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Transit concepts considered

Posted on February 18, 2010 by Staff

Beth Mechum
Staff Writer

CHAPEL HILL — Chapel Hill Transit will take a hard look at Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) for Chapel Hill’s two busiest corridors, N.C. 54 and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, as part of the 2035 Long Range Transit Plan.

Both roadway corridors already exceed 3,000 riders a day, qualifying them for consideration for a higher order of transit. That’s where BRT comes in.

At Monday night’s town council meeting, Chapel Hill Transit director Steve Spade described BRT as, “Taking the concepts of light rail, which is the most efficient way of serving passengers, and adapting them to a less capital-intensive use of rubber-tired vehicles on paved roadways which are either exclusive roadways or mixed traffic.”

Essentially, BRT has the benefits of light-rail transit, such as exclusive roadways or high-frequency service, but saves money by not using the rail.

In the town of Carrboro’s comments on the same plan, the board of aldermen supported learning more about light-rail usage and making it a higher priority.

Those comments, along with Chapel Hill’s, eventually will be reviewed and considered for the 2035 Long Range Transit Plan after the latest round of public hearings.

Spade also presented the short-range transit plan, which he said would be more responsive to changes in transit in comparison with the long-range plan, which he referred to as a “vision.”

Carolyn Elfland, UNC’s associate vice chancellor for campus services, said the university supports putting less emphasis on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and more on N.C. 54.

“The university’s top priority now is the 54 corridor,” she said, citing the slowdown in development of Carolina North as making Martin Luther Boulevard more a long-term priority.

Elfland said the university supported the draft resolution to refer all comments to staff.

In response to Elfland’s comments, council member Laurin Easthom asked for more transparency from the university.

“We had an idea what Carolina North was going to do from years of work, but we don’t have a plan or plans yet that have come to us about what’s going to go out there on 54,” she said. “So for us to just jump and say let’s re-direct our efforts to 54, my question is why.”

Residents Glenn Waters and Julie McClintock, a former town council member, expressed their concerns about pedestrian and bicycle pathways finding a place in the town’s transit plan.

“If bike connections are not incorporated into the short-range transit plan, we won’t have them,” McClintock said.

The board resolved to receive all public comments and refer them to the town manager. Council member Jim Ward advised the council and members of the public to remember that plans such as these are full of assumptions.

“You have to be able to move ahead with imperfect knowledge,” he said.

It was announced that there will be a public workshop at the Friday Center on Feb. 25 from 5 to 8 p.m. to look at planning for the N.C. 54/I-40 corridor.

The council also received public comments about the proposed land-use management ordinance text amendment that would incorporate the minimum requirements of the Jordan Nutrient Strategy Rule for riparian buffer protection.

The town also received public comment on changing the rules of the riparian buffer program to comply with the Jordan Rules, as mandated by the state.

McClintock suggested that these buffers avoid pavement at all costs.

The town recessed the hearing and will continue it Sept. 20.

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