One of the major drawbacks of relying on buses as a mass transit solution is that they often must share the streets with cars, battle through unpredictable congestion, and are therefore more subject to delay. AC Transit’s approach for their East Bay, California routes is to throw the traditional timetable schedule out the window.
Buses ordinarily run their routes at a predetermined frequency – for example one bus every ten minutes – and if one bus catches up to another, it waits to maintain the proper spacing. AC Transit’s system says “schedules be damned”; the buses drive their routes as quickly as practicable and pass one another when necessary. Bus stops are equipped with monitors displaying NextBus GPS tracking software so that passengers know how far off the next pick-up is. NextBus updates are also available to commuters online or via cellphone so they can better pinpoint their arrival times to stops.
The end result is a faster, more efficient system with less waiting around en route.
Via Wired.
Photos via flickr by Ian Fuller.
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Kucinich wasn’t supported by the oil industry at all, as far as I know. But heaven forbid we actually give the far left a chance.