Greening Austin Daily

Austin Considers Bike Share Program; San Antonio (!) Already Has One

19th April, 2011 - Posted by katherine - 1 Comment

I saw this article on Austin 360 that talks about the City of Austin eyeing San Antonio’s bike share program, which started last month.  Under a bike share program, basically there would be public bikes throughout the city that people can rent out for a fee (or sometimes for free) rather than driving their cars. I hadn’t realized San Antonio had such a program, and along with having more stringent water conservation measures than Austin, it’s another way San Antonio has surprised me by being (at times) more progressive than Austin.  Under the San Antonio program, people can buy a $25 membership into the program and then use the bikes for free if their trip is under 1 hour, or pay $2 per hour for each hour above that.

Here’s a little excerpt from the article. (I highlighted parts I thought were interesting and/or funny):

Now Austin is considering spending about $1.8 million, plus operating costs of about $225,000 per year, to put in a similar system.

It would start with 30 stations and 300 bikes but could eventually expand to 70 stations with 700 bikes, said Annick Beaudet, head of the city’s Bicycle Program.

The city would apply for grant money to help cover costs. If Austin officials find a business model that will work, a bike-share system could be up and running within two years. Officials would work to make memberships, grants and possibly advertising sustain it.

As urban areas look for ways to efficiently move people around, Denver, Chicago, Miami, Minneapolis and Washington have all put in bike-share systems in recent years. An estimated 200 cities around the world, including Paris, London, Barcelona and Berlin, now have them.

Proponents say bike sharing can reduce traffic congestion and improve users’ health. Most cities, including San Antonio, team with a nonprofit or private-sector partner for operations.

Many are considered successful, although vandalism and theft have been problems in some places. In Paris, which began a program in 2007, thousands of bikes were stolen, dumped into the Seine River or hung from light posts in the first two years, according to a 2009 article by The New York Times. Those problems have decreased since locking mechanisms were improved and users were required to use credit cards to buy memberships.

Theft hasn’t been as much of a problem in the United States. Just one bike in Minneapolis’ NiceRide system, which operates 65 stations with 700 bikes, has disappeared in the five months the program has been operating, said Executive Director Bill Dossett.

I would  definitely be interested in a bike share the program if it was available in Austin – hopefully we will hear more about this as time goes on.

Interesting Article about Light Rail V. Improved Bus System

13th April, 2011 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

The Austin Chronicle has this recent article that’s really well written and detailed discussing the proposed light rail system in Austin. It gives a lot of background, the pros and cons, and a comparision with a better bus system. It’s all very interesting and you should read the whole article, but this section in particular caught my eye:

One big problem with the bus option: Buses, say many transit mavens, have a bad image. People who won’t get on the bus, they say, will opt for nice rail cars. The reasons are multiple. For some, it’s classism – buses are seen as a service for poor people. For others, it’s mode of travel – the General Accounting Office report said “the public sees rail as faster, quieter, and less polluting than buses, even though Bus Rapid Tran­sit is designed to overcome those problems.”

The Central Austin Transit Study projected that better bus would attract only 9,000 boardings per weekday by 2030, compared with 27,600 on urban rail. But maybe “better bus” is the problem – by offering that limited concept, rather than full-fledged BRT*, as the only alternative to rail, perhaps URS** gave short shrift to the potential of bus. What if Austin created BRT that approached the quality of rail?

(*The article earlier explains “BRT” as “bus rapid transit” – a loosely defined term that usually means high-quality buses running on busy corridors at greater frequencies and with fewer stops. Beyond that, however, BRT systems vary widely in quality, ranging from buses that simply have traffic signal-changing technology (currently being considered by Cap Metro) to buses running in high-occupancy-vehicle lanes or even on exclusive bus highways, with fancy stops resembling rail stations.” **Also URS is an Austin company the city paid to do the Central Austin Tran­sit Study.)

The article goes on to talk about the costs of better bus versus urban rail, quoting former Tracor CEO Jim Skaggs:

“Fort Worth just went through this consideration in December and decided against rail as being the solution,” says Skaggs. “They decided that buses, which they could do for 10 percent of what the rail cost was, were perfectly adequate to do what they wanted to do, and give them more flexibility. They had $25 million in their pocket from the feds already and had to give it back, because they decided that [with the remaining costs], they couldn’t justify it.” (Actually, the Fort Worth City Council’s discussions of a downtown streetcar aren’t completely dead and buried, but it did halt a streetcar study in December over cost concerns.) Austin’s “alternatives studies from the very beginning have been based on rail,” Skaggs says. “[They've asked only] ‘What alternative rail are we going to use?’ They have really given lip service to alternative studies and haven’t really looked at the differences.”

I can see both sides of the debate of bus v. rail and it will be very interesting to see how this plays out as the election draws closer.

Guess Who Just Got Her Money’s Worth Riding the Bus (Sort of)

11th April, 2011 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

You can read in great detail of my experiences riding the bus here and also if you click on the category of this post “public transportation” (when I first started riding the express bus I did a weekly review and a pro and con post), but one thing I hadn’t kept close track of previously was the exact cost of riding the bus. After a period of driving my car in over the winter every day and getting sick of all the stop and go driving, I purchased a 31 day bus pass last month which I just finished last week. This time I recorded in my calendar how many days I actually used the bus during the 31 day period.  My grand total was 20 days during that 31 day period (had to drive in a few days for doctor’s appointments and took a day off), so I was spending $3.20 a day during the days I took the bus ($64/20). And during that 31 day period I used about 7/8 of a tank of gas,  so let’s say that’s another $30 during that period.  I suppose that still seems like a lot of money, and versus driving my car in every day the immediate savings were minimal (maybe some larger savings from less wear and tear on the car) – generally during this time gas was about $3.50, so maybe I saved $6 over 31 days.  So basically I have some to the conclusion that for me to ride the bus, it really has to be justified by my love of naps and the environment, not any money savings.  Which is sad, because that  endorsement won’t realistically attract enough average people to public transportation in a way that will meaningfully impact Austin’s traffic.

But I do love naps so I think I’ll buy another pass.

Thoughts on the Light Rail Public Meeting

8th April, 2011 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

I attended one of the light rail public discussions this week, which I wrote about earlier here. I went on my lunch break and didn’t have a lot of time to spend there, but it wasn’t as informative as I expected. I went to the meeting at the AT&T conference center – there were probably about 30 people there, but about half of those people were dressed in suits and mingling, talking about transportation, so I assume they were in some way expected to be there -  not really the “general public” of Austin.  Then there were roughly 15 city (or Cap Metro?) employees there to answer questions. And then there was myself,  3 other people who seemed like regular, non-city of Austin visitors there to fill out comment cards, and one reporter.

A small conference room was filled with large poster boards explaining the process of updating the public transportation system (such as environmental reviews the city will have to conduct), and there were several posters about different options the city was considering for improving public transportation. One option was the no-build option (basically doing nothing except minor additions to current bus system as needed), one was the better-bus option (making due with the bus system but making it “smarter” such as allowing lights to turn green as buses approach, making commute times via bus faster and more convenient) and the last option was the urban rail proposal, which would create a system of street cars mostly in the downtown area with extensions into the Mueller development and to the airport.  There were also maps of different proposed station locations for the urban rail option.  I didn’t learn anything about the city’s ideas that I hadn’t already learned just by reading the news and the public meeting website, so I was a little disappointed.  Plus I felt like the whole meeting was somewhat pointless -I suppose if I owned a house near a potential site for a new station to be built and I didn’t want a street car driving past my house all day I could have filled out a comment card asking  that the station be built elsewhere.  But I don’t own a house or business downtown, so really all I could write on my comment card was which of those 3 options I thought was best. And the City already paid for a study which recommended that Austin build an urban rail to decrease congestion, so it’s not as if me and the other 3 attendees of the event had gone in there advocating for the “no-build” option, the city would decide to drop the urban rail proposal.  So I suppose I felt like the public meeting was mostly a PR event for the light rail proposal.  I’m still glad I was able to check it out, and I do think the city needs to improve the public transportation system (I’m anti No-build), I just wish I had gotten more out of the event.

If you’re interested in filling out a comment card, click on the above link and you can find a link to the City’s website where you can submit one online.

Public Meetings this Week on Light Rail

4th April, 2011 - Posted by katherine - 1 Comment

There are several opportunities to attend a public meeting this week to talk about the city’s preliminary light rail proposal:

 *Monday, April 4, 2 to 5 p.m., at the Austin Convention Center (meeting room 3 on the first floor), 500 E. Cesar Chavez St.;

* Wednesday, April 6, 5 to 8 p.m., at the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (first floor conference room), 4700 Mueller Blvd.;

* Thursday, April 7, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center (classroom 103 on the first floor), 1900 University Ave.;

* Thursday, April 7, 5 to 8 p.m., at the George Washington Carver Museum (museum foyer), 1165 Angelina St.; and

* Saturday, April 9, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Ruiz Branch Library (meeting rooms), 1600 Grove Blvd.

One of these is near my workplace during lunch so I may try to attend part of it.

The Statesman had this editorial in the paper over the weekend urging people to attend:

Last week, the city offered up a proposed light rail plan that includes more than 40 stations, including a possible spur heading up Red River Street from the University of Texas to Hancock Center. Among the many decisions to be made is where the rail line will cross the river.

Overall, we are talking about 16.5 miles of tracks running electric-powered trains on or alongside city streets. It would link downtown, UT, the Mueller neighborhood and Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. Any form of additional public transportation to our airport would be a great thing.

Estimated price tag, for now: $1.3 billion. The city is looking to a $200 million or more bond issue — to cover the project’s first phase — in November 2012. The Austin City Council this week will consider a plan to seek federal money for the project. Federal money seems crucial for this project.

There’s a lot to talk about and question –— especially financing — before we get anywhere near heading to the ballot box.

The environmental study, of which this week’s hearings are a part, hinges on three potential choices. One is “no-build.” Do nothing and stick with the current, limited transit options. We believe doing nothing is a feasible option only in the sad event that it turns out we can’t afford to do something.

The City of Austin’s website states:

Submit a written comment online, or via e-mail at transportation@ci.austin.tx.us. Written comments may also be submitted in person at the Public Scoping Meetings or by mail to Urban Rail Project, Austin Transportation Department, P.O. Box 1088, Austin, Texas 78767.

Comments should be postmarked before April 29, 2011 to be included in the public record.

The Federal Transit Administration and the City of Austin have officially begun the process of preparing an environmental impact statement (EIS) for the city’s proposed Urban Rail system, including scheduling a series of meetings in April for the public to learn about and comment on the proposed Central Austin transit system.

If you are interested in public transportation, it should be interesting to learn more about the proposal.

Car2Go May Expand Boundaries in Austin

23rd November, 2010 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

Just saw this Austin Chronicle story, which says that Car2Go plans to expand the boundaries in Austin in which you may park your car2go car and end your payment.  Currently the boundary is  51st and Koenig to the north, Highway 183 to the east, MoPac and Exposition Boulevard to the west, and Oltorf to the south, and if you take a car outside of that area and try to park it, you continue to be charged for the time the car is outside the boundary.  Car2Go is also planning on expanding the fleet of cars by 100 (currently at 200) and cars will “feature navigation and radio upgrades, ‘more robust’ seats and rims, and new hardware to streamline the car-sharing procedure,” and  ”[a]bout 80% of the new Car2Go cars will also sport solar roofs to charge the battery, power the hardware, and run a ventilation system to reduce the interior temperature, thereby expending less energy for cooling and ultimately reducing fuel consumption.”

Cap Metro Seeks Input on Proposed Fare Increases

14th October, 2010 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

Cap Metro is having a series of meetings open to the public (including some online) for input on the proposed fare increases, which will be voted on in November. For a list of the proposed fare increases, check this link.  And from their website, here is a list of the public meetings:

Census Results Show that Fewer Austinites are Commuting by Car, but Congestion has Increased Due to Growth in Population

4th October, 2010 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

The Statesman has a short article today which says that in 2000, 73.6% of Austinites drove themselves to work alone in a car, compared to 72.7% in 2009.  While there was a slight decrease in those 9 years, it wasn’t much progress. However, if you include carpooling as a “bad” form of transportation and lump it together with driving to work alone, then in 2000, 87.5% were traveling to work that using one of those two methods, compared to 83.1% in 2009, a 4.4% change.  I happen to think carpooling is much better than driving by yourself though, so I think the 73.6% to 72.7% is more telling.  The article points out though that any decrease in percentages of workers driving themselves to work was negated by the increase in population:

Given the 19.7 percent increase in Austin workers over those 10 years of survey numbers, the actual number of people driving alone or carpooling increased from about 309,000 to almost 356,500. The people driving by themselves made up all of that increase and then some (total carpoolers decreased).

Bonus of Riding the Bus: Summer Reading

8th September, 2010 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

This past month I’ve been riding the express bus, and one of the main benefits of riding, aside from the green aspect, has been all of the reading I’ve gotten to do in the last month.*  In case you are on the fence about trying out the bus, I thought I would share some of the books I’ve gotten to read in the past month so you can be jealous of my bus-riding experience:

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd – got this one at the Austin Library Recycled Reads book store for $1 after hearing a lot about it. I thought it was not worth the hype. I know a lot of people whove said they’ve loved it, but I thought it was ok.  I didn’t think it was written extremely well and it had a  lot of cliches in it, and it was predictable. It would probably be good for a teenager or pre-teen to read though.

Karl Marlantes’ Matterhorn, which I read about in this NPR review of under the radar reads, was one of the best books I’ve read in years. I reserved it at the library and didn’t know much about the book before I started reading it other that it dealt with the Vietnam War. I’ve never read a war book, and I thought I wouldn’t enjoy it so much once I read the book cover and actually realized that it was purely a war book, but it was so good that at times, I couldn’t put it down. There were a lot of characters in this book, and they were all guys, so it was hard to keep track of them, and there was a lot of marine lingo (although there was a vocabulary reference at the back of the book, which I discovered halfway though), but I stuck with it and learned a lot about the war, and also the book really helped me to empathize with the men who fought in that war in a deeper way than I had before. The book is written by a marine who served in Vietnam and he did a phenomenal job capturing what it was like there, down to the nitty gritty of dealing with leaches and the humidity.

All that Follows by Jim Crace, which a friend recommended to me.  I had a hard time getting into this book because I couldn’t relate to the main character at all, but as I kept reading I started to understand him better, and even though we don’t have a lot in common, the author did such a good job developing the main character’s personality that I could empathize with him by the end of the book. Plus part of the book takes place in Austin so that’s interesting. It took me about half way through the book to get into it, but once I did, I really enjoyed it.

The Girl Who Played with Fire, by Stieg Larsson. It seems like everyone is reading these books now so I read the first one just to be in the loop, and now I’ve checked out the 2nd book from the library. I think they are interesting, quick reads, but not great literature and I didn’t take much away from the first one, and I doubt I will with the 2nd one.  But they aren’t very complicated and are entertaining. Technically I only read 1/3 of this one before my month of riding the bus ended.

So there you have it – I was able to read 3 132 books in 1 month that I otherwise would have taken ~10 months to read. Hurray for the bus!

*not to sound like a cranky old person, but green/reading benefits or not, if Cap Metro raises the price over $63 a month for an express pass, I’m not sure I’ll ride it any more.

KUT Article on Cap Metro Budget

3rd September, 2010 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

KUT also has a story about the proposed Cap Metro Budget:

If the proposed 2011 budget passes, Cap Metro will begin charging the elderly and disabled for bus fare for the first time in the agency’s history. Adam Schaivitz, a spokesperson for Cap Metro, told KUT that the new 50 cent fare is consistent with the practices of other transit agencies nationwide.

But as those fares go up, the price of a Metro Rail ticket would actually decrease. Currently non-reduced fares cost between two to three dollars….

But not everyone agrees.

“Capital Metro could run trains every minute on the minute, and not see a substantial increase in ridership,” said popular transportation blogger Mike Dahmus.

In his blog Dahmus calls the Red Line a failure that could spoil Austinites’ desire for an urban rail system.

“The problem is that people don’t want to go two miles east of the University of Texas and then ride a shuttle bus to UT, that’s ridiculous. The problem is that people don’t want to go to the convention center and then walk half a mile to a mile to their office,” Dahmus told KUT.

I agree completely with this Dahmus guy! I really don’t think it’s fair to punish bus riders for the failure of the metro rail, which was poorly planned.

Cap Metro May Decrease Rail Fares, Increase Some Bus Fares, and Increase Costs to Seniors and People with Disabilities

2nd September, 2010 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

Check out this Statesman article, which says that:

Some rail riders, those who take shorter “one-zone” rides, would see their costs drop 50 percent or more. Those who take longer trips between the outlying stations on the 32-mile line and Central Austin would see about an 8 percent cheaper fare.

At the same time, people 65 or older and people with disabilities, who long have been able to ride Capital Metro buses without paying, would have a 50 cent one-way fare and a $15 charge for a 31-day pass.

Approval of the budget, which the Capital Metro board will consider on Sept. 24 after holding a Sept. 20 public hearing, would not constitute approval of the fare changes, which also include increases in 31-day passes for regular and express bus rides, and for door-to-door paratransit rides for people with qualifying disabilities. Instead, the board later in the fall would have to hold public hearings and take a separate vote on what would be the agency’s third fare increase since October 2008 .

Check out the full article for more details

Public Meetings on Proposed Cap Metro Route Changes

26th August, 2010 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

The Austin Business Journal has this article about public meetings scheduled to discuss proposed changes to the 2011 Cap Metro route schedule, which include ending routes 174 Burnet, the 984 Northwest Direct and 986 Leander Direct. Here are the meeting locations and times from the article:

• Leander Public Library, 1011 South Bagdad Road, Aug. 26, 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
• Capital Metro Transit Store, 323 Congress Ave., Sept. 7, noon-1:30 p.m. and Sept. 8 from noon to 1:30 p.m.
• Tech Ridge Park & Ride, 900 Center Ridge Drive, Sept. 7, 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
• Austin Community College Northridge, 11928 Stonehollow Drive, Sept. 8, 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
• Leander Station, 800 N. Hwy 183, Sept. 13, 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
• Lakeline Station, 13701 Lyndhurst Street, Sept. 14, 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.
• Capital Metro Headquarters, 2910 E. 5th Street, Sept. 20, 11 a.m. to noon

Cap Metro May Cut 2 Express Routes that Compete with MetroRail

24th August, 2010 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

The Statesman has this story today which states that:

With MetroRail ridership lagging far below original projections, officials with the agency said Monday that they want to eliminate two express bus routes that directly compete with the commuter rail line.

That announcement, confirming stories that had been circulating for weeks, dismayed at least some who regularly ride the 986 bus from Leander to downtown Austin and the 984 bus from near Lakeline Mall to downtown. The lines would be cut in January. Those 90 or so people would face a longer commute, either on MetroRail or on a remaining express bus route that makes more stops along that corridor.

The article also notes that the people who regularly ride the 986 and 984 are pretty upset. Check out the whole article for details on public input on the proposed change.

Photo credit

Cap Metro Routes Change Today

23rd August, 2010 - Posted by katherine - 1 Comment

Today marks the beginning of changes to several cap metro routes, which you can learn more about from this KUT article. Some routes are being discontinued because of low ridership, while others are being added to serve new needs.  For those of you who work near the Domain but are on the new rail line, now there will be a bus waiting at the Kramer Station to acccommdate people and employers in that area.

Free Car2Go Registration Until July 18th

7th July, 2010 - Posted by carsi - No Comments

Car2Go’s registration will be free until July 18th, and after that the registration fee will be $35. If you haven’t already, get on over there, sign up, and save yourself the 35 bucks before this deal ends! And be sure to check out our post about our first Car2Go experience to get an idea of what driving one of those little guys is like.

Wrap up of Riding the Express Bus

7th July, 2010 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

As promised, I have a wrap up of my month of riding the express bus.  My experience was chronicled, in probably too much detail, here, here, here, and here.  My daily fare ended up being $2.63 each day, which is probably about the same I amount I would have spent daily in gas.  However, it was nice to not have to worry about all the strange noises my car was making on the commute to work, and instead just sit back in the AC and read a book or fall asleep on the person next to me. I will definitely try to take it every other month – I think it’s a nice change of pace and committing to  one month at a time is very doable.  If I had to ride it every single day I would probably get agitated with the time spent waiting for the bus, but it’s a nice break to not have to drive myself  in stop-and-go traffic for roughly 1.25 hours a day.

Some tips for riding the express bus:

• use this trip planner to figure out what bus you need to take.
• the buses are not always on time, so get to the bus stop a few minutes early just in case.
• make the most of not having to drive by bringing a book or your laptop (the buses have free wi-fi!)
• bring a sweater if you get cold easy – I usually found that unless I brought a sweater, I would be too cold to fall asleep.
• wear some comfy shoes for the walk to and from the bus stop
• Keep an umbrella in your car (if you drive to the Express bus parking lot, which is what I did) and in your office/locker or backpack/purse so you don’t end up having to wait in the rain for the bus.
• Plan to get the most bang for your buck by trying out the bus during a month where you aren’t going to be missing work or school to go on a vacation.

Express Bus Review – 4th Week

28th June, 2010 - Posted by katherine - 1 Comment

Last week was my 4th straight week of riding the express bus.  I was able to finish the novel I was reading and start a new one, and I had several glorious naps on the ride home.  It was pretty dang hot waiting for the bus some days though for the ride home. Several times I left m office right at 5:00 but still missed the bus and had to wait for the bus that comes around 5:24.  Twenty minutes standing outside waiting for the bus normally wouldn’t be a big deal but  at this time of year it’s so hot. Next week I’ll have a wrap up of my bus riding experience, including the final daily cost for me and tips for riding the bus!

Round Rock to Have Bus Service to Link to CapMetro Starting this Fall

21st June, 2010 - Posted by katherine - No Comments

According to the Statesman, starting this fall, “for residents who commute to Austin for work and Austinites working in Round Rock”  Round Rock will offer bus services that will link up to CapMetro services.  The article also notes that “the routes are needed because Round Rock is not within Capital Metro’s service area,” and that ”the city estimates that 261 people will initially use the bus routes.” Round Rock has not yet determined what fares will be.

Express Bus Review – Third Week

21st June, 2010 - Posted by katherine - 1 Comment

My third week of riding the express bus has ended, and it is still going pretty well. I’m now on chapter 22 of the book I’m reading, which never would have happened if not for the reading time I’m able to have thanks to riding the bus.  There were a few days there when I got pretty hot while waiting outside for the bus after work, and one day the bus that picked us up was having some mechanical problems so we had to wait for the next bus. Also, on Friday I had to bring in a dessert for a monthly potluck we have at work, and it was difficult to carry the dessert and my purse on the bus.  But over all it’s been going well still – I still feel like its overpriced for what I’m getting but I will probably do it on and off in the future just because it’s a nice change of pace from driving everyday, and it’s better for the environment and the longevity of my car.