[RP TownTalk] Queensbury Buses

[Dannielle Glaros]

I'm really glad that we have an alternative to driving on 410 that  
goes through our town and connects to our town center.  I've used the  
bus a few times and if it was more convenient on Saturdays, I would  
probably use it then too.  Given the level of development happening  
at PG Plaza and the future movie theatre (which I believe is a  
reality), it would be great to reach this area without a car.  The  
more choices people have to get places (bike, walk, bus, metro, MARC)  
the less traffic we will have as development increases around us.

My husband and I only have one car between us.  Part of it is by  
choice--using less resources, protecting the environment--and part of  
it is financial--why pay monthly payments on something that declines  
in value over time?  Public transportation is part of what attracted  
us here to Riverdale Park.

We should push WMATA and The Bus to offer buses on these streets  
which pollute less and even run smaller buses.  I used to ride a  
small WMATA bus years ago when I lived in Chevy Chase DC.  When it  
was too cold or wet to walk to metro, I caught the bus.  It was a  
perfect size for navigating the streets.

I would also recommend keeping Queensbury open for traffic.  Of  
course, you could close it which would mean, I believe a few  
things...a worse backup on 410 (I already find it hard to turn into  
my neighborhood during some times of the day), more idle traffic  
spewing gas fumes in our neighborhood (many of us live near 410) and  
personally I would stop shopping at anything near/at PG Plaza.  It  
would be too difficult to get there unless there were safe bike  
routes or a frequent bus service.

On a related note, I would like to see expanded bus service on Rt 1.   
I'm a big fan of the 83 bus, but the frequency of trips declines  
after 6pm and it is slow on Saturday.  Expanded bus service would  
mitigate traffic on Rt. 1.

Dannielle


Dannielle Glaros
dmglaros at gmail.com



On Apr 23, 2006, at 1:00 PM, Alan Thompson & Sarah Wayland wrote:

> I wanted to mention a major reason for routing buses on Queensbury
> rather than East-West Highway: traffic flow. If the buses go along
> East-West Highway, the buses will block the rightmost lane of traffic.
> Transit agencies often route buses along a less popular street  
> parallel
> to the main road so that traffic flow is smoother on the main road.
>
> So the other side to the question is "How many drivers on East West
> Highway would prefer to have the road effectively reduced by a lane on
> each side?" And also, "How many drivers, irritated by the slowed
> traffic on East-West Highway, will start taking alternative routes,
> like Queensbury, so they can avoid the traffic on East-West Highway?"
>
> Perhaps another question for WMATA is "Are there quieter and less
> polluting technologies you can use in your buses so they are less
> disturbing to the residents along their routes?"
>
> -Sarah
>
>
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