For readers’ Friday enjoyment here are a couple of tidbits on bus-only lanes.
Seattle Activists Shoo Drivers Out of Bus-Only Lane
There is a new urban hero out of Seattle. A woman shooed scofflaw drivers out of a Seattle bus-only lane. Her action went viral – including plenty of hate from drivers. Then Seattle residents took to the streets similarly to keep drivers out of bus lanes.
In an ode to the woman who went semi-viral over the weekend telling drivers to get out of the bus lane, a group is here at 6th and Olive flagging cars out of the bus lane and thanking bus drivers pic.twitter.com/UxUkq6BUGV
— Heidi Groover (@heidigroover) August 13, 2019
Read more at The Stranger, Seattle Times, and Seattle Transit Blog.
Will these actions spread to other cities where scofflaw drivers bog down bus lanes?
Bonin/Krekorian Motion for Improving Bus Speeds
Next Wednesday the L.A. City Council Transportation Committee will hear a motion that would help the city move forward with near-term improvements to speed up buses. The motion is by City Councilmembers Mike Bonin and Paul Krerkorian. The preamble mentions various plans – from Metro’s NextGen Bus Study to the city’s Mobility Plan 2035 – and how car traffic congestion is impeding transit operations, particularly “in Downtown Los Angeles and nearby neighborhoods.”
If approved, the motion would direct the city’s Transportation Department (LADOT) “to report back with a list of priority bus-supportive infrastructure projects needed to support the NextGen bus service plan, with an emphasis on near-term improvements that can be implemented concurrently with each phase of NextGen.” According to one of Metro’s timelines, NextGen service changes would be phased in starting April 2020, and finishing early 2021.
The motion would also direct LADOT to be part of the joint Metro-LADOT Bus Speed Engineering Working Group, as was approved at the July Metro board meeting.
Perhaps LADOT parking enforcement and LAPD could be part of this, too?
Hey @LAPDHQ @metrolosangeles can we get some enforcement in the Wilshire bus-only lane? It’s 4:24pm and this car CA 6XPV595 is parked illegally, impeding lots of buses – Wilshire between Grammercy & Wilton pic.twitter.com/KOdRsB88kh
— StreetsblogLA (@StreetsblogLA) August 15, 2019
Metro reports that LAPD enforcement has been key to making the new Flower Street bus lane work well.