Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
9 <br /> 1 Triangle Transit has commissioned an Alternative Analysis (AA) to initiate fixed guideway transit <br /> 2 service between Durham and Orange counties. The AA is a component of the Triangle <br /> 3 Regional Transit Program, a comprehensive effort to study expanded bus and rail networks <br /> 4 across Wake, Orange, and Durham counties. <br /> 5 <br /> 6 This report documents the analysis and findings of the Durham-Orange County Corridor <br /> 7 (Durham-Orange Corridor) AA process. The AA is an outgrowth of the system-level Transitional <br /> 8 Analysis that was completed in the fall of 2010 and that recommended the Durham-Orange <br /> 9 Corridor as one of the region's priority high-capacity transit corridors to be advanced into the <br /> 10 more detailed AA process. The AA evaluates and screens alternative alignments, modes, and <br /> 11 station locations within the Durham-Orange Corridor and concludes with the selection of a <br /> 12 recommended Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA). <br /> 13 The AA process detailed in this report is consistent with the Federal Transit Administration's <br /> 14 (FTA) New Starts guidelines that enable fixed-guideway projects to be eligible for federal funds. <br /> 15 <br /> 16 The purpose of an AA is to determine the best mode or technology (i.e. Bus Rapid Transit, <br /> 17 Light Rail Transit, or Commuter Rail Transit)for the corridor based on goals of the local <br /> 18 government. Table ES-1 entitled "Summary of Evaluation Results for LRT, BRT-High and BRT- <br /> 19 Low Alternatives" is included as Attachment B. This table provides a high level summary of the <br /> 20 capabilities and costs associated with the technologies that were evaluated. BRT-High <br /> 21 represented a dedicated lane approach while BRT-Low represented more of a mixed traffic <br /> 22 approach. <br /> 23 <br /> 24 Although this document was created in 2011, it represents the information that was available at <br /> 25 that time to the policymakers involved in recommending the mode of transportation in the <br /> 26 corridor and the alignment. Work has continued since 2011. One significant difference between <br /> 27 the 2011 estimates and current estimates is that the estimated ridership on the LRT project has <br /> 28 increased from approximately 12,000 in the 2011 study to over 24,000 in the most recent <br /> 29 analysis. <br /> 30 <br /> 31 Wake County has gone through an extensive transit analysis and public outreach process in <br /> 32 preparation for the County's 2016 transit referendum. Their alternatives analysis of a more <br /> 33 dispersed transit region concluded that a mix of BRT, CRT, and bus service would best serve <br /> 34 the needs of the County. <br /> 35 <br /> 36 In this presentation, GoTriangle has been asked to provide information on why BRT was not <br /> 37 chosen as the appropriate technology for the Durham Orange Transit corridor and why it was <br /> 38 chosen for application in Wake County. <br /> 39 <br /> 40 Patrick McDonough, GoTriangle Manager of Planning and Transit Oriented <br /> 41 Development, made the following PowerPoint presentation: <br /> 42 <br /> 43 Orange County-Why Light Rail Was Selected for the Durham-Orange Corridor <br /> 44 Orange County Board of County Commissioners <br /> 45 February 16, 2017 <br /> 46 <br /> 47 Presentation Overview <br /> 48 • Matching Transit Technology to a Particular Corridor <br /> 49 • Key Travel Data for Durham and Orange Counties <br /> 50 • LRT & BRT performance in the USA <br />