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Dear
Monica,
In this addition of On Transit, we bring you some exciting news.
MTA is making big news, Baltimore City plans to put buses on the streets,
planning for the Charles Street Trolley is moving along, and the USDOT wants
your input. Read on and be informed with On
Transit.
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| PUBLIC
TRANSPORTATION RIDERSHIP IS INCREASING EVERYWHERE |
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| With Gas Prices
Reaching $4.00 a Gallon, Transit Ridership is Surging
Every day there is an article in the paper talking about how the rising
price of gas is shifting commuters to mass transit. Well, here is the proof, and
Baltimore is helping to lead the way with light rail and heavy rail percentages
of riders increasing.
Light rail
Overall streetcars and trolleys had the
highest percentage increase, at 10.3%. The biggest
increases:
· Baltimore, 16.8%
· Minneapolis,
16.4%
· St. Louis, 15.6%
· San Francisco, 12.2%
Heavy rail
Subways and elevated train
ridership rose by 4.4%. The biggest increases:
· Staten Island,
12.3%
· Boston, 8.8%
· Jersey City, 6.5%
· Los Angeles,
5.4%
· New York City, 5%
· Baltimore, 4.9%
· San Francisco,
4.5%
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| FREE BUS SERVICE COMING IN 2009 |
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 Baltimore City
is Funding Three New Bus Routes
The short lived DASH bus service is coming back bigger and stronger than
ever. One year from now, the City of Baltimore expects to be running the first of
three free downtown bus routes. All three routes should be operational by
September of 2009. North, East and West, the DASH will get you there in new
Hybrid Electric Buses. The service will be paid for in part by an increase in
the parking tax. Another reason to leave your car at home.
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| THE
FEDS ARE COMING TO HEAR FROM YOU |
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 U.S. DOT Wants Your Take on the Region's Planning
Process
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) wants to know how well the
Baltimore region conducts its transportation planning process. If you're
interested in how transportation investment decisions are made in the Baltimore
region, you should plan to attend a public hearing with the U.S. DOT on Tuesday,
June 24th.
The meeting, which is part of the quadrennial federal
certification process of the Baltimore region's metropolitan planning
organization (MPO), will take place from 6:00 - 7:30 p.m. at 2700 Lighthouse
Point East, Suite 310, in the Canton area of southeast Baltimore City.
As the local MPO, the Baltimore Regional Transportation Board (BRTB) is
responsible for several key products as part of a continuing, comprehensive and
coordinated (3-C) process. These products include a long-range transportation
plan, a short-range program or implementation plan, an annual work program, air
quality assessments, and a congestion management process. The BRTB undertakes
this work in coordination with state agencies and other partners. An important
part of the planning process is providing for public participation.
If
you cannot attend the meeting, you may submit written comments by mail, fax,
e-mail, or online using the public comment form.
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| CHARLES
STREET TROLLEY STILL IN THE WORKS |
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 Charles Street Development
Corporation Holding Trolley Open Houses
Charles Street
Development Corporation has recently completed the first year of a 2-year
Preliminary Engineering study to examine the feasibility of a fixed-rail trolley
in the Charles Street corridor. In order to share the results of the study and
gather community feedback, CSDC will be hosting two Open Houses this June. These
information sessions will not feature a lecture or presentation, but will allow
the public to drop in and ask questions and learn more about the project.
Public Meetings
- June 12, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., Cathedral of the Incarnation - 4 W. University
Parkway
- June 23, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., The Belvedere - 2 E. Chase Street
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| MARYLAND TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION GOES
GOOGLE |
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 MTA Teams with Google for
Trip Planning
MTA's home page added a new feature this week:
an online trip planning tool through Google Transit. Type in your starting
location and your destination and it will tell you how to get there by transit.
No more having to look through countless schedules to figure out how to get from
here to there. Now plan your trips before you leave your house. This is a nice
compliment to their other feature, MARC Train Tracker. Keep
adding these tools, MTA.
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