What can MARTA do to get you to ride the bus? (Atlanta: home, to buy)

[SAAN]

Originally Posted by MattCW

That's the wrong way to look at it. This isn't a case of adding frequencies to relieve crowding, it's adding frequencies to improve the utility of the system!

I agree with this here. Its many times the train be 30 seconds to 1 minute late and you run for the bus and the driver sees you and takes off, only to have to wait 20-45 minutes for the next bus.

Most people hate MARTA buses because how long they have to wait. Ive seen many people at Indian Creek running for the 115 or 116 and the driver sees them, the bus is still in its slot and they take off. Or when drivers are about to leave and dont look in their side mirror to see you screaming and running your BLANK off to catch the bus and take off anyways I know some people will say if you were on time you wouldnt have to worry about that, but it doesnt help when the train becomes your own enemy is being on time.

[Ha-Mez]

One problem is the way MARTA's routes are designed. It's a feeder system- the buses are designed to take riders to the train. Buses are treated as the servants to the train instead of as valid modes of transit in and of themselves.

This ensures that to get from A to B using transit, you almost always have to make a train transfer.

Using the Red/Gold and Blue/Green lines as a makeshift Cartesian coordinate system (with Five Points as its center), one instantly sees 4 quadrants: I (northeast), II (northwest), III (southwest) and IV (southeast). With few exceptions, bus routes in the city limits only travel within one quadrant. Thus, if traveling between quadrants, one must always make at least one transfer and usually two or even three. This is why a 25-minute car commute becomes a 70-minute adventure by transit.

Compare this to Chicago, where buses run North and South, or East and West, or diagonally along arterials, across the entire city. They stop at train stations but do not terminate at them. In Chicago, one can go from anywhere to anywhere with only one transfer because buses run in a grid pattern instead of a feeder pattern.

Atlanta is fundamentally different than Chicago. While Chicago is flat and its streets are decidedly grid-like, Atlanta is built around hills, and its streets are decidedly not grid-like. However, it is my belief that a grid can be fashioned out of Atlanta's streets- it would be an extra-curvy grid, but it would still function as a grid in that one could go from just about anywhere to anywhere by bus with one transfer.

MARTA has invested in a Comprehensive Operations Analysis that is set to blow up its current route system and gradually replace it with an improved system. Hopefully, we'll start seeing the results of the studies soon. There have been welcoming hints about cross-town routes along with express routes (Stone Mountain to Atlanta, etc), and circulator routes utilizing smaller buses (for connectivity within neighborhoods). I'm sure as the results come to light, we'll have some fun discussions here.

[Caleb Longstreet]

I dunno....maybe replace the current crop of "islanders" with some guys and gals in Hawaiian shirts, permanent smiles, brilliantly white teeth, a set of congo or kettle drums, island music, friendly nature and removal of all stains, odors (try some chlorine dioxide once in awhile), and mood and you know....maybe?

[SAAN]

Here is a good example of why many people hate riding the bus.

I take the 143 sometimes and in the morning, the bus was supposed to leave 9:15. The bus would arrive at the station at 8:50-8:55 many times, and the lady would park the bus in the back bay and go on break and wouldnt pull the bus up to the 143 bay until 9:13 while we freeze out there, while all the other routes that get there very early pull up to the bays and let the people in and the driver would close the door and go on a break.
During the polar vortex last year it was 10-20 degrees and this lady is in the back bay just looking at us freezing and she puts on the Perry Blvd sign and goes on break and then pulls the bus up to the bay at 9:17 when she is supposed to leave 9:15. I report it to MARTA and just get a your complaint has been forwarded.

Then there is the issues when some of the buses on 400 would just sit in the traffic and not use the shoulder lanes, so now your 10-15 mins late, miss your train and the connecting bus and your commute is automatically 30 minutes longer. I could list many other bus stories in which the drivers have a dont give a crap attitude because they are already at work, so no urgency to get you anywhere on time, drivers that are very confrontational with big mouths because they know they can just call MARTA police if the person responds to them or the former shoddy maintenance that led to the buses always running out of gas.

MARTA buses SUCK. I dont mind the train, but I love when I get to the station, I can just drive home.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by scobby

I disagree with these ideas , the automobile doesn't represent freedom anymore, it represent pollution, traffic jams, accidents , loss of time commuting, loss of jobs ,loss of lives .

Not true, not the bus only, we lined up at the cafeteria at work, at the shopping center cashier, we line up at the gas station, at the airport security checkpoints, we line up at the hospitals, we line up almost everywhere.
We ride we others ,we don't know on a plane, train, boat ,greyhound so what's the difference ?

Would like to see the study or studies you're talking about, if you have a source or link, thanks.

I'm not saying I promote those ideas, just that they exist.

In general Americans don't like being told to line up and wait. They typically prefer to go directly to their destinations, on their own schedule.

There may be exceptions in a handful of cities where public transit is plentiful and easy to access and a ride will bring you within a short walk of your destination.

But that's an uncommon situation in the US and in Atlanta.

As far as studies, you should be able to research that fairly easily. Here are some examples:

If So Many People Support Mass Transit, Why Do So Few Ride? - CityLab

Why People Choose Cars, Even When Mass Transit Would Serve Them Better - CityLab

More people drive to work if you give them free parking and transit passes | Grist

[Mal93]

Originally Posted by scobby

We're running into a different issue here, the reason Hispanics who mainly live along Buford Hwy corridor created their own bus service , they felt that the city did not do enough to accommodate the sizeable Hispanic community, they did not hire translators, no Hispanics staff, the Spanish signs are not enough.

Btw, Marta needs to open up to other different cultures and communities of Atlanta

Granted this should have happened years ago, but the bus that stops at my front door (about every 10-20 mins between 445am- until after midnight) announces what train station it is going to in both English and Spanish.

I presume the announcement is made over a loudspeaker to acccomodate hard of hearing riders. There is also a beeping noise made as the doors open & close. The loud talking female voice startled me when I first heard it in the middle of the night but I've gotten used to it. I can see how some more residential neighbhorhoods might complain about it, but to me its part of living in the city along with sirens, passersby on the sidewalks, and the occasional parade. If only the beep was a cute chime like they use on the trains in Japan or our streetcar bell.

It would be awesome if there was a simple route map/timetable at all bus stops attached to the post for those who don't use the phone app.

I live within walking distance of multiple bus lines terminating at various stations without a lot of meandering. When we moved here we were a 1 car household so access to multiple transit points was a consideration.

[cqholt]

MARTA defiantly needs crosstown bus routes. Many transit systems have improved their bus routes and it resulted in improved ridership. I think if MARTA does this it will pay off.

[WanderingImport]

Originally Posted by MattCW

That's the wrong way to look at it. This isn't a case of adding frequencies to relieve crowding, it's adding frequencies to improve the utility of the system!

Why would that matter if nobody took advantage of it?

As I said to begin with, I agree that routes need to be tweaked as I'm sure everyone else agrees as well.

If that happens as well as more frequently running buses.. and it doesn't help to add to ridership (which is the ultimate goal here. An efficiently run system which encourages more riders) ...then what?

Does that make sense?

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by WanderingImport

Why would that matter if nobody took advantage of it?

As I said to begin with, I agree that routes need to be tweaked as I'm sure everyone else agrees as well.

If that happens as well as more frequently running buses.. and it doesn't help to add to ridership (which is the ultimate goal here. An efficiently run system which encourages more riders) ...then what?

Does that make sense?

Then reduce bus frequencies to save money. Routes should only have higher frequencies during high usage times, eg: rush hour.

Instead of creating a 24/7 rial system, MARTA could run night owl bus routes that follow the lines, with 1 hour headways.

[MattCW]

Originally Posted by WanderingImport

Why would that matter if nobody took advantage of it?

As I said to begin with, I agree that routes need to be tweaked as I'm sure everyone else agrees as well.

If that happens as well as more frequently running buses.. and it doesn't help to add to ridership (which is the ultimate goal here. An efficiently run system which encourages more riders) ...then what?

Does that make sense?

Why is this such a hard concept to understand??? People don't ride the buses now BECAUSE of the bad headways! Bus routes are rarely started willy-nilly, they do analyze the population, employment, etc. so it's doubtful they'll be running lower ridership.