Some of you will have already noticed that the sidebar on this blog has had a bit of an overhaul. This has been on the to-do list for awhile, because I noticed that many people come here searching for information about a certain project or plan — but, depending on the query, the search tool … Continue reading
It’s funny how things sometimes turn out. In terms of funding, BART has long been the Bay Area’s favorite son. Year after year, BART is allocated a major piece of the region’s transit funding pie, a piece that is disproportionately large for the number of people it moves. Meanwhile: slow, antiquated, dirty, screechy Caltrain has … Continue reading
The Bay Area Council Economic Institute (BACEI), in response to a request from the California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency, has released its Bay Area Economic Recovery Workplan. This is essentially a compendium of regional priorities and projects (submitted by MTC and local governments) that strategizes potential targets for ARRA stimulus money. The proposals fall … Continue reading
UPDATE (3 June 2009): Caltrain has announced that it will not eliminate weekend service to close the budget deficit, nor will it increase fares on individual passes. Instead, it will pursue other measures to close the gap: raising the Go Pass fee, raising parking fees, and reducing midday service to 60 minute headways. Tonight, May … Continue reading
So I was thinking about redoing the layout of Transbay Blog eventually. I had not planned on doing it so soon, but this weekend, things on the site went haywire. For a quick fix, I reloaded the site with this new theme, which is plain but functional. It will have to stay more or less … Continue reading
University & Bryant, in downtown Palo Alto. Courtesy of Flickr user ikkoskinen. Has the new 17th Street pedestrian plaza in San Francisco’s Castro District set off a spark? San Francisco is not the only Bay Area city that dreams of creating bustling new pedestrian open spaces, nor is it the only one that isn’t quite … Continue reading
Dear Readers: apologies for the sudden dropoff in posting. I’ve received email inquiry asking why the recent silence, despite all the mischief afoot (pedestrian plazas, transit operator budgets going haywire, and so forth), so an explanation is owed. I haven’t had any time lately to post — but truth be told, I haven’t had much … Continue reading
BART survey data (2008). Top: rider home locations; bottom: rider employment locations. Courtesy of BART. BART has released its 2008 Station Profile Study, updating its last study from 1998. The data, which is collected from rider surveys, is BART’s version of the census. It reveals the demographic profile of BART riders, and it provides valuable … Continue reading
Caltrain has joined the list of Bay Area transit operators planning fare increases, service cuts, and the declaration of fiscal emergency to exempt service cuts from CEQA review. Caltrain was ostensibly in a good position among Bay Area transit operators; its ridership soared in the first half of 2008 with the help of high gas … Continue reading
I have been too busy lately to post regularly, but there is still plenty going on in the world of Bay Area planning and transit. My guess, and hope, is that people will still want to discuss the news, even though I am unable to pull enough time together to prepare full posts on these … Continue reading