Bacon's Rebellion

Democracy Thrives in Sunlight

Category: Transportation

  • Shocker: Positive Signs from Washington Metro

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    James A. Bacon
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    I have relentlessly criticized the Washington Metro system for years, but I have to give credit to management under General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld for trying to steer the dysfunctional mass transit system in a fiscally sustainable direction. Today’s media reports highlight two straws in the wind. First, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (MWATA)…

  • Looks like a Taking, Feels like a Taking

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    Steve Haner
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    The parallel struck me early in the meeting – this is like the pipeline process.  The people who want this bike lane are not deterred by what it does to the people and businesses directly on the route and disregard all concerns as unfounded. Of course, the property owners along Richmond’s Brook Road do not…

  • Metro’s Other Funding Crisis

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    James A. Bacon
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    Washingtonians are finally showing top-of-mind awareness of the looming pension crisis at the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. The Metro’s nearly $3 billion in unfunded retirement and health care costs “threaten its future operating position, potentially hampering its ability to provide service,” reports the Washington Post, citing a Government Accountability Organization report. Coverage of the Metro’s…

  • Bacon Bits: A.P. Hill R.I.P., Tax Cuts, Bike Lanes

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    Steve Haner
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    This statue does have to go The tomb of Confederate General A.P. Hill in Northside Richmond is the latest to be vandalized by red paint or some similar substance, but in this case the argument to move the statute and the grave beneath it should focus on its status as a major traffic hazard. The…

  • Richmond Squats on Scooters

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    James A. Bacon
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    Bird Rides, Inc., a California startup, tried introducing electric scooters to Richmond’s transportation mix, scattering the two-wheelers around Virginia Commonwealth University and the downtown area. Anyone downloading an app could ride them at a cost of $1 to unlock and 20 cents per minute to ride. Workers with the city’s Department of Public Works began…

  • Tasty Bacon Morsels of the Day…

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    James A. Bacon
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    Lots of updates to stories we have been following here on Bacon’s Rebellion: How to lose in a landslide. The media was all over the story about racist posts by a Corey Stewart campaign consultant. Here’s the lead from the Richmond Times-Dispatch: “Republican Senate candidate Corey Stewart has paid more than $100,000 to a campaign…

  • Will the New Mobility Revolution Make Congestion Worse?

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    James A. Bacon
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    As ride-hailing services Uber and Lyft have steadily gained market share, urbanists have been asking themselves, is this a good thing or bad thing? Will the increasing patronage of ride-hailing companies induce people to sell their cars? Siphon riders away from mass transit? Increase or reduce vehicle miles traveled? Make traffic congestion better or worse?…

  • An Unfortunate Turn in Bike Lane Debate

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    Steve Haner
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    As almost always seems to happen in Richmond — and it’s disappointing — a neighborhood debate in Northside over a planned dedicated bicycle lane may turn into something else. “Given the economic environment, the needs of people, anything that limits access to more affordable transportation options does everyone a disservice, but particularly people of color,”…

  • As Metro Union Articulates Demands, Virginia Needs to Prepare for Strike

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    James A. Bacon
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    The Washington Metro’s largest union has sent letters to political leaders in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. outlining the contract issues behind the union’s veiled threats to conduct an illegal strike. The demands, according to the Washington Post: Roll back a policy reassigning hundreds of custodians to Metro stations and outsourcing some of the work;…

  • Playing with Fire

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    James A. Bacon
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    Wow, I wouldn’t have expected this from the Washington Post editorial board, but an editorial today lacerated the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 689 for threatening to conduct an illegal strike. One might think the union was driven to the edge of such a drastic move, which would be the first such labor action to hit…

  • Fill Up Your Gas Tanks, Boys, You Might Be Driving to Work

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    James A. Bacon
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    Ninety-four percent of the Washington Metro’s largest labor union, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 689 voted to authorize labor leaders to call a transit strike. Metro workers are forbidden from striking under the mass transit system’s governing authority, and a judge could order strikers back to work. But even a one-day walkout could cause massive disruption to…

  • Uberizing Van Pools: A Useful Experiment

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    James A. Bacon
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    Northern Virginia transportation officials will try an interesting experiment to help cope with traffic disruptions during construction of the $2.3 billion Interstate 66 widening project — they will allow commuters to sign up and pay for van-pool services through a smartphone app. Reports the Washington Post: “This is not just new technology for the area,…

  • Embrace the Scooter Revolution

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    James A. Bacon
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    Bird, the Uber of the electric scooter world, has deployed its first 50 scooters in Virginia — in Arlington County, to be specific. Arlington has no official policy regarding electric scooters, and Bird placed its black-and-white scooters without county permission. Whether that becomes a problem remains to be seen. “We will be having discussions with…

  • Franklin Street Bike Lanes Coming Next to Residential Brook Road

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    Steve Haner
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    People who regularly drive downtown Richmond, including many of us who consider ourselves somewhat in touch, were surprised and initially confused by the new dedicated bike lane on Franklin Street that reduced vehicle traffic to one lane after the morning rush. A similar configuration – except in both directions – is planned for Brook Road…

  • Pulse Is Pumped about Early Ridership

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    James A. Bacon
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    The Pulse, Richmond’s new bus rapid transit system, is off to a good start. On Monday, the first weekday of service, GRTC Pulse counted 8,669 riders, far exceeding the daily weekday goal of 3,500, reports the transit company. First-week performance at mass-transit roll-outs benefit from media attention and, in the case of the GRTC, free rides.…