There’s an excellent post over on Intermodality laying out the difference between buses, streetcars and light rail.
I’m not 100% in agreement on all the details, but I think it does a great job with the big picture and the role of streetcars.
There’s an excellent post over on Intermodality laying out the difference between buses, streetcars and light rail.
I’m not 100% in agreement on all the details, but I think it does a great job with the big picture and the role of streetcars.
30 responses to “The Role of Streetcar”
Excellent and well written article. I also don’t agree with it 100% but they hit many of the key points. Very well done.
It is useful to remember that light rail came to Portland because of its flexibility…it can operate at high speeds in completely grade separated ROWs like the tunnel or Banfield, it can operate at moderate speeds in arterial medians like E. Burnside and N. Interstate, and it can operate at very low speed in central districts like downtown and Lloyd District.
Portland’s density and size could never justify the cost of a heavy rail system like the Bay Area’s BART, but it can and does suit the German style light rail which is just an upgraded streetcar with its own ROW.
In Frankfurt a Main light rail lines are put in subways in the central city, and operate above grown in the outer districts because it is powered by overhead wires. Just imagine Portland’s MAX in a subway from Lloyd District to Goose Hollow or up the Mall…maybe someday. Interestingly enough as subway lines were completed in Frankfurt, the old streetcar network was reduced until citizen protest stopped that in its tracks (sorry). Residents of the closer-in neighborhoods preferred the above ground, but slower streetcar with its frequent stops and smaller scale. Now Frankfurt has light rail in subways, yet retains many streetcars, and of course an extensive commuter rail system (also in a central subway). And there are buses as well.
“Streetcars have slipped into a specific niche in North American transit. They’re a tool for downtown and near-downtown revitalization. They’re intended to promote the construction of lofts and apartments, to draw visitors to cultural institutions and restaurants, and to attract tourists.”
YEP, they got it right, nothing to do with transit, everything to do with developers and tourists.
“But there is an alchemy to streetcars: people prefer them to buses even if they do not offer better service. Part of that is the distinctive branding, which distinguishes a streetcar line from the rest of the bus system.”
ARROGANCE, EGO,
great article, got the whole thing right!
American values completely.
GOD BLESS AMERICA AND ITS arrogance!
The rest of the world goes bus rapid transit, BUT NOT THE GOOD OLD
**US of A**
nah, lets spend money where we don’t have to just to satisfy the ego.
Oh yea, didn’t somebody mention that there is some sort of problem with the economy?
I think I heard that somewhere?
A couple of thoughts on streetcars:
I imagine the current streetcar system as an interim design, in that it could be easily improved to more of a “rapid” streetcar design in the future. This would involve removing 40-60% of the stops, relocating other stops to reduce their likelihood of being blocked by cars waiting at the red light, and adding more signal preemption.
Also, a rarely mentioned benefit of rail over bus is the comfort level. IMHO, the smooth ride is one of the major draws to streetcars/trains that buses cannot match. No one enjoys the bumpy, erratic ride of a bus. It gets you from point A to point B, period. On trains, people are more relaxed, some even get work done on their laptops, things you can’t realistically do on a bus. This point was driven home to me when I heard people whose holiday travels had been shifted from train to bus lamenting that they couldn’t get their planned work done on the bus ride.
As someone that suffers from motion sickness, I definitely prefer the ride on rail to bus.
I can sit just about anywhere on streetcar or max and not get sick (unless I try to read or do something else that prevents me from watching the terrain). But, if I sit anywhere behind the back wheels on a bus, facing sideways or spend too much time standing…I’m usually on the verge of puking by the time I make it home. With some bus operators…I just wait for the next bus, because I know the way they drive will make me ill.
“And part of it is the lure of novelty and nostalgia”
The article got that part right; however the streetcar systems of the first half of the 20th century were privately operated for a profit, not publicly operated as a carnival ride at taxpayer expense.
“They’re intended to promote the construction of lofts and apartments, to draw visitors to cultural institutions and restaurants, and to attract tourists”
Not quite right, They are intended as a taxpayer funded subsidy to help line the pockets of developers who are willing to build what the politicians want to control rather than what the free market will financially support.
“Serves restaurants, nightclubs, theaters, museums, and other leisure attractions (to draw tourists and locals.)”
In other words; a taxpayer subsidized tourist attraction that locals use for discretionary leisure travel.
“Serves areas that have development potential (to generate the tax revenue to pay for the line.)”
Portland hasn’t figured this out yet. Sustainability starts with financial self-sustainability.
“Runs on streets that are not too congested (so the streetcars aren’t stuck in traffic.)”
If this were true, streetcars would NOT be planned to cross the Willamette on the Broadway Bridge and NOT be placed on MLK and Grand Avenues. Moreover, streetcars ADD congestion to the streets on which they operate.
One interesting thing worth noting is that in DC, they appear to have the exact same LRVs as our new MAX trains that are coming with the opening of the transit mall, along with the exact same Inekon/Škoda streetcars.
“One interesting thing worth noting is that in DC, they appear to have the exact same LRVs as our new MAX trains that are coming with the opening of the transit mall, along with the exact same Inekon/Škoda streetcars.”
Did they pay 4X as much as they needed to as Portland did?
One interesting thing worth noting is that in DC, they appear to have the exact same LRVs as our new MAX trains that are coming with the opening of the transit mall, along with the exact same Inekon/Škoda streetcars.
I’m not an expert on the LRVs, but the streetcars are actually the same as the most recent 3 cars in Portland’s fleet, the Inekon “Trio” car built in cooperation with the Ostrava transit agency, not Skoda.
Terry Parker…
why have roads at all? after all, they only serve as a taxpayer subsidy to all those private enterprises and the private citizens who have jobs there. It’s simply un-American!
The quality of the ride on a bus is much more operator dependent than on rail vehicles. Does the Op smile and say hello? Is the ride jerky with lots of braking, swerving, etc? I have been on buses that were as smooth as Streetcar when the Op made everyone feel great…can’t be beat, but sadly its not the rule.
On the other hand, some Streetcar and MAX drivers can be hard on the brakes and not very smooth, but overall the ride is quieter, smoother, no diesel smell and less clostrophobic. Got to love those heated seats and big, clear windows, multiple doors…I think I’ll head downtown just to ride a bit for the fun of it.
How do we make our buses more Streetcar like?
Lenny, make them trolley buses.
I rode trolley buses is SF for years…yes they are quiet and electric, but they need some serious design and operational improvements to match the quality of Streetcar. Low floor, multi-door for a start, but you do get a lot of overhead wires, especially at intersections of two lines. But I am all for converting some existing lines like the 15 to electric trolley.
I wonder how the development community would respond…do trolley buses have that “Je ne sai quay” (parden my French) of streetcars?
Regarding motion sickness: My wife refuses to ride MAX to events where it would make sense for us to park at a MAX station and ride in, she’d rather drive to the destination. Why? Because she gets very nauseous, especially within the tunnel. I can point out every little bump on the MAX line when the wheels start to hunt or a flat wheel…and thanks to a hearing shift riding MAX is very loud for me.
Regarding the “bus vs. light rail” argument – I see, on a daily basis, a half dozen people who have no problem working on a laptop computer, doing business with their Blackberries, read a book…I’d like to know just how people can do this and yet people still complain that it can’t be done on a bus. I can only imagine that it’s a psychological hatred of buses, rather than a functional issue. (And, the seat pitch on a Streetcar is much shorter; I can only sit in a few seats on a Streetcar or else I must stand. Not so much a problem on MAX or the bus, but the New Flyers have a shorter seat pitch than the Flxibles or Gilligs.)
I know where my bus is going. It’s absolutely no different than the Streetcar. Again – it’s psychological. If TriMet took the time to advertise its bus routes, and improve bus stops, there’d be zero difference.
In fact, the bus has an advantage, in that it CAN detour if necessary. If the Streetcar or MAX is shut down, it requires a shuttle bus. You not only don’t know where the Shuttle Bus goes (because they don’t necessarily serve all missed stops), but they also don’t stop in the same place – it could be across the street, around a corner, etc. That is, if there’s even alternate service provided in the first place.
Lenny Anderson wrote: overall the ride is quieter, smoother, no diesel smell and less clostrophobic. Got to love those heated seats and big, clear windows, multiple doors…I think I’ll head downtown just to ride a bit for the fun of it.
How do we make our buses more Streetcar like?
Let’s see. Buy buses that have heated seats (just purchase the seats from the same supplier), are “less clostrophobic” (articulated buses?), have big, clear windows (DE60LF buses have pretty large windows), multiple doors (DE60LF can be configured with three doors per side – identical to a Streetcar). I’ve never had a “diesel smell” problem with a bus, but a hybrid bus pretty well eliminates that problem if it does exist (smaller engine, exhaust scrubber, less fuel burn, articulated bus transports more passengers with less fuel).
Yes, you compare a brand new, state-of-the-art Streetcar to a crappy 18 year old bus and it’s no wonder people like the Streetcar better. Buy a brand new, state-of-the-art high capacity bus and compare it to a brand new, state-of-the-art Streetcar and the differences go away.
Compare a nice, well maintained Streetcar platform to the average bus stop (a blue and white sign on the side of a road in the gravel)…it’s no wonder. I too would rather ride a nice, new, climate controlled bus where there’s almost always a shelter to wait in, with a NextBus display so I don’t have to look on my cell phone, with a wide, paved safe location to wait for the bus and transit-agency provided crosswalks to get to/from my bus stop. But none of those things are specific to Streetcar design; it’s just a pro-Streetcar/anti-Bus attitude here in Portland that makes it like that.
MRB said” “why have roads at all? after all, they only serve as a taxpayer subsidy to all those private enterprises and the private citizens who have jobs there.”
Sorry to disappoint you MRB, but unlike streetcars, transit infrastructure and bicycle infrastructure, roads are paid for by the motor vehicle users through fuel taxes, license and registration fees, and weigh-mile taxes for trucks. The subsidies are going to trabnsit passengers and free loading pedal pushers.
As for modern trolley busses, low floor models with multiple doors are available and already in service a number of cities around the world.
Erik Halstead: Compare a nice, well maintained Streetcar platform to the average bus stop (a blue and white sign on the side of a road in the gravel)…it’s no wonder. I too would rather ride a nice, new, climate controlled bus where there’s almost always a shelter to wait in, with a NextBus display so I don’t have to look on my cell phone, with a wide, paved safe location to wait for the bus and transit-agency provided crosswalks to get to/from my bus stop. But none of those things are specific to Streetcar design; it’s just a pro-Streetcar/anti-Bus attitude here in Portland that makes it like that.
I don’t have much of a quarrel with the rest of your comment, but this last paragraph is just wrong. The average bus stop is certainly NOT a blue & white sign in the gravel, and I really wish you’d stop making this particular claim.
And this bias claim is just as bogus. For one thing, there are nearly 8,000 bus stops in the system. The level of amenities at the stop is a product of ridership: stops that are heavily used by customers get more amenities than stops that pick up 10 people a day. I have no idea what ridership is like on the streetcar, but I’m confident that every one of those stops gets several hundred people on board every day.
And I keep having to remind you: the City of Portland (and other municipalities) builds sidewalks. Take it up with them. I suspect they have their own criteria for determining where and when sidewalks are built — and that it’s also dependent on use.
>Sorry to disappoint you, but … roads are paid for by the motor vehicle users through fuel taxes, license and registration fees, and weigh-mile taxes for trucks.
Bzzzt. Try again.
Moving on.
Re: using laptops and such on the bus rather than the train. I find that it is much easier on the MAX than a bus. There is more leg-room on the MAX, and they are better lit than the bus. Even on surface streets, it’s dark on the bus.
Is there a history yet of the Portland Streetcar?
It might be useful to understand that this project started with the Central City Plan in the 80’s…i.e. the Planning Bureau…which called for a “people mover” of some sort. It was pushed by NWDA and other neighborhood and community groups as well as by business leaders like the late Bill Naito, then was picked up the PDOT under Charlie Hales, and was funded without any federal or URA $…all (or at least mostly) LID and PDOT (parking meter) with Legacy, PSU and River District developers putting up a lot of the money. The point wasn’t to just start another transit line, but to connect neighborhoods and attract investment to Central City neighborhoods. By any measure it is a roaring success. Someone needs to document this very accurately (my memory is got holes in it) and thoroughly before its too late.
If you don’t think Streetcar is for you or your neck of the woods, you need to get started creating the appropriate transportation solution…to quote Margaret Mead “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
Jeff F. wrote: The average bus stop is certainly NOT a blue & white sign in the gravel, and I really wish you’d stop making this particular claim.
Then what IS the average bus stop? According to TriMet themselves, there are 7,280 bus stops. 1,140 of them have a bus shelter. So the “Average” bus stop clearly does not have a shelter or any of the advanced information boards (i.e. schedule information, expanded bus map and transfer information) that’s only found at a bus stop with a shelter.
Further, according to TriMet’s 2002 Bus Stop Guidelines document (available on TriMet’s website), there were 8,189 bus stops at that time – so TriMet has actually ELIMINATED 1,000 bus stops. 8,127 of those stops had a “pole”, leaving some 60 stops with apparently no marking whatsoever. At that time, 888 had a shelter, so TriMet has added 300 shelters in a six year period (which is only 50% that called for in the Bus Stops Guidelines document.) 535 stops had a trash can. 1,786 stops had a bench – 800 of those were installed in shelters, 37 were considered “premium” (whatever that means) and 949 were ad benches. 277 stops had “Informational Displays”. 58% of bus stops were identified as having nearby lighting, but the document didn’t break down the quality of lighting. While 70% of bus stops were located at a sidewalk, only 64% of stops were paved at the front entrance to the bus (meaning there was a grass, dirt or rock median between the sidewalk and the curb).
That same document also states:
32% – one out of three – TriMet bus stops “suffer from lack of pavement or have interrupted or no sidewalk connection” – TriMet’s own words.
500 eligible stops do not have shelters. Note, TriMet only added 300 shelters.
“Not all bus stops are easily identifiable”…need I go on?
“Only those bus stops that have a trash can and/or shelter are cleaned on a regular basis.”
These are TriMet’s own words.
Jeff F.: The level of amenities at the stop is a product of ridership
Then shouldn’t the Streetcar be planned to where the ridership is? No – the streetcar is intended to BOOST ridership through an investment in transit amenities.
In other words: You spend money to make money.
The bus system seems to use the reverse logic: You have to make money to spend money – the ridership has to be there before TriMet (and Metro, and the Cities) will invest. Why is the logic different – isn’t the goal to increase transit ridership? Why does it matter what the mode of transit is?
And I keep having to remind you: the City of Portland (and other municipalities) builds sidewalks.
Fine. Then TriMet should have absolutely, positively ZERO to do with anything OTHER than transit operations.
I don’t want to hear Fred Hansen talking about transit-oriented development – development is not a TriMet concern. Anything in Vancouver (i.e. light rail expansion to Vancouver) is not a TriMet concern. Sidewalk and crosswalk access to a MAX station is not a TriMet concern.
Clearly – TriMet IS concerned about those matters, when it involves MAX. So, again, why is the mode of transport a concern? If it’s good enough to worry about for MAX, why is it not good enough to worry about for Bus?
It just shows that TriMet will bend over backwards and then some for a MAX rider. But bus riders are left on their own. Access to MAX is a big deal, but access to bus is ignored.
I’m tired of the “it’s so-and-so’s responsibility”. They all work together. TriMet, Metro and the City of Portland seem to have a great relationship when it comes to building rail-based projects and there is no territorial battles. So why when it comes to a bus stop improvement, that everyone points their fingers at everyone else – and Metro conveniently just ignores it?
If there isn’t an anti-bus bias, please, show me the proof.
32% – one out of three – TriMet bus stops “suffer from lack of pavement or have interrupted or no sidewalk connection” – TriMet’s own words.
Seems that those numbers in fact discount your claim that the average bus stop is “a blue and white sign on the side of a road in the gravel”. It’s a high percentage, but it’s not a majority or an average, and it includes conditions beyond merely gravel-only stops. Something that ought to be worked on, obviously, and that includes the responsibilities of localities — it’s not just TriMet we’re talking about here.
Nonetheless, the numbers don’t support your repeated claims about the quality of the “average” bus stop.
If there isn’t an anti-bus bias, please, show me the proof.
Nobody can prove a negative. It’s up to you to show proof that there is an “anti-bus” bias, instead of throwing out specious charges of one and challenging people to refute it. Even though you’ve been going on endlessly about it for years now, you haven’t put forth a single hard fact to show any kind of institutional bias against buses by Tri-Met, Metro, the City of Portland, or a personal bias by any of the decision-makers employed therein. Your entire “case” is your own griping that various government actors don’t put as much resources into the buses as you, personally, would prefer. That, and an apparent belief that there’s some kind of tension between “bus vs. rail” as rival modes, even though everyone involved in transit planning around here looks at bus and rail as components of an integrated system.
Your entire “case” is your own griping that various government actors don’t put as much resources into the buses as you, personally, would prefer.
Douglas –
I understand your frustration, but that’s crossing into personal-remark territory (and a bit of speculation)… please keep it about the issues, even if you’re tired of Erik’s line of attack. Thanks.
Those “nice” streetcar platforms (which they are), by the way, were funded primarily with local, non-TriMet dollars.
Look at the capital spending to-date for the entire current streetcar alignment:
Capital Budget – $103.15 million
City General Fund $ 1.80 million
City Parking Bonds 28.60
City Parking Fund 2.00
City Transportation Fund 1.70
Connect Oregon 2.10
Federal Transportation Funds 5.00
(reallocated with TriMet for local funds)
Gibbs Extension Savings 0.66
Local Improvement District 19.40
Regional Transportation Funds 10.00
Tax Increment (North Macadam URA) 12.20
Tax Increment (South Park Blocks URA) 7.50
Tax Increment Funds 1.80
Tram Transfer 0.15
Transportation Fund 0.60
Transportation Land Sale 3.10
Transportation Systems Development 2.50
U.S. HUD Grant 1.95
Misc. 2.09
Of that $103 million, there are two numbers which could bear some scrutiny to see what the deal was — the $5 million in Federal funds listed as “reallocated with TriMet for local funds”, and the $10 million in “regional transportation funds”, presumably from Metro. That’s less than 15% of the total capital budget, but it would be interesting to know more details. However, there’s no evidence thus far that those expenditures represent a disproportionate investment in the City of Portland of regional transit dollars.
Furthermore, there’s evidence all over the city of recently-upgraded pedestrian infrastructure along transit lines, funded by the city: NE Alberta St., SE Hawthorne Blvd., NE Sandy Blvd., to name a few.
Sorry, Bob.
Is Multnomah County walking away from the Lake Oswego streetcar extension? The county is not joining with other jurisdictions to locally fund the DEIS, and IIRC, some non-county officials are hoping that the county will participate in the process at a later stage.
What’s going on?
Multnomah County is really not central to the project since all of the route that is in the county is also inside Portland city limits.
Thanks, Chris. This comes as a real surprise since my year old Thomas Guide and Portland’s own may shows everything south of Powers Marine Park as being outside Portland’s city limits. When did the area get annexed?
Thanks, Chris. This comes as a real surprise since my year old Thomas Guide and Portland’s own may shows everything south of Powers Marine Park as being outside Portland’s city limits.
Now you made me go look :-)
I believe this is the official source:
http://www.portlandonline.com/shared/cfm/image.cfm?id=51672
I think it’s about in the middle between our two points of view, but there does indeed appear to be a stretch that in my head I thought was unincorporated Clackamas County that is actually unincorporated Multnomah County.
Practically speaking however, Multnhomah County doesn’t have two dimes to scratch together for transportation projects beyond bridge maintenance, so they are still effectively out of the game.