Transit advocates launch campaign urging Chicago officials to install bus-only lanes on Western or Ashland as part of Bus Rapid Transit project

 

Traveling Bus Rapid Transit exhibit educates and engages transit riders

 

CHICAGO, IL – Riders for Better Transit (www.ridersforbettertransit.org) this week launched a grassroots campaign urging Chicago officials to follow through on plans for a world-class Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system that includes bus-only lanes and state-of-the-art transit facilities on Western or Ashland. Chicagoans are invited to participate online ( http://tinyurl.com/BRT2012) where they can urge their alderman to support these transit improvements.

The campaign follows a traveling BRT exhibit hosted this week by Riders for Better Transit, Metropolitan Planning Council, Chicago Architecture Foundation, educating transit riders at six CTA bus and train stops about the city’s plans for BRT and engaging them in voicing their support.

“Bus Rapid Transit operates more like the El than a typical CTA bus, providing faster and more reliable service,” said Ron Burke, executive director of the Active Transportation Alliance. “BRT on Western and Ashland would provide a much faster trip and provide a convenient connection to the CTA’s Orange, Blue and Green Lines.” 

BRT is an exciting new mode of public transportation that reinvents the bus, offering a better transit experience with the speed, reliability and convenience of a train. While regular buses average nine miles per hour, BRT’s limited stops and dedicated lanes with signal priority allow vehicles to travel faster while largely avoiding street congestion. BRT stations also function like train stations, with riders paying before they board–reducing time spent at each stop. Cities around the world are creating high-quality BRT systems to improve mobility. For example, the Emerald Express BRT in Eugene, Ore., reduced trip times by 30 percent.

Chicago is currently conducting a BRT planning study for the Western/Ashland corridor, building upon existing implementation for BRT routes along Jeffery Avenue on the Southside and in Chicago’s Central Business District. BRT in Chicago could improve the quality of life in our neighborhoods, by providing better access to jobs and services, reducing traffic congestion, and making our streets more attractive and safer. But the Western/Ashland project is still in the early planning phase, and Chicago officials have not yet signed off on improvements that would give priority to transit and pedestrians in the corridor.

“Chicagoans deserve faster and more reliable bus service, but it won’t happen without the backing of aldermen and city officials,” says Burke. “We need to tell them we want BRT with bus-only lanes and state-of-the-art transit facilities.”

Transit riders can take action online in support of Bus Rapid Transit at http://www.tinyurl.com/BRT2012.

Riders for Better Transit
Riders for Better Transit (www.ridersforbettertransit.org ) is a project of the  Active Transportation Alliance (Active Trans). Active Trans is a non-profit advocacy organization supported by more than 7,000 members that works to improve conditions for biking, walking and transit in the Chicago region.