Regional governance and more bus lanes are needed to improve ridership, according to a new study.
Faiz Siddiqui reports on initial findings from an analysis of Washington D.C.’s regional bus network that seeks to identify the reasons for declines in ridership.
The study, a joint effort between the Eno Center for Transportation and the Boston Consulting Group, finds that bus lanes have not been a priority in the metropolitan region and, as a result, bus speeds have decreased and led to $30 million of additional labor and fuel costs.
The analysis also provided detailed characteristics about Metrobus riders, who make up about three-quarters of the region’s bus riders. Almost half are low-income and travel during off-peak times, most live in the District, and 85 percent do not transfer to the rail system.
"[The project] will likely recommend a more regional governance structure and a clearer delineation of funding sources — rather than disparate jurisdictional bus subsidies covering routes in their municipalities," says Siddiqui.
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