Setting the Standard: An Introduction to Bicycle Accessibility to Transit Agencies

Setting the Standard: An Introduction to Bicycle Accessibility to Transit Agencies

The Question --- How do transit operators optimize the multimodal (transit to bike) user experience? --- Page 2

Setting the Stage 39% Increase in transit ridership since 1995 Faster than population growth!* Cycling on the rise in cities across the USA Bike ridership in the USA increased 62% between 2000 and 2013** Annual Transit Ridership http://www.bikeleague.org/sites/default/files/bike_commuting_growth_2015_final.pdf http://www.ssti.us/2012/03/transit-ridership-continues-upward-trend-in-2011/ * APTA Factsheet, 2015 ** Growth of Bike Commuting, League of American Bicyclists, 2013 Page 3

Implications For Transit Dissecting the First & Last Mile Catchment Areas Core Immediate Station Area Primary Mostly Ped trips Secondary 1-3 Miles from Transit; highest bike use Rail/Transit operators are becoming more responsive to bike accessibility Considerations for transit operators: How to accommodate additional bikes with limited spaces without impacting current transit riders How to facilitate last mile connections and create a seamless user experience http://www.apta.com/resources/standards/documents/apta%20suds-ud-rp-001-09.pdf Page 4

Setting the Standard Establish a series of recommended practices for bike accessibility to Transit: Established a cross-sector, Interdisciplinary Work Group 40+ Members Transit agencies Bike Advocacy Groups Rack Manufacturers Consultants Guide for Agencies & Municipalities Best practices CASE STUDIES!!!!! Page 5

Defining the Core Issues Safe Routes to Transit Bike Parking at stations Bikeshare integration On-Vehicle Storage Establishing Dialogue & Prioritizing Cycling ROW Mixed Use and Reactivation Page 6

The Importance of Bike Parking Good Bike Parking: Easy & Immediate access to the bus/train Inspires confidence Decreases fear of theft/damage http://www.treehugger.com/cars/7-great-solutions-for-safely-parking-city-bikes.html http://www.makingspaceforcycling.org/ Bad Bike Parking: Increases hassle for users Decreases security Makes the idea of riding to work cumbersome http://www.flickriver.com/photos/jamesbondsv/sets/72157607516620380/ http://blog.brooksengland.com/wps/how-not-to-park-your-bike/ Page 7

Setting the Standard Parking Placement & Type Open Vertical Racks Open Stackable Racks Never One Size Fits All Need to be flexible & responsive to demand Immediate Proximity To Station Facility Line-of-site with station personnel if possible on-demand lockers cage/enclosed space Open U racks keyed lockers Smart Racks Page 8

Setting the Standard Making Space For Bikes Think about parking capacity in terms of space? How much real-estate should be allocated for bike parking? How can we maximize space with different types of racks Double stackers Varying rack configurations Page 9

Setting the Standard Bikes Onboard Vehicles Users should never be placed in Conflict ADA spaces should be separate from bike spaces Cyclists have a tendency to self regulate based on good judgement Agencies with more restrictive regulations tend to ease them over time Station circulation is critical Agencies need to have efficient &accessible routes through transit facilities Should not impede normal pedestrian flow or interfere with ADA access Fast & Intuitive Use Racks must be user friendly Page 10

Setting the Standard Messaging & Communication Wayfinding Easy route to parking Contextualized with station/local system Proper locking Instructions Typical Infographics and/or language Polices & Rules Hours, access, etc. Off-Site Resources Webpage with system-wide bike information including bike parking at each station, special parking facilities and onboard procedures https://www.takeform.net/products/transit http://socalregion.com/bicycling/bicycle-parking/ Page 11

Setting the Standard Bike Share Transit Operators should seek to accommodate bike share: Bike share is increasing More than 50% of bike share users in cities with high transit usage frequently link bike share with transit trips Place Bike Share Proximate to Stations Should not impede peak pedestrian flow Accommodations for bike share operations Encourage inclusion on transit property where possible Interoperability Where Possible Page 12

Let s ensure mobility for the future with active connections to transit! Page 13

Transit-Bicycle Connectivity Minneapolis - Saint Paul, Minnesota Tony Drollinger Customer Services & Marketing

Metropolitan Council Created in 1967 by state legislature Plan for orderly & economical development Coordinate services that any one city or county could not effectively provide Designated Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO)

Service 907 square miles 90 cities, 7+ counties 129 bus routes 58 local, 64 express 2 light rail lines 1 commuter rail line 1 BRT line 1 ABRT line 86 transitway stations 65+ park & rides 15,500 spaces 12,500 bus stops 900 shelters 3

Fleet and Facilities 900+ buses 86 light-rail vehicles 6 locomotives, 18 commuter rail cars Five bus service garages Minneapolis (2), Brooklyn Park, St. Paul, Bloomington Three rail maintenance facilities St. Paul, Minneapolis, Big Lake 4

Bicycles on Transit Vehicles Two-place bike racks on all buses 1,810 spots Bike racks on all light rail vehicles 108 spots Bikes on board Northstar Commuter Rail 36 spots 5

Hiawatha LRT Multiuse Trail 6

Bicycle Companies and Advocacy Groups

Challenges Funding! How to partner with bikeshare and advocacy organization Design for all seasons Space constraints doing everything [we] can to restrict bikes to bike lanes Culture

Future Efforts Development of a Bicycle Master Plan Development of annual Metro Transit Bicycle Report Expansion of secure bike parking locations APC system on vehicle bike racks 3-space rack pilot project 9

Thank you! metrotransit.org/bike tony.drollinger@metrotransit.org

Bikes and Metro Jamie Carrington, AICP WMATA Office of Planning March 8, 2017

About WMATA Service Area: 1,500 square miles 3.9 million population Governance: Interstate compact of DC, Maryland, Virginia, (Feds) No tax authority/dedicated funding Rail 91 stations 117 track miles 640,000 weekday trips Bus >11,000 stops 307 routes 415,000 daily trips

Evolution of Bike Policies at Metro 1976-81: Total onboard bike ban, limited bike parking at stations 1981-98: Bikes allowed evenings + weekends only with permit 1998: Permit requirement lifted, bikes allowed except during rush hours 2003: Front-mounted bike racks added to buses 2011: Board approves Bicycle & Pedestrian improvement plan, sets goals for bike-access mode share 2012: Construction of ped/bike improvements at stations 2016-17: Study of off-property ped/bike needs

Bicycle Facilities & Policies Today Facilities Bus 2-bike racks on buses Rail 2,000+ racks (inverted U) 1,200+ lockers (New) Bike & Ride secure group parking Policies Rush hours on rail 7-10am/4-7pm No full-size bikes Max 2 per car Folding bikes must be folded Bikes must use elevators

Bike to Metrorail Mode Share 4% 3% 2% 3.5% 1% 0.2% 2.1% 0% 0.4% 0.7% 1.0% 1.0% 2002 2007 2012 2016 2021 Goal Peronal Bike Bikeshare Any 2035 Goal

Identify Mode Shift Opportunities Parking Customers' Driving Distance to Parking Facilities Over 20 Miles 5% 1 Mile or less 13% Short trips 5-20 Miles 31% 1-3 Miles 32% 3-5 Miles 19%

Improvements on Metro Property Stair Channel (Glenmont) New Pathway (Vienna) LED Lighting (Greenbelt) Bike and Ride (College Park) 7

Partnerships with Local Jurisdictions Met Branch Trail Coordination Joint development Co-locate Bikeshare stations with rail stations Advocacy for key improvements

Thank you! jwcarrington@wmata.com 9

Sound Transit District

A growing region Population growth In 2016, the region grew by an average of 1,300 new residents every week. Another 800,000 people are expected to call central Puget Sound home by 2040. Traffic delays The average commuter in the Seattle area traveling during peak hours experienced 63 hours of traffic delay in 2014. Sources: Puget Sound Regional Council and 2015 Urban Mobility Scorecard

ST3 policies & programs Transit Integration Transit-oriented Development System Access Projects for transit partners Project allowances for funding bus/rail transfer facilities Concurrent long-range planning Project allowances for TOD Planning Regional Equitable TOD Fund: $20M TOD Program: $20M System Access: $100M Innovation and Research $75M Project allowances: Non-motorized access Parking

Our Bicycle Program What We Do Well What We Could Do Better What We Want To Do Communicate limitations of bikes onboard Encourage bicyclists to park Provide bicyclist wayfinding Staff education re: bicycle commuting Data collection about our cyclists Marketing to encourage combining bikes and transit Increase secure bike parking using on-demand technology

Bicycle Accommodations on Transit March 8, 2017 Jeff Owen Active Transportation TriMet Portland, Oregon Planning & Policy owenj@trimet.org 503-962-5854

TriMet: At-a-Glance https://trimet.org/ataglance/ Service Area: Population: Ridership: 533 Square Miles 1.5 million About 100 million total rides a year Bus: 77 lines (12 frequent), 6,644 bus stops, 659 buses MAX Light Rail: 97 stations, 60 miles of track WES Commuter Rail: 5 stations, 14.7 miles of track 77% of riders could drive but choose TriMet instead 39% of adults in the region ride TriMet at least twice a month Funding: 59% from employer payroll tax; 24% from passenger revenue; 10% from grants, 7% other

Active Transportation Program TriMet Pedestrian Network Analysis TriMet Bike Plan Completed 2011 trimet.org/walk Completed 2016 trimet.org/bike

Bike Specific Challenges 1. Crowding on MAX Light Rail but also bus too

Bike Specific Challenges 2. Parking and Pricing free car vs. paid bike vs.

Bike Specific Challenges 3. Access vs. Alongside different customers access to transit station parallel path in R.O.W. both / and / or MAX Orange Line in SW Portland light rail above Path below and alongside MAX Blue Line in Gresham, Oregon Path adjacent; Both Access to stations and alongside transit

Bike Specific Challenges 4. Clarity vs. Flexibility

Bike Specific Challenges 5. Marketing Campaigns the never-ending struggle to find the right balance

Bike Specific Challenges 6. How Exactly Does Bike Share Help?