METRO (Formerly Metro Area Transit - MAT)

[Dundeemaha]

Couple of positive changes coming in May, one negative. Highlights:

The 24 is becoming more popular after it's reorientation.

Bus service will be increased to run every 15 minutes on Route 24 between 7 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. on weekdays. The additional buses will better serve the growing number of riders on 24th Street while improving reliability.

The 35/36 are getting realigned, 35 becomes mostly north-south from the North Omaha Transit Center to 32nd & Vinton, the 36 goes from there to downtown.



Lastly:

All routes with late-night service will be reduced by about one hour on weekdays, Saturdays, and Sundays.

[Busguy2010]

Couple of positive changes coming in May, one negative. Highlights:

The 24 is becoming more popular after it's reorientation.

Bus service will be increased to run every 15 minutes on Route 24 between 7 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. on weekdays. The additional buses will better serve the growing number of riders on 24th Street while improving reliability.

The 35/36 are getting realigned, 35 becomes mostly north-south from the North Omaha Transit Center to 32nd & Vinton, the 36 goes from there to downtown.



Lastly:

All routes with late-night service will be reduced by about one hour on weekdays, Saturdays, and Sundays.

I'm impressed they're able to pull off 15 minute route 24.

I've thought for years route 30 or 35 should be made crosstown to connect north Midtown to Park Ave. I'm nerdily excited to see this finally happen.

On losing the late hour: They ran practically empty buses at 30 minute frequencies till midnight for nearly four years... If people were going to ride late at night, that was their opportunity. Metro made their offer on late night service, but the public didn't meet their obligation.

[Coyote]

Omaha's biggest mass transit investment in decades moves closer to reality

The first visible progress could appear in June as a contractor starts building 24 new raised station platforms — 12 eastbound and 12 westbound — along Dodge and Douglas Streets. By summer or fall, new glass and metal stops will be installed at the stations; Metro has already awarded a contract to a firm to build them off-site.

[GrandpaaSmucker]

The article said that an Orbit bus will be coming by every 10 minutes. That would be really nice no doubt but it ain't happening. I'm calling total Fake News on that. We would be happy if one came by every 20 minutes. They would need at least 10 buses running simultaneously at the same time to live up to that 10 minute promise. I don't see them running no more then 4 at the same time maybe 6.

[ita]

Omaha's biggest mass transit investment in decades moves closer to reality

The first visible progress could appear in June as a contractor starts building 24 new raised station platforms — 12 eastbound and 12 westbound — along Dodge and Douglas Streets. By summer or fall, new glass and metal stops will be installed at the stations; Metro has already awarded a contract to a firm to build them off-site.

I had a chance to read the article (paywall's down) and I am really excited that work is going to start soon on the stations. It is awesome that it will have a dedicated lane and utilize technology with streetlights past 30th St. I rode the bus when I lived at home for college on Oahu. We lived in West Oahu, so going to school downtown during peak hours was at least an hour of driving in traffic. I instead caught the bus for a couple years since both my employer and my school provided bus passes. Although travel time one way was an additional half hour I didn't have to deal with parking, could study/nap/relax instead of slogging through traffic, and basically travel for free. And our express lines didn't have any of the benefits ORBT offers. Although I live out west and will not directly served by ORBT, I think it is a fantastic upgrade and hopefully just the beginning of strengthening the City's mass transit system.

On another note, I haven't seen anything on this, but are the standard bus passes going to include fare to use on ORBT? I assume it will, but the articles always mentions paying for a ticket to ride.

[ScrattyB]

A Park-and-Ride for ORBT at 150th and Dodge would be amazing.

[ita]

A Park-and-Ride for ORBT at 150th and Dodge would be amazing.

Why 150th and Dodge? Are you thinking the Heartwood Preserve development?

[ScrattyB]

A Park-and-Ride for ORBT at 150th and Dodge would be amazing.

Why 150th and Dodge? Are you thinking the Heartwood Preserve development?

Or 137th. One of those odd exits that are not through streets. The bus would not hold up traffic and they both are able to come from one direction and leave from the other.
150th will have more residential compared to 137th though.

[iamjacobm]

GPS tracking for the bus system is live!

https://myride.ometro.com/RouteMap

You need to activate which route you want to view on the right side.

[Louie]

That is awesome. Very cool stuff.

[Uffda]

Interesting article

Hansen: Omaha man gives up cars for Lent, learns the good and bad of city's bus system


He hasn’t been inside a car — not his car, or his wife’s car, or anyone’s car — in more than a month. He has spent hours planning his bus schedules. He has waited for buses, gotten lost on buses, missed buses, sprinted after buses, walked many miles to find buses and, in one case, skipped the bus and jogged for many, many miles in his street clothes.

https://www.omaha.com/columnists/hansen ... dcf0d.html

[Busguy2010]

Interesting article

Hansen: Omaha man gives up cars for Lent, learns the good and bad of city's bus system


He hasn’t been inside a car — not his car, or his wife’s car, or anyone’s car — in more than a month. He has spent hours planning his bus schedules. He has waited for buses, gotten lost on buses, missed buses, sprinted after buses, walked many miles to find buses and, in one case, skipped the bus and jogged for many, many miles in his street clothes.

https://www.omaha.com/columnists/hansen ... dcf0d.html

Whoopty doo.

[ita]

Interesting article

Hansen: Omaha man gives up cars for Lent, learns the good and bad of city's bus system


He hasn’t been inside a car — not his car, or his wife’s car, or anyone’s car — in more than a month. He has spent hours planning his bus schedules. He has waited for buses, gotten lost on buses, missed buses, sprinted after buses, walked many miles to find buses and, in one case, skipped the bus and jogged for many, many miles in his street clothes.

https://www.omaha.com/columnists/hansen ... dcf0d.html

The thing that stood out to me most is a couple problems METRO faces: 1) does increased ridership prompt more routes, or do they create more routes to increase ridership, 2) they are limited to city limits, and 3) a lot of Omaha is not pedestrian friendly. As stated in the article, there is a bill seeking to remedy problem 2. Concerning problem 1, I am on the boat that they need to create a more comprehensive system utilizing more routes/buses which will lead to increased ridership. If the routes are not somewhat convenient, people will not ride. At the very least, there should be lines running through the major arteries, Maple, Blondo, Pacific, Center, L, Q, plus lines running north to South. With a more substantial bus system in suburbia, it would give a large demographic, middle school/high school kids a way to get around and theoretically reduce the need for massive parking lots, particular at high schools. If kids were teenagers that could drive, I would rather pay the $55 bus pass for my kid than however much it costs in insurance and gas (and possibly another vehicle). I think we think to narrowly about the potential ridership, but everyone can benefit from a more comprehensive system. The last problem is something the City needs to work on in developing the suburbs.

[TitosBuritoBarn]

The thing that stood out to me most is a couple problems METRO faces: 1) does increased ridership prompt more routes, or do they create more routes to increase ridership,

Yes ...though more so the latter. Often an increase in density + increase in routes and shorter headways are the best at increasing ridership. Nice, clean infrastructure with useful amenities (WiFi, snack shop) can be an attraction, though I'm not sure how much of one.

2) they are limited to city limits

Like, they can't go into unincorporated areas? I haven't heard that but that might be fine for now. Not many riders there.

and 3) a lot of Omaha is not pedestrian friendly.

This is true, though the places where bus lines will be the most viable typically are.

With a more substantial bus system in suburbia, it would give a large demographic, middle school/high school kids a way to get around and theoretically reduce the need for massive parking lots, particular at high schools. If kids were teenagers that could drive, I would rather pay the $55 bus pass for my kid than however much it costs in insurance and gas (and possibly another vehicle) [...] The last problem is something the City needs to work on in developing the suburbs.

I touched on this a bit already, but while such a system sounds great, the density and layout of suburbia is hardly conducive currently to transit outside of park-and-rides to much denser places. The transit infrastructure being available is as important as the land use being conducive to people willing to use it. To get to your final destination from the bus, you'll have to walk from the station. There's nothing fun about walking in big-box suburbia. It may not take that long, in the grand scheme of things but it's not mentally pleasing. And it's not a good use of time for the bus to try and reach the front door of every solid traffic generator. It would take forever to get anywhere.

In order for a suburban bus system to work, suburbia needs to be retrofitted. We can't build big box shopping centers anymore. We can't build suburbia with the car at the center. We can't subsidize the car anymore. Suburbia essentially needs to look like Dundee everywhere. Otherwise it's unsustainable and your target market becomes too focused on those who are car-less out of necessity - the disabled, elderly, and very low-income. The benefits of taking your expensive car instead of the bus outweigh any benefits the bus would have.

I say this from experience working with the bus system that serves suburban Chicago and the issues they have had growing ridership.

[Busguy2010]

Public transit is a service, so Its not like they're seeking ways to make money.
We all pay for this service, so we should all use it when we can.
That said, Metro made substantial changes in 2015 to remove underperforming routes and improve service to it's best routes. They went the route of getting more people kinda close to their destination with more reliable frequencies, at the "cost" of neighborhood and far-reaching routes.
The recent changes are really cool, but they dont mean a whole lot to people who have actually ridden and participated in the direction of the system.
The recent changes are more of a tentacle.

[ita]

The thing that stood out to me most is a couple problems METRO faces: 1) does increased ridership prompt more routes, or do they create more routes to increase ridership,

Yes ...though more so the latter. Often an increase in density + increase in routes and shorter headways are the best at increasing ridership. Nice, clean infrastructure with useful amenities (WiFi, snack shop) can be an attraction, though I'm not sure how much of one.

2) they are limited to city limits

Like, they can't go into unincorporated areas? I haven't heard that but that might be fine for now. Not many riders there.

and 3) a lot of Omaha is not pedestrian friendly.

This is true, though the places where bus lines will be the most viable typically are.

With a more substantial bus system in suburbia, it would give a large demographic, middle school/high school kids a way to get around and theoretically reduce the need for massive parking lots, particular at high schools. If kids were teenagers that could drive, I would rather pay the $55 bus pass for my kid than however much it costs in insurance and gas (and possibly another vehicle) [...] The last problem is something the City needs to work on in developing the suburbs.

I touched on this a bit already, but while such a system sounds great, the density and layout of suburbia is hardly conducive currently to transit outside of park-and-rides to much denser places. The transit infrastructure being available is as important as the land use being conducive to people willing to use it. To get to your final destination from the bus, you'll have to walk from the station. There's nothing fun about walking in big-box suburbia. It may not take that long, in the grand scheme of things but it's not mentally pleasing. And it's not a good use of time for the bus to try and reach the front door of every solid traffic generator. It would take forever to get anywhere.

In order for a suburban bus system to work, suburbia needs to be retrofitted. We can't build big box shopping centers anymore. We can't build suburbia with the car at the center. We can't subsidize the car anymore. Suburbia essentially needs to look like Dundee everywhere. Otherwise it's unsustainable and your target market becomes too focused on those who are car-less out of necessity - the disabled, elderly, and very low-income. The benefits of taking your expensive car instead of the bus outweigh any benefits the bus would have.

I say this from experience working with the bus system that serves suburban Chicago and the issues they have had growing ridership.

I understand you points about making the bus system work in suburbia. I appreciate the fact that currently park and rides are the only effective option currently, though those are still under-utilized. Do you think a BRT to West O would be effective; park and rides at Village Pointe, Heartwood Preserve, and maybe a couple more off Dodge to serve commuters living west and working along the Dodge corridor or downtown? On your comment that suburbia should be modeled after Dundee, what makes their neighborhood design more conducive to a bus system, aside from not being anchored by a large shopping center, or is that the key? In terms of retrofitting the suburbs, is that possible at this point, at least with what is already existing?

[ita]

By the way, for those interested this is the bill that is cited in the recent article that seeks to expand METRO's ability to work with neighboring municipalities, ie. Ralston, Bellevue, Papillion, etc. The general terms more easily allow municipalities within the same metropolitan statistical area to have regional transportation authority.

https://www.nebraskalegislature.gov/Flo ... /LB492.pdf

[Louie]

The thing that stood out to me most is a couple problems METRO faces: 1) does increased ridership prompt more routes, or do they create more routes to increase ridership,

Yes ...though more so the latter. Often an increase in density + increase in routes and shorter headways are the best at increasing ridership. Nice, clean infrastructure with useful amenities (WiFi, snack shop) can be an attraction, though I'm not sure how much of one.

2) they are limited to city limits

Like, they can't go into unincorporated areas? I haven't heard that but that might be fine for now. Not many riders there.

and 3) a lot of Omaha is not pedestrian friendly.

This is true, though the places where bus lines will be the most viable typically are.

With a more substantial bus system in suburbia, it would give a large demographic, middle school/high school kids a way to get around and theoretically reduce the need for massive parking lots, particular at high schools. If kids were teenagers that could drive, I would rather pay the $55 bus pass for my kid than however much it costs in insurance and gas (and possibly another vehicle) [...] The last problem is something the City needs to work on in developing the suburbs.

I touched on this a bit already, but while such a system sounds great, the density and layout of suburbia is hardly conducive currently to transit outside of park-and-rides to much denser places. The transit infrastructure being available is as important as the land use being conducive to people willing to use it. To get to your final destination from the bus, you'll have to walk from the station. There's nothing fun about walking in big-box suburbia. It may not take that long, in the grand scheme of things but it's not mentally pleasing. And it's not a good use of time for the bus to try and reach the front door of every solid traffic generator. It would take forever to get anywhere.

In order for a suburban bus system to work, suburbia needs to be retrofitted. We can't build big box shopping centers anymore. We can't build suburbia with the car at the center. We can't subsidize the car anymore. Suburbia essentially needs to look like Dundee everywhere. Otherwise it's unsustainable and your target market becomes too focused on those who are car-less out of necessity - the disabled, elderly, and very low-income. The benefits of taking your expensive car instead of the bus outweigh any benefits the bus would have.

I say this from experience working with the bus system that serves suburban Chicago and the issues they have had growing ridership.

I understand you points about making the bus system work in suburbia. I appreciate the fact that currently park and rides are the only effective option currently, though those are still under-utilized. Do you think a BRT to West O would be effective; park and rides at Village Pointe, Heartwood Preserve, and maybe a couple more off Dodge to serve commuters living west and working along the Dodge corridor or downtown? On your comment that suburbia should be modeled after Dundee, what makes their neighborhood design more conducive to a bus system, aside from not being anchored by a large shopping center, or is that the key? In terms of retrofitting the suburbs, is that possible at this point, at least with what is already existing?

Straight line streets in neighborhoods certainly helps. Just in walking access alone.

[TitosBuritoBarn]

The thing that stood out to me most is a couple problems METRO faces: 1) does increased ridership prompt more routes, or do they create more routes to increase ridership,

Yes ...though more so the latter. Often an increase in density + increase in routes and shorter headways are the best at increasing ridership. Nice, clean infrastructure with useful amenities (WiFi, snack shop) can be an attraction, though I'm not sure how much of one.

2) they are limited to city limits

Like, they can't go into unincorporated areas? I haven't heard that but that might be fine for now. Not many riders there.

and 3) a lot of Omaha is not pedestrian friendly.

This is true, though the places where bus lines will be the most viable typically are.

With a more substantial bus system in suburbia, it would give a large demographic, middle school/high school kids a way to get around and theoretically reduce the need for massive parking lots, particular at high schools. If kids were teenagers that could drive, I would rather pay the $55 bus pass for my kid than however much it costs in insurance and gas (and possibly another vehicle) [...] The last problem is something the City needs to work on in developing the suburbs.

I touched on this a bit already, but while such a system sounds great, the density and layout of suburbia is hardly conducive currently to transit outside of park-and-rides to much denser places. The transit infrastructure being available is as important as the land use being conducive to people willing to use it. To get to your final destination from the bus, you'll have to walk from the station. There's nothing fun about walking in big-box suburbia. It may not take that long, in the grand scheme of things but it's not mentally pleasing. And it's not a good use of time for the bus to try and reach the front door of every solid traffic generator. It would take forever to get anywhere.

In order for a suburban bus system to work, suburbia needs to be retrofitted. We can't build big box shopping centers anymore. We can't build suburbia with the car at the center. We can't subsidize the car anymore. Suburbia essentially needs to look like Dundee everywhere. Otherwise it's unsustainable and your target market becomes too focused on those who are car-less out of necessity - the disabled, elderly, and very low-income. The benefits of taking your expensive car instead of the bus outweigh any benefits the bus would have.

I say this from experience working with the bus system that serves suburban Chicago and the issues they have had growing ridership.

I understand you points about making the bus system work in suburbia. I appreciate the fact that currently park and rides are the only effective option currently, though those are still under-utilized. Do you think a BRT to West O would be effective; park and rides at Village Pointe, Heartwood Preserve, and maybe a couple more off Dodge to serve commuters living west and working along the Dodge corridor or downtown? On your comment that suburbia should be modeled after Dundee, what makes their neighborhood design more conducive to a bus system, aside from not being anchored by a large shopping center, or is that the key? In terms of retrofitting the suburbs, is that possible at this point, at least with what is already existing?

I do think a BRT farther west could be effective. Having a limited number of stops - a component of many BRT systems including Orbt - makes travel times fairly quick and not having to command a moving vehicle allows you to get a jump start on your work day or do other things to prepare for the daily grind. I think it would be most useful if we prioritized it over continually widening roads. Of course the benefits of the bus are somewhat diminished if a commute by car is made quicker, but roadway and parking infrastructure costs a lot of money to build and maintain. As partially evident by the pothole issues Omaha is facing right now, they require money for maintenance the city doesn't necessarily have. BRT infrastructure is cheaper and more efficient.

To your second question regarding suburbia modeled after Dundee, it's a combination of factors. Not being anchored by large, big box shopping centers that do not encourage access by walking or biking is part of what makes Dundee more conducive for bus transit. Most of the commercial buildings have no setback from the street - the access points are directly from the sidewalk in front. That's not to say I don't think there is a place for big box retail. I think having some here and there is fine, but in Omaha, as with most suburban areas around the US, that sort of development is more common than not, making a car practically necessary to get around. As Louie mentioned, being on a grid helps as opposed to the meandering streets and frequent cul-de-sacs of modern suburbia. Overall it can be thought of as a difference in how welcoming walking, biking, etc feels - Is walking and biking prioritized at a similar level as driving? Are the sidewalks well maintained and connected? Is crossing an intersection short and safe feeling, or do you feel like you're swimming across a wide swamp full of alligators each time? Are there interesting things to look at like different architectural elements on buildings, people sitting in front of coffee shops, and different flora, or is it all blank walls and parking lots? Consider if you lived near the Homey Inn in Dundee and your bus stop to get to work was at the corner of 50th and Underwood. How much more comfortable would you feel walking between these two places as opposed to if you lived in Regency and your bus stop to get to work was the transit center on the north end of Westroads?

It'd take years of redevleopment to bring modern suburbia to a point of being conducive to transit. Not impossible, but its certainly not a ship that can be turned on a dime. Will it happen? Probably not. Fortunately there are many older parts of the city that are underdeveloped and can be redeveloped for modern living that prioritizes balanced transportation options. Older industrial areas are ripe for this as most modern industrial businesses require facilities with dimensions not found in older industrial buildings. Thus they are no longer useful and can be torn down or converted to other uses. We can have more suburbia conducive to a comprehensive, viable transit system, just probably not far out west anytime soon.

[ita]

I understand you points about making the bus system work in suburbia. I appreciate the fact that currently park and rides are the only effective option currently, though those are still under-utilized. Do you think a BRT to West O would be effective; park and rides at Village Pointe, Heartwood Preserve, and maybe a couple more off Dodge to serve commuters living west and working along the Dodge corridor or downtown? On your comment that suburbia should be modeled after Dundee, what makes their neighborhood design more conducive to a bus system, aside from not being anchored by a large shopping center, or is that the key? In terms of retrofitting the suburbs, is that possible at this point, at least with what is already existing?

I do think a BRT farther west could be effective. Having a limited number of stops - a component of many BRT systems including Orbt - makes travel times fairly quick and not having to command a moving vehicle allows you to get a jump start on your work day or do other things to prepare for the daily grind. I think it would be most useful if we prioritized it over continually widening roads. Of course the benefits of the bus are somewhat diminished if a commute by car is made quicker, but roadway and parking infrastructure costs a lot of money to build and maintain. As partially evident by the pothole issues Omaha is facing right now, they require money for maintenance the city doesn't necessarily have. BRT infrastructure is cheaper and more efficient.

To your second question regarding suburbia modeled after Dundee, it's a combination of factors. Not being anchored by large, big box shopping centers that do not encourage access by walking or biking is part of what makes Dundee more conducive for bus transit. Most of the commercial buildings have no setback from the street - the access points are directly from the sidewalk in front. That's not to say I don't think there is a place for big box retail. I think having some here and there is fine, but in Omaha, as with most suburban areas around the US, that sort of development is more common than not, making a car practically necessary to get around. As Louie mentioned, being on a grid helps as opposed to the meandering streets and frequent cul-de-sacs of modern suburbia. Overall it can be thought of as a difference in how welcoming walking, biking, etc feels - Is walking and biking prioritized at a similar level as driving? Are the sidewalks well maintained and connected? Is crossing an intersection short and safe feeling, or do you feel like you're swimming across a wide swamp full of alligators each time? Are there interesting things to look at like different architectural elements on buildings, people sitting in front of coffee shops, and different flora, or is it all blank walls and parking lots? Consider if you lived near the Homey Inn in Dundee and your bus stop to get to work was at the corner of 50th and Underwood. How much more comfortable would you feel walking between these two places as opposed to if you lived in Regency and your bus stop to get to work was the transit center on the north end of Westroads?

It'd take years of redevleopment to bring modern suburbia to a point of being conducive to transit. Not impossible, but its certainly not a ship that can be turned on a dime. Will it happen? Probably not. Fortunately there are many older parts of the city that are underdeveloped and can be redeveloped for modern living that prioritizes balanced transportation options. Older industrial areas are ripe for this as most modern industrial businesses require facilities with dimensions not found in older industrial buildings. Thus they are no longer useful and can be torn down or converted to other uses. We can have more suburbia conducive to a comprehensive, viable transit system, just probably not far out west anytime soon.

Thank you for taking time to answer my questions. I get what your saying about suburban design and the virtues of Dundee in terms of being more walkable/bicycle friendly and able to incorporate public transportation better than current Omaha suburbs. Like your saying though, that would be a huge shift and likely not happening any time soon, unfortunately. I do agree however, that older parts of Omaha, ie. urban Omaha, will be able to build a more public transportation friendly environment as development and redevelopment occurs throughout our urban core. I am excited to see how METRO moves forward after the BRT and hope Omahans, who can, will utilize OBRT.

[ita]

We had a brief discussion on TOD around ORBT stops that the city wanted input on. I was rifling through info concerning the project since there haven't been updated. I found some presentation material the urban planning department used when they held public meetings about how the city could make any necessary changes to zoning regs around stops. This may have already been posted, but it has a lot of good information about what the city is trying to accomplish and make possible around these ORBT stops.

https://urbanplanning.cityofomaha.org/i ... online.pdf

[ScrattyB]

We had a brief discussion on TOD around ORBT stops that the city wanted input on. I was rifling through info concerning the project since there haven't been updated. I found some presentation material the urban planning department used when they held public meetings about how the city could make any necessary changes to zoning regs around stops. This may have already been posted, but it has a lot of good information about what the city is trying to accomplish and make possible around these ORBT stops.

https://urbanplanning.cityofomaha.org/i ... online.pdf

We might need a new thread for "Transit Oriented Development". Omaha has already denied a project because it did not meet TOD specifications.
https://www.ketv.com/article/plans-subm ... t/27500165

[ita]

We had a brief discussion on TOD around ORBT stops that the city wanted input on. I was rifling through info concerning the project since there haven't been updated. I found some presentation material the urban planning department used when they held public meetings about how the city could make any necessary changes to zoning regs around stops. This may have already been posted, but it has a lot of good information about what the city is trying to accomplish and make possible around these ORBT stops.

https://urbanplanning.cityofomaha.org/i ... online.pdf

We might need a new thread for "Transit Oriented Development". Omaha has already denied a project because it did not meet TOD specifications.
https://www.ketv.com/article/plans-subm ... t/27500165

Maybe, I'll leave it to admin. Thanks for sharing. This site was just mentioned in the Dundee Theater thread. I am glad the City denied it, though I hope they don't just require the set back and green space to grant the permit for more parking. I am really hoping the City doesn't approve anything unless it meets the new TOD zoning regulations they are trying to enforce.

[ita]

Verdis Group, a consulting firm did a survey recently of several thousand people who work and live in the downtown and midtown areas of Omaha concerning surveyees' current modes of transportation and perceptions of and desires in a multi-modal transportation model. They summarized the results and offered suggestions for change and improvement.

http://verdisgroup.com/wp-content/uploa ... ersion.pdf

I saw it in an email I received today from MAPA about an ORBT update. Nothing really, other than it is still happening, but the survey had some good information about what people think about ORBT and a potential streetcar and how employers can be involved in increasing alternative transportation.

[ita]

Somewhat related to recent news concerning Omaha-Lincoln's new OPTiN program, I revisited the bill that was passed and made into law, allowing the creation of regional transit authorities in the state. Specifically, I was looking for any indication that this new law would provide the means of some sort of public transportation option for the length of the corridor between Omaha and Lincoln, making the two metros a more viable and marketable "super region", as the chambers are putting it. One thing for sure, any proposed regional transit authority is strictly limited in scope to Census defined MSA's. However, there is one term that allows for any regional transit authority to work with any other regional transit authority to provide passenger transportation services. MAPA will obviously become our metro's regional transit authority, and I am hoping to see the other municipalities in our MSA joining MAPA as soon as possible. Additionally, with the Chamber's new emphasis on selling Omaha and Lincoln as a "super region", I am hoping for additional focus between MAPA and Lincoln's transit authority to come up with transportation options connecting the MSA's and provided possible options all along the I-80 corridor. We're still years away from a massive overhaul of our public transportation system in the metro and in the region, but the pieces are falling into place to make bigger things happen.

[daveoma]

I'd love it if there was a transportation service been Omaha and Lincoln--especiales one that was fast. Someday if there's a fast connection from Lincoln to Eppley Airfield, then that just might make Eppley a much busier regional airport.

[bigredmed1]

I'd love it if there was a transportation service been Omaha and Lincoln--especiales one that was fast. Someday if there's a fast connection from Lincoln to Eppley Airfield, then that just might make Eppley a much busier regional airport.

Eppley to Amtrak by bus.
Omaha to Ashland/Waverley/downtown Lincoln by train.
Lincoln metro by bus.
Reverse to go to Omaha.

[ita]

I'd love it if there was a transportation service been Omaha and Lincoln--especiales one that was fast. Someday if there's a fast connection from Lincoln to Eppley Airfield, then that just might make Eppley a much busier regional airport.

Eppley to Amtrak by bus.
Omaha to Ashland/Waverley/downtown Lincoln by train.
Lincoln metro by bus.
Reverse to go to Omaha.

I always forget that we have Amtrak. I looked it up. There is the Amtrak route from Omaha's DT station to Haymarket Station in Lincoln. This is the route you are referring to, yes? That works for travelers, as long as they can make the one a day trip at 11 AM. If they could put a stop at Southport and maybe 180th and Giles, and increase the frequency, we could have pretty good train service between Omaha and Lincoln using preexisting track for everyday passengers. It's not justifiable at this time, but some infrastructure is there already.

[Brad]

as long as they can make the one a day trip at 11 AM

The westbound California Zephyr #5 departs Omaha at 11pm, not AM.

The eastbound California Zephyr #6 is even worse, leaves Lincoln for Omaha at 3:30am.

[ita]

as long as they can make the one a day trip at 11 AM

The westbound California Zephyr #5 departs Omaha at 11pm, not AM.

The eastbound California Zephyr #6 is even worse, leaves Lincoln for Omaha at 3:30am.

Thanks for the correction. Those times are bad.

[Padre]

as long as they can make the one a day trip at 11 AM

The westbound California Zephyr #5 departs Omaha at 11pm, not AM.

The eastbound California Zephyr #6 is even worse, leaves Lincoln for Omaha at 3:30am.

Thanks for the correction. Those times are bad.

And that's assuming they are on time. They usually are not.

[bigredmed1]

I'd love it if there was a transportation service been Omaha and Lincoln--especiales one that was fast. Someday if there's a fast connection from Lincoln to Eppley Airfield, then that just might make Eppley a much busier regional airport.

Eppley to Amtrak by bus.
Omaha to Ashland/Waverley/downtown Lincoln by train.
Lincoln metro by bus.
Reverse to go to Omaha.

I always forget that we have Amtrak. I looked it up. There is the Amtrak route from Omaha's DT station to Haymarket Station in Lincoln. This is the route you are referring to, yes? That works for travelers, as long as they can make the one a day trip at 11 AM. If they could put a stop at Southport and maybe 180th and Giles, and increase the frequency, we could have pretty good train service between Omaha and Lincoln using preexisting track for everyday passengers. It's not justifiable at this time, but some infrastructure is there already.

I was thinking about a morning shuttle at say 7 am, gets into Haymarket at 8:30 allowing stop in Greenwood and say Southport, then a return trip back to Omaha at about 5:45 leaving Lincoln and getting into Omaha about 7:15.

Maybe use the 11 am Zephyr as a midday run between the two cities?

Not sure that Southport has the BN tracks, but there are BN tracks in Chalco. So it’s downtown Omaha or SW Omaha and downtown Lincoln and NE Lincoln and maybe Ashland to develop the town’s exurban capacity.

[daveoma]

I'd love it if there was a transportation service been Omaha and Lincoln--especiales one that was fast. Someday if there's a fast connection from Lincoln to Eppley Airfield, then that just might make Eppley a much busier regional airport.

Eppley to Amtrak by bus.
Omaha to Ashland/Waverley/downtown Lincoln by train.
Lincoln metro by bus.
Reverse to go to Omaha.

I always forget that we have Amtrak. I looked it up. There is the Amtrak route from Omaha's DT station to Haymarket Station in Lincoln. This is the route you are referring to, yes? That works for travelers, as long as they can make the one a day trip at 11 AM. If they could put a stop at Southport and maybe 180th and Giles, and increase the frequency, we could have pretty good train service between Omaha and Lincoln using preexisting track for everyday passengers. It's not justifiable at this time, but some infrastructure is there already.

I was thinking about a morning shuttle at say 7 am, gets into Haymarket at 8:30 allowing stop in Greenwood and say Southport, then a return trip back to Omaha at about 5:45 leaving Lincoln and getting into Omaha about 7:15.

Maybe use the 11 am Zephyr as a midday run between the two cities?

Not sure that Southport has the BN tracks, but there are BN tracks in Chalco. So it’s downtown Omaha or SW Omaha and downtown Lincoln and NE Lincoln and maybe Ashland to develop the town’s exurban capacity.

Unfortunately the train has only one stop in Omaha, and the train station is not an intermodel station that connects multiple bus routes. I think the airport shuttle from Lincoln is a brilliant idea, but like the train, it's relatively slow and is a courier service only. I think an affordable dedicated high speed express transportation service with 2-3 stops at intermodal stations in Lincoln and in Omaha (including stops at Eppley and UNL) would be very useful in helping the two cities grow together. I'm not advocating high speed rail exactly, because that's been proven to be too cost-prohibitive, so perhaps Omaha and Lincoln can join the list of cities building a hyperloop.

[ScrattyB]

I was thinking about a morning shuttle at say 7 am, gets into Haymarket at 8:30 allowing stop in Greenwood and say Southport, then a return trip back to Omaha at about 5:45 leaving Lincoln and getting into Omaha about 7:15.

What happens when you miss the ride back? Taxi/Uber/Lyft? Hotel?

[bigredmed1]

Pretty much the same as other large cities.

[ScrattyB]

Pretty much the same as other large cities.

Other large cities have more than one route per day.

[bigredmed1]

Pretty much the same as other large cities.

Other large cities have more than one route per day.

Right, but they don’t always connect, so the blue line connects to the park and ride shuttle if you get there by 5. If not, you are stuck.

[ita]

I was listening to MAPA's new podcast (I know, I am a dork), and was expecting updates or news on what they are working. Apparently, for that content, they are sticking to the newsletter. Their podcast is going to be on specific aspects of greater Omaha that MAPA has "inside knowledge" on. The first episode didn't present anything groundbreaking, but focused Omaha's growth over the last century or so. The guest brought up the point that since about 1950, the City of Omaha's population has nearly doubled, while the area has quadrupled. He talked about how development occurred around the streetcar prior to that time.
In any case, the history lesson made me realize that maybe I am looking at mass transit in Omaha the wrong way. The focus should be in providing a multi-modal system within urban Omaha, and not so much providing mass transit out West, at least not at this point. That is probably obvious already to you all, but I needed to have this realization. Since I live in West O, I have had the mindset that mass transit has to reach out to the west to relieve traffic and benefit people out west. However, I am realizing that a better solution would be to re-densify urban Omaha, to bring people back to Downtown and Midtown. We have already seen movement with more residential units being built in urban Omaha, but the streetcar, more and better bus service, more dedicated bike lanes, and ORBT will help further the growth.

http://mapacog.org/calendar/news/a-mome ... a-podcast/

[ScrattyB]

Just need a solid park-n-ride out West with quick service (ORBT). See Denver for examples.

[Busguy2010]

In any case, the history lesson made me realize that maybe I am looking at mass transit in Omaha the wrong way. The focus should be in providing a multi-modal system within urban Omaha, and not so much providing mass transit out West, at least not at this point. That is probably obvious already to you all, but I needed to have this realization. Since I live in West O, I have had the mindset that mass transit has to reach out to the west to relieve traffic and benefit people out west. However, I am realizing that a better solution would be to re-densify urban Omaha, to bring people back to Downtown and Midtown.

I had this realization a few years ago. Cant recall what made it click, but I realized people out west for the most part wouldn't ride a bus if it was door to door service. The only reason we've had regular, non-Express bus service put there is for job access reverse commute (JARC) to get people from east Omaha to their west Omaha jobs. Since so few people do that, we've had little bus service. The 15 and 55 were the only routes we've really had to the suburbs, and those were recently scaled back quite a bit. Used to have the 22 that went out to 120th and Blondo that also very few people ride. I think most of the problem is it just physically takes a long time to get anywhere by bus. Westroads is staged to be the transit center for west Omaha. Because even from just westroads, it took a 40 minute ride to get downtown, so nobody wanted to ride from anywhere even further out. I think ORBT will open some doors for better suburb service because if were talking getting on a bus somewhere out there, riding to westroads and hopping on ORBT to get downtown is a whole lot more attractive and feasible to do than it has been getting on the 2 which stops every couple blocks. I'm thinking before a few years after ORBT goes online, there could be some real demand, finally, for some additional routes out west.

The express routes do really well as is.