CCP 02-22-2000 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Sectors 1 and 2 Restructuring Study Metro TransR Volume II: Service Plan e Chapter 7 The Primary Transit Network: Strategies for Maximum Ridership and Efficiency The proposed service changes create a substantial network of services that run every 15 minutes or better all day. A few other services have very intensive service during peak hours only. We recommend referring to these lines collectively as lhe .Primary TransR Network" or PTN. Although the PTN works together with other services, it differs profoundly from the rest of the system in two several key respects: . Ridership and Productivity Potential. The 15-minute headway represents the point at which you no longer need to consult a schedule to use the service. It also pennits transfers to be made rapidly even without timing of connections. For these reasons, these lines have the greatest ridership potential. . . Magnified Effect of Small Changes. On the PTN, the agency makes its most concentrated investment Because of this, any changes that affect transR operations or attractiveness will be magnified. An amenity - such as a shelter - placed on the PTN will probably be used by more people, and will therefore have a greater positive impact, than the same sheRer placed elsewhere. On the other hand, a delay imposed on a PTN line will cost the agency more, in tenns of both running time and ridership, than the same delay imposed on a less frequent service.5 . Potential Synergy with Land Use. The level of service offered by the Primary TransR Network makes R possible, even convenient, to live wRhout a car, or to have fewer cars than adults in a household, or for a business to require fewer parking spaces. The PTN is also the most cost-effective place to site any new transR-dependent development, in tenns of transR costs, because a high level of service is already there. In general, the PTN requires density to support the high level of service, and it also provides the opportunity for further denslflcation. This chapter explores four areas of policy that apply particularly to the Primary Transit Network, though many are also relevant to less frequent lines: 1. Protecting the PTN's Speed and Reliability 2. Marketing the PTN for Maximizing Ridership 3. Downtown Minneapolis Circulation Issues 4. Enhancing Ridership through Land Use Synergies 5. Expanding the PTN . 5 One key exception is any line that makes timed.transfer connections. If running times on these routes deteriorate to the point that they can no longer cycle, a major increment in cost and inconvenience must be incurred to retain the timed connections on which much of the suburban system relies. Nelson \Nygaard ConsuRing 7-1 November 2,1999