Public Transit in Austin: What's good? Is it improving? (Nash: appointed, to buy)

[erin1980]

Right now, I live in Philadelphia and take public transit on a daily basis from the (close) burbs into the city. Things work pretty well. I can either take the high speed line to the subway (the Market Frankford "El") or take the regional train in and walk a few blocks. And when I'm in the city proper, I take buses all the time to get around. Things are pretty easy and reliable.

What's public transit like in Austin? Is it comparable to any other city's transit system? What lines do you like to take? I know *everyone* drives, but I prefer not to drive to work if possible. Is it possible in the current system? Are there areas that are more accessible, in the city or the burbs?

I did a little reading about Prop 1 (which got voted down a couple weeks back), and I'm wondering if there are any other improvements coming down the pike now that that one isn't happening.

[Novacek]

Originally Posted by erin1980

and I'm wondering if there are any other improvements coming down the pike now that that one isn't happening.

Improvements to our one existing rail line are in-progress, that should substantial increase frequency, capacity, and ridership (it's at peak capacity now).

Which is a good thing, as the failure of Prop 1 basically killed any chance at light rail for the next 20 years.

[RoadWarrior12]

It's possible along very limited corridors and within the central area. Outside of that, it's time to buy a car.

[Komeht]

Originally Posted by erin1980

Right now, I live in Philadelphia and take public transit on a daily basis from the (close) burbs into the city. Things work pretty well. I can either take the high speed line to the subway (the Market Frankford "El") or take the regional train in and walk a few blocks. And when I'm in the city proper, I take buses all the time to get around. Things are pretty easy and reliable.

What's public transit like in Austin? Is it comparable to any other city's transit system? What lines do you like to take? I know *everyone* drives, but I prefer not to drive to work if possible. Is it possible in the current system? Are there areas that are more accessible, in the city or the burbs?

I did a little reading about Prop 1 (which got voted down a couple weeks back), and I'm wondering if there are any other improvements coming down the pike now that that one isn't happening.

Unless you opt to live very centrally, Austin has horrendous public transit options. Oh sure, you can likely find a place along a bus line that takes you into work - but then you'll be stuck for almost everything else. It's really ****-pour compared to places lie Philly where transit is easy and reliable.

The defeat of Prop-1 was resounding. Rail is unlikely as an option for a decade or more (I'd bet on more, much more in fact). What you're likely to see are more investments into buses, particularly BRT.

But we don't have the guts to do reserved guideway BRT (which would be nearly as expensive as rail anyway). So it'll be crappy, drive in the same traffic BRT with some minor enhancements (wi-fi, signal holding, etc.) - nothing to get excited about.

Austin is 15-25 years away from getting religion on transit. I guess the pain isn't great enough yet, or people lack the experience or understanding of how it can work to make everyone's lives better.

If transit is important to you, Austin is not your town and is not likely to be for some time.

Unfortunately, Austin is a car city. We like our cars, we're proud of them and we build a lot of roads for them.

[centralaustinite]

Our transit is nothing like anything in the NE corridor. The two are incomparable.

Our transit is like that available in Nashville or Raleigh or Iowa City. And that's probably an insult to the transit system of those cities.

[riaelise]

Komeht and the other posters are right, your choices are limited. You could live along the rail line, but the train only operates between 5:50 a.m. and 6:30 pm M-Th, F until 12, Saturday between 4 something and midnight. There is no service on Sunday and I think major holidays like Christmas Day and Thanksgiving Day. So basically, limited service. As a New Yorker myself who rode the subway extensively, you're not going to find a similar transit system here.

[cBach]

There is one rail line that has limited hours and serves a very limited area.

The bus system is pretty bad but the BRT on Lamar is fairly nice.

Rail was just recently turned down, don't expect rail on the ballot for at least 5 more years.

Freeways don't even have HOV lanes.

Traffic is horrible.

[Novacek]

Originally Posted by cBach

Traffic is horrible.

Even with all that, Austin traffic isn't that bad in comparison to a lot of other places. I'm not familiar with Philly, but Austin is still far better than DC (so it may still be an improvement depending on where you come from).

[Komeht]

Originally Posted by Novacek

Even with all that, Austin traffic isn't that bad in comparison to a lot of other places. I'm not familiar with Philly, but Austin is still far better than DC (so it may still be an improvement depending on where you come from).

The difference being - who cares if traffic blows in DC. I had options galore there. Metro, buses, cabs at night, etc. Never once wanted for a car or needed to sit in a traffic jam. DC has one of the very best transit systems in the United States - maybe the best.

[CarnivalGal]

I'm from Philly as well. If you are expecting anything even remotely close to the transit system there, you will be disappointed.

We have buses, but they are fairly inefficient. There's really only one train, but it's hours are limited and the area served is very, very small.

The two cities couldn't be any more different. Austin, in general, is not very walkable. If you work outside of Downtown or UT, which means most people, public transit won't help you much. You may be able to get to work, but if you have visions of going to restaurants or running errands at lunch for example, it's not going to happen.