Why Don't People Take the Bus?

Sometimes because they don't know there is one available.

On his blog Justin Nelson tells about seeing a bus that he could have taken home from Las Vegas during his drive back. His post is a good source for people who are looking for alternatives to Greyhound for intercity bus service from the Los Angeles area.

Water Pollution: Cars vs. Transit

Everyone knows that cars produces air pollution, but many people are not aware of the amount of water pollution that they produce. Cars pollute the water ways buy grinding up roads and their own tires; the dust produced runs into waterways when it rains. In addition, the oil used as lubricant is constantly leaking out. In addition, some irresponsible car owners dump used oil directly into storm drains. Overall, more oil is dumped into our nation's waterways than was spilled following the Deepwater tragedy in the Gulf.

Doesn't most of this apply to buses also? Yes, except that most buses transport many, many more people compared to the surface area of their tires and the amount of oil that they use compared to cars. People who maintain buses professionally are much less likely to dispose of used oil improperly.

Trains cause even less water pollution. Train tracks take up less space than roads, and the tracks themselves are made of less toxic materials than asphalt. Train tracks are more water permeable than roads. Permeability matters because this keeps pollutants from pooling in one area. There are many chemicals that are harmless or even beneficial in small quantities are toxic in large concentrations.

For example, if one hundred people take a supplement with 10mg of iron every day, their health may improve. But if only person takes that entire amount, 1g , it would eventually kill them. Covering a large percentage of our cities with concrete and asphalt encourages rainwater to pool in limited areas and for pollutants to also pool in those areas, allowing chemical concentrations to reach dangerous levels.

Public transit not only uses oil more efficiently than cars do, buses and trains use space more efficiently as well. Using space more efficiently leaves us more places for parks and open space.

I-70 to be widened? get a monorail? better bus service?

Right now the Colorado Department of Transportation is deciding what to do about traffic congestion on I-70. Should we widen the highway, add more bus service, increase the number of trains, build a monorail? Links to the various parts of the actual plan for I-70 can be found at 2010 Revised Draft PEIS. The sections that I read were not written in any known human language, but when they added the Denver meeting maybe they added actual English. Right now it seems that CDOT is proposing to widen I-70 in some places, add bus service, and build a monorail.

As of today (Monday, October 4) there are four public meetings. All meetings start at 5pm with an Open House and an opportunity to submit written comments. At 6pm a presentation starts. After 6:30, the public can submit verbal comments until 8pm. Current information is available at I-70 Mountain Corridor. I will list each meeting as I learn about it along with information about how to get there on public transit.

Tuesday, October 5, Silverthorne
Silverthorne Pavilions
400 Blue River Parkway
Silverthorne Pavilions is two blocks east on Fourth of the Silverthorne Transfer Center. Hourly free buses run around downtown Silverthorne and to Frisco, Dillon, Keystone until well past the end of the meeting. There does not seem to be any bus service to most of the residential areas of Silverthorne.

Wednesday, October 6, Clear Creek County
Clear Creek County High School
185 Beaver Brook Drive
Technically, this is in Evergreen, but it is nowhere near what people think of as the city of Evergreen, and is far outside of the RTD's service area. There is no bus service to this location. (Poor kids)

Thursday, October 7, Eagle
Eagle County Fairgrounds
0426 Fairgrounds Road
ECO Transit provides bus service within Eagle County. I am not sure which bus stop is the closest, but it is possible to walk to the meeting location along 5th Street from the Eagle County Building stop. Buses run through downtown Eagle to Vail, Avon, Edwards, and Gypsum. A roundtrip costs the same as a day pass ($8), so I recommend getting the pass just in case. In the evening, buses run more frequently to Gypsum (hourly) than to Vail, Avon and Edwards (every two or three hours). You have to call 970-328-3520 two hours in advance for pickup from some locations, but not for any downtown stops.

Thursday, October 21, Denver
CDOT Headquarters, Auditorium
4201 East Arkansas Avenue
CDOT Headquarters are located one block east of Colorado Boulevard between Louisiana and Arkansas Avenues. On Google Maps it looks like you can enter from both Louisiana and Arkansas, which is good because the 40 stops on Louisiana. The 79 runs along E. Florida to both the University of Denver and Nine Mile Light Rail Stations. This bus also stops on Colorado, although Bellaire may be a closer stop for people coming from the east. The 46 runs along Birch Street. Be careful, though. The last buses for this route come within the half hour after the meeting ends.

Comments can also be submitted online until November 8 at I-70 Mountain Corridor Contact Form.