The Airport TRAX line has a final route in the Downtown area now. And what's more, the decision by the Salt Lake City Council on the routing brings the route more into compliance with ISO 9001 than it otherwise would have.
The routing will use existing TRAX infrastructure from the Intermodal Hub to the Planetarium Station, north of that it will part ways with the other existing TRAX lines that will carry trains for the University, Mid-Jordan, Sandy/Draper, and Valley Fair lines further away.
This line will go one more block north on 400 West, then use West Temple out to near the Airport then onto the Airport property itself to a point I've not seen, rideuta.com has the actual planned line map.
This is also good efficient planning on Salt Lake City's part, as then the Davis line will have this first block out of the way as well, and it can continue north on 400 West and turn over to 300 West at a point to be determined later, and go into Davis County following Beck Street.
So it looks like at least one government, without realizing it, helped UTA in its desire to be ISO 9001 compliant on planning its route system.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Friday, May 2, 2008
Efficiency improvements related to Intermodal Hub area needed.
Various things have emerged in the week since the Frontrunner service began, and it brings up some interesting and valuable service improvements that will enhance UTA's ISO 9001 program when it comes to overall efficiency of the system.
1. All Utah County routes that come into Downtown Salt Lake, the 801, 802, 803, 804, 805, and 807, plus the Saturday 816, and the one trip that 817 does in the Afternoon when that trip runs, should come directly Downtown and straight to the hub. From there, users would simply hop TRAX or Frontrunner from there to get to destinations that the same above routes serve right now. After all, once there, you can catch any one of a number of buses to get to the final destination of your trip.
2. Similarly terminate a number of trips for other buses that do not presently visit the Intermodal Hub, namely Avenues, U of U (besides TRAX), some eastside trips like the 209, and other Intercounty express trips like the 451 and most FastBus service there as well. Again this will improve connection to and from Frontrunner for additional key routes in Salt Lake, Tooele, and Davis Counties.
One side issue is where to park the buses between trips? I'm not sure, I'm not that familiar with the area, but there should be a solution out there for that.
3. Additional TRAX bays. Two exist now, but what about when Mid-Jordan, West Valley, and the Airport line, and the barely being discussed plan for a Davis County line? I'm thinking two more are needed, thus making four bays, that way you could have eight total lines running out of the hub, and that along with the above mentioned bus routes coming in would truly make this the major transportation center it could be, and not look half-dead like it does now between trains.
These three items will bring UTA more into compliance with all known reasonable customer and public expectations that are part and parcel with the knowledge that UTA subscribes to ISO 9001, and will, along with all other items I have or will mention in this blog, give the public at large a better opinion of the ISO standard as put into practice by UTA.
1. All Utah County routes that come into Downtown Salt Lake, the 801, 802, 803, 804, 805, and 807, plus the Saturday 816, and the one trip that 817 does in the Afternoon when that trip runs, should come directly Downtown and straight to the hub. From there, users would simply hop TRAX or Frontrunner from there to get to destinations that the same above routes serve right now. After all, once there, you can catch any one of a number of buses to get to the final destination of your trip.
2. Similarly terminate a number of trips for other buses that do not presently visit the Intermodal Hub, namely Avenues, U of U (besides TRAX), some eastside trips like the 209, and other Intercounty express trips like the 451 and most FastBus service there as well. Again this will improve connection to and from Frontrunner for additional key routes in Salt Lake, Tooele, and Davis Counties.
One side issue is where to park the buses between trips? I'm not sure, I'm not that familiar with the area, but there should be a solution out there for that.
3. Additional TRAX bays. Two exist now, but what about when Mid-Jordan, West Valley, and the Airport line, and the barely being discussed plan for a Davis County line? I'm thinking two more are needed, thus making four bays, that way you could have eight total lines running out of the hub, and that along with the above mentioned bus routes coming in would truly make this the major transportation center it could be, and not look half-dead like it does now between trains.
These three items will bring UTA more into compliance with all known reasonable customer and public expectations that are part and parcel with the knowledge that UTA subscribes to ISO 9001, and will, along with all other items I have or will mention in this blog, give the public at large a better opinion of the ISO standard as put into practice by UTA.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Frontrunner shows it can handle the traffic.
Frontrunner has shown itself to be very good at handling the traffic that it might carry in the future.
On the first day, it was reported by the media, that 5,000 riders had used the train by noon that day. That means that it may have possibly had 12,000 total riders, although I have no way of confirming that, it sounds reasonable given the early number.
It takes anywhere from 58 minutes to an hour and five minutes for the trains to make the trip between Ogden and Salt Lake, according to KSL Radio 1160/102.7. The time disparity apparently is due to how and where trains meet when one has to use a siding to wait for another train, due to the fact that this line is not 'double tracked' like TRAX is. See my earlier post on the problems that causes.
If UTA can resolve the double-tracking issue and get the second set of rails in, then they can run more trains, and that means they could have a potential for from 20,000 to 25,000 riders each day. And if they are able to run more trains, that will make the trip faster, double tracking will allow them to run at the top speed advertised and that would make my estimates more conservative, which means maybe 30,000 to 35,000 riders? They can't expand I-15 much further than is planned, in fact the train runs rather close to the freeway at one point, and the Legacy Freeway's capacity is constricted due to overzealous environmentalists.
So UTA deserves the praise it is getting for the success of Frontrunner.
In the next few days, once they start taking fares, we'll know what the actual daily ridership on average is going to be.
On the first day, it was reported by the media, that 5,000 riders had used the train by noon that day. That means that it may have possibly had 12,000 total riders, although I have no way of confirming that, it sounds reasonable given the early number.
It takes anywhere from 58 minutes to an hour and five minutes for the trains to make the trip between Ogden and Salt Lake, according to KSL Radio 1160/102.7. The time disparity apparently is due to how and where trains meet when one has to use a siding to wait for another train, due to the fact that this line is not 'double tracked' like TRAX is. See my earlier post on the problems that causes.
If UTA can resolve the double-tracking issue and get the second set of rails in, then they can run more trains, and that means they could have a potential for from 20,000 to 25,000 riders each day. And if they are able to run more trains, that will make the trip faster, double tracking will allow them to run at the top speed advertised and that would make my estimates more conservative, which means maybe 30,000 to 35,000 riders? They can't expand I-15 much further than is planned, in fact the train runs rather close to the freeway at one point, and the Legacy Freeway's capacity is constricted due to overzealous environmentalists.
So UTA deserves the praise it is getting for the success of Frontrunner.
In the next few days, once they start taking fares, we'll know what the actual daily ridership on average is going to be.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Frontrunner opens, is on the right track, but is it still an 'also-ran'?
Frontrunner, UTA's new commuter rail line, is now open for regular passenger service between Salt Lake City and Ogden, with several intermediate stops.
It opened Saturday, April 26th, to huge celebrations as the first train with dignitaries and UTA officials, made the first trip down from Ogden, taking stops at each of the stations.
Trains leave every thirty minutes, and the trip takes an hour at present. Fares are actually a little high considering the train goes only around 40 miles at the most. However, given the rush hour problems and planned construction on I-15, including some work at present, this is still a good thing. When you see them you will see a slight variation on the 'striper' pattern painted on all newer UTA buses, you can think of them as the 'Sabertooth tigers' of the UTA fleet.
Now with all that said, and yes it is defiitely off to a great start. These trains will do much good,
is Frontrunner already an 'also-ran' in the commuter race? Could be, depending on when you need to use it.
The claim of speeds up to 80 mph were never met on the midday runs I took today. Part of that is because they did not 'double track' this line, and that means that much of the way, except for predetermined sidings and at the stations for it, they are running southbound and northbound trains on the exact same track. In fact, Wal-Mart trucks and other vehicles on I-15 even in construction zones on that freeway, were passing up the trains almost everywhere I could see the freeway from the trains.
Right now, the trains run every thirty minutes, and I think the single-tracking has alot to do with it. If they will just double track the entire Frontrunner line, and not make the same mistake when they build it south to Provo in a few years, they will be able to run trains much more frequently. If gas goes higher than it's expected to this summer, then they will be in high demand, and right now with the single track situation, they cannot add runs to the system to handle the expected major demands, they don't have enough buses or drivers as it is.
I think they could run trains every ten minutes with a double tracked line, and they could thus handle all those that wanted to use the trains. Until then, Frontrunner may be nothing more than an also-ran, no matter how good it is now.
tised speeds of
It opened Saturday, April 26th, to huge celebrations as the first train with dignitaries and UTA officials, made the first trip down from Ogden, taking stops at each of the stations.
Trains leave every thirty minutes, and the trip takes an hour at present. Fares are actually a little high considering the train goes only around 40 miles at the most. However, given the rush hour problems and planned construction on I-15, including some work at present, this is still a good thing. When you see them you will see a slight variation on the 'striper' pattern painted on all newer UTA buses, you can think of them as the 'Sabertooth tigers' of the UTA fleet.
Now with all that said, and yes it is defiitely off to a great start. These trains will do much good,
is Frontrunner already an 'also-ran' in the commuter race? Could be, depending on when you need to use it.
The claim of speeds up to 80 mph were never met on the midday runs I took today. Part of that is because they did not 'double track' this line, and that means that much of the way, except for predetermined sidings and at the stations for it, they are running southbound and northbound trains on the exact same track. In fact, Wal-Mart trucks and other vehicles on I-15 even in construction zones on that freeway, were passing up the trains almost everywhere I could see the freeway from the trains.
Right now, the trains run every thirty minutes, and I think the single-tracking has alot to do with it. If they will just double track the entire Frontrunner line, and not make the same mistake when they build it south to Provo in a few years, they will be able to run trains much more frequently. If gas goes higher than it's expected to this summer, then they will be in high demand, and right now with the single track situation, they cannot add runs to the system to handle the expected major demands, they don't have enough buses or drivers as it is.
I think they could run trains every ten minutes with a double tracked line, and they could thus handle all those that wanted to use the trains. Until then, Frontrunner may be nothing more than an also-ran, no matter how good it is now.
tised speeds of
Monday, March 3, 2008
The MC 400 D buses were ordered originally by Greyhound, then rejected.
I have uncovered some information about the MC 400 D buses, or the larger 'Stripers' as some refer to them as, that UTA has been putting into service.
It turns out that this model was ordered by Greayhound Lines, Inc., but at some point Greyhound cancelled the order but these were already built or otherwise in production. So the manufacturer had to get rid of them, and UTA was able to get them 'on the cheap', at a substantial discount.
These buses therefore, were not designed for short-haul use, even within a Metro area. Also there are some serious issues about ADA compliance, as some have recently found that not all generally-used mobility assist equipment will fit properly in them. This includes power scooters and wheelchairs. It takes some 10 minutes to prepare, load/unload a wheelchair/scooter, and finish up afterwards. Most other buses on the fleet you are done with this proceess in usually two minutes.
It turns out that this model was ordered by Greayhound Lines, Inc., but at some point Greyhound cancelled the order but these were already built or otherwise in production. So the manufacturer had to get rid of them, and UTA was able to get them 'on the cheap', at a substantial discount.
These buses therefore, were not designed for short-haul use, even within a Metro area. Also there are some serious issues about ADA compliance, as some have recently found that not all generally-used mobility assist equipment will fit properly in them. This includes power scooters and wheelchairs. It takes some 10 minutes to prepare, load/unload a wheelchair/scooter, and finish up afterwards. Most other buses on the fleet you are done with this proceess in usually two minutes.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Another sham hearing on the way, involves Route 35.
UTA again is setting up a sham hearing to say, 'oh yes, we took public input', but the facts of the case indicate that they are going to do what they propose, forget what anyone says contrary to it.
The plan is to make Route 35, which runs from Millcreek TRAX on 3300 South to 35th South and then all the way out to Magna, about 9200 West or so, a 'Bus Rapid Transit' route, which would mean there would only be stops about every 2/3 mile or so, about that distance apart.
You can't do much about the I-215 interchange over 3500 South, that's just messy anyway. but it's eveyrthing else I have already noticed.
They have set up these battleship-gray shelters at about every light from 9th West out, these will be the only stops you can pick up a 35 anywhere after April Change Day 2008. That despite any honest input from the riders. That means that the disabled, and many others, will find the route unusable for everyday use, despite the fact that the BRT route will still run every 15 minutes. Also, the 33 is not included in this plan, so the sense of discrimination and inequality will be there as well, a very large number of residents and shoppers and business owners depend on traffic from this route.
Often the buses are so heavily used, that they can often run just late enough that they run early. Observed this yesterday at 56th West. Got off there after observing activity on a run, and went across to see what I could get at the 7-Eleven, and about five minutes later, as I walked out of the 7-Eleven, I saw another westbound bus.
It may well be that the first one was late due to having to pick up a disabled rider, but that only drives home the point that those people rely on this route heavily. If the wheelchair or scooter that some use is battery-powered, they do not have enough juice sometimes to even get to or from the bus stop if it's far enough away, rendering the bus unusable, thus making the BRT line already noncompliant with ADA accessibility rules.
So unless there is a corresponding route that parallels on 35th South the BRT line, it may not be implementable under the ADA and the ISO 9001.2000 standard, because it will be a nonconforming route.
The solution, if they are so intent on putting the BRT limited service route in?
1. Rename the route 'R35'. The 'R' would signify it is a bus rapid transit route. That would separate it from the '35' required as shown below in 2.
2. Create an exactly parallel route, although it might only run every 30 minutes or so apart, and just number that one '35' as it is now.
That is required in order to avoid many problems, some possibly legal, and the dissatisfaction of users will definitely necessitate the above unless both 1 and 2 are implemented together.
The hearing is set for February 7th, I'm not sure where, although that is mentioned on a large announcement posted on some, but not all Route 35 buses.
The plan is to make Route 35, which runs from Millcreek TRAX on 3300 South to 35th South and then all the way out to Magna, about 9200 West or so, a 'Bus Rapid Transit' route, which would mean there would only be stops about every 2/3 mile or so, about that distance apart.
You can't do much about the I-215 interchange over 3500 South, that's just messy anyway. but it's eveyrthing else I have already noticed.
They have set up these battleship-gray shelters at about every light from 9th West out, these will be the only stops you can pick up a 35 anywhere after April Change Day 2008. That despite any honest input from the riders. That means that the disabled, and many others, will find the route unusable for everyday use, despite the fact that the BRT route will still run every 15 minutes. Also, the 33 is not included in this plan, so the sense of discrimination and inequality will be there as well, a very large number of residents and shoppers and business owners depend on traffic from this route.
Often the buses are so heavily used, that they can often run just late enough that they run early. Observed this yesterday at 56th West. Got off there after observing activity on a run, and went across to see what I could get at the 7-Eleven, and about five minutes later, as I walked out of the 7-Eleven, I saw another westbound bus.
It may well be that the first one was late due to having to pick up a disabled rider, but that only drives home the point that those people rely on this route heavily. If the wheelchair or scooter that some use is battery-powered, they do not have enough juice sometimes to even get to or from the bus stop if it's far enough away, rendering the bus unusable, thus making the BRT line already noncompliant with ADA accessibility rules.
So unless there is a corresponding route that parallels on 35th South the BRT line, it may not be implementable under the ADA and the ISO 9001.2000 standard, because it will be a nonconforming route.
The solution, if they are so intent on putting the BRT limited service route in?
1. Rename the route 'R35'. The 'R' would signify it is a bus rapid transit route. That would separate it from the '35' required as shown below in 2.
2. Create an exactly parallel route, although it might only run every 30 minutes or so apart, and just number that one '35' as it is now.
That is required in order to avoid many problems, some possibly legal, and the dissatisfaction of users will definitely necessitate the above unless both 1 and 2 are implemented together.
The hearing is set for February 7th, I'm not sure where, although that is mentioned on a large announcement posted on some, but not all Route 35 buses.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Holding more effective public hearings and getting better comment.
ISO 9001 assumes a lot of things not written into the standard, and the matter of public hearings is no exception to the rule. After discovering a problem which I am trying to get more information on the cause of, in relating to a time change that affected all runs on a route, I came up with this solution on the public hearings problem, including the lack of holding public hearings in some cases, that will make everyone happier, including UTA itself.
1. Preparing for the hearing.
Diseminate as much information about proposals as possible, via fliers on buses, mailings to homes along the affected route (within 1/2 mile is the standard, since that is how far most people will walk to get to a route). This process must begin the month after a change day. For example, a change day occurs in August, so the process must begin about the first of September for the December change day.
Get media outlets to air commercials advertising the change day proposal hearings, this should all take place in the first month following a change day in preparation for the hearings about changes for the next change day. Disseminate press releases about the changes to media outlets as well and contact reporters to run stories about the proposed changes.
This must be done for all changes that substantially affect a route, even if the proposal is to shift the start times from one time to another especially if the new start times for a route are significantly earlier than before, like more than five minutes earlier. Also this must be done for any routing changes besides temporary detouring that is going to last for an extended period like the recent 811 detour was.
2. Scheduling the hearings.
For the commercials, a date and time must be in the commercial, flyer, or newspaper ad notice (putting anything in the public notices area alone is inadequate, advertising space must be purchased). That date must occur in the first week of the second month after a change day, for example, October is the second month following the August change day. This must be held in a location convenient to all residents in the division the route is in that is to be changed. Fliers are to be mailed and distributed in the manner described above.
The flier must include the proposal, and must include a very brief but understandable reason for the change.
Information on changes in divisions other than the division where the change is proposed must also be made available to all divisions to all riders, that way if a change might adversely affect riders that might use a route affected by a proposed change can give comments about the change, either for or against.
The hearing must follow this format:
6pm. Begin hearing, meet with public, show maps and give more detailed info in response to inquiries and questions. This will set the stage for later parts of the hearing. This should be in the back of the venue, so that latecomers can see and then comment in the hearing process later in the evening as they arrive.
7pm. At the front of the room, the lead planner for the division discusses the proposal and reasons that UTA feels the route needs to be changed in the fashion they propose it to the entire audience present, including sharing some of the feedback from discussions with in the first hour. This must includes both comments for and against the issue, and this to inform those present so comments later at the microphone can be more direct in relation to the issues involved. This ensures a dialogue between the public who uses UTA and the managers who have to juggle everything on the system to make it work for all.
By 730pm, that phase should be completed and the public should then be invited to ask more questions, and managers should be prepared to give responses to the public. If a manager feels slighted and discovers the plan they had envisioned for the next change day was wrong, he should not feel guilty for saying 'We were wrong, we'll see what we can do to fix the planned change so it works for you'. Everyone makes mistakes, and we should all learn from them, and they can even offer possible alternatives be it on the fly if necessary, which will help perfect the process and ensure that any eventual changes implemented serve the public interest once they are.
The public input portion of the hearing should go until 830pm, after which a summation and discussion of the ideas should be presented to the entire audience present.
In addition to this, a web comment portal needs to be established, like how the FCC does it, where a person can E-File comments, and read the comments of everyone else, regarding a change day. If mutliple routes are to be affected by changes, the comment website should be structured to allow one to comment on a specific proposal for a specific route. This comment portal URL on the Internet should be opened at the time the fliers are mailed out and placed on buses, and the webpage should be noted on the fliers and mailings, as well as the advertising and news stories. Mailed comments should be scanned, and phone comment transcriptions/summaries should be posted to the site also.
3. Internal planning.
After the hearings are done, planners should take written comments until end of the third week in the second month following a change day, after which they should issue another flyer indicating what they wish to do. They can then on the fourth week in the second month following a change day submit it to the UTA Board of Directors, who can then approve the plan. That will allow everyone to be in the know throughout the process, and once the board approves the modified plans, will allow drivers to bid on work for the upcoming period beginning at the next change day.
By the third week in the third month following the change day, or rather the third week in the month preceeding the next change day, notices should be mailed out to affected areas, news media needs to be contacted, and fliers need to be handed out on buses and TRAX indicating the changes that were made and the effective date.
4. Implementation. On the week before a change is to go into effect, fliers must be posted on buses and placed in schedule holders yet again, so that people can see the changes that passed, and how they will affect them. Concise reasons for the change again should be included in the description of the change, and the use of 'in house' jargon should be avoided. Terms such as 'runtime', 'headways', etc., are confusing to those unfamiliar with transit system jargon, and explaining everything in plainer terms will help. This rule of thumb should also be followed in all eariler phases of this process.
5. Your comments about this idea.
Your comments are now invited on this idea. UTA employees and planners are welcome to comment. UTA personnel, if desired, may post anonymously if you feel like you do not want your name or position known.
1. Preparing for the hearing.
Diseminate as much information about proposals as possible, via fliers on buses, mailings to homes along the affected route (within 1/2 mile is the standard, since that is how far most people will walk to get to a route). This process must begin the month after a change day. For example, a change day occurs in August, so the process must begin about the first of September for the December change day.
Get media outlets to air commercials advertising the change day proposal hearings, this should all take place in the first month following a change day in preparation for the hearings about changes for the next change day. Disseminate press releases about the changes to media outlets as well and contact reporters to run stories about the proposed changes.
This must be done for all changes that substantially affect a route, even if the proposal is to shift the start times from one time to another especially if the new start times for a route are significantly earlier than before, like more than five minutes earlier. Also this must be done for any routing changes besides temporary detouring that is going to last for an extended period like the recent 811 detour was.
2. Scheduling the hearings.
For the commercials, a date and time must be in the commercial, flyer, or newspaper ad notice (putting anything in the public notices area alone is inadequate, advertising space must be purchased). That date must occur in the first week of the second month after a change day, for example, October is the second month following the August change day. This must be held in a location convenient to all residents in the division the route is in that is to be changed. Fliers are to be mailed and distributed in the manner described above.
The flier must include the proposal, and must include a very brief but understandable reason for the change.
Information on changes in divisions other than the division where the change is proposed must also be made available to all divisions to all riders, that way if a change might adversely affect riders that might use a route affected by a proposed change can give comments about the change, either for or against.
The hearing must follow this format:
6pm. Begin hearing, meet with public, show maps and give more detailed info in response to inquiries and questions. This will set the stage for later parts of the hearing. This should be in the back of the venue, so that latecomers can see and then comment in the hearing process later in the evening as they arrive.
7pm. At the front of the room, the lead planner for the division discusses the proposal and reasons that UTA feels the route needs to be changed in the fashion they propose it to the entire audience present, including sharing some of the feedback from discussions with in the first hour. This must includes both comments for and against the issue, and this to inform those present so comments later at the microphone can be more direct in relation to the issues involved. This ensures a dialogue between the public who uses UTA and the managers who have to juggle everything on the system to make it work for all.
By 730pm, that phase should be completed and the public should then be invited to ask more questions, and managers should be prepared to give responses to the public. If a manager feels slighted and discovers the plan they had envisioned for the next change day was wrong, he should not feel guilty for saying 'We were wrong, we'll see what we can do to fix the planned change so it works for you'. Everyone makes mistakes, and we should all learn from them, and they can even offer possible alternatives be it on the fly if necessary, which will help perfect the process and ensure that any eventual changes implemented serve the public interest once they are.
The public input portion of the hearing should go until 830pm, after which a summation and discussion of the ideas should be presented to the entire audience present.
In addition to this, a web comment portal needs to be established, like how the FCC does it, where a person can E-File comments, and read the comments of everyone else, regarding a change day. If mutliple routes are to be affected by changes, the comment website should be structured to allow one to comment on a specific proposal for a specific route. This comment portal URL on the Internet should be opened at the time the fliers are mailed out and placed on buses, and the webpage should be noted on the fliers and mailings, as well as the advertising and news stories. Mailed comments should be scanned, and phone comment transcriptions/summaries should be posted to the site also.
3. Internal planning.
After the hearings are done, planners should take written comments until end of the third week in the second month following a change day, after which they should issue another flyer indicating what they wish to do. They can then on the fourth week in the second month following a change day submit it to the UTA Board of Directors, who can then approve the plan. That will allow everyone to be in the know throughout the process, and once the board approves the modified plans, will allow drivers to bid on work for the upcoming period beginning at the next change day.
By the third week in the third month following the change day, or rather the third week in the month preceeding the next change day, notices should be mailed out to affected areas, news media needs to be contacted, and fliers need to be handed out on buses and TRAX indicating the changes that were made and the effective date.
4. Implementation. On the week before a change is to go into effect, fliers must be posted on buses and placed in schedule holders yet again, so that people can see the changes that passed, and how they will affect them. Concise reasons for the change again should be included in the description of the change, and the use of 'in house' jargon should be avoided. Terms such as 'runtime', 'headways', etc., are confusing to those unfamiliar with transit system jargon, and explaining everything in plainer terms will help. This rule of thumb should also be followed in all eariler phases of this process.
5. Your comments about this idea.
Your comments are now invited on this idea. UTA employees and planners are welcome to comment. UTA personnel, if desired, may post anonymously if you feel like you do not want your name or position known.
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