tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post1405323157908472355..comments2024-02-01T04:37:41.878-05:00Comments on Cap'n Transit Rides Again: The man behind the Simpson CurtainCap'n Transithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17057887736728828646noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-75958043746090686512011-01-12T18:24:26.097-05:002011-01-12T18:24:26.097-05:00Sorry to post so late, but I just wanted to mentio...Sorry to post so late, but I just wanted to mention that he is probably talking about the local buses run by MTA Bus.<br /><br />Personally, I can't see why congestion pricing, or at least East River tolling hasn't been implemented. It is already hard to drive in Manhattan traffic and parking is extremely expensive (even if you are just driving through, that traffic causes you to burn up excess gas). <br /><br />Some kind of cordon pricing would actually help the people who feel that they must drive to Manhattan, by reducing traffic congestion.George Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15288033149559815848noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-65391371225489597362009-09-05T20:12:36.403-04:002009-09-05T20:12:36.403-04:00Yes, Jonathan, many of them do run into Manhattan....Yes, Jonathan, <a href="http://www.mta.info/busco/schedules/index.html" rel="nofollow">many of them</a> do run into Manhattan. Two of those, the Q60 and the Q102, are local, but the rest are express.Cap'n Transithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17057887736728828646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-54783048592336591372009-09-04T09:02:50.904-04:002009-09-04T09:02:50.904-04:00I was thinking about the ex-private bus lines in Q...I was thinking about the ex-private bus lines in Queens this morning. They don't run to Manhattan, so how would cordon pricing help them?Jonathanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08520811734907587902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-87567475573520300952009-09-03T08:51:34.428-04:002009-09-03T08:51:34.428-04:00In fact, going after the off-peak market is a key ...In fact, going after the off-peak market is a key part of any profitability a transit service might hope for. One of the large expenses is paying for the vehicles, so you want them running as much as possible (see Southwest airlines). In addition split shifts to accommodate rush hour are more expensive and less productive than regular hours. Examples: the Chicago & North Western Railroad in the sixties managed to achieve profitability on their commuter trains in part by increasing off-peak service to hourly. Metra and Metro-North and services in London have all found that going after the off-peak market helps the bottom line.Christopher Parkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16947034888487890485noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-26550377102552445532009-09-02T12:53:14.429-04:002009-09-02T12:53:14.429-04:00Jarrett: on the contrary, the profit-motivated tra...Jarrett: on the contrary, the profit-motivated transit operators in East Asia have more weekend and evening service, not less. Usually they just bundle all of it into off-peak. For example, read <a href="http://www.kcrc.hk/eng/train/service_hours.html" rel="nofollow">this chart</a> of train frequency in Hong Kong, showing that the busier lines run every 4-5 minutes in the evenings and the less busy lines every 10 minutes.<br /><br />Tokyo is similar, but has no combined timetable that I know of. You can search individual lines on Hyperdia, though - the Yamanote and Chuo Lines run every 4 minutes between 11 pm and midnight, and the Marunouchi Line runs every 5 minutes.Alon Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12195377309045184452noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-48220308966755456272009-09-01T08:58:34.731-04:002009-09-01T08:58:34.731-04:00That's interesting in theory, Jarrett, but mos...That's interesting in theory, Jarrett, but most government operations don't understand that either. For example, Dave Olsen happens to mention that the wonderful Island Transit <a href="http://islandtransit.org/routes/13" rel="nofollow">has no Sunday service</a>. On weekdays, its last run is 7:50 PM.<br /><br />Meanwhile, the privately operated DeCamp buses in New Jersey run buses until midnight, including <a href="http://www.decamp.com/printRoute.asp?F_ROUTE=NY-WO&F_DAY=1&F_TIME=M" rel="nofollow">hourly service on Saturday and Sunday</a>.<br /><br />The widespread lack of Sunday bus service around the country is just <a href="http://capntransit.blogspot.com/2008/08/outside-ny-sunday-service-is-no-joke.html" rel="nofollow">baffling</a>. How could you expect people to live without a car if there's no bus on Sundays? The surprising thing is how many people live without cars in these areas anyway.Cap'n Transithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17057887736728828646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-67214078862981449172009-09-01T06:51:31.290-04:002009-09-01T06:51:31.290-04:00Yes but, for example: I want people to own fewer ...Yes but, for example: I want people to own fewer cars, for reasons that go beyond how that helps the profitability of a transit operator. A profit-oriented operator will tend to skimp on late-evening service, for example, but you need really good late-evening service, even if unprofitable, to make lower car ownership viable on a large scale. It would take a sophisticated operator to understand this as a good outcome purely from a profit motive, especially if, like most businesses, there's pressure to deliver short term. Not saying it's impossible, but I wouldn't say that level of sophistication is common in the private operations market today.Jarrett at HumanTransit.orghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052246183256575683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-30476897800817742512009-08-31T20:15:56.954-04:002009-08-31T20:15:56.954-04:00Jarrett, I don't think the profitable transit ...Jarrett, I don't think the profitable transit companies in Japan and Hong Kong have a pernicious effect on planning and development. On the contrary, they promote the development they can serve the best, which is dense and transit-oriented.Alon Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12195377309045184452noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-42555489066272583432009-08-31T16:09:56.947-04:002009-08-31T16:09:56.947-04:00No question that you could make transit profitable...No question that you could make transit profitable by that method. Are you sure you WANT transit to be profitable? <br /><br />Isn't its loss-making nature part of what keeps it under government control, and thus accountable to the city? Sure, a profitable carrier is good to its customers, but it's not always a very good partner for government's efforts in infrastructure development and planning.Jarrett at HumanTransit.orghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052246183256575683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-85774579752337762772009-08-31T09:16:28.260-04:002009-08-31T09:16:28.260-04:00I have seen the movie, thanks, and I highly recomm...I have seen the movie, thanks, and I highly recommend it. I don't think it proves what you say here. But I'll get into that more in another post.Cap'n Transithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17057887736728828646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-30870717174031645752009-08-31T09:01:22.030-04:002009-08-31T09:01:22.030-04:00Fares exist to inhibit use. There is no free marke...Fares exist to inhibit use. There is no free market involved. The market is controlled by the big players. See the movie: <br /><b><i><a href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2486235784907931000&hl=en" rel="nofollow"> Taken for a Ride</a></i></b>fpteditorshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04620275872850435922noreply@blogger.com