Diesel Hybrid Trams Worth Considering for St. Louis
Today I read an interesting article highlighting a new hybrid tram:
The SMRrTram is a wheeled, bus-like series-hybrid or fuel-cell vehicle that operates at street level and provides continuous, high capacity, two-way transport along a single, dedicated guide lane. Two trams always arrive together at each stop, from opposite directions, and the next pair is never more than two-and-a-half minutes away.
Such a system is worth considering not for long distances and large capacities — that is best served by light rail. But for areas such as downtown, Cherokee Street, Broadway or South Grand this could be an interesting way to serve future transportation needs.
– Steve
Been there, done that . . . the Sixteenth Street Mall Shuttle has been doing this for 20+ years in downtown Denver (one reason their downtown continues to thrive).
While their vehicles have operators (critical given their operation on a mall shared with pedestrians), they are frequent (every 70 seconds at peak times) and fuel efficient.
The first fleet of vehicles (that lasted for nearly 20 years) were primarily diesel with a couple of all-electric buses. The current fleet of vehicles are true hybrids, with electric storage and drive units powered by natural gas burning Ford 4-cylinder engines.
http://www.rtd-denver.com/Projects/Fact_Sheets/MallRide_Facts.pdf
What is the cost comparison between this and a street car with tracks? How about trams versus a bus? I hear it said that people are more likely to ride a street car or a tram than a bus. Is this backed by any numbers? Why is this true?
It is a shame that the city rushed into placing new mediums on south grand. This tram seems like the perfect system between grand center and south grand, connecting to the metro link.
[REPLY – I don’t have any cost figures or data to support streetcars/trams over bus use. I do know that buses have a stigma attached to them that reduces ridership. Replace a bus line with a streetcar/tram with the same riders from the bus and you are likely to get more people riding. Doesn’t make any sense but that is what happens.
Yes, I think the median craze is a shame. These will be barriers to future in-street systems such as this or even vintage streetcars. – SLP]
I’m confused…
Who “rushed” into placing new medians (and bump-outs) on South Grand? I assume you mean from I-44 to Arsenal – which already had a crumbling median in most of that stretch.
Believe it or not, that was more a neighborhood-driven project than a city-driven project; and I believe East-West Gateway had some role in the “Grand Visions” planning process. The plantings look great, for the most part, and it really does help slow traffic in the stretch from I-44 to Arsenal.
I think it was something like four or five years in the making. While it certainly ain’t perfect – I’d like to see two crosswalks at Shenandoah rather than just one – it really is a nice beautification/traffic-calming project. And bike lanes – also, not perfect, but decent – were included.
Grand Ave has bus service every 10 minutes mid-day, more often at rush-hour. It’s more walkable now with the traffic slowed a little and the bump-outs make crossing much easier.
Streetcar/tram service would be better suited to retail-oriented streets with less traffic volume. Cherokee would be ideal. Grand, even without the new medians, would be a challenge anyway.
It is ironic, though, that while building these medians, the old streetcar tracks still buried under the pavement prevented large trees from being included.
I don’t see a whole lot of new medians being built in other areas; the neighborhood shot down plans to put them in on Arsenal facing Tower Grove Park.
Well-designed medians can slow traffic and make for a more pleasant pedestrian and driving experience. Even North Kingshighway “Memorial Blvd.” softens that neighborhood a bit, from MLK to Natural Bridge; although it doesn’t really do much for traffic calming.
Meanwhile, crumbling concrete medians, like on Jamieson from I-44 to Lansdowne, just make the street feel like a speedway.
I like having something in the middle of really wide streets. It’s almost impossible on four- or six-lane streets with long blocks to find a moment when there is no traffic in either direction. A median allows me to cross in safe steps.
That said, I would welome the diesel hybrid tram anywhere. I would prioritize placement according to Joe’s idea: first put it on streets with lower traffic volume where it could most effective. Cherokee, St. Louis, Delmar, Union, Manchester/Chouteau, Broadway, Morganford and Ivanhoe, Shaw and Page all come to mind as likely places to use the tram.
Transit needs density to work and thrive. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a bus, trolley or tram, as long as it’s clean and (perceived to be) safe. It’s the old “chicken or egg” conundrum. It takes more-frequent service to attract more riders and it takes more riders to justify more-frequent service. The only way to have more riders is have a lot of jobs and/or housing units in one place and/or large educational institutions or entertainment venues.
Unfortunately, if the bus isn’t working now on streets like Cherokee, St. Louis, Union, Manchester/Chouteau, Morganford/Ivanhoe, or Shaw/Page, the odds of a different vehicle or system succeeding aren’t great. Maybe one on Grand or Washington or in a loop around downtown St. Louis or Clayton or at Washington University, but likely nowhere else. The investment would be too great and the ridership way too low.
Underlying reasons why the 16th Street Mall and its shuttle buses works in Denver:
frequency – every 70 seconds during rush hour
straight-line route
heart of downtown – many thousands of workers plus a growing number of residents
“free” – paid for with sales taxes, there’s no waiting to board and no fumbling for change
forced use – many bus routes do not circulate through downtown, instead dropping passengers off at major transfer facilities at either end of the mall*
entertainment retail (restaurants and impulse shopping) thrives because downtown workers and conventioners get to storefronts quickly and can hop off the bus within a block if they see something that attracts their eye.
synergy – with only pedestrians and buses sharing the mall, pedestrians don’t feel subsidiary to all the other vehicles on other, typical urban streets, and the retail isn’t isolated from potential customers
*transfers work because they’re free, they allow the buses and light rail bringing commuters in to be used more efficiently since they’re not stuck in downtown traffic making a lot of stops (and can make more trips) and, like an elevator, by stopping every block, people can get “the last mile” efficiently and quickly. It’s a minor hassle, but much like taking an elevator – sure you have wait for the next one, but it beats the alternative and the wait is short.
[REPLY – St. Louis currently has a density of nearly 6,000 people per square mile. Not NYC but not bad. Certainly enough to justify mass transit in some form. The Grand line would be an excellent start as I understand it to be one of the most used. Light rail & streetcars are like highway expansion projects, if you build it they will come.
Replacing bus lines with some form of fixed rail (tram, streetcar, etc…) would be a good way to increase ridership on mass transit and reduce auto trips. It is also a way to attract more people to the areas served – thereby increasing viability of local businesses and making mass transit more cost effective. – SLP]
A streetcar loop encompassing Downtown, Grand Center via Washington, Grand South Grand, and Soulard, running two ways, would be ideal.
Don’t get me wrong — I’m not against medians. I’d rather have a median that another lane of traffic. However, the City could have put more consideration into a tram or street car on Grand before putting in the medians.
Also, I agree with you that we needed to slow traffic on Grand. In fact, I think one of the problems with the South Grand strip is the traffic. My hunch is, that if we reduced Grand (from Arsenal to Gravois) from two lanes each way to one lane each way with a middle turn lane, which would give room to expand the sidewalks on both sides and add trees, then we could attact more pedestrians and more retail. Right now, it is almost impossible to sit outside Mangia or Erato or the Bread Company and hold a decent conversation, with the roar of traffic just 10 feet away. Of course, people argue that Grand is a major thouroughfare and we cannot eliminate any lanes, but I don’t hear these complaints as often about Delmar, at least I don’t know many people who would trade more lanes for less street life.
What I like about Delmar is that a ped and bicyclist have a better chance there. Car’s aren’t King anymore there. I bet some people avoid driving there just because they can’t drive 40+ or more. They aren’t in the burbs where walker’s and bikers are like seeing a deer (scarce). Being a suburban kid I have changed my view of elivating the automobile while sacrificing people’s God given right to simply walk or bike. I look forward to the street car project in the loop. Although I may not use it much since I ride my bike. I wouldn’t mind using it if I am without wheels. Giving people better options for getting to point A to point B without the infernal combustion engine (automobile) I am all for.
Keep Cycling,
Jeff