The alignment alternatives MTA studied for the CCT. Click to enlarge.

In 2006 I wrote about the terrible placement of stations along the adopted Corridor Cities Transitway alignment, and helped prepare an alternate route with the Action committee for Transit that would better serve Gaithersburg’s many but disjointed walkable areas. Following similar prodding by the City of Gaithersburg and Montgomery County, Maryland transit planners finally agreed to study modifications to the route.

Their report (pdf) came out yesterday.

Although planners didn’t study the more radical realignments BeyondDC and ACT like, they did look at three changes to more directly serve the “Science City“, Crown Farm, and Kentlands. Predicatbly, the report finds that thousands and thousands more riders would use the transitway if stops were positioned near walkable destinations rather than park and rides.

Depending on the mode, for an average of 15% more cost you get 39% more riders, just by switching a handful of stations to walkable locations. A locally preferred alternative has yet to be chosen, but presumably this makes the alignment decision pretty easy. MTA would be mad not to go with the alternate.