Reader comments
Parkway may get rapid bus line

Parkway was just redone with new medians last summer and landscaped. Would that not have been the perfect time to have installed some type of alternative transportaion. It seems like more government waste if they add center lanes and have to take out what they just put in.

From 3,000/day to 13-15,000/day? Riiiight. People don't take buses for a reason: they're slow, unreliable, and you can't go where you want when you want. What would be better is to build a freeway one level up above University Parkway or underground for people traveling longer distances and keep the current road for local traffic. It would cost a lot more but would be much, much better.

One other thing, the city shouldn't rely on the feds for transportation funds. Our government is built on a system of federalism in which the states and federal government operate separately. State governments should not become dependent on federal government just as individuals should not become dependent on any government. Let's work out or own problems with our own money, not the tax dollars of poor people in Alabama or New Jersey.

I like how you singled out poor people as being from Alabama and New Jersey. Have you ever actually seen poor people there or in any other part of the country? Perhaps if you used public transit, ie the bus, you'd realize there's also poor people in your precious Happy Valley also. Not everyone can afford a private car.

I randomly chose two states that are known to have areas with many poor people, but I could have chosen just about any state. The point is that we should use our own money to build our own roads, not money from people in other states.

I have lived in many poor urban areas in the U.S. including Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles. I have been a public bus and subway rider in major cities across the U.S. my whole life, even in Provo. If anyone knows of the unreliability and ineffectiveness of public buses I do. I use them when I can, but it's just too frustrating.

Without a doubt, many people can't afford their own car and public transportation does help those people in many cases, although inefficiently. But the point of this proposal is to increase ridership by getting people out of cars into buses, not by getting people who can't afford cars into buses. Most people who can afford cars are going to drive them no matter how fast a bus line is; it's just too convenient. We should spend more money on improving roads for cars than for buses.

UTA needs to look at all areas of Utah County and add bus routes. With the price of gas people WILL choose to ride, even if it means walking a bit to get to your destination after you get off the bus.

One area that needs it desperately is the Edgemont area north of Provo. There are lots of people who work at BYU, lots of people who would take a bus to the mall or Riverwoods. With the new connector road at 4800 North near Riverwoods it makes sense to add a route on Canyon Road. Come on Provo - let's get European!!!

@ Matthew:

I agree we need to limit government spending, but to be fair, remember that I-15 as we know it was built with mostly federal funding. (See UDOT's website for the most recent examples.) There's no way the cities of Orem or Provo could afford to build a massive freeway or tunnel underneath University Parkway without an outside source of funds.

BRT buses are actually a great cost-saving alternative and by many accounts BRT is cheaper than light rail.

@ To Meh:

As a commuter, I can tell you my quality of life has improved dramatically by being able to let someone else do the driving while I sit back and relax. The system is far from perfect, but if people will give it a try, they might change their outlook like I did.

Most importantly, as a matter of national security and economics, it's just smart not to be dependent on other nations for our daily needs, i.e., daily transportation. By switching to public transit, we can dramatically reduce that need.

Actually compared feature to feature BRT costs more than Light Rail. Also cost per revenue mile is less with TRAX than it is with the bus system. Plus Light rail has much higher capacity than BRT.

To Matthew: We have had 70 years of highway policy and look where we are. We need to focus on transportation alternatives.

@jmdspk:

Good point about the capacity. We've been hounding UTA to add buses to the 801 line for months, and there's little hope that they'll do it. Adding another car to an existing train should, at least in theory, be a lot easier and cheaper.

About the costs, I've had trouble finding reliable numbers; some places say LRT is cheaper, others BRT.

Wouldn't the initial infrastructure of BRT cost a lot less, if all you're doing is widening a few lanes and building platforms, while with a new LRT line you'd have to build rail? And wasn't much of TRAX built in an existing railway, so maybe that cut down on some of the costs?

To be honest, I would prefer light rail, but maybe BRT is a good start, and once the ridership is there, an improved system can replace it.