Embark (OKC Metro Bus Service)

[RadicalModerate]

Our bus system is good.
Friendly drivers, friendlly passengers.
Responsive management.
If it ain't broke don't fix it.
OK?

EDITED TO ADD:
If you never actually ride the bus . . .
Bitching about it is [non-insert......]

[RadicalModerate]

"100% at ease" . . .
Dream On Sidewalk Guy . . .
(no offense intended or implied.=)

[Just the facts]

True, I guess I should mean, equal to the ease I feel when I am at the University Street station in Seattle. =) Zero sense of undesired activity around me.

One night while I was walking the neighborhoods around the edges of Center City Philly I came up with the idea for a fear-o-meter. It is a little hand held device with GPS tracking and a pushbutton scale from 1 to 10. It could be strapped to a volunteer who would walk and rate their comfort level every 30 seconds (prompted by an audiable beep). Communities could then use the data to identify items/features/areas that cause people to feel safe or unsafe. I guess it could even be created as an Android or Apple app. A good trial would be to give it to 30 to 50 people who are unfamiliar with a certian area and just let them start walking. Have some do it during a weekday, some at night, on weekends, etc.

[Just the facts]

Yeah, Microsoft filed for a patent to do something like that. Here is an article about it as well: http://seattle.cbslocal.com/2012/01/...r-gps-devices/

That application is to avoid unsafe areas - as defined by someone else. I am talking about a research device to detemine the general publics perception of safety. A street that might make the average person feel perfectly safe at noon could generate a different type of feeling at night because of an adjacent dark alley, a misplaced stree tlight, or the presence of patrons of a local business, etc. The data could be used to correct these types of personal safety issues and help establish the criteria defining personal safety.

For instance, I felt pretty safe walking in parts of Center City Philly but I did come to an area that had two borded up houses. The internal fear meter went up a notch. After I passed them it returned to normal. Those two houses led to a preceived threat to my personal safety. If that data could be extracted from a sample group then corrections could be made to increase the perceived safety of the area.

[mcca7596]

Looks like this finally may be happening, but in a different, neighboring location:
http://newsok.com/new-site-is-propos...rticle/3659153

[BoulderSooner]

Looks like this finally may be happening, but in a different, neighboring location:
http://newsok.com/new-site-is-propos...rticle/3659153

just across the street from the "old" new location

[Cocaine]

Why don't they just move it to the old union depot train station it's right next to the new I-40 and it's right next to a bus stop too. That seems like the best location and it's actually downtown.

[Just the facts]

Because the old Union Train Station is going to become part of the new Central Park. I was hoping they woudl eventually move to the transit hub at Santa Fe station but maybe they aren't ever going to do that if they create their own terminal. Does anyone know if MetroTransit plans on adding the new bus station to a route?

[Snowman]

Because the old Union Train Station is going to become part of the new Central Park. I was hoping they woudl eventually move to the transit hub at Santa Fe station but maybe they aren't ever going to do that if they create their own terminal. Does anyone know if MetroTransit plans on adding the new bus station to a route?

I think a rendering shown to council a couple months back had the (or at least a) Metro transit hub near the hubs parking structure

[JohnH_in_OKC]

I am retired and I bought a month long pass in October to save money and to try out the Metro Transit system. I enjoyed not having to drive everywhere, but obviously it takes over twice as long to get from home to any point in the city. I usually took my Oklahoman newspaper with me and often I took my tablet. Eventually, I got bored after I finished the newspaper & there were no wi-fi connections on the bus or the downtown bus station.

I will look forward to when wi-fi is available both on the bus and at the downtown bus station. Also a bus rapid transit (BRT) route is being talked about for the Northwest Expressway. During October I went to Gattitown Pizza and had to cross both the Northwest Expressway & MacArthur in order to get there and get home. It was dangerous.

When I was a boy, I would sometimes take the bus from around N.W. 21st & Robinson to the downtown YMCA where I had a youth membership. The bus route went North & South on Robinson & did not have many riders. Our bus system now does have a lot of riders & does cover much of the city. But there is a huge need for expanded routes & expanded service on Saturday & Sunday.

Once wi-fi is available on the buses and the downtown bus station, I will likely try a month pass again. At least I won't get so bored & I will save a lot of gasoline for both myself & our society.

[Just the facts]

I think a rendering shown to council a couple months back had the (or at least a) Metro transit hub near the hubs parking structure

Let me re[hrase my question. Is Metro Transit planning on adding a stop at the new Greyhound bus station? It seems connecting local mass transit to interstate mass transit would be a no-brainer.

[Snowman]

Let me re[hrase my question. Is Metro Transit planning on adding a stop at the new Greyhound bus station? It seems connecting local mass transit to interstate mass transit would be a no-brainer.

The hope of the city was they go to the hub and I hope it eventually happens but the interstate transit companies have to be want to go there. When this came up the first time were planing to move i40 & MLK they stated something like: most of their passengers get picked up by car so downtown was less of an advantage to them as easy interstate access.

[Just the facts]

When this came up the first time were planing to move i40 & MLK they stated something like: most of their passengers get picked up by car so downtown was less of an advantage to them as easy interstate access.

No kidding. What other choice is there? If intergalactic transport ships landed in OKC most passengers would still have to be picked up by car.

[kevinpate]

...
Love transit in Oklahoma. =)

Sounds like you should of loved Budget/AVIS (or one of the others) instead of the hound. In the last year I've rented more car days than I had in several preceding years due to multiple family events that arose and several work trips outside the metro area. I've become a fan as a result.

[Larry OKC]

No kidding. What other choice is there? If intergalactic transport ships landed in OKC most passengers would still have to be picked up by car.

This is why we need Star Trek's site to site transporters

[JohnH_in_OKC]

Deleted by author.

[JohnH_in_OKC]

I think the GPS tracking is just part of running a modern transit system. Once you have the data, making it available to service providers like Google is a little step.

The on-bus wifi seems a bit silly, though.

No, on-bus wi-fi is an essential amenity for us riders. It's boring taking the bus versus driving and it takes about twice as long to get anywhere. Many of the riders, like myself, have smartphones and connect only with wi-fi since data plans are too expensive. A few of us (including myself) own tablets that are wi-fi only. Wi-fi access for both smartphones & tablets will help ameliorate the boredom. If the system is done properly, we will also be able to track our connecting buses to see if they're on schedule & know how long we'll have to wait on making a connection.

[LetsTalkTransit]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 12, 2012

METRO Transit Sees Increase in Ridership
With Rising Gas Prices, Ridership Expected to Climb

OKLAHOMA CITY – During the first months of 2012, the Central Oklahoma Transportation and Parking Authority has seen an increase in METRO Transit riders. And with gas prices expected to continue to rise, COTPA officials expect ridership to follow the same trend.

A recent report showed that METRO Transit transported 66,355 (11 percent) more riders the first three months of 2012 over the same period last year. Saturday service, alone, has increased more than 20 percent within the past six months.

“A mild winter likely played a role in rider demand,” said Rick Cain, administrator of COTPA and director of public transportation and parking for the City of Oklahoma City. “And as gas prices continue to increase, we expect to see a greater demand for public transportation.”

The U.S. Energy Information Administration expects regular-grade motor gasoline retail prices to average $3.79 per gallon in 2012, compared with $3.53 per gallon in 2011. The organization also reports in the Short-Term Energy Outlook that during the April through September summer driving season, prices are forecast to average about $3.92 per gallon with a peak monthly average price of $3.96 per gallon in May.

“We’ve seen instances like this before; when gas prices go up there is a direct correlation to our ridership numbers,” said Cain. “In 2008 when gas prices reached record highs, our ridership spiked. What’s interesting is after gas prices fell, our ridership rates remained higher than the previous year, suggesting that once people try the bus and start a routine, they like it and stick with it.”

In April 2008, average gas prices in Oklahoma City were $3.35 and METRO Transit reported a monthly ridership of 202,021. One year later, the average gas prices in Oklahoma City had fallen to $1.87 but ridership had increased to 208,707.

With unlimited day passes at $4, unlimited week passes at $14 and unlimited monthly passes at $50, Cain says riding the bus is often more economical for most people than fueling up and maintaining a car. Senior passes are also available at half the regular rates.

In addition to increased bus ridership, downtown trolley ridership has also increased by 17 percent in the first two months of 2012 compared to 2011.

To learn more about METRO Transit and view bus schedules and routes, visit gometro.org or call (405) 235-RIDE (7433) for personal assistance from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. To learn more about carpooling or to be matched with someone in your area, visit www.getaroundok.com.

[ljbab728]

More encouraging news for Metro Transit.

http://newsok.com/metro-transit-is-s.../1668082877001

[Frustratedoptimist]

Couple of Metro Transit questions: Is Metro going to have Sunday service? I also heard that they are looking at a private company to run it. Can anyone confirm or deny this?

[kevinpate]

According to the newsok clip linked in the post before yours, Sunday service is being considered. The sound quality is atrocious though so don't have anything else happening near you when you watch the video.

[ljbab728]

The latest on Sunday bus service.

http://newsok.com/oklahoma-city-coun...rticle/3683921

“Probably the only issue in this budget that's been publicly discussed, debated, pleaded for, is Sunday bus service,” Ward 2 Councilman Ed Shadid said. “Are you aware of any city in America of our size and our budget — $900 million — that has no public transportation on Sundays? Any city with an NBA team?”

Ultimately, city staff and the council agreed to conduct an in-depth study about investment in Sunday bus service and other transit issues soon. But not soon enough for Shadid, who registered the sole dissenting vote in passing the 8-1 budget because it didn't include discretionary spending on Sunday service now.

[ljbab728]

Another update on Sunday bus service.

http://newsok.com/oklahoma-city-coun...dline_politics

Also mentioned is:

The council has also expressed a strong desire to study the efficiency of the Metro Transit system in general. City officials acknowledge they would likely come up with a different way to deploy their transit resources if they had a chance to start from scratch, but that effective and efficient public transportation will likely always be an issue in such a sprawling city.

City staff have prepared a request for proposals for consultants to bid on a review of the city's public transportation system with an eye on identifying the most efficient use of transit resources the city already has.

[Frustratedoptimist]

While I support Sunday service, the overall cost and cost per passenger seems extremely high. The study needs to be comprehesive, which could take at least a year. I hope all options are on the table, including privatization and the regional system.

[kevinpate]

been there, done that, so where's the ding dang t-shirt?