Everybody knows about double decker buses (we even have some in DC), but did you know there are double decker streetcars?

Double decker tram in Blackpool, UK. Photo by Roger Marks on flickr.

DC Streetcar.

Recent reports that the H Street streetcar won’t open until 2014 may be inaccurate. DDOT says they’re still working to begin service in late 2013.

Yesterday, NBC reported that it could be 2014 before passenger service begins on H Street. That report was based on DDOT’s statement that streetcar testing will begin in October, and that no one knows exactly how long the testing will take. If it takes longer than expected then opening day could be pushed to 2014.

Technically that’s true, but it doesn’t mean there’s a delay. The point of testing is to make sure there are no unanticipated problems. If there aren’t any then there won’t be a delay. Since no one can anticipate an unanticipated problem, no one knows if there will be a delay.

It’s a federal requirement that all new rail lines go through such testing. Doing so guarantees that everything will run smoothly, and that there are no inherent safety problems with the vehicles or infrastructure.

Testing began on the Silver Line in Tysons Corner a few weeks ago, and so far there are no big problems. When WMATA’s new 7000 series railcars arrive, they’ll have to be tested too.

Besides testing, there are other issues that could potentially delay the streetcar. DDOT has 3 streetcars right now, but needs more to operate the route. 3 more streetcars are on order but haven’t arrived yet. If the delivery date slips, so will opening day.

Also, the car barn still has to be built. DDOT might be able to run streetcars before the barn is finished, but only temporarily. If the barn becomes a sticking point and doesn’t move forward, opening on time will be harder.

Still, DDOT says they’re on target. Unless that changes, rumors of potential delay are just that.

 Cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington.
 
 
 

Photo by Joshua Davis.

In response to Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell’s insane plan to fund transportation by eliminating the gas tax, Democrats in Virginia’s House of Delegates have proposed an alternative. It combines Democratic and Republican proposals to increase the gas tax statewide and give Northern Virginia separate authority to raise its own new funds.

Yesterday, the House Democratic Caucus outlined principles they believe should underlie any transportation funding plan for Virginia, and offered their support for a collection of 9 alternate bills which they say form a bipartisan path forward and an alternative to the governor’s plan.

Among those bills are Republican–written proposals to institute a new 5% fuel tax and to raise sales taxes in Northern Virginia specifically for transportation projects in that part of the state.

Any transportation plan, the House Democrats say, should:

1. Generate at least $1 billion in new money per year.
2. Rely on a realistic, dependable source of revenue, based on Virginia’s actions, not potential federal changes that may or may not happen.
3. Not transfer monies that otherwise fund schools, health care, and public safety.
4. Fund not just maintenance, but construction, including rail and transit.
5. Provide additional revenue both immediately and into the future.
6. Give authority to Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads to raise additional funds for their own transportation needs.

These are solid principles, and they offer a stark contrast to McDonnell’s plan. The governor’s proposal would raise far less, and relies on money from the general fund, as well as from a federal Internet sales tax that has not passed Congress.

The 9 specific bills that Democrats cited as true to those core principles are HB1677, HB1878, HB2063, HB2179, HB2253, HB2333, HB1450, HB1472, and HB1633. The House could pick one of those 9 to push, or it could try to amend one of them to combine the best provisions from all.

Republicans control the Virginia House, and the Senate is evenly split, so any plan will need GOP support to pass.

Although it’s true that some questionable highway projects would surely be built if Virginia ultimately adopts this transportation funding plan, this also offers far more support for transit and urban needs than the governor’s proposal, and it doesn’t include as many harmful, regressive policies. This is a far more reasonable outline.

 Cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington.
 
 

Before the rise of air conditioning and cars, cities in the south were as urban and walkable as those in the north. For some reason those older southern cities stagnated in the 20th Century, and were passed over by more suburban counterparts, but they still have high quality cores.

I spent the first two days of 2013 in the twin capitals of historic southeast urbanity, Savannah, GA and Charleston, SC. Although they’re both small by 21st Century standards, they were urban behemoths of early America. In the year 1800 Charleston was the 5th largest city in the country, and Savannah the 21st. The equivalent metro areas as of 2010 are Philadelphia and Denver. That’s how important these cities were.

Today they’re odd places. They have walkable historic cores that seem like they should be the center of major metro areas, but outside their cores there are almost no suburbs, because neither had the sort of 20th Century boom that’s defined other southern cities

Savannah

I found Savannah to be very much like a larger version of Alexandria. It’s a classic river city, with an industrial waterfront downtown, and a grid behind.

Savannah’s famous squares are the urbanist highlight of the city. They’re wonderfully scaled, big enough to offer a variety of public spaces and a reasonable escape, but small enough to be easily accessible from surrounding blocks.

The city is also filled with alley houses, from tiny shacks that must be very cheap, up to luxurious carriage houses. With its public spaces and alleys, it’s easy to see how Savannah was a big inspiration for the new urbanists.

Savannah is also home to a wireless electric streetcar, but unfortunately it’s oriented towards tourists and only runs a couple of days per week.

Charleston

Charleston is just as urban and walkable as Savannah, but otherwise looks completely different. It’s a southern Boston or lower Manhattan, with narrow medieval streets twisting in every direction. And whereas Savannah’s downtown fronts on the city’s waterfront, downtown Charleston is in the interior of the city, blocks from the industrial shore.

Charleston is clearly a wealthier place, and seems to have a more active economy besides tourism.

While Charleston doesn’t have anything so grand as Savannah’s squares, it does have a great market house. Like a bigger and more flexible version of Eastern Market, Charleston’s market would make a fantastic addition to any city. The front section is more permanent and filled with shops oriented to tourists, but the more interesting back section is simply stalls, ready to be filled by any kind of temporary craft or food vendors available.

Both cities had a lot of cyclists, but not much cycling infrastructure, and both have seemingly unimpressive bus networks.

Australians put out better public safety announcements. Watch:

This map shows how often trains come at rush hour throughout the Metrorail system. Thick green lines are about every 2-3 minutes, dashed orange lines are every 5, and dotted red are more.

It would be interesting to see a similar map for the bus system.

From WMATA’s service standards report.

Biking down I-395 in 2009.

During the 2009 inauguration, crowd control went horribly wrong and hundreds of people were stuck in the purple tunnel of doom for hours. To avoid a repeat, inauguration planners have decided to close the Third Street Tunnel to everyone this year, instead of just cars.

Obviously avoiding another doom tunnel fiasco is good news, but closing the tunnel for bikes and peds also makes me a little sad.

In 2009 I made my way down to the inauguration before the crowds got really intense. To get there, I biked down the middle of I-395. For a transportation nerd, biking down an empty interstate was one of the most fun experiences of the season.

So I can understand the decision to close the tunnel completely this year, but I’ll still miss the experience.

Cleveland’s Health Line, America’s highest-scoring BRT. Photo from EMBARQ Brasil on flickr.

When new bus rapid transit lines are discussed, proponents often say they hope to make the routes gold standard, meaning so high quality that they mimic many features of rail. That’s a high bar; most BRT projects in the United States don’t even qualify as true BRT, and so far not one has actually met the gold standard.

The Institute for Transportation & Development Policy publishes BRT standards that describe minimum characteristics necessary for a bus route to qualify as BRT. Those standards establish three levels of BRT quality: bronze, silver, and gold. They include features like off-bus fare collection, high station platforms, and bus frequency.

So far, only 5 lines in the United States have scored highly enough to qualify as true BRT, and all 5 rank at the bronze level. Not one is even silver, let alone gold.

According to ITDP, the best performing BRT systems in the world are Bogota, Colombia and Guangzhou, China, which score 93/100 and 89/100, respectively. They are the gold standard.

By comparison, the United States’ highest-scoring BRT route is Cleveland’s Health Line, which hits bronze with a score of 63. The other 4 bronze BRT lines in there US are in Eugene, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, and Las Vegas.

Boston’s famous Silver Line, which even runs in a subway for a short stretch, scores a meager 37. That’s not enough to qualify as true BRT at all, even a low level.

It isn’t that gold standard BRT is impossible in the United States. Certainly it’s possible. But it isn’t built here because nobody really wants to build it.

The same community leaders who choose BRT over rail because BRT is cheaper then make the same choice when faced with other potential cost-cutting measures. They eliminate the most expensive features, until the gold standard that was promised isn’t actually what’s delivered.

That sort of feature cutting is called BRT creep, and so far it’s happened to some extent on every major BRT project in American history.

None of this should suggest that BRT is worthless. Sometimes BRT creep can even be beneficial, if it makes an otherwise infeasible project possible. Bronze level BRT is still rapid transit, after all, and even bus priority routes that don’t fully qualify as actual BRT are often a huge improvement over regular busing.

WMATA’s MetroExtra service, for example, isn’t usually called BRT even by low American standards, but it’s still a great service. It was something Metro could do quickly and cheaply to help riders, and it works.

But beware the politician who argues for gold standard BRT over rail. Odds are they won’t deliver.

 Cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington.
 
 
 

Monroe Street Market will be Brookland’s first sizable transit oriented development. It’s immediately adjacent to the Metro station, and will have a great mix of shops, apartments, artist studios, and community spaces. It’s exactly the type of development smart growth advocates like.

The main plaza of Monroe Street Market will be called the Arts Walk. I was lucky enough to get a brief tour of its construction this past weekend. Here are a few pictures.

The future Arts Walk.	Where the Arts Walk meets the Michigan Avenue overpass. A fountain will be built in front of the blank wall.
Brookland Metro, right across the street.	The tour guide describes how artist studios will be incorporated.

For the first time, an actual Metro railcar has started to appear on the Silver Line. Construction crews are pulling it along the tracks, checking to make sure there are no obstructions. Test trains will be a common sight through the rest of the construction period, until opening day late in 2013.

Overall construction of Phase 1 is 87% complete, and the tracks themselves are essentially done. The last 13% is mostly to stations and electrical equipment.

Photo by Leslie Pereira of Dulles Transit Partners.