Oakland Airport Connector Options Analysis Executive Summary
August 2010
Any number of other options could conceivably be developed from mixtures of these two options; however, Rapid Bus and Full BRT represent reasonable ends of the BRT spectrum in terms of service attributes and costs.
COMPARISON OF FOUR ALTERNATIVES •
AirBART: AirBART provides a low operating cost connection from the Coliseum BART station to the Oakland Airport. However, it does not meet comparison criteria requirements related to frequency, reliability, capacity, supporting the OIA Master Plan, and flexibility to serve intermediate stops, providing access to the local community which includes significant populations of minority and low‐income residents. This indicates that AirBART is not a viable long term solution, and supports the need for an alternative mode of operation.
•
Rapid Bus: This option provides a significant improvement over the existing AirBART service, with more frequent, faster service that could be implemented by 2012. Overall travel times are equal to AGT in 2013, as this option provides shorter transfer and walk times, despite having a longer in‐vehicle trip between BART and the airport. In 2030, Rapid Bus loses its advantage and is 1.6 minutes slower than AGT. It is slower than Full BRT in 2013 and in 2030. Of the three new alternatives, Rapid Bus is the most cost‐effective option at $6.83 per new ride, based on the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) New Starts cost‐ effectiveness criterion. Because it uses a curb‐side dedicated lane, Rapid Bus is the most flexible in adding stops to support local economic development plans and serve the local community. However, Rapid Bus does not meet the reliability criterion, has a slightly higher operating subsidy per ride than Full BRT ($2.33 for Rapid Bus compared to $1.95 for Full BRT), and attracts fewer rides than either Full BRT or AGT at a $3 fare. Rapid Bus has higher estimated ridership than AGT, however, with a $6 fare for AGT.
•
Full BRT: Full BRT provides significant improvements over Rapid Bus, with more reliable service, requiring only a 4‐minute buffer for reliability under normal operating conditions. Like AGT, Full BRT is not affected by events at the Coliseum, due to the construction of a flyover bridge on Hegenberger at South Coliseum Way. Full BRT has lower walk times than AGT at both the Coliseum BART station and the Oakland Airport terminal which results in an overall faster total trip time compared to AGT. Due to these operational improvements and the shorter walk time from the station to the Oakland Airport terminal, Full BRT has ridership comparable to AGT in 2013 and 2030, using a $3 fare. Using the current planning assumption of a $6 fare for AGT, Full BRT has approximately 13% higher ridership than the AGT option. Assuming a $3 fare, the Full BRT cost‐effectiveness measure of $15.86 per new ride is significantly lower than for the AGT (see discussion below). Through the flexibility to have two local stops, this option provides more support to economic development plans and local communities. Full BRT also has the lowest operating cost per ride, and therefore the lowest subsidy per ride required, at $1.95. Overall, this option at least minimally meets all comparison criteria.
•
AGT: Due to the separated guideway, AGT is the strongest of all options in terms of reliability. As a result of the level of construction required, AGT would be operational in
Kittelson & Associates, Inc.
4