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FIT supports these changes, while offering the following observations on how you could make the project even better.
FIT strongly supports these changes, while offering the following observations on how you could make the project even better.
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Consider modifying the plan to make it easier for people to transfer between local (Golden Mile) and express (Harbour Quays) services at the Embassy Theatre end of Courtenay Place. Reframe the discussion from emotional — people don’t like transfers and want a one-seat journey — to practical — people must be able to rely on transfers and increased service frequency and reliability reduces the time it takes to transfer between services. A second spine, in conjunction with bus reliability improvements on the Golden Mile, will ensure people can be confident of making connections between services.
Consider modifying the plan to make it easier for people to transfer between local (Golden Mile) and express (Harbour Quays) services at the Embassy Theatre end of Courtenay Place. Reframe the discussion from emotional — people don’t like transfers and want a one-seat journey — to practical — people must be able to rely on transfers and increased service frequency and reliability reduce the time it takes to transfer between services. A second spine, in conjunction with bus reliability improvements on the Golden Mile, will ensure people can be confident of making connections between services.
The project proposes Part-time bus lanes operating Monday to Friday, 6:30–9:30am and 3:30–6:30pm, giving buses priority during peak times
only. FIT suggests it would be better for all road users to operate the bus lanes from 6:30am to 6:30pm, Monday to Friday. During the inter-peak period, the Harbour Quays are less busy, and bus lanes would not delay general traffic. On the other hand, when a bus is at a bus stop, cars in the bus lane will prevent a following bus from reaching the stop or may seek to change lanes, potentially in an unsafe manner. There also needs to be clear signage on side roads, instructing left-turning cars to turn into the traffic lane, not the bus lane.
The project proposes Part-time bus lanes operating Monday to Friday, 6:30–9:30AM and 3:30–6:30PM, giving buses priority during peak times
only. FIT suggests it would be better for all road users to operate the bus lanes from 6:30AM to 6:30PM, Monday to Friday. During the inter-peak period, the Harbour Quays are less busy, and bus lanes would not delay general traffic. On the other hand, when a bus is at a bus stop, cars in the bus lane will prevent a following bus from reaching the stop or may seek to change lanes, potentially in an unsafe manner. There also needs to be clear signage on side roads, instructing left-turning cars to turn into the traffic lane, not the bus lane.
Consider modifying the plan to make it easier for people to transfer between local (Golden Mile) and express (Harbour Quays) services at the Embassy Theatre end of Courtenay Place. Reframe the discussion from emotional — people don’t like transfers and want a one-seat journey — to practical — people must be able to rely on transfers and increased frequency reduces the time it takes to transfer between services. A second spine, in conjunction with bus reliability improvements on the Golden Mile, will ensure people can be confident of making connections between services.
Consider modifying the plan to make it easier for people to transfer between local (Golden Mile) and express (Harbour Quays) services at the Embassy Theatre end of Courtenay Place. Reframe the discussion from emotional — people don’t like transfers and want a one-seat journey — to practical — people must be able to rely on transfers and increased service frequency and reliability reduces the time it takes to transfer between services. A second spine, in conjunction with bus reliability improvements on the Golden Mile, will ensure people can be confident of making connections between services.
(:typeset-page fontset=kepler colophon=off parasep=space subtitle="Good and Could be Great" headingcolor=RoyalBlue colorlinks=on marginshift=on :)
(:typeset-page fontset=kepler colophon=off parasep=space subtitle="Good and Can be Better" headingcolor=RoyalBlue colorlinks=on marginshift=on :)
More frequent, more reliable, faster bus services will make the bus network more useful to more people for more journeys, which will in turn lift ridership. As and when the project is fully implemented, buses will therefore be more productive. That is, the number of passenger trips per bus per year will increase. This will increase the utilisation of the most valuable asset — the bus fleet. Improved bus productivity ought to be a project KPI.
More frequent, more reliable, faster bus services will make the bus network more useful to more people for more journeys, which will in turn lift ridership. As and when the project is fully implemented, buses will therefore be more productive. That is, the number of passenger trips per bus per year will increase. This will increase the asset utilization rate of the most valuable asset — the bus fleet. Improved bus productivity (AUR) ought to be a project KPI.
FIT supports bus stop balancing — thoughtfully removing or relocating bus stops along major corridors to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service, with improved overall travel times. Fewer bus stops along a route delivers safer and smoother rides (less stopping, starting, and lane changing); and benefits other road users (more kerb space, more footpath space, and better traffic flow). The benefit of removing a poorly located stop, to the many already on the bus, outweighs the cost to the few, who are mildly inconvenienced by having to walk further.
FIT supports bus stop balancing — thoughtfully removing or relocating bus stops along major PT corridors to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service, with improved overall travel times. Fewer bus stops along a route delivers safer and smoother rides (less stopping, starting, and lane changing); and benefits other road users (more kerb space, more footpath space, and better traffic flow). The benefit of removing a poorly located stop, to the many already on the bus, outweighs the cost to the few, who are mildly inconvenienced by having to walk further.
FIT supports bus stop balancing — thoughtfully removing or relocating bus stops along major corridors to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service, with improved overall travel times. Fewer bus stops along a route delivers safer and smoother rides (less stopping, starting, and lane changing); and benefits other road users (more kerb space, more footpath space, and better traffic flow). The benefit of removing a poorly located stop, to the many already on the bus, outweighs the cost to the few, who are mildly inconvenienced by having to walk further.
FIT supports bus stop balancing — thoughtfully removing or relocating bus stops along major corridors to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service, with improved overall travel times. Fewer bus stops along a route delivers safer and smoother rides (less stopping, starting, and lane changing); and benefits other road users (more kerb space, more footpath space, and better traffic flow). The benefit of removing a poorly located stop, to the many already on the bus, outweighs the cost to the few, who are mildly inconvenienced by having to walk further.
(:typeset-page fontset=kepler colophon=off parasep=space subtitle="Good and Could be Great" headingcolor=RoyalBlue colorlinks=on :)
(:typeset-page fontset=kepler colophon=off parasep=space subtitle="Good and Could be Great" headingcolor=RoyalBlue colorlinks=on marginshift=on :)
(:typeset-page fontset=kepler colophon=off parasep=space subtitle="Good and Could be Great" headingcolor=RoyalBlue colorlinks=on :)
More frequent, more reliable, faster bus services will make the bus network more useful to more people, which will in turn lift ridership. As and when the project is fully implemented, buses will therefore be more productive. That is, the number of passenger trips per bus per year will increase. This will increase the utilisation of the most valuable asset — the bus fleet. Improved bus productivity ought to be a project KPI.
More frequent, more reliable, faster bus services will make the bus network more useful to more people for more journeys, which will in turn lift ridership. As and when the project is fully implemented, buses will therefore be more productive. That is, the number of passenger trips per bus per year will increase. This will increase the utilisation of the most valuable asset — the bus fleet. Improved bus productivity ought to be a project KPI.
FIT supports bus stop balancing — thoughtfully removing or relocating bus stops along major corridors to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service, with improved overall travel times. Fewer bus stops along a route delivers safer and smoother rides (less stopping, starting, and lane changing); and benefits other road users (more kerb space, more footpath space, and better traffic flow). The benefit of removing a poorly located stop, to the many already on the bus, outweighs the cost, to the few who may be mildly inconvenienced.
FIT supports bus stop balancing — thoughtfully removing or relocating bus stops along major corridors to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service, with improved overall travel times. Fewer bus stops along a route delivers safer and smoother rides (less stopping, starting, and lane changing); and benefits other road users (more kerb space, more footpath space, and better traffic flow). The benefit of removing a poorly located stop, to the many already on the bus, outweighs the cost to the few, who are mildly inconvenienced by having to walk further.
Consider modifying the plan to make it easier for people to transfer between local (Golden Mile) and express (Harbour Quays) services at the Embassy Theatre end of Courtenay Place. Reframe the discussion from emotional — people don’t like transfers and want a one-seat journey — to practical — people must be able to rely on transfers and high frequency reduces the time it takes to transfer between services. A second spine, in conjunction with bus reliability improvements on the Golden Mile, will ensure people can be confident of making connections between services.
FIT supports bus stop balancing — thoughtfully removing or relocating bus stops along major corridors to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service, with improved overall travel times. Fewer bus stops along a route delivers safer and smoother rides (less stopping, starting, and lane changing); and also benefits other road users (more kerb space, more footpath space, and better traffic flow). The benefit of removing a poorly located stop, to the many already on the bus, outweighs the cost, to the few who may be mildly inconvenienced.
Consider modifying the plan to make it easier for people to transfer between local (Golden Mile) and express (Harbour Quays) services at the Embassy Theatre end of Courtenay Place. Reframe the discussion from emotional — people don’t like transfers and want a one-seat journey — to practical — people must be able to rely on transfers and increased frequency reduces the time it takes to transfer between services. A second spine, in conjunction with bus reliability improvements on the Golden Mile, will ensure people can be confident of making connections between services.
FIT supports bus stop balancing — thoughtfully removing or relocating bus stops along major corridors to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service, with improved overall travel times. Fewer bus stops along a route delivers safer and smoother rides (less stopping, starting, and lane changing); and benefits other road users (more kerb space, more footpath space, and better traffic flow). The benefit of removing a poorly located stop, to the many already on the bus, outweighs the cost, to the few who may be mildly inconvenienced.
FIT fully supports these changes, while offering the following observations on how you could make the project even better.
FIT supports these changes, while offering the following observations on how you could make the project even better.
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The project proposes “Part-time bus lanes operating Monday to Friday, 6:30–9:30am and 3:30–6:30pm, giving buses priority during peak times” only.
“New and upgraded bus stops near key destinations” are necessary but not sufficient. The project needs to incorporate pedestrian improvements that make it easier to cross a 6-lane traffic artery. Improvements could include wider footpaths at bus stops and eliminating the beg buttons at intersections. People on foot would automatically receive a walk light when the traffic light is red. This is standard practice overseas. As the California Bicycle Coalition notes:
The project proposes Part-time bus lanes operating Monday to Friday, 6:30–9:30am and 3:30–6:30pm, giving buses priority during peak times
only. FIT suggests it would be better for all road users to operate the bus lanes from 6:30am to 6:30pm, Monday to Friday. During the inter-peak period, the Harbour Quays are less busy, and bus lanes would not delay general traffic. On the other hand, when a bus is at a bus stop, cars in the bus lane will prevent a following bus from reaching the stop or may seek to change lanes, potentially in an unsafe manner. There also needs to be clear signage on side roads, instructing left-turning cars to turn into the traffic lane, not the bus lane.
New and upgraded bus stops near key destinations
are necessary but not sufficient. The Harbour Quays are a traffic sewer. The project needs to incorporate pedestrian improvements that make it easier to cross a 6-lane traffic artery. Improvements could include wider footpaths at bus stops and eliminating the beg buttons at intersections. People on foot would automatically receive a walk light when the traffic light is red. This is standard practice overseas. As the California Bicycle Coalition notes:
modify the plan to make it easier for people to transfer between local (golden mile) and express (waterfront quays) services at the Embassy end of Courtenay Place
reframe transfers from emotional (people don’t like transfers) to rational (people must be able to trust transfers) �— a second spine will improve reliability so people can be more confident of making connections
- FIT’s strong support
- that they consider making the bus lanes full time, especially on weekends when the Quays are busy all day
- that they incorporate pedestrian improvements that make it easier to cross a 6-lane road (wider footpaths at bus stops, no beg buttons!)
- that they reframe transfers from emotional (people don’t like transfers) to rational (people must be able to trust transfers) �— a second spine will improve reliability so people can be more confident of making connections
- and by the way, FIT supports bus stop balancing �— thoughtful removal and/or relocation of bus stops along a corridor to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service
Need to have an alternative route to stop the bus platooning on the golden Mile at peak hours.
Re-peak time only bus lanes versus all day long, there�’ll be opposition to the latter from the petrol heads. Maybe a trial of peak only (or all day weekdays) might be in order?
Consider modifying the plan to make it easier for people to transfer between local (Golden Mile) and express (Harbour Quays) services at the Embassy Theatre end of Courtenay Place. Reframe the discussion from emotional — people don’t like transfers and want a one-seat journey — to practical — people must be able to rely on transfers and high frequency reduces the time it takes to transfer between services. A second spine, in conjunction with bus reliability improvements on the Golden Mile, will ensure people can be confident of making connections between services.
FIT supports bus stop balancing — thoughtfully removing or relocating bus stops along major corridors to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service, with improved overall travel times. Fewer bus stops along a route delivers safer and smoother rides (less stopping, starting, and lane changing); and also benefits other road users (more kerb space, more footpath space, and better traffic flow). The benefit of removing a poorly located stop, to the many already on the bus, outweighs the cost, to the few who may be mildly inconvenienced.
(:para FITWellington#FIT:)
FIT welcomes the opportunity to provide feedback on proposed changes to Harbour Quays. We note the proposed changes will:
FIT fully supports these changes, while offering the following observations on how you could make the project even better.
More frequent, more reliable, faster bus services will make the bus network more useful to more people, which will in turn lift ridership. As and when the project is fully implemented, buses will therefore be more productive. That is, the number of passenger trips per bus per year will increase. This will increase the utilisation of the most valuable asset — the bus fleet. Improved bus productivity ought to be a project KPI.
The project proposes “Part-time bus lanes operating Monday to Friday, 6:30–9:30am and 3:30–6:30pm, giving buses priority during peak times” only.
“New and upgraded bus stops near key destinations” are necessary but not sufficient. The project needs to incorporate pedestrian improvements that make it easier to cross a 6-lane traffic artery. Improvements could include wider footpaths at bus stops and eliminating the beg buttons at intersections. People on foot would automatically receive a walk light when the traffic light is red. This is standard practice overseas. As the California Bicycle Coalition notes:
Beg buttons help car drivers by inconveniencing and slowing down walkers. Every time a city installs new beg buttons, that is a physical representation of prioritization of cars and disregard for pedestrians.
[…]
When cities turn beg buttons off, the light cycles from red to green and back again. Everyone gets a turn without hassle: bike riders, walkers, and car drivers.
modify the plan to make it easier for people to transfer between local (golden mile) and express (waterfront quays) services at the Embassy end of Courtenay Place
reframe transfers from emotional (people don’t like transfers) to rational (people must be able to trust transfers) �— a second spine will improve reliability so people can be more confident of making connections
- FIT’s strong support
- that they consider making the bus lanes full time, especially on weekends when the Quays are busy all day
- that they incorporate pedestrian improvements that make it easier to cross a 6-lane road (wider footpaths at bus stops, no beg buttons!)
- that they reframe transfers from emotional (people don’t like transfers) to rational (people must be able to trust transfers) �— a second spine will improve reliability so people can be more confident of making connections
- and by the way, FIT supports bus stop balancing �— thoughtful removal and/or relocation of bus stops along a corridor to achieve more consistent spacing, maintain convenient access, and provide faster, more reliable service
Need to have an alternative route to stop the bus platooning on the golden Mile at peak hours.
Re-peak time only bus lanes versus all day long, there�’ll be opposition to the latter from the petrol heads. Maybe a trial of peak only (or all day weekdays) might be in order?