Category: Better Public Transit

Follow-up to FY 21-26 CIP Sign-on Letter

Posted on by Emily Maurer

March 4, 2020 

Montgomery County Council

Council Office Building

100 Maryland Ave

Rockville, MD 20850 


Re: Follow-up on bus rapid transit projects in the FY 21 Capital Budget and FY 21-26 CIP

Dear Council President Katz and County Councilmembers: 

The undersigned wrote a letter on February 26, 2020 requesting amendments to the FY 21 Capital Budget and FY 21-26 Capital Improvements Program regarding bus rapid transit (BRT). Since then, we have had discussions with decision makers and county officials that have clarified information and raised some important points for consideration. 

The basis for our original letter was to find and recommend a path toward near-term transit service improvements due to the constrained fiscal environment. We were concerned about planning for new BRT routes like MD-355 without having a funding plan for construction, and sought to identify projects which we thought could be brought online sooner if we reallocated some of the funding from planning and design to design and construction of particular projects like having Route 29 BRT dedicated lanes in the southern section and the second entrance to the White Flint Metro Station. 

We wish to work with the county to best prioritize existing funding and to support all efforts to identify additional funding sources for transit. Therefore, we would like to share revised recommendations: 

Route 29 BRT needs additional dedicated lanes to be successful from the outset: The first line of the planned countywide BRT network is set to open this May without the fully dedicated right of way that is necessary for bus rapid transit to truly be rapid. We believe it’s important to get the first BRT line right — with the highest quality of service to show county residents what BRT can do, and why the rest of the network must be funded and built. We urge the Council to expedite review of the “Smoot-Emerson” proposal study for a reversible dedicated BRT lane south of Tech Road, to inquire with MCDOT the status of their follow-up activities, and to seek a defined timeline from MCDOT. We recommend that this dedicated lane be fully funded for design and construction. 

The BRT network needs a comprehensive financing plan: With a stagnant capital budget, it is unlikely the county will find the resources it needs for the 81-mile BRT network under current funding structures. We have been briefed by Director Conklin about efforts to develop a funding approach for the 355 corridor, and applaud those efforts, but ask for transparency in how the county will address the funding needs for other corridors. Financing may be different depending on the corridor, but it remains vital that as we move forward with the network’s design, we also make progress towards financing its construction. Director Conklin’s updates to you on financing plans will be extremely helpful. 

We should expeditiously implement better bus service: We reiterate our support for Ride On extRa service along northern 355 and Veirs Mill Road, as well as a system-wide redesign and upgrade of Ride On. Adding express bus service prior to BRT construction has been a stated priority of MCDOT and proven beneficial to a number of communities. Near term bus service improvements that result in increased ridership will help build support for additional investments. In the case of Veirs Mill Road, if the proposed system of queue jumps and other “BRT-light” improvements can be put in place faster than Ride On extRa, then let’s do so. 

The White Flint second Metro entrance provides regional, not just local benefits: We support the northern White Flint Metro entrance, because it shortens walking distances, supports more rapid redevelopment, and provides improved access to long-time existing residents in nearby apartments. The northern entrance can spur much-needed economic development and support Vision Zero objectives. Investments like this that enhance transit-oriented development and make it more likely that people will use Metro represent a regional transportation solution. If it is now possible that WMATA has the capital funding to help pay for the second entrance, that is terrific, but we assume it will still require some level of matching funds from the county. 

We wish to make clear that we support construction of the full 81-mile BRT network and near-term design and construction funding for the top priorities of Route 29 fully dedicated lanes, Veirs Mill Road, 355, New Hampshire Avenue, and the North Bethesda Transitway, in addition to the second entrance to the White Flint Metro and the tunnel for the Capital Crescent Trail. However, we recognize the challenge of a stagnant capital budget and the need to prioritize. Therefore, we have made our best efforts to recommend priorities to the Council as outlined above. 

We believe this Thursday’s briefing from Director Conklin to the T&E committee will offer critically helpful information to the public and Council. Based upon Director Conklin’s input and other information available to the Council we hope that you will find a way forward that best prioritizes projects and ensures the public sees near-term improvements in service. 

Thank you for your consideration. 

Sincerely, 

Denisse Guitarra | Maryland Conservation Advocate | Audubon Naturalist Society 

Jane Lyons | Maryland Advocacy Manager | Coalition for Smarter Growth 

Walter Weiss | President | Montgomery County Faith Alliance for Climate Solutions 

Michael DeLong | President | Montgomery County Young Democrats 

Shruti Bhatnagar | Chair | Sierra Club, Montgomery County 

Margaret Schoap | Organizer | Transit Alternatives to Mid-County Extended 

CC: County Executive Marc Elrich, Department of Transportation Director Chris Conklin

CSG in the News: “Could free Metro in D.C. be expanded to Maryland and Virginia?”

Posted on by Emily Maurer

“A ‘transformative’ plan has transit advocates looking beyond D.C. Council“

By Pete Muntean | WUSA9 | March 3, 2020

WASHINGTON — D.C. Council will now decide if it will pay for its residents to ride Metro for free.

Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen officially introduced his plan on Tuesday. If it passes, those in the District could get a hundred dollars on their SmarTrip cards each month.

“It’s great for businesses, great for employees,” said Allen of the Metro For D.C. 2020 Amendment. “But really, most important for those who have the least amount of access but have to pay the most for Metro, this can be transformative for working families.”

Allen says the program would be rolled out in stages. 

He says low-income families would be able to apply first. A family of four making less than 80-thousand dollars a year would qualify. Those behind the plan stress it includes extra bus service putting the total cost between $50 million and $150 million each year — a cost city council supporters say D.C. can afford.

“It’s an innovative approach that Councilmember Allen has proposed,” said Stewart Schwartz of the Coalition for Smarter Growth. He said the idea could be expanded to Maryland and Virginia, but neither state legislature has proposed such a bill.

“We have to bring Virginia and Maryland on board,” said Schwartz, who said that free transit regionwide will benefit everyone with less traffic and cleaner air. He said that is the next step, but the District has the chance to take the first step.

“I’d love to be able to get to that,” said Allen. “This is going to be incredibly important to District of Columbia residents, but to be able to do free fare, we’re going to have to get Maryland, Virginia and the District all on the same page.”

Metro has not said what it thinks of this idea.

Those behind this bill also cannot say when this would go into effect. They tell WUSA9 this is a big effort — and say it could take a year and maybe longer.

Testimony supporting Purple Line Marketing Program

Posted on by Emily Maurer

February 27, 2020

Environment and Transportation Committee

House Office Building, Room 251

Annapolis, MD 21401

HB 876, Transportation – Purple Line Marketing Program (Purple Line Marketing Act) (Support) 

Testimony for February 27, 2020

Jane Lyons, Maryland Advocacy Manager

Thank you, Chair Barve, Vice Chair Stein, and Environment and Transportation Committee members. This testimony on behalf of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, the leading organization in the D.C. region advocating for walkable, inclusive, transit-oriented communities. We support HB 876 and the development of a sound marketing plan that will help maximize usage of the Purple Line. 

HB 876 would require the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) along with certain stakeholders to create a marketing plan that would attract interest in the Purple Line before operations begin and promote usage of the Purple Line after operations begin. This bill would also require the Governor to dedicate $1,000,000 from the Transportation Trust Fund toward marketing efforts over three years. 

Maryland residents experience some of the longest commute times in the nation, with high levels of traffic congestion and a steady increase in vehicle miles travelled each year. This is why sustainable transit options, such as the Purple Line, are necessary. The Purple Line will decrease the number of single-occupancy vehicles on the road, decrease traffic congestion, and encourage the development of transit-oriented communities, all of which are important for spurring economic development along the Purple Line corridor and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. 

A sound marketing plan is crucial to ensuring that the benefits of the Purple Line are adequately relayed to potential riders. A marketing plan will help frame the Purple Line as an attractive alternative to single- occupancy vehicle use, influencing commuting decisions and attracting new customers. Marketing for Richmond, Virginia’s Pulse Bus Rapid Transit system contributed to a record increase in transit ridership. 

Maryland has invested a significant amount of time and resources into planning, constructing, and operating the Purple Line. To maximize the return on this investment, the next practical step would be to develop a marketing plan that focuses on spreading information about the benefits of this modern rail service. 

Therefore, we ask you to vote in favor of HB 876. Thank you for your consideration.

CSG Sign-on letter re: transportation projects in FY21 budget and FY21-26 CIP

Posted on by Emily Maurer

February 26, 2020

Montgomery County Council

Council Office Building

100 Maryland Ave

Rockville, MD 20850

Re: Transportation Projects in the FY 21 Capital Budget and FY21-26

Dear Council President Katz and County Council Members,

We, the undersigned, are writing to express our support for the following amendments to the FY 21 Capital Budget and FY 21-26 Capital Improvements Program. 

Fully dedicated bus rapid transit lanes on Route 29: Montgomery County has been studying a bus rapid transit (BRT) network for nearly a decade. The first line of the planned countywide network is set to open this May without the fully dedicated right of way that is necessary for bus rapid transit to truly be rapid. The highest quality of service is necessary to show county residents what BRT can do, and why the rest of the network must be funded and built. 

The proposed CIP includes $2 million for preliminary engineering of BRT on Veirs Mill Road and $14 million for BRT system development, which includes New Hampshire Avenue and the North Bethesda Transitway. Aside from Route 29, no priority BRT corridor construction funding has been identified — financing for the full 82-mile network remains elusive. This means at least another six years of study without any action, and with a bus rapid transit line that isn’t actually rapid. 

Together, the $16 million budgeted for preliminary engineering along these three future BRT lines can be put to better, more immediate use by diverting it to the construction of dedicated median BRT lanes on the southern portion of Route 29. 

The 2013 Countywide Transit Corridors Functional Master Plan called for dedicated lanes on the Route 29 corridor, and this promise of gold standard BRT should be fulfilled. Two years ago, the County Council commissioned a study evaluating dedicated bus lanes in the southern portion of Route 29, which should be shared with the Council immediately so that resources can be prioritized on the existing BRT corridor — instead of continuing feasibility studies for unfunded BRT routes. 

White Flint northern Metro entrance: Provided the reasons above, we also support diverting the $15 million allotted to preliminary engineering of BRT on MD-355 to fund a second entrance at the north of the White Flint Metro station. 

A 2015 report found that Montgomery County’s most successful office clusters are in walkable, transit accessible locations. Marriott’s move from an industrial office park to downtown Bethesda showcased this trend. Business leaders have testified that the second Metro entrance is a must to attract prospective office tenants. 

Those who live or work within a half-mile walkshed of transit are significantly more likely to use it. Achieving the staging requirements in the White Flint Master Plan is dependent upon new investments in transit accessibility. Simply put, the northern Metro entrance is necessary for an economically vibrant Pike District. As Montgomery looks to keep itself competitive with Northern Virginia, county leadership must prioritize smart growth infrastructure. 

Express bus service on northern MD-355 and Veirs Mill Road: While pursuing gold standard BRT on MD-355 and Veirs Mill Road, we should mirror the success of Ride On extRa and provide express bus service on northern MD-355 and Veirs Mill Road. We should also update the existing bus/right turn only stencils on Veirs Mill Road, pursue a countywide redesign and upgrade of Ride On, and seek funding sources for the BRT system. 

Veirs Mill Road is the highest ridership bus corridor in the state of Maryland, and is also vital to bridging the east-west socioeconomic divide. At the same time, residents in Gaithersburg, Germantown, and Clarksburg have dire, unmet transportation needs. One of the highest daily travel flows in the region is from Clarksburg to Germantown, with 4,000 to 5,000 daily trips on all modes. Ride On extRa Route 101 along MD-355 increased ridership by 11 percent and reduced travel times by 25 percent. 

Improving our transit system is important for climate, equity, and economic development goals. Transportation is our number one source of greenhouse gas emissions. Commute times are one of the best indicators of socioeconomic mobility, and people who rely on bus service have some of the longest commutes in the county. Our economic growth has stagnated. 

We must take bold action to create change, and these three priority investments — funding dedicated lanes on Route 29 for Gold Standard BRT, a second entrance to the White Flint Metro Station, and express bus on Veirs Mill Road — will demonstrate the boldness that Montgomery County residents and businesses want to see. 

Thank you for your attention to this important matter. 

Signed, 

Denisse Guitarra | Maryland Conservation Advocate | Audubon Naturalist Society 

Julio Murillo | Government & Strategic Relations Specialist | CASA 

Nanci Wilkinson | Chair, Environmental Justice Ministry | Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church 

Jane Lyons | Maryland Advocacy Manager | Coalition for Smarter Growth 

Diane Hibino and Kathy McGuire | Co-Presidents | League of Women Voters of Montgomery County 

Walter Weiss | President | Montgomery County Faith Alliance for Climate Solutions 

Michael DeLong | President | Montgomery County Young Democrats 

Shruti Bhatnagar | Chair | Sierra Club, Montgomery Group 

Margaret Schoap | Organizer | Transit Alternatives to Mid-County Extended 

CC: County Executive Marc Elrich

CSG in the News: “Metro Might Charge Bus Riders More For Paying In Cash. How Will It Affect Low-Income Riders?”

CSG in the News: “Metro Might Charge Bus Riders More For Paying In Cash. How Will It Affect Low-Income Riders?”

Posted on by Emily Maurer

By Margaret Barthel | WAMU | February 25, 2020

Metro will hold three public meetings this week to solicit feedback on its proposed 2021 budget. The agency is suggesting a number of significant service changes, including fare changes, cuts to bus routes, free transfers between bus and rail and the return of late-night rail service.

In one proposal, Metro is suggesting a 25-cent surcharge — on top of the regular fare — for people paying cash to board the bus, or using cash to add value to their SmarTrip cards on the bus.

That’s been the subject of some concern from advocates worried about the way the proposal could affect low-income riders, especially those who are unbanked or under-banked. More than half of Metrobus riders make less than $30,000 per year, and a significant majority are people of color.

Speeding Buses Up

Metro wants to make bus trips more efficient, which could make the bus a more appealing transit option — one of the goals of the Bus Transformation Project, a vision for the region’s buses that the Metro Board endorsed last month.

But last year, a report found that buses on some of the system’s busiest routes arrive on schedule just 60% of the time and move less than 10 miles per hour, on average. Bus ridership has declined by 12% in the past 5 years, and the agency hopes to recoup its losses.

One way to do that is to minimize the “dwell time” a bus spends at a stop, waiting for passengers to board and pay for their ride. According to Metro research, payment takes 2-4 seconds with a SmarTrip card, but as long as 20 seconds for people paying in cash or loading a SmarTrip card with cash. About 96% of Metro passengers use SmarTrip cards, with 4% paying in cash on the bus.

A 25-cent surcharge on paying in cash would penalize those riders and, Metro hopes, would incentivize them switching over to SmarTrip cards instead.

“You could position it as a $2.25 bus fare with a 25-cent discount for using SmarTrip,” said Metro spokesperson Dan Stessel.

General Manager Paul Wiedefeld pointed out at a D.C. Council oversight hearing that a SmarTrip card can help riders unlock other savings, too, in the form of passes.

One such discount is also included in Metro’s proposed budget: a decrease in the price of a 7-day bus pass from $15 to $12. But that still requires riders to come up with $12 upfront, a fact Wiedefeld acknowledged.

“Now we’ve got to figure out how we get that done — how do we come up with that $12,” he said.

He suggested that Metro might work with the District to spread the word, perhaps through “book mobile-type things.” Another option Wiedefeld mentioned: a program modeled after Kids Ride Free, where the District could subsidize transit passes for low-income residents.

George Jones, who leads the nonprofit Bread for the City, told WAMU that the low-income residents his organization serves would be hard-pressed to switch to paying upfront for Metro passes.

“You’re talking about people who predominantly use buses, who probably aren’t just readily paying for transportation in advance, in long-term blocks, like those of us who have a Metro card we reload every month,” he said.

‘This Is Not The Way’ 

While some advocates agree that speeding up buses is an important priority, they also raise concerns about how the proposed cash surcharge could affect low-income riders.

“We all agree we need to speed up the boarding process, but this is not the way,” said Cheryl Cort, the policy director at the Coalition for Smarter Growth, a transit advocacy group.

“Some people don’t have easy access to load a SmarTrip card other than on the bus,” said Katherine Kortum, a transit policy expert and member of the Metro Riders’ Advisory Council. “Not everybody has access to the credit cards and the online access needed in order to top up a card online.”

About 8% of D.C. households are unbanked, and 21.2% are underbanked, according to a 2017 analysis from the FDIC.

“We’re talking about folks who are, at any moment, struggling just to figure out how to get from one place to another,” said Jones. He noted that Bread for the City spent around $50,000 last year in transportation assistance.

Kortum also notes that many bus riders don’t have close by Metro stations where they might add money to a SmarTrip card with cash. In addition to its own Commuter Stores, Metro has retail partnerships with some CVS and Giant locations to provide riders with additional places to add cash value to a SmarTrip. Just three of those places are east of the river.

Metro officials told the D.C. Council that there are about 500 retailers across the region where riders can buy or reload SmarTrip cards, predominantly CVS locations.

Cort told WAMU she hopes Metro will ultimately go cashless — but that that would be paired with deeply discounted or free fare passes for low-income residents, as well as many more options for fare loading.

View the full story on WAMU here.

CSG Comments Re: WMATA FY2021 Budget

Posted on by Emily Maurer

A copy of the letter below was sent on Tuesday, February 13, 2020 to the WMATA Board of Directors.

2020.02.13-CSG-Letter-re-WMATA-Budget-Final-2Download

Dear Chairman Smedberg, members of the WMATA Board, and GM Wiedefeld: 

The Coalition for Smarter Growth is a 23-year-old non-profit and leading organization in the D.C. region advocating for walkable, inclusive, transit-oriented communities. We partner with dozens of DC area conservation, housing, transit and smart growth non-profit, advocacy organizations, and the business community, and are founding members of the MetroNow coalition which was instrumental in helping WMATA win the first-ever dedicated funding for the agency. We also served on the Executive Committee of the Bus Transformation Project. Today, MetroNow and our non-profit partners are committed to winning implementation of the recommendations of the BTP, including dedicated bus lanes and network redesign for faster, more frequent and reliable service, more affordable fares for lower income residents, technology improvements for off-board fare collection, and more. 

We support a number of provisions in the draft budget but are concerned about others, particularly the proposed changes and cuts to bus service. 

We support: 

Restoration of late night service: Late night service is particularly important for service workers at late- night businesses, especially those who live in Virginia and Maryland. We support restoring late-night service, while still ensuring time for needed maintenance. 

Free transfers between bus and rail: Free transfers were a top recommendation from the Bus Transformation Project and the second-most requested bus improvement after bus lanes in the survey. They were the top recommendation among low-income riders along with more affordable fares overall. 

Low and lower pass costs: Lower pass costs are particularly helpful for lower-income riders and can support the transition to off-board fare collection which will speed buses. 

Improved weekend service for bus and rail: This will support the access to jobs for all those who do not have traditional Monday to Friday work schedules, and support the transition to car free and car-light living for the tens of thousands of residents moving into transit-oriented communities in the city and suburbs. 

We oppose: 

Increasing the cash fare for Metrobus: This should only be done in conjunction with a much-improved Metro SmarTrip Retail Outlet program, establishment of an off-board fare payment option for Priority Corridor Network routes, and a new integrated payment and trip planning system. 

Charging peak fares after midnight: This is inequitable for late-night workers. 

A $1 surcharge for MetroExtra: We should be encouraging people to use limited-stop service, which saves operating funds, increased ridership, and helps people get to their destinations faster. We should not create a two-tier system that hurts lower-income riders by discouraging their use of faster buses. 

Bus service changes and cuts: While some reconfigurations listed in the proposal may make sense, we have received significant negative feedback from our members about the proposed changes. To the extent that service cuts are being forced by the arbitrary 3% operating cost growth cap, we urge the Virginia and Maryland jurisdictions to remove the cap. 

We prefer that WMATA and the region initiate a process for bus network redesign. This process can start with the proposed development of common service standards for WMATA and local bus services based on the frequency and coverage needs of our region. But any allocation or reallocation of service to WMATA or the local jurisdictions and major service changes like those being proposed, should take place after a network redesign study. 

We also urge all area jurisdictions to continue to increase their operating funding necessary to expand bus service while making it faster, frequent and reliable. With climate change, we must maximize our investment in transit to support walkable, transit-oriented communities, access to jobs, and reduction in total vehicle miles traveled. 

Thank you, 

Stewart Schwartz Executive Director