Just moments ago, after some 11th hour drama over the past couple of weeks, the Regional Transit Authority of Southeast Michigan voted to officially approve a slightly-revised version of the RTA Master Plan to finally bring a true regional public transit system to the Metro Detroit area, including Wayne, Oakland, Macomb and Washtenaw Counties:
DETROIT – The Regional Transit Authority of Southeast Michigan (RTA) Board of Directors voted Thursday to place on the November ballot a Regional Master Transit Plan to create a rapid, reliable regional public transit system in Southeast Michigan. The vote, taken at a special board meeting, places the RTA Master Plan on the ballot in Macomb, Oakland, Washtenaw and Wayne counties.
“Southeast Michigan is the only major urban area in the country without a viable, coordinated public transit system,” said RTA Board Chair Paul Hillegonds. “The plan being presented to voters will make us competitive in a 21st century global economy, developing a transit system that meets the needs of a changing world.
I've been fully on board as supporting the plan since the end of May, when the full details of the plan were presented at Lawrence Tech University. As I noted at the time:
I've long rooted for a rapid, efficient, modern regional transit system for the area, and have read about one plan after another being put together only to fail for one reason or another, so I was hopeful when I first heard about this new plan...but also somewhat skeptical, since I'd ideally prefer to see light rail transit (LRT) rather than buses.
However, after attending the presentation at Lawrence Tech University, I've been persuaded to fully support the RTA's master plan. There are benefits and drawbacks to both light rail and bus rapid transit systems; it really depends on the specific circumstances, geography, demand levels and other factors involved, such as the budget/funding situation.
...To me, this would be a bargain given the incredible convenience of being able to simply hop on a bus at Woodward & Long Lake Road, for instance, and take it all the way down to Comerica Park, the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Michigan Science Center, FOX Theater or any number of other area attractions without having to change buses or face traffic jams, snow/rain and especially trying to find a parking spot (which can run up to $25 or more in some cases).
...It's time. Let's do this thing.
By contrast, here's what my Republican opponent, Shelley Taub, has to say about the RTA plan (starting around 10 minutes in):
"The preliminary plan that we saw about rapid transit, or regional transit, is rapid; that's true...but it's not regional. In Oakland County, we will be paying $63 million over a ten year period, that equates to $630 million. And the plan...the plan...has one bus line...rapid transit...up and down Woodward. Well folks, we have a bus line up and down Woodward. It's not rapid. And what will that do? Where are they gonna put...they're gonna put it in the middle of Woodward, gonna tear out all the beautiful islands,..so that commuters can hop on this rapid transit and go downtown. Now...tell me where, in Birmingham, in Bloomfield, in Berkley, there are parking lots? There are none. So...what we are getting, for $63 million, initially, is another bus line, duplication of effort. It does not include anyplace else in Oakland County...oh, there's a few crosstown things, but we have crosstown buses on Maple and Long Lake and other Mile roads. I think, in my personal opinion, that the Regional Transit Authority needs to go back to the drawing board and do a different plan that is much better suited...and regional...for Oakland County."
As I note immediately after Ms. Taub speaks, her response is quite simply not true at all. The RTA plan includes much more than simply "another bus line" and "a few crosstown things", even if you're only talking about Oakland County:
Here's a list of the main provisions included in the plan:
- Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) routes along Woodward Avenue between downtown Detroit and Pontiac, on Gratiot Avenue between downtown Detroit and M-59, on Michigan Avenue between downtown Detroit and the Detroit Metropolitan Airport, and on Washtenaw Avenue between downtown Ann Arbor and downtown Ypsilanti. Bus rapid transit is a bus line with attributes similar to light rail, including dedicated lanes, permanent stations, traffic signal preference and pre-board ticketing.
- Regional rail that connects downtown Ann Arbor to downtown Detroit with stops in Ypsilanti, Wayne, and Dearborn.
- New cross-county connector and commuter express bus routes that provide seamless service across municipal and county lines without the need to transfer.
- New local services that connect communities with no existing transit into the regional network.
- Improved paratransit services for seniors and people with disabilities, including demand response and mobility services that span the entire region.
- Express transit service to Detroit Metropolitan Airport from Ann Arbor, downtown Detroit, Macomb County and Oakland County.
- A universal fare card that would provide access to all transit systems in the region.
- Increased frequency and longer spans of service.
- A centralized source for travel information and paratransit services.
- Seamless coordination between existing transit providers.
- Regional services with features to help buses stay on schedule.
- New vehicles and improved facilities to maintain the ones we already have.
...and these are just the major features.
Again, even if you limit yourself to Oakland County-specific services, the RTA plan would include:
- Cross-county connector buses running along Mile roads which also connect with main Woodward bus at Maple Road, Greenfield & more
- Commuter express lines at peak hours running along M-59 and I-75
- Extensions of existing lines connecting Farmington, Rochester & Livonia, including local service along Middlebelt to Orchard Lake, Dequinder across South Boulevard, etc.
- EXPRESS bus to Metro Airport from the Troy Transit Center and along I-275
- Local service along Highland Road to the Oakland County Airport
- PARATRANSIT shuttle service to/from bus lines for elderly, disabled, anyone who can’t drive via one call/once click service
- It would integrate and expand upon existing services (SMART, DDOT, People Mover, AAATA and Q-Line) to create a single main system, not replace them.
- The buses would include pre-board ticketing, signal priority, level boarding for those in wheelchairs, single, universal fare card for all 5 systems.
- 85% of that $63 million per year from Oakland County would be legally required to be returned to the county
- The plan is expected to add 19,000 jobs and $1.8 billion in regional product and personal income; property values around the Woodward corridor would likely increase based on experience in other cities like Cleveland
In short, Taub is quite simply misinformed as to just how many useful, desperately needed services are included in the RTA plan. Her response at the LWV forum was no fluke, either; she gave the same misinformed response about a month earlier in Downtown Magazine.
In fact, the only legitimate concern Ms. Taub mentioned is the parking situation. However, I've actually spoken with RTA representatives who explained that the millage and plan itself includes funding to arrange for park-n-ride lots. In the Birmingham/Bloomfield area. I was told that these would most likely be at the Square Lake/I-75 interchange, near Somerset Mall and at the Maple/Greenfield Road intersection.
I say again: It's time. Let's do this.