5 ms·

Thoughts on the current state of public transit and micromobility in the US

4 points by Basheers 4y ago

Hello everyone, My name is Basheer, CEO and Co-Founder of a MaaS that's launching in the US soon. I'm keen to know your thoughts on the current state of public transit and micromobility in the US. What do you feel would make you want to use them over your car more? Do you believe that the US could one day become as public-transit/micromobility friendly as Europe? Why/Why not? I look forward to hearing your thoughts. Many thanks and have a great day. Best Regards, Basheer

PaulHoule 4y ago
I live in a rural area but I am about two miles from the bus stop and get dropped off there most mornings and ride to work to a place where parking is scarce. Public transit in my area (Tompkins County) is great but I know that's the exception rather than the rule.
- Basheers 4y ago
  Thanks for your feedback PaulHoule, that's pretty interesting. Would you say that more people would be willing to use public transit if they were able to find parking at/near the station?
  - yostrovs 4y ago
    Public transit needs to offer something in exchange for time spent transferring to and from public transit and the inconvenience of riding with strangers in a vehicle that's not playing your favorite playlist. For example, dedicated use of shoulder lane by the bus to get to work faster than everyone else. Or lounge like atmosphere or with tables to get something done while commuting. I just think that sitting in the same traffic as you would in a car, listening to headphones instead of your car speakers, having to smell/deal with others, make public transit unwelcome to many.
    - Basheers 4y ago
      Thanks for your feedback, I really appreciate it! I like your idea of allowing the bus to use the shoulder lane to get to work faster. In some countries, like Jordan, there are actually lanes that are used solely by public transit buses for that exact reason.
gladiatr72 4y ago
Hrm. I can get mugged for free? Really, though, what's the M? How would it be funded? What is your plan for providing transit to rural areas more than 50 miles from an urban(ish) environment without making ticket prices untenable? Please give examples where your company or has used imminent domain. Please include documents that show how such efforts were received by affected communities.
jonahbenton 4y ago
I live in NYC and I occasionally pitch friends on the idea that the greatest underutilized resource in the city is the thousands of miles of subway track. The vast majority of the physical track surface sits unused by the current layer of 8 and 10 car mass people mover trains due to limitations in the ancient signaling and scheduling system. Improving those systems has been a multi-decade boondoggle. In contrast, we should have the tech capability now to run an autonomous fleet of individual tiny cars- 5 to 10 person capacity per car, no more- that can make point to point trips anywhere in the system. This fleet should be able to be run along with the existing mass people movers, as another layer of service on the same infrastructure, and of course for an extra fee. The benefits for all would be enormous. Hope "micromobility" includes ideas like this! Good luck!
- Basheers 4y ago
  Many thanks for your feedback! I do agree that rail could definitely be better utilized. Actually what I meant by micromobility is for example electric scooters like Lime.
- warning26 4y ago
  You started strong -- upgrading the signaling system is a great idea. But tiny cars making point to point visits...really? The fact is, autonomous vehicle systems cannot solve traffic, due to inherent throughput limitations. If you waved your magic wand and made every vehicle on the road an AV, the only thing it really solves is parking. The roads would still clog. This would also apply to doing it in subway tunnels, with the added downside of now your subways are just as jammed as the surface roads.
  - jonahbenton 4y ago
    Thanks for the response. Traffic/contention is simply not an issue on the NYC track system. Especially in the outer boroughs. The issue is the opposite- the existing infrastructure is deeply, criminally underutilized. It is in fact underutilized for the massive 10 car people movers- hence the goal of the numerous multi-decade signal and sensor upgrade projects is to enable better utilization by long trains. But even doubling utilization by long trains- still a decade or more away at best- leaves vast swaths of the tracks completely empty nearly all day. It is this capacity that should be utilized by new tiny autonomous cars with their own scheduling capability and that are suited to provide a complementary utility. I would agree that there are way (way) too many cars on surface roads. After the lack of use of the subway tracks the next worst allocation/utilization of space in NYC is free street parking. Although I own a car I think private cars should be banned in Manhattan (yes, I am deeply familiar with the various policy arguments, my opinion is what it is) and better point to point autonomous utilization of underground capacity would go a long way towards that vision.
hayst4ck 4y ago
People say they want public transit, but public transit is half the story. The other half of the story is high density housing. The push for high density housing is neglected. When housing is highly dense, it means public transportation can run every 3-10 minutes, without highly dense housing, public transportation can run every 30 minutes or more. Planning your day around 30 minutes ± 45 minute bus schedule is downright awful. A lot of public transit shuts down at midnight, which makes it painful to use if you want to stay out late. This is all further exacerbated by using the already in place transportation systems (roads) making the public transportation itself a worse experience (busses). So the focus on getting public transit before there is focus on high density housing results in public transportation that kind of sucks because it is not predictable or dependable or immediate.
- idontwantthis 4y ago
  Agreed. Best transit is no transit. If I can walk safely to most things that I need every day then that's a lot better for everyone than a frequent bus schedule. Having both would be nice.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
duped 4y ago
I think you're putting the cart before the horse, literally. The reason we aren't transit focused in the United States is because of 7+ decades of urban design focused on automotive transit. > What do you feel would make you want to use them over your car more? If it's cheaper and more convenient than getting in my car, including if I have to get into my car to get to the station/stop. > Do you believe that the US could one day become as public-transit/micromobility friendly as Europe? Why/Why not? I think it depends on the specific geographic location. Where I live now (suburbs of a major city), maybe but it would take massive government support and have a lot of local opposition. Where I lived last (in the heart of one of our largest cities) definitely, but it already had options for transit. Where I lived before that (rural North Carolina), with heavy and direct government subsidies (which is what they do now). The other thing is that if by "micromobility" you mean electric scooters - you're going to face a lot of public opposition. It's not a transit solution insomuch as a nuisance and public health nightmare. People like myself will go out of our way to ban them from our neighborhoods.
Basheers 4y ago
Thanks everyone for your input, highly appreciated
Aperocky 4y ago
I've recently discovered the best of personal mobility item: An electric skateboard. It is much easier to carry it around than an electric scooter or bike, also slightly faster than either of those. Getting 10 mile range even on a lower end option. The only challenge for mass adoption is high skill barrier to effectively and safely use.
- Basheers 4y ago
  Thank you! Yes, a number of fantastic foldable e-bikes featured at CES this year were pretty interesting too.

4 points by Basheers 4y ago

PaulHoule 4y ago

I live in a rural area but I am about two miles from the bus stop and get dropped off there most mornings and ride to work to a place where parking is scarce. Public transit in my area (Tompkins County) is great but I know that's the exception rather than the rule.

Basheers 4y ago
Thanks for your feedback PaulHoule, that's pretty interesting. Would you say that more people would be willing to use public transit if they were able to find parking at/near the station?
- yostrovs 4y ago
  Public transit needs to offer something in exchange for time spent transferring to and from public transit and the inconvenience of riding with strangers in a vehicle that's not playing your favorite playlist. For example, dedicated use of shoulder lane by the bus to get to work faster than everyone else. Or lounge like atmosphere or with tables to get something done while commuting. I just think that sitting in the same traffic as you would in a car, listening to headphones instead of your car speakers, having to smell/deal with others, make public transit unwelcome to many.
  - Basheers 4y ago
    Thanks for your feedback, I really appreciate it! I like your idea of allowing the bus to use the shoulder lane to get to work faster. In some countries, like Jordan, there are actually lanes that are used solely by public transit buses for that exact reason.

gladiatr72 4y ago

Hrm. I can get mugged for free? Really, though, what's the M? How would it be funded? What is your plan for providing transit to rural areas more than 50 miles from an urban(ish) environment without making ticket prices untenable? Please give examples where your company or has used imminent domain. Please include documents that show how such efforts were received by affected communities.

jonahbenton 4y ago

I live in NYC and I occasionally pitch friends on the idea that the greatest underutilized resource in the city is the thousands of miles of subway track. The vast majority of the physical track surface sits unused by the current layer of 8 and 10 car mass people mover trains due to limitations in the ancient signaling and scheduling system. Improving those systems has been a multi-decade boondoggle. In contrast, we should have the tech capability now to run an autonomous fleet of individual tiny cars- 5 to 10 person capacity per car, no more- that can make point to point trips anywhere in the system. This fleet should be able to be run along with the existing mass people movers, as another layer of service on the same infrastructure, and of course for an extra fee. The benefits for all would be enormous. Hope "micromobility" includes ideas like this! Good luck!

Basheers 4y ago
Many thanks for your feedback! I do agree that rail could definitely be better utilized. Actually what I meant by micromobility is for example electric scooters like Lime.
warning26 4y ago
You started strong -- upgrading the signaling system is a great idea. But tiny cars making point to point visits...really? The fact is, autonomous vehicle systems cannot solve traffic, due to inherent throughput limitations. If you waved your magic wand and made every vehicle on the road an AV, the only thing it really solves is parking. The roads would still clog. This would also apply to doing it in subway tunnels, with the added downside of now your subways are just as jammed as the surface roads.
- jonahbenton 4y ago
  Thanks for the response. Traffic/contention is simply not an issue on the NYC track system. Especially in the outer boroughs. The issue is the opposite- the existing infrastructure is deeply, criminally underutilized. It is in fact underutilized for the massive 10 car people movers- hence the goal of the numerous multi-decade signal and sensor upgrade projects is to enable better utilization by long trains. But even doubling utilization by long trains- still a decade or more away at best- leaves vast swaths of the tracks completely empty nearly all day. It is this capacity that should be utilized by new tiny autonomous cars with their own scheduling capability and that are suited to provide a complementary utility. I would agree that there are way (way) too many cars on surface roads. After the lack of use of the subway tracks the next worst allocation/utilization of space in NYC is free street parking. Although I own a car I think private cars should be banned in Manhattan (yes, I am deeply familiar with the various policy arguments, my opinion is what it is) and better point to point autonomous utilization of underground capacity would go a long way towards that vision.

hayst4ck 4y ago

People say they want public transit, but public transit is half the story. The other half of the story is high density housing. The push for high density housing is neglected. When housing is highly dense, it means public transportation can run every 3-10 minutes, without highly dense housing, public transportation can run every 30 minutes or more. Planning your day around 30 minutes ± 45 minute bus schedule is downright awful. A lot of public transit shuts down at midnight, which makes it painful to use if you want to stay out late. This is all further exacerbated by using the already in place transportation systems (roads) making the public transportation itself a worse experience (busses). So the focus on getting public transit before there is focus on high density housing results in public transportation that kind of sucks because it is not predictable or dependable or immediate.

idontwantthis 4y ago
Agreed. Best transit is no transit. If I can walk safely to most things that I need every day then that's a lot better for everyone than a frequent bus schedule. Having both would be nice.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

duped 4y ago

I think you're putting the cart before the horse, literally. The reason we aren't transit focused in the United States is because of 7+ decades of urban design focused on automotive transit. > What do you feel would make you want to use them over your car more? If it's cheaper and more convenient than getting in my car, including if I have to get into my car to get to the station/stop. > Do you believe that the US could one day become as public-transit/micromobility friendly as Europe? Why/Why not? I think it depends on the specific geographic location. Where I live now (suburbs of a major city), maybe but it would take massive government support and have a lot of local opposition. Where I lived last (in the heart of one of our largest cities) definitely, but it already had options for transit. Where I lived before that (rural North Carolina), with heavy and direct government subsidies (which is what they do now). The other thing is that if by "micromobility" you mean electric scooters - you're going to face a lot of public opposition. It's not a transit solution insomuch as a nuisance and public health nightmare. People like myself will go out of our way to ban them from our neighborhoods.

Basheers 4y ago

Thanks everyone for your input, highly appreciated

Aperocky 4y ago

I've recently discovered the best of personal mobility item: An electric skateboard. It is much easier to carry it around than an electric scooter or bike, also slightly faster than either of those. Getting 10 mile range even on a lower end option. The only challenge for mass adoption is high skill barrier to effectively and safely use.

Basheers 4y ago
Thank you! Yes, a number of fantastic foldable e-bikes featured at CES this year were pretty interesting too.