RT News Feb 23,
2008
Nearly all of Sacramento Regional Transit's crew
of 40 mechanics called in sick this morning in an apparent job action related to
their ongoing contract talks with the provider of light rail and bus service in
Sacramento, RT officials said.
RT spokesman Ed Scofield said supervisors handled
fueling and other early morning chores, and all light-rail trains and all but
two bus lines operated normally. Scofield said a bus assigned to Route 1 in the
Sunrise Mall area missed two runs, meaning riders waited 30 minutes, rather than
15, for their bus to arrive.
A bus assigned to Route 51 along Broadway missed
one run, resulting in a maximum wait of 30 minutes, RT said.
Scofield said more mechanics, members of the
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1245, could call in sick
for later shifts today, but RT officials were preparing to have supervisors fill
in.
IBEW officials at the local's Vacaville
headquarters could not immediately be reached for comment.
Placer
Commuter Express July 30th
schedule changes
Beginning Monday, July 30, 2007, afternoon
departures from J & 4th in Sacramento will change to 4:17, 4:32, and 5:15. This
change eliminates the previous 4:47 departure and replaces it with the 4:17
departure. Please see the website for updated schedule.
Placer County "Shadow Bus" policy. The current policy for the trailing
bus or "Shadow Bus" is to pick up riders enroute to any Placer County Commuter
bus stop once the regular bus is full to capacity.
Unfortunately some passengers have taken it upon
themselves to try and sort passengers by destination and bus in order to shorten
their own commute times. This is not the intent of the Shadow Bus. Placer County
Transit is taking measures to curtail any improper use of the Shadow Bus and to
insure the safety of all passengers on any commute bus employed by Placer County
Transit.
In the event that the shadow bus is full, any
passengers left need to wait for the second commuter bus. At no time should
there be any standing passengers on a bus without proper hand holds and there
should never be any passengers sitting on the floor of the bus.
The smaller (15 passenger) shadow bus is operated
by CTSA, a contractor of Placer County Transit. The bus will follow
immediately behind the scheduled first bus and begin to pick up passengers when
the regular bus has reached maximum capacity.
The bus will be painted white with blue stripes.
A sign that says Placer Commuter Express will be displayed in the side window of
the bus.
Placer Commuter Express has a joint ticketing
arrangements with Roseville Transit, Sacramento RT and the Capitol Corridor.
(The Capitol Corridor arrangement is also in place).
Thank you for choosing Placer Commuter Express
for your alternative commute option.
For more information, please send email to
pct@placer.ca.gov, or call (530) 885-BUSS
or (916) 784-6177.
El Dorado Transit holiday schedule
Christmas Day, Tuesday, December 25, 2007 – El
Dorado Transit’s offices and dispatch center will be closed; no routes or
services will operate. Normal service will resume on Wednesday, December 26th.
New Year’s Day, Tuesday, January 1, 2008 – El
Dorado Transit’s offices and dispatch center will be closed; no routes or
services will operate. Normal service will resume on Wednesday, January 2nd.
For more information, visit the website at
www.eldoradotransit.com or call
(530) 642-5383. Updated schedules are also on Commuter buses.

Light-rail alerts Regional Transit
is purchasing six "Nextbus" message boards -- $5,500 each -- to install on a
test basis at six stations. Officials will be able to send messages to those
boards using cell phone technology.
The boards will tell waiting riders if there is a
service disruption and give an estimated arrival time for the next train.
Regional
Transit
now has solar powered bus stop signage and lighting
units called "i-stops" with the following features:
- Improves communications between drivers and
riders via a driver alert beacon, reducing the possibility of pass-bys
- Improves access to bus arrival information
via a schedule display and illumination capabilities with braille and
buttons to assist visually impaired
- Increases sense of security via high
performance, reliable down lighting (at left is a picture)
New
Yuba-Sutter Transit outlet
and
fare increase
The price for the combined
Yuba-Sutter Transit / Sacramento Regional Transit monthly pass
will increase this month from $130 to $140 as a result of the
Regional Transit fare increase.
And.. Great news for Yuba-Sutter Transit passengers south of the
Yuba River! Monthly Sacramento Commuter passes and punch cards
are now available at the recently renovated Valley Supermarket
located at 4900 Powerline Road in Olivehurst. This is
Yuba-Sutter Transit' sixth local outlet and the first full
service outlet south of Marysville.
Like Yuba-Sutter Transit's other pass outlets, Valley
Supermarket will carry all monthly passes for both local and
Sacramento service from the 24th of each month through the 7th
of the next month. Discount ticket books and Sacramento punch
cards are now available at this location throughout the month.
Until their new customer service counter is installed, ticket
books and monthly passes can be purchased directly from Check
Stand #1 for either cash or checks made payable to Yuba-Sutter
Transit. TransitCheks are also accepted at this outlet. Valley
Supermarket is open from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. seven days a
week.
Questions? Call Dawna Dutra, Yuba-Sutter Transit, (530) 634-6880
E-tran.
Six months after the city of Elk Grove started its own transit system, ridership
has increased from 33,491 trips a month in January to 41,525 in May, and e-tran
rolled out two new commuter routes from the city's East Franklin and east Elk
Grove area in mid-June.
Elk Grove Transit Manager Carlos Tobar plans to recommend to
the council that the fare structure for e-tran remain unchanged despite the fare
increases Regional Transit adopted. e-tran's single fare and monthly pass
cost $1.50 and $60, respectively. In September, RT's single fare will rise to
$1.75, while a monthly pass will be $80.
Tobar said he plans to talk with RT officials
about honoring the lower-priced e-tran tickets. Riders who use both e-tran and
RT bus and light rail should buy an RT pass since e-tran accepts all RT fare
tickets and passes, Tobar said.
To order e-tran pocket timetables, please contact
City of Elk Grove Transit Manager
Carlos Tobar,
687-3030
transit@elkgrovecity.org.
The schedules are available on the web site:
http://www.e-tran.org/ Elk Grove
Transit also has a Rider's Guide brochure.
El Dorado Transit Fares to
Increase. On July 1, commuter route fares on El
Dorado Transit to the Sacramento Downtown core increased to $4.00 per
one-way trip and monthly passes to $144. Citing inflation and
increasing operation costs, the El Dorado County Transit Authority (EDCTA)
is complying with a mandate from the California Air Resources Board to use
ultra-low-sulfur diesel in commuter buses, which directly affect operating
costs. For more information contact El Dorado Transit at (530) 642- 5383 or
visit www.eldoradotransit. com.

Timetables and Schedule books. TMA commute coordinators: to order quantities of pocket timetables email Kim Boone at
kboone@sacrt.com. Click
here for an order form to print, fill out and fax back to RT,
(444-0502). For the
schedule of any individual line, go to
RT's Web site page of the changed schedules .
The current issue of Next Stop News
is available on RT's
web site.
Bus Rapid Transit
Bus rapid transit consists of buses that have special lanes set aside for
them. Such buses also have the electronic technology to give them green lights
at all intersections. Riders buy tickets from machines at the bus stops,
saving the time now spent buying tickets from the driver. Electric signs
at the bus stops tell riders when the next bus arrives, giving them time
to grab a cup of coffee, and rapid buses may have four doors to speed ingress
and egress.
The buses will likely be outfitted with communication devices that tell a bus
waiting at a stop that a second bus will arrive there shortly. This would allow
the first bus to leave sooner, speeding transit flow. The fast-moving buses cost far less than a light-rail system and do much of
the work of getting people from place to place.
Regional Transit's Board of Directors has changed its policies on bikes on
light rail. Effective May 16th, (Bike to Work Day), bikes will be allowed
on light rail anytime. Peak hour restrictions are gone. Also, the maximum number
of bikes allowed on each light rail car, except the first car of a train, will
increase from two to four.
The two-bike maximum will still apply to the first car of a train to allow
space for disabled passengers. Cyclists will need to use either the front or
rear light car doors for boarding.
RT is also examining ways to make light rail accessible to more cyclists
during its single car operations, typically late at night. On many occasions,
cars are not crowded, but cyclists are refused permission to board because two
bikes are already in the car.
The changes in RT's policies will make bicycle commuting practical for many
more people. For those with long distance commutes, it means cyclists can bike
one way and use transit the other. It provides an option for cyclists caught by
bad weather, including rain or excessive heat, unhealthy air and those that have
mechanical problems.
RT completes south line light rail track
Sacramento Regional Transit completed the $222-million south line
light rail extension to Meadowview Road opened in September 2003.
The first phase to Meadowview Road is 6.3 miles long. The total line will eventually be 11.2 miles long
and
extend to Elk Grove.
49,000 ties and 65,000 tons of rock ballast were used in laying the track. Construction
also
included
200,000 square feet of sound walls and 2,000 welds.
Seven stations were constructed and 40 new light-rail train cars added to RT's
fleet. The new cars are compatible with old RT cars and were paid
for
with state and federal funds. They feature a number of upgrades, including security cameras, more spaces for wheelchairs and
increased aisle space. Riders no longer have to sit "knee to knee," as in the
older cars.
Next after the south line is an extension to Sunrise Boulevard
opening in June 2004 and to downtown
Folsom
one year later.
RT Receives $139 Million for
Local Transit Projects
The Sacramento Regional Transit District (RT) will receive
unexpected funding that will substantially extend the light rail lines, offer new express
light rail service and complete the transition to an all-CNG bus fleet. Money for
those projects and more is included in the Governor's Transportation Initiative Projects
announced today by Governor Davis. The Governor's proposal includes $139 million for
the following RT transit projects that were previously unfunded or underfunded:
- $75 million to extend the South Line light rail project
another five miles from Meadowview Road to Calvine/Auberry. Because of funding
limitations, only the first phase of the project is currently under construction.
- $20 million for additional light rail vehicles and stations
on the Folsom Corridor light rail extension.
- $25 million to build additional tracks and improvements for
express light rail service along the I-8O corridor.
- $19 million to purchase 43 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)
buses. When combined with existing bus orders, RT will have a 100 percent CNG bus fleet
and an increased total fleet size.
"I am elated," said RT General Manager Pilka
Robinson. "This opens the door to projects that will tremendously enhance
public transportation in Sacramento area. Now we have to get to work putting that
money to the use."
Currently, RT is building two light rail projects: a
6.3-mile extension south to Meadowview Road and a 10.2-mile extension to Folsom.
Both extensions should be open and running trains by September 2003.
The South Line light rail project's first phase will extend
light rail 6.3 miles south from downtown Sacramento and include seven new stations. Upon
completion, the South Line will add at least 15,000 passengers to the light rail
system. The $222 million project is funded by state and federal grants. The
proposed additional money will allow RT to extend the South Line another five miles, add
at least four more stations and purchase about 14 light rail vehicles.
The Folsom project will include five new stations, a light
rail storage yard and additional double tracking of the existing system. As part of
the Folsom extension, RT will build a 0.7-mile extension to the downtown Sacramento Amtrak
station, and RT plans to operate express train service between Folsom and downtown
Sacramento. Service to Folsom should begin by the end of 2002. RT would use
the $20 million for three more stations, a new maintenance facility and improved signaling
and communications systems.
RT also is studying express service along the busy I-8O
corridor. New funding will allow RT to double-track two portions of the current
light rail line, straighten a severe curve and purchase four additional light rail cars to
provide the express service.
RT currently operates 67 bus routes and 20.6 miles of light
rail covering a 418 square-mile service area using 36 light rail vehicles, 136 CNG buses
and 73 diesel buses. Passenger amenities include 31 light rail stops or stations
with nine bus and light rail transfer centers and 10 park-and-ride lots. RT carries
more than 90,000 passengers on an average weekday and exceeded 26 million passengers
during the last fiscal year.
Smart cards for a Transit
System
Smart cards may be the key to making it easier for people to use public
transit. With a smart card, transit system riders can travel anywhere in the
area using a single card to pay transit fares, parking costs and even admission
fees to city-operated swimming pools. The user can pay and select services, that
will be paid by the card, over the Internet.
Most transit companies have a monthly pass, so people are already used to
carrying a card. A smart card is just another type of card, or one that might
have a few enhancements on it. Hong Kong uses smart cards for an intermodal
transportation system, for all varieties of land and water-based transportation.
In Toronto, an Integrated Mobility Systems consortium working towards the
advancement of sustainable transportation in Canada received a $41,250 grant for
a study to assess the feasibility of using smart card technology to introduce a
coordinated, multi-mode public transit system in the Greater Toronto Area.
The study will look at the problems people face when they use transit systems
to get around large cities and neighboring municipalities.
"Convenience is one of the main reasons why people choose to stay in
their cars," said the project manager for the Toronto study. She added that
fare and schedule information is not available and transit schedules are so
disjointed that you can spend twice the time the trip would take by automobile,
even if there is congestion on the road.
The study will conclude in December, when results on rollout coordination,
costs and potential challenges will be delivered. The Consortium and the federal
Transport Ministry are optimistic that the final results will show. The smart
card is similar to what people are already used to doing, so customer acceptance
will be high. In fact, they expect that because of the convenience factor,
people will be "beating down their doors asking for the cards."
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