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/
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 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.
Bikes
on Light Rail any Time
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."
