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Do you think a BRT system along I 287 is a good Idea. Would you support it. If not, then why.
I would support it. The reason being that 287 connects major suburban employment & residential centers surrounding the NY metropolitan area in central and northern NJ. A BRT sustem with dedicated bus lanes along the Median of I 287 in NJ seems to make sense to me, considering the fact that peak hour traffic is already bad and there is almost zero intersuburban public transit. This could be a good place to start and encourage Inter suburban commuters to use public transit. I am not sure how Jersey folks will buy into this idea, so please voice your opinion. I am yet to post a plan on google maps and will not do so without your opinions. I want a public transit system which WORKS and people will actually use to combat long crowded commutes.
They had HOV lanes between I-78 and I-80 and they were converted to general purpose lanes because no one used them.
Beyond that, I think the issue here is that there aren't that many people going to the same destinations along the route. There are many people who work in places accessed by car from I-287, but the employment centers "along" the highway aren't generally actually that close to the highway, and there are many of them scattered along the way. I can't think of any way to design a BRT system that would be likely to actually be useful to many people.
I think the issue with I-287, especially below US-22 is simply that there are too many people that need to use it for various things and not enough capacity. I don't think development patterns in the suburbs really make useful BRT possible at the moment.
Back in the early 80's I used the $250,000 Private "Bus" service a few times.
When they opened the HOV lane on i287. The Bus started Started @ Bridgewater Mall, and ended in Florham Prk with few stops along the way. Often I was the only one on the Bus. It only worked for me because the Start/End point of the Bus was my company parking lot.
The problem with BRT is what most mass transit problems have, The "Last" mile. I had to drive to a Park&Ride parking lot, there were 3 buses a day miss it and will I'm Driving now anyway. If the bus did not drive into my Company Complex and let me out on the Main road in front if it , it would be a several mile walk from there to my office building.
Mass Transit works well when everyone is going to the same place, Many point to one. Not Many to Many.
I think a light rail system might work to better connect towns to the NJT rail stations. one good place to start would probably be the area surrounding morristown, as you also have people who commute to morristown for work.
Mass Transit works well when everyone is going to the same place, Many point to one. Not Many to Many.
There are many commuting to Office parks in Morris county from Middlesex. I know this for a fact. This map reinforces that fact. The last mile issue is something one must concentrate on a bit more. But I am sure solutions can be devised. Bus interconnecting residential areas to various office parks would be a possible solution. Let me put more thought into it or talk with the transportation engineering PhD students :
Many states have been there done that and failed for many reasons.
If you are going to make an extra lane it would make more sense to open it to everyone to speed the traffic. It would also make sense to allow big rigs in the fast lane to alleviate the hair raisng tailgating and routine passing on the right.
The extension into the towns of which you speak would be difficult if not impossible. Every been on 287 in the am? How do you like that easton ave entrance? Essentially moving the rate limiting step downstream at tremendous taxpayer expense.
Basically you can't get there from here applies to getting to towns from 287.
Problem is basic. The interstate highway system was begun as a defense measure to move armies across the nation quickly. The as businesses located along the interstates like plaque in arteries, people and homes followed... and the demand for exits and entrances escalated and now you have a 'freeway' shackled with impediments not originally intended.
Might make more sense to revitalize bus routes such as thise along new brunswicjk ave in Fords that ran from perth amboy through new brunswick. Roads already established. Routes went from town center to town center, now not every town has a center and giant malls fill the vacancy.
Aren't there any civil engineers who figure out the strategy for roads and mass transit that aren't linked to some political agenda?
As the op used the initials 'BRT' without the expected, standardized longhand spelling out what BRT stands for, it suggests a lack of experience in communication, not considering the audience and a tendency for a myopic perspective perhaps created by strong passion. Just a little help to improve your ability to communicate before you approach anyone else with your ideas. Nothing more, nothing less.
See you on 287!
Light rail has been a liberal chant offered as a panacea for just about every urban problem. whe they can't get the rail they go for busses.
Back when the northern section from Montville to the NY Thruway was completed the NJDOT wanted to make all of I-287 3 lanes each way. Most of the original I-287 was only 2 lanes at that point. Even that was highly contested by the "enviro" brigade. What wound up happening was a legal settlement where the extra lane was allowed but had to be an HOV lane.
That was useless. I commuted in that and when 3 lanes suddenly went to 2 lanes and an HOV everyone had to hit the brakes and sit still in traffic.
Luckily common sense prevailed and the courts allowed NJ to open the third lane to everyone.
This idea makes me think of some futuristic 1970's Popular Science article where a guy has a briefcase and when the last mile comes you hop off the bus or train, wheels pop out of the briefcase and it becomes a motorcycle.
Realistically yes you have scattered destinations so the first and last mile are impractical and also you have a pie in the sky idea to have a slower mode of transport in between lanes of high speed travel and access to that is tricky too.
Ultimately people are going to choose whatever option is most convenient. If I can simply get in my car in my driveway and drive right into my company's parking lot, then in most cases, that convenience is going to far outweigh any benefit public transportation might provide, even if that includes sitting in traffic for some time. I live and work in the suburbs. Traffic is not usually an issue, but if I were going to take public transportation, the commute would be about 3-4 times longer than what it takes me to drive.
What really needs to be created in my opinion is the long talked about "New Brunswick Area Light Rail" in order to improve mass transit in the surrounding area as well as replace (but still be supplemented by) the Rutgers Bus System.
Upon reading your post and replies it appears you were targeting I287 in the area somewhere between 440 and Bridgewater. I live in the Morristown area off 287. I've driven the entire length of 287 at one time or another and the section from 440 to Bridgewater is entirely different from the section from Bridgewater to the NYS border. Your bus idea would not work in section between Bridgewater and NYS for the reasons other posters have stated- convenience and the first/last mile.
You might want to restate your proposal if you were targeting the more congested area between Bridgewater and Route 440 (or whatever section you are looking at).
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