Peak Pricing

Hey, DC Metro people: Here's an idea: stop charging based on distance, and start charging based on congestion. The marginal cost of adding one more person to an empty train is basically zero, regardless of how far they travel. But the marginal cost of one more rider on a crowded train is an additional iota of misery for everyone on board the train. Distance based policy just discriminates against long-distance travelers.

The system already tracks where someone gets on/off. Correlating that to their location, and the location on a train during a peak period is trivial. Then you can charge them for it. Some people might get surprised; add a 'peak' light to the train, and start charging on stations after that.

Owl line, pt 2

A ways back, I posited an 'Owl line' from the Airport to the University. Had a long talk with George Chapman a few months back, who suggested that the Owl Line was kind of a waste of time.

This summer, my step-son is commuting to the Airport from my house (by the U of U). It takes over an hour to reach the airport. And I suddenly realized why I never take TRAX to the airport (it takes too bloody long). Indeed, I once had a professor who would bike(!!) to the airport. But it's only about 10 miles, and a bike travels about 10 miles an hour...so in good weather, pretty feasible. 

I know that for short distances, bikes and buses travel about the same speed (it's a toss-up whether I take the bus or bike from my house to Sugarhouse). But it's kind of bleak to realize the same is true over longer distances, and not through a dense, walkable area. 

But what makes the TRAX trip so long is not actually the trip--it's the transfer. Rule of thumb is that a transfer requires time equal to half the headway (or 10 minutes if it's a 15+ minute bus). But my step-son tells me that the red line departs (within sight) from courthouse station, right before the Green arrives. So he gets to wait 7.5 minutes to board the Green, and another 15 minutes to board the Red.

Why do people not ride transit? Because it's slow.  I recall one city who long-range transit plan was to have a transit trip be no slower than twice a car trip. Which seemed like a ridiculously low standard (at the time). But it's one that that TRAX between University and Airport is clearly not meeting. And the reason for that is clearly the transfer.