CALGARY, ALBERTA, CANADA - Calgary’s City Council in Alberta in mid-June approved an updated alignment for the first stage of the planned construction of the Green light-rail line, as well as changes to construction staging.
The approved alignment will connect 16 Avenue North to Shepard Southeast.
Segment 1 of the Green Line is now shovel ready, and will be constructed in three segments: Segment 1 from Elbow River to Shepard, Segment 2A from 2 Avenue SW Station to Elbow River, and Segment 2B from 16 Avenue N to north of 2 Avenue SW station.
“Stage 1 builds the core of the Green Line long-term vision and will enable future incremental expansion as funding is available to realize the full benefits of the rapid transit network,” Michael Thompson, general manager of the Green Line, said in a press release. Detailed design and construction of the segment will begin in 2021, city officials said.
NEW JERSEY - In mid-June New Jersey Transit earlier this week released guidelines detailing its steps aimed at protecting riders and employees as the region reopens during the COVID-19 pandemic. The guidelines provide “clear and simple” actions that riders and employees should take to contribute to a safe return to service,NJ Transit officials said in a press release.
The plan calls for riders and transit employees to wear face coverings while on trains, practice social distancing and avoid loud talking and restrict phone conversations on trains.
“While we are committed to doing everything we can to ensure the cleanest and safest transit environment, we can’t do it alone. We are asking customers and employers to do their part as well,” NJ Transit President and Chief Executive Officer Kevin Corbett said.
Under the plan, NJ Transit also will monitor and identify trends in ridership and rider behavior to ensure the recovery plan remains responsive and flexible, agency officials said. The agency will continue to disinfect vehicles daily.
NEW ORLEANS -
The New Orleans Regional Transit Authority (NORTA) announced in early June that it will move all transit operations and maintenance functions in-house on Oct. 1. The change results from the agency's decision last year to transition executive oversight and management from Transdev North America. Transdev has provided transportation management services to NORTA since 2009, including its streetcar system.
In October, NORTA will fully manage the agency's administrative, operational, maintenance and policy functions. All employees will be employed by NORTA, agency officials said in a press release.
The transition will enable the agency to better manage uncertain financial circumstances stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, agency officials said. Additionally, NORTA will be able to invest in agency staff's professional development.
NEW YORK CITY, NY - On June 2nd, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) issued a letter to New York City officials outlining the agency’s requests as the city’s industries reopened.
The city entered the first phase of reopening on June 8. Phase 1 included opening construction, agriculture, manufacturing, wholesale trade and retail operating with curbside or in-store pickup, according to a local news report.
Two of New York City's fleet of R160A five-car sets built 2005-2010! |
In its letter — addressed to NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio, First Deputy Mayor Dean Fuleihan and NYC Department of Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg — MTA asked that the city:
- Provide 1 million masks to be distributed to MTA riders;
- Re-commit the New York Police Department (NYPD) to enforcing MTA’s mask requirement while on public transportation, without conducting arrests or issuing summonses or tickets;
- Provide 3,000 volunteers to support MTA’s efforts to distribute hand sanitizer and masks; and
- Deploy additional NYPD officers to MTA’s New York City Transit (NYCT) subway system to ensure social distancing.
In addition, MTA called for NYC employers to stagger shifts and continue to allow remote work.
During the first phase of reopening, NYCT will resume full, regular service. However, services should still be used for essential workers and essential trips, according to the letter.
On June 8th, The MTA began implementing its 13-point action plan to ensure the safe return of riders as New York City’s business and industries reopened.
The action plan includes:
- Increasing service on the MTA New York City Transit (NYCT) subway, Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad;
- Cleaning and disinfecting rail cars and stations across the system;
- Requiring mandatory face coverings for all MTA employees and riders;
- Stationing additional NYCT employees, the New York Police Department, MTA Police and contract security to assist with crowd control;
- Implementing employee safety initiatives such as closing the subway system between 1 am. and 5 am., distributing personal protective equipment, checking employee temperatures, eliminating cash transactions, and more;
- Installing hand sanitizer dispensers in stations;
- Installing sign-age to encourage social distancing;
- Encouraging the community to continue remote work and stagger commuting hours;
- Exploring innovative cleaning solutions;
- Distributing 2 million masks;
- Encouraging contact-less payments; and
- Launching a new data dashboard for riders.
“This aggressive plan includes global best practices, input from the business and labor communities and public health officials, and is the product of months of work from the talented team at the MTA,” said MTA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Patrick Foye.
SAINT LOUIS, MO - The Federal Transit Administration awarded Bi-State Development a $142.4 million grant to fund Metro Transit-St. Louis’ light-rail and bus service during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The grant, awarded as part of the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, will support Metro Transit-St. Louis' operational costs, enhanced cleaning of vehicles and stations, and purchase of personal protective equipment.
Two of Metro Transit's Siemens SD460 vehicles at Union station stop. |
“This funding will ... ensure we can continue to provide our transit operators and front-line staff with the tools and resources they need to keep themselves and our riders safe,” said Bi-State Development President and Chief Executive Officer Taulby Roach in a press release.
Metro Transit-St. Louis' ridership is down by more than 50 percent and local sales tax revenues that support public transit are anticipated to be 20 percent lower over the new fiscal year, which begins July 1, Bi-State officials said. MetroLink operates a fleet of 87 light-rail vehicles composed of 31 Siemens SD-400 and 56 Siemens SD-460 vehicles. Each 90-foot long, single articulated vehicle has 4 high platform doors per side and has a capacity of 72 seated and 106 standing passengers. Each car has one door on each side for street level loading.
SAN DIEGO, CA - Beginning June 8th, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (SDMTS) began increasing bus and trolley services as demand continues to increase.
SDMTS increased midday service during the middle of the day on the UC San Diego Blue Line beginning June 8th, followed by service increases on dozens of bus routes. The UC San Diego Blue Line trolley -- the first Light Rail Line in San Diego, that opened in 1981 and connects the San Ysidro international border to downtown San Diego --increased its service frequency to every 7 1/2 minutes from 4:30 am. until 7 pm., and maintains 15-minute frequencies until 9 pm., followed by every 30 minutes until the end of the service day.
Weekday ridership on the Blue Line plummeted 69% between February 24 and April 20, from 63,715 daily riders to just 19,787. Since April 20, average weekday ridership has increased 28%, topping out at 25,367 the week of June 1. More frequency will give more opportunity for passengers to practice social distancing on board and on platforms when possible. Service on the Orange Line and Sycuan Green Line will remain unchanged.
While trolley service will first be increasing to closely mirror pre-COVID-19 levels, SDMTS is also making preparations to increase bus service in the coming weeks. Schedules and routes are being finalized. The goal is to provide service increases that meet market demands. SDMTS reduced weekday service levels approximately 25% on April 13 to address record-low ridership while still providing critical service for essential workers and trips.
In addition to service increases, SDMTS says it also continues to improve its already-strict safety and sanitizing protocols. The latest development on that front is retrofitting buses with germ barriers to better protect bus operators. Barriers will also allow the agency to return to front-door boarding, which gives passengers more room in which to spread out. SDMTS, along with many other Southern California transit systems has only allowed rear-door boarding since April 1 to protect the health of bus operators.
MTS continues to operate about 95 bus routes and three trolley lines. MTS asks that people wear face coverings and practice physical distancing at all times.
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. transit industry leaders have sharply criticized a May 2020 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendation that encourages people to commute to work by driving or using ride-hailing services instead of riding on public transit systems.
The CDC suggested that employers consider encouraging employees to commute by car or as the sole passenger in a ride-hailing service car. The suggestion was included in guidelines issued by the agency as the nation's cities emerge from restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
American Public Transportation Association (APTA) President and Chief Executive Officer Paul Skoutelas denounced the new recommendation as "misguided," adding that it would "severely hamper our nation's economic recovery."
For many people, the cost of commuting by car is "out of reach," Skoutelas said in a prepared statement. "The guidance also doesn't consider the congestion created by millions of cars stuck in traffic. Gridlock and polluted skies are not the mobility future we want emerging from this crisis," Skoutelas said. Also, the guidance is confusing because it "runs counter to past guidance provided to public transit agencies and riders and what has been provided on air travel," he said. "We urge the CDC to work with APTA and the public transit industry to further develop appropriate guidelines," Skoutelas added.
New York City's Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Patrick Foye also condemned the CDC's recommendation.
"Encouraging people, especially those without cars and in congested areas like New York, not to take public transit is misguided," said Foye in a press release. "Transit is, and long has been, the safest way to move around any city." Foye noted that the MTA system is now "cleaner and safer than it has been in history," with crews cleaning and disinfecting the system around the clock. "Everyone who rides the MTA is required to wear a mask, a uniform policy we adopted for our workforce before the CDC reversed its previous guideline and recommended all Americans wear masks," said Foye. "We will continue to take every possible action to protect public health and safety, and the federal government telling people not to ride mass transit sets us back decades."
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A new report revealed that 64 percent of Americans won’t use public transportation as restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic are loosened, according to a survey conducted by Ford Mobility’s Smart Transit branch TransLoc. The survey polled 1,000 Americans' opinions on whether they would use public transportation after communities' stay-at-home orders are lifted.
But those 64 percent that responded they won’t ride public transit indicated so because they either never have used it, no longer need to use it, or are concerned about their health, according to a press release.
Of respondents that indicated they want to use public transit again, 36 percent want the ability to know how many passengers are on board their train or bus before riding.
More than one in three, or 39 percent, indicated they want hands-free payment options, and 25 percent want to be able to share immediate feedback or concerns with the service provider.
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