Sound Transit is conducting a survey to help them improve their website. They say it takes only three minutes (it’s very short). So take it if you think the website can be improved.
I like the new website but there’s one feature about it that can be improved: the content of the image gallery on the home page. Consisting entirely of images of Sound Transit riders enjoying their trip and a caption, the image gallery is the most prominent feature on the home page, yet it provides zero information on current events and no links to additional information. This was evident during the snow days last month which severely impacted service. Compare the homepages for Community Transit, King County Metro, and Sound Transit on January 19 and you’ll see what I mean.
Looks like there’s snow on the roads. What’s going on? Clicks image.
What’s that big red box with snowflakes? Oh, snow routes, some routes cancelled, click for more info.
Situation normal… oh wait! What are these small icons in the bottom half of the page?
The screenshots speak for themselves. I’m not against promotional images but they’re less useful without links. You got the user interested with the image. Now make it easy for them to learn more by adding a link. Don’t make them look around the page more than they have to. If they want to use it as a promotional space, why not add the pretty photos from the RIDE newsletter and link to stories from real riders? Why not promote events accessible by transit? I’d love to see, for example, an image of happy Sounder FC fans using ST to get to the game, with a link to game day travel options.
ORCA’s Joint Board last week discussed changes and enhancements (“new work”) for the next round of implementation in June called Maintenance Release 18. Much of the new work in MR18 has to do with the website and streamlining customer service. Work to be implemented in March (MR 17) will affect back office operations: Autoload enhancements, bank holds, business account management, RapidRide card readers at stations, and transaction history.
Currently, routine Maintenance Releases are scheduled 4 times per year. Costs for new work are shared among the agencies using a complex formula based on the previous year’s ridership, except agency specific work. There is $1.5 million in the regional fund for system enhancement. The agencies will address funding beyond that amount during 2013 budget process.
Due to the publicity for this meeting, Sound Transit’s CEO, Joni Earl, opened the meeting expecting the first public comment to be ever given before the Joint Board. Alas, there was no public comment. The next Joint Board Meeting is on February 13, 2012, 10:30 am at King Street Center’s 8th floor conference center. This is your chance to let the managers and staff of all seven Puget Sound transit agencies know your thoughts about ORCA.
Summary of the meeting and work items for June, after the jump. (more…)
The ORCA regional fare coordination system has reached Full System Acceptance, meaning it is now ready for changes and additions. The ORCA card is now used by 3 out of every 5 transit riders in the Puget Sound region daily. According to Community Transit’s blog, “additions to the system can be made, whether it be new agencies coming on board, new products offered or new functionality for the ORCA cards.”
The Joint Board, which is composed of executives from the seven transit agencies participating in ORCA, will begin to look at possible changes and additions to the system. Feedback from the recently conducted customer survey is likely to be the starting point for discussion. They have seen preliminary results and are interested in the public’s response. The next ORCA Joint Board meeting will be held next Monday, January 9, from 10:30 am to noon in King Street Center’s 8th floor conference center. It is a public meeting so they will take comments from the public at the beginning of the meeting.
Other than improving the website, there are no specific changes or additions to functionality that I have been able to gather from transit officials but there is a new way for agencies to join the ORCA system. Sound Transit’s Geoff Patrick explains:
The Joint Board has approved an ‘Affiliates’ option where another agency can come in under the sponsorship of a current ORCA agency. We currently have the Port of Kingston, sponsored by Kitsap Transit. Intercity Transit is considering becoming an Affiliate, sponsored by Pierce Transit.
I’ve obtained the latest statistics on the ORCA system which will be presented and discussed in a future post.
In September 2009, Metro revised Route 106 to serve the Rainier Beach Link light rail station, creating new travel opportunities for people living and working along the route in Georgetown, Rainier Beach, Renton, Skyway, and South Beacon Hill. Riders could benefit from a faster trip to downtown by taking Link partway instead of busing all the way. How well does that work? Two charts hold the answer, after the jump. (more…)
A Link round-trip ticket was a de facto regional day pass until Jan 1, 2010. Photo by l0st2
Like I said in a previous post, getting riders to switch to pre-paid fare media speeds up bus boarding. The discontinuation of the Ride Free Area next October makes fare payment more critical to transit operations than ever, of which its impacts will be felt throughout the network, including Link light rail.
A set of affordable 1/3/7-day passes could get more cash users switching to the ORCA card and reduce the number of cash transactions on the bus. It will also make transit easier to use for visitors and infrequent riders. This works best with a robust network of fare retail outlets and a lower cost ORCA card.
Read on for my conceptual proposal that works within the existing regional pass system without changing individual agencies’ fare structure. Note that I have not calculated the fare revenue or ridership impacts of my proposal.
Presenting the 1983 Metro transit system map featuring a dark background and white/green lines in high-resolution. Don’t miss the other side with downtown maps, night owl map, rider instructions, and a frequency table of all routes! It was scanned from a copy in UW’s Suzzallo Library. This is one of Metro’s more non-traditional map designs. (Click “View original” on the linked pages to download the full images.)
Frequent service for nights on the town or workaholics.
How late should “frequent service” operate for the purpose of defining a standard span for a frequent transit network? I have found that it varies for each city but I looked at our neighbor Portland for an answer. Before the budget shortfall forced cuts, Portland’s twelve Frequent Transit bus corridors plus MAX light rail offered service every 15 minutes or better until 10:30 pm, every day. TriMet chose that time since it “corresponds to end times for evening activities, based on a survey of evening college classes, movie theaters, shopping and event centers.” Compare this to King County Metro’s quasi-standard of frequent service until 6 pm Monday-Saturday and 5:30 pm on Sunday*. How many of Seattle’s main bus routes meet the Portland standard for Frequent Service?
As you can see from the thick lines in the diagram above, within Seattle itself, there are eight bus corridors plus Link light rail that meet the criteria. While the geographical extent is similar to routes within Portland, all but one go through downtown, limiting easy crosstown travel. Here’s the actual coverage of the Seattle routes on a map. Outside Seattle, there are the RapidRide A (Pacific Hwy) and B (Bel-Red) lines. That’s a total of ten bus corridors plus Link.
What is disappointing is the proposed night** headways for the upcoming RapidRide C (West Seattle) and D (Ballard) lines do not appear to be frequent at all. In conversation with a Metro planner at a recent open house, they were being conservative with the frequencies since they barely have the resources for it, which explains the “15-30” numbers for some routes. It means they want 15 minute headways but might not be able to fund it. Then there is the C Line has which has a night headway of “30-60” minutes. The planner told me those figures might include the late night trips they are adding to the C and D to replace the Night Owl routes.
RapidRide, in its role as a trunk line, should be a guarantee of service at least every 15 minutes until 10 pm every day. The way night frequencies are presented in Metro’s restructure proposal dilutes the RapidRide brand that Metro advertises as its “fastest and easiest way to travel, with service so frequent you don’t even need a schedule.” If that is what RapidRide is supposed to be, then what do you call routes like the 7 and 70-series that run more frequently than RapidRide both during the day and later into the night?
*the Frequent Transit Network in Seattle’s Transit Master Plan has a target service level of 15 minute or better frequency, 18-24 hours a day (6 am to midnight), every day.
** The “Night” time period is defined in Metro’s Service Guidelines as 7 pm to 5 am all days.
Getting cash paying passengers to switch to the ORCA card can speed up bus boarding for everyone and save operating costs. However, there are many who continue to use cash. There are many reasons for this but I would like to focus on just one: the lack of places to buy and reload a card.
There are only 139 locations in the entire four county area where one can add value to their ORCA card, only a quarter of them sell new adult cards, and a handful (with very limited hours) sell youth and senior cards. This is inadequate. Retail locations cannot sell new cards which is a step backwards from the pre-ORCA era and a big mistake. The coverage of ORCA outlets really is pathetic by comparison to Chicago, London, or ORCA’s sister system in San Francisco.
In spite of the limitations, ORCA is now used on half of the region’s transit trips. That was most likely achieved through conversion of pass users to ORCA, many of whom have employer managed passes. That was the easy part. The challenge now is to convert the other half to ORCA users and attract new transit users.
Not everyone has a debit or credit card for online or over the phone transactions. Not everyone can use the Internet nor can they afford to go out of their way at inconvenient times just to get a card. It is even more inconvenient for youth and seniors. And while one can buy an adult or youth card and fare with checks or money orders through the mail, it can take days to process.
If ORCA is to be used by over 80% of transit riders, it must be easy for all users to get a card and add value to it near home or work or on the way. King County’s approved 2012 budget provides funding for eleven ORCA vending machines throughout King County, one of which will be installed at King Street Center. That is a good step towards making ORCA more accessible but vending machines are expensive and other card distribution channels like retail outlets should be studied for expansion.
Would people perceive Metro’s proposed restructure differently if it were presented like this?
Click to enlarge
The depiction of routes and categories of service & frequency have been simplified for the purpose of this map, which took about ten hours to produce from sketch to post.
Addendum 6:40 pm: For those who want to see ALL service in West Seattle, including those that only run during peak period, see this map.
Transit in Overlake Village, Group Health site outlined in black
In addition to Bellevue’s open house on Tuesday evening, the Redmond City Council is holding a public hearing tomorrow, October 18, at 7:30 pm at Redmond City Hall on the Master Plan to redevelop Group Health Cooperative’s 28-acre site in the Overlake Village area. The area is planned to become a new transit oriented urban village served by the RapidRide B Line and Link light rail.
The Master Plan envisions a phased redevelopment of the property that would ultimately result in about 1,400 residences, 1.2 million square feet of office and retail uses, and a hotel and conference center.
It is going to be an interesting string of transit oriented development along East Link between downtown Bellevue and Overlake. Once the whole area redevelops, the B Line jog over to 152nd Ave NE makes a lot of sense.
Metro won't be doing all-door boarding but San Francisco's Muni might do it next year.
King County Metro’s 2010-2011 budget (p. 28) set aside $5.5 million to implement ORCA card readers at all doors to speed up boarding but the project has been cancelled due to issues with implementation under Metro’s complicated fare structure. The readers would have saved about a hundred daily service hours. The funds from the cancelled project will be available for projects in the 2012-2013 budget that weren’t previously funded or which require additional funds.
Metro’s explanation:
Determination has been made that rear door ORCA readers are not feasible at this time given Metro’s varied zone and special fare structure which require operator interaction with ORCA equipment to provide exceptions and correct fare categories for different riders. This continues to be an area of interest, but there is no solution currently identified and funded. Metro also continues to look for ways to increase the number of ORCA card users and off-board fare purchase.
Metro’s problem lies with the zone system and how one would pay the correct fare without driver assistance. Metro will have to face the same problem when the RapidRide E Line (Route 358) begins service in 2013. It is the only RapidRide line to cross a zone boundary. Metro has not decided on how off-board payment on that line will work but it is being discussed.
There are a few technical and policy solutions to this elaborated after the jump.
The impending end of the Ride Free Area, by October next year, should end the debate on the much maligned back door use policy. Seattle will finally operate like all the other big city transit agencies in this country where there’s almost no question on which doors can be used to exit. But old habits are hard to change and passengers will need to be encouraged to use the back door to exit whenever possible to speed up everyone’s trip.
Metro updated the decals inside buses to reflect current door use policy. The decal above the back door now reads “In Ride Free Area, Use Front Door Only, 7 PM – 6 AM”. This is to cut down on fare evasion caused by people unaware of or ignoring the RFA’s 6 am to 7 pm hours. From my observations, many people are already using the back door to exit after 7 pm, following the natural desire to use the fastest way out.
There are many ways to inform. Some Sound Transit buses have a big “EXIT DOOR” sign above the back door. TriMet buses have a giant sticker on the ceiling pointing towards the back. Muni buses automatically announce “Please exit through the rear doors” everytime a stop is requested. That may be annoying to hear but it works. How about one of Metro’s APTA award winning signs with tips for a faster ride?
I’m sure that when Metro figures out the specifics on phasing out the Ride Free Area, there will be a strong public awareness campaign backed up with strong enforcement.
Background on the policy change below the jump. (more…)
Metro put together a decent map showing the improved Eastside frequent & all-day transit network, featuring the RapidRide B Line, that will begin service on October 1st. Metro will be distributing these maps as a “pocket guide” to the Eastside transit network. The other side has a frequency chart and list of connections to major destinations on the Eastside, plus park & ride locations and fare information. This is a good initiative from Metro to promote its new and improved service. I hope to see these maps in the hands of as many as possible and that these maps be posted at the Eastside transit centers for all to see.
This map uses a similar color scheme to the Spokane transit map. The RapidRide B Line stands out as the Eastside’s main transit route with a thick and dark red line. Frequent service (every 15 minutes most of the day) routes are a thinner light blue. Other all-day service (every 30 minutes) are an even thinner light green. Peak-only routes are not shown. I printed it on an 8.5 x 14 inch sheet of paper from a monochrome laser printer and was able to read the map, even though the background colors and tiny streets were washed out. The green is a little too light, almost blending into the background.
Unlike Spokane’s schematic map, this is a geographic based map produced from a GIS. Metro wanted to show the underlying street grid which is helpful on the cul-de-sac dominated Eastside where walking to the main roads isn’t as straightforward as it appears. There are different intentions here in the role of each map. Spokane is creating a hierarchy of maps with a simplified system map providing the big picture and the route map providing street block level detail (also compare with Community Transit’s route map). While Metro has done the opposite with a big detailed map and simplified route maps, the one big map is all you need.
I can see Metro taking this style and quickly adapting it to the system map and expect them to produce something similar for Seattle when the C & D lines launch next year. It’s nice to see Metro finally getting maps done right.
Metro doesn’t provide a link to print or download the map but I found the source images for the map and the information tables. Warning: they are very large 2-3 MB image files.
As for my Eastside transit map, I’m still working on it. I’m going for a schematic to see how that’ll work compared to this map.
Take a look at Spokane Transit’s new system map for the September 2011 service change. It prominently shows frequent service routes as thick red lines. Frequent service being defined as “every 15 minutes during Weekday peak and day times”, roughly from 5 AM to 6 PM on weekdays, and “Night and Weekend service every 30-60 minutes or better.” The branches of frequent lines are shown as thinner lines. Portions where “basic” lines combine to provide frequent service are also indicated. Even at the shrunken size of the image above you can tell where all the frequent service is.
Compare the new map to the previous map. The map is now schematic, which sacrifices geographic accuracy for clarity. Going schematic also allowed the elimination of insets for the outlying areas, making it easier to follow the lines. Despite individual routes no longer getting their own color, I find the new map much easier to read due to the simplified lines and elimination of clutter.
Spokane Transit is the second transit system in the state to highlight frequent service on its system map after Bellingham’s WTA.
H/T @ziggzagzac on Twitter. Also, Jarrett Walker’s take. Walker worked on restructuring Spokane’s bus network and notes that despite service cuts, STA maintained its frequent service loop.
UPDATE, 3:10 pm: Response to my inquiry from Chris Tohm, Communications Specialist, at Spokane Transit Authority. Items in brackets are my notes:
Thanks for the kind words about the new STA system map.
The layout was a collaborative effort with CHK after we met with Rick Wood [President & CEO of CHK America, a firm specializing in transit information solutions] to discuss the new changes to the system. We had committed to doing a more detailed series of maps for our individual route schedules and wanted to simplify the system map so it would give a better vision of the entire system.
Karl Otterstrom, STA’s Director of Planning [former planner at Metro who worked on the Rapid Trolley concept], had some ideas about showing frequency and combined frequency and CHK did a really good job turning those theoretical concepts into reality while creating a really user-friendly design.
… [omitted link to Human Transit article]
It’s been long tedious process working through the details but I’m glad to say it is one of the most rewarding projects I’ve worked on recently.
