Early returns from Utah Transit Authority's fare-free transit experiment.
People like to ride transit when it's free, it seems.
Writing for TownLift, Parker Malatesta reports that average weekday ridership on the Utah Transit Authoruty (UTA) system was up 20 percent in the first two weeks of February—a period coinciding with the system's "Free Fare February" promotion. "Saturday shows the largest increase at 34%, with Sunday ridership up 27%," adds Maletesta.
The most significant ridership increases are happening on the FrontRunner, a commuter rail system connecting Ogden to Provo. Ridership is up 163 percent on Saturday and 33 percent during the week, reports Malatesta.
All Utah Transit Authority (UTA) services are free until the end of the month. More ridership data can be found in the source article below.
FULL STORY: UTA reports significant increase in ridership thanks to Free Fare February
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association