A NACTO report highlights the importance of bus-friendly policies and infrastructure for boosting ridership numbers and reducing urban congestion and pollution.
To grow bus ridership, improve service. That’s the conclusion of a new (but unsurprising) report from the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO), writes Dan Zukowski in Smart Cities Dive.
More specifically, the report highlights three key areas where transit agencies and city officials can take action: ensuring all-day, frequent bus service; redesigning streets for buses with dedicated bus lanes, signal priority, and improved infrastructure; and adopting broader policy reforms that support transit, such as adjusting parking fees, discouraging driving, and promoting walkability and mixed-use development.
The report provides examples of successful initiatives, such as New York City’s 14th Street busway and transit signal priority in Minneapolis. It also highlights the potential for speedy action from local agencies. “For example, faced with the need to shut down a major subway line for repairs this month, Boston quickly created dedicated bus lanes and implemented parking restrictions along several major streets to allow for temporary shuttle bus services.”
FULL STORY: Dedicated lanes, frequent service key to increasing bus ridership: NACTO
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