In any case, the two biggest costs in running a transit operation are
labor and fuel. Of late rail has been carrying large passenger loads not
seen since World War II. I have not seen data suggesting that Bus Rapid
Transit lines have broken any record. Let us, for the sake of argument,
stipulate that a light rail line and a Bus Rapid Transit line will each
carry 70,000 passengers per day. Now many light rail lines operate as
many as four articulated rail cars together as one train. To equal the
number of passengers carried, the bus system would need to operate
between six and eight vehicles. That four-car train can operate with a
single motorman whereas each bus must have a driver. So we are talking
about a ratio of six or eight to one. That bus system gets mighty
expensive. We know what diesel fuel costs these days. Some newer buses
are powered by natural gas, which is still very expensive. Yes, the cost
of electricity has gone up some but not nearly as much as diesel or
natural-gas fuel.
Those concerned about the environment must know that buses are hardly
helpful in reducing greenhouse gases. Modern electric plants produce
little pollution. Nuclear plans supply 20% of our energy. They produce
no pollution of the kind which concerns us at all.
Then there is the matter of speed. Both buses and rail cars can run at
the same top speed. But the acceleration and deceleration rate of a rail
car or train is much faster than that of a bus. That is why rail systems
can maintain better schedules than buses. And there is the question of
replacements. Buses don't last for more than 15 years, with overhauls
maybe 20. Electric rail cars, on the other hand, if well maintained can
operate indefinitely. The SEPTA Red Arrow Division operated streetcars
and interurban cars that were some 60 to 70 years old before they
finally were replaced. Ever come across a 70-year-old bus in regular
service? Boston, Philadelphia, Kenosha and San Francisco operate PCC
streetcars from the 1940s and 1950s seven days a week. Those are modern
quiet streetcars developed by the President's Conference Committee in
the 1930s to attempt to stave off competition from automobiles and
buses. They will be able to operate for at least another 15 years.
One only can hope that the new Administration in 2009 will have a more
enlightened view toward rail transit. Some 30 cities are serious about
wanting streetcars and another 10 light rail systems will be built if
the Federal Transit Administration is fair in how it evaluates what is
best for a community.