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I had another conversation recently where a friend told me that he "Doesn't mess with the bus." He will gladly take a train though. I asked why and he said that the bus is so inconsistent and he's just not a "bus person." He'd rather drive if he can't take a train.
This speaks to a few issues with buses in many parts of the U.S. -1 We don't run them frequently enough. Allow people to be spontaneous with their travel decisions and or build their life around consistent service. This requires more operations funding.
2 Lack of priority on the street for reliable service. Buses need dedicated lanes, que jumps, transit signal priority where possible to speed up service. These may be outside a transit agency's control and often require coordination with municipalities who control the streets.
3 Transit agencies can implement off board fare payment and all door boarding where possible to speed up bus service as well.
4 There is a perception problem about who rides buses. This stigma is due in part to the abysmal state of the bus riding experience where stops can often be nothing more than a sign on the side of the road with no shelter, seating or safe pedestrian connection to anything else.
This is not a complete list but covers the basics of better bus service. We need to dignify the bus.
Lots of good discourse here. I'll add that bus network redesigns would be the next level of how to improve systems to work better for everyone. Travel patterns/demand are changing. We know downtown is not the only place folks want to go & many don't need to go there at all.
At times, fixed route buses will not make sense. Certain areas may require a different approach such as smaller demand response type of service. Many details as to how to apply this model but definitely worth considering.
Our transportation networks should be comprehensive multimodal systems. There is no one right way or mode to solve all our problems. Each mode should complement one another and each community should apply transportation services in ways that make contextual sense for that area.
System legibility: How easy it is to use the system and navigate are user experience items that need careful attention. Even with real time/mapping apps, I still appreciate good physical signage to reinforce confidence that I am going the right way.
