10-06-2016, 12:20 PM
@dunkalunk: I like your analysis and agree with most your conclusions. Frequency is key.
@Canard: I, too, am anxious for the trains to start rolling. Everyone's seen these tracks being built, and soon we'll see the burn-in runs crossing our paths... any delay continues to strain the public's patience.
If we assume (big assumption) that the goal is to increase system-wide ridership, it is unclear what of all the myriad options will be optimal.
Adding buses to supplement long headways will not build ridership on ION (especially if the buses aren't immediately adjacent to the stations (UW, Seagram, etc.)), but may act as a "gateway drug" to get existing riders thinking about moving to ION and stop ridership slippage that way.
Starting rail service in a splashy way will get "hearts and minds" of the public and encourage people to think about using transit. Doing this in the winter months will suppress this heavily as people shiver thinking about transit in the cold. If we start in a Spring as people are coming out of their Seasonal Affective Disorders, then I think we can ride that high.
No matter what we do, we'll be missing out on the benefits of doing things another way. Damned if you do.
@Canard: I, too, am anxious for the trains to start rolling. Everyone's seen these tracks being built, and soon we'll see the burn-in runs crossing our paths... any delay continues to strain the public's patience.
If we assume (big assumption) that the goal is to increase system-wide ridership, it is unclear what of all the myriad options will be optimal.
Adding buses to supplement long headways will not build ridership on ION (especially if the buses aren't immediately adjacent to the stations (UW, Seagram, etc.)), but may act as a "gateway drug" to get existing riders thinking about moving to ION and stop ridership slippage that way.
Starting rail service in a splashy way will get "hearts and minds" of the public and encourage people to think about using transit. Doing this in the winter months will suppress this heavily as people shiver thinking about transit in the cold. If we start in a Spring as people are coming out of their Seasonal Affective Disorders, then I think we can ride that high.
No matter what we do, we'll be missing out on the benefits of doing things another way. Damned if you do.