AJC Dishes Out Transportation Data
Decatur Metro | June 29, 2008 | 10:44 amIn case you missed the front page of the Metro Section this morning, the AJC has compiled data for all of the alternative commutes in a single article.
The gist? With ever rising gas prices, most alternative forms of transportation, with the exception of one bus service, have seen impressive increases in ridership vs. last year. And while MARTA ridership is among the gainers, it registered the smallest increase of the gainers; perhaps a reflection of its limited reach to the outer-suburbs. This also could be changing. Gwinnett residents will vote next month on allowing MARTA into the county.
Enough of my babbling…here’s the data!
MARTA: Train ridership is up 15% in April and May vs. same period year-ago. However, Bus AND Train ridership is up only 7%. (Which explains the discrepancy Thomas and I encountered earlier this month)
Carpooling: Up 221% vs. year-ago according to RideSmart
GRTA Express Bus: Up 67% May ’08 to May ’07
Douglas County Van Pool: Up 160% May ’08 to May ’07
Telecommuting Clean Air Commuter Reward Registrations: Up 23% vs. last year.
The only service down is Gwinnett County Transit. It’s ridership has declined 20% vs. last-year.
I wonder if the Clean Air Campaign also has a biking-to-work number. Would be a bit more reflective of the changes made by some intown commuters.
See the full article for all the details.
It is important to note that the vote on MARTA in Gwinnett will be non-binding, but it at least might give the politicians some cover to do what they need to do if it passes.
It would take 7 years to build MARTA in Gwinnett, which is going to be too late. We need to manhattan project the train expansion – here is my rant: http://roadstorails.blogspot.com
Too late for what?
In a state where the Governor just acknowledged the existence of rail transit, a manhattan project that consumes 4 lanes of highway seems a bit far fetched at this point.
Or it could be that MARTA’s grwoth has been slower because its service is terrible. I actually commuted to downtown on MARTA a few years back. It was awful. The trains are routinely late and service interruptions frequent.
think the trains are bad? try catching a bus. be sure to pack a lunch before setting out on this odyssey.
Bicycling is certainly gaining momentum with commuters, both intown and in other areas around the metro region. Based on data from the faithful who log their commutes via Commuter Rewards, The Clean Air Campaign has observed about a 60% jump in bicycling commuters this year versus last year (551 bikers logging Jan. 1 to June 30, 2007 versus 848 bikers logging Jan. 1 to June 30, 2008).
The rise in alternative commute modes is great for the region because the increase in ridership means less traffic on our maxed-out roadways, savings at the pump during a tough economy and better air quality. The Clean Air Campaign couldn’t be happier with the rise in bicycling commuters because the best commute of all is the one that doesn’t involve tailpipes.
60%! That’s great! Thanks Brian!