Looking at the map, the increased frequency on the 52 & 18 make it much easier for those further on San Pablo Ave to get to the nearest BART Station and Cal while SPA from DT Oakland to E’Ville has similar amount of useful service. I really appreciate greater coverage of 15 min or better service.
AC Transit doesn't function as feeder to BART with current schedules and fares Uncoordinated 20m BART, 15m Buses, high transfer fare, and no joint monthly pass means transfers between agencies are too rare to design a joint map 52/18+BART doesn't replace 72R trips, which are mostly along San Pablo
I mean RER has 15 minute clockface off-peak schedules for an MSA much larger in population than the Bay Aea and Berlín S-Bahn branches are 20 minute off-peak headways. Embarcadero to W. Oak is a greater distance than Chatalet to Saint Denis, when RER starts branching.
The 72R trip you are trying to replace here is UC Village to Downtown Oakland. Currently takes 25min for $2.85 18: 47min for $2.85 52+BART: 27-47min (depending on 20min headway transfer) for $5.15 Riders will wait for a 72/72M which is slightly slower 29min for $2.85 instead of risk long transfer
I wish AC Transit published per-stop data, but from my experience 72/R/M ridership is mostly in the middle like El Cerrito to Emeryville. But I mostly ride it off-peak so my ridership experience is biased
That's my thought -- the vast majority of the ridership on the 72/R/M is for local destinations -- not to Downtown Oakland. So to me it makes sense to save a good percentage of operating expenses of the 72R, and invest the savings in more frequency on local trips in denser communities.
The greater frequency on the 18 will help relieve the 6 Telegraph, and give more rail coverage to communities like Temescal, North Oakland, Bushrod, etc.
But I have a question: what is the most number of trains per hour BART has ever run on Sundays? 9 -- 3 trains per hour each on Yellow, Orange, and Blue? What is the most number of trains per hour BART has run on a Sunday on a single route? 3? 4? 5? 6?
BART currently runs 5 line service with 3tph each line every day including Sundays (3 line after 9pm) So that is 15tph across the 5 lines
Thanks. Curious if any BART line ever got more than 3 tph off-peak. I'm trying to find the 2019 schedule, and I don't think BART ever got more than 3 tph off-peak per line -- particularly on weekends (okay, maybe midday).
Yellow line is the one that used to get more service than the rest at peak. I don't remember if it got more service off-peak though.
I think this would work to improve or maintain rider experience: 1. Free transfers between ACT and BART (reduced cost transfers piloting soon) 2. 10-15min frequencies per route for BART (assuming SB63 passes) 3. Get rid of the 72R 4. Add service to 72 and 72M so each has 10-15 min headways
I think the best you're going to get is reduced cost transfers. Even the MBTA doesn't have single ride free transfers between the commuter rail and subways and buses.
Here in Boston, the MBTA still doesn't even have fare integration between buses, light rail, and subways the way NYC does. For single trips between buses, light rail, and subways, the MBTA charges the fare of the most expensive leg of the trip with up to two transfers.
Monthly passes are available, and there is a bus-only monthly pass (which doesn't have much value as there are 2-3 bus routes that go downtown as the narrow, labyrnthine street network downtown isn't made for buses).
"Transfer up to two times and pay only the cost of the highest-priced service" would be great to have here www.mbta.com/fares
The Fairmount Line here in Dorchester, Roxbury, Mattapan, and Hyde Park famously has subway fares but no free transfers. So few people take Fairmount as almost everyone has to transfer, and the Red Line and buses are easier to 80-90 percent of destinations (and would *still* be the case here ...
... even with fare integration, free transfers, North-South Rail Link, etc.).
Also remember they AC Transit charges full fare for transfers between buses, so even within agency transfers are not really a thing here
This is really unintuitive for transit system designers, but these buses normally leave the busy West Oakland BART station empty and then pick up the bulk of their riders on the way
