lot of time and money to implement. In the meantime, roads will continue to be the preferred choice for transportation.
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