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MTA Efforts to “Mind the Gaps”
Michael J. WalkDirector of Service DevelopmentMaryland Transit Administration
2015 Mobility Matters Conference | May 7, 2015
Disclaimer: Author is solely responsible for all content. Content does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the MTA or its management.
Who am I?• …some days I’m not so sure…• Director of Service Development at MTA (Planning
& Scheduling Core Bus, Light Rail, Metro)• 6 Years at MTA– Operations / Transit Analyst– Special Assistant to the Administrator– Chief Performance Officer– 2 years as Director of Service Development
• Father of 5 (soon to be 6!)
What am I Talking About?
• A Typology of Gaps• MTA Steps to Address Gaps (studies &
implemented solutions)• Challenges & Areas of Opportunity
Typology of Gaps• Geospatial
No bus gets close enough (in distance) to my origin OR destination• Temporal
– A bus gets close, but doesn’t operate when I need it (days of week / times of day)
– Connecting my origin and destination takes TOO LONG• Informational
I don’t know how to get from my origin to my destination• Monetary
It costs too much to get from my origin to my destination
ANY GAP CAN INHIBIT ACCESS TO OPPORTUNITY & EMPLOYMENT, BUT NOT ALL GAPS HAVE EQUAL PRIORITY TO BE FILLED
LOOKING FOR AND ADDRESSING GAPS
Network Design and Case Studies for Implementation
Bus Network Improvement Project (BNIP)• Launched mid-2013• One of the main goals: Maximize Transit Access
& Connectivity• Project Phases– Public Outreach– Data Analysis– Planning
• Phase One Release June 2014• Remaining work to be done is under review
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Public Outreach• MTA’s Citizens’ Advisory Committee and
Advisory Committee for Accessible Transportation
• Transit Operations Subcommittee (TOpS)• General Public• MindMixer (633 active participants,
1,981 comments, 912 ideas)• Public workshops (117 participants)• Pop-up events (282 participants)• BNIP Hotline (115 comments)
Continued Public Engagement
• MindMixer Platform provided innovative way to continue the dialog– Now 758 Active Participants (865 total)– 10,366 unique visitors– 92,246 page views
• Easy way to notify an interested stakeholder group of new issues, changes, etc.
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Transit Propensity
Transit Propensity is a score that represents the likelihood that the population in a census tract will use transit. It is calculated using a variety of key predictors of transit use (income, vehicle ownership, population density, etc.).
Transit Propensity was part of the data considered during the process of making service change recommendations.
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Future Demand
These maps show the projected change in population and employment density between 2010 and 2020 (data obtained from the Baltimore Metropolitan Council).
Projected population and job growth was also considered when making service change recommendations.
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Example of Ridership Analysis
Ridership data such as the example here were analyzed by bus line and stop to help determine how many people are using existing services and where.
This example map shows estimated average weekday boardings (blue) and alightings (green) per stop for one line in one direction (west-bound).
Planning Phase
• Low-hanging fruit identified that could be “picked” within existing resources
• Other planning work and recommendations are on hold and need reviewed by incoming administration
• Released Phase One Plan June 2014– Reliability– Efficiency– New Job Centers– Real-Time Information
SOME GAPS FILLEDMTA’s Steps to Improve Service to Major Job Centers
17 Line Early Sundays (Temporal Gap)
• 17 Line runs from downtown to BWI and Arundel Mills (downtown served when Light Rail is not in operation)– Sunday service started around 6:30 am
• BWI employees needed to get to BWI earlier– BWI Business Partnership started “Sunrise Shuttle” &
demonstrated consistent ridership to justify full fixed-route service
• MTA added early morning trips to 17 Line starting at 4:20 AM in June 2014
New 26 Line to Amazon (Temporal Gap)
• Amazon opened its distribution center along Broening Highway outside of Baltimore– over 1,000 employees planned– 24/7 operation; multiple shifts; early release
• Service along corridor– Ran weekdays only, with 1 to 2 hour headways– No late night service
• MTA added new 26 Line Feb. 22, 2015– 7 days a week, 22 hours a day– 30-60 minute headways; timed with Amazon shifts– Amazon installed bus shelter (own expense)– Currently average weekday ridership 1,700+ (not all Amazon
employees)
Other Initiatives
• Geospatial Gaps– Re-aligned 51 Line (a circumferential route) to
service Baltimore Casino & Greyhound Terminal in Baltimore
– Added new 31 Line to provide additional access to new developments in Canton Crossing
Future Opportunity• Additional Geospatial Gaps identified during BNIP
planning work– Need better connections between MARC and local bus service– Suburban activity centers need better direct connections
(closing the grid)• Hard to get between Columbia, Owings Mills, Towson, White Marsh,
Arundel Mills/BWI, Annapolis
– Many others…• Informational Gaps
– Need for unified open transit schedule, routes, stops data for integrated transit planning (GTFS)
– Signage / way-finding improvements
Challenges to Filling the Gaps
• Resources– The suburban connections will always be less productive than
dense, urban services– Resources are already often stretched thin and it is difficult to
change the equation to allow for growth• Site Design / Location Planning
– Developers need to make the round-trip on transit an attractive option at a site – don’t count on the transit operator to drive up to your front door. (Amazon Example: 1,500-foot walk)
– More to be done to make transit-attractive sites actually developer-attractive
Same scale!
