| Proposal
To
plan, design, and deploy a 1,000 station car demonstration project
at selected Silicon Valley Caltrain rail stations.
Purpose
To
demonstrate that a large number of station cars integrated with
a good corridor transit system can attract many new transit riders
from autos and begin to make meaningful impact on congestion,
air quality and energy consumption
The Project
The
demonstration project will deploy 1,000 small electric and hybrid-electric
vehicles at five to six Caltrain stations. The transit corridor/station
car demonstration project integrates the best features of corridor
transit with the flexibility of autos.
These electric
and hybrid-electric station cars will be used by multiple individuals
daily, rented on a trip or short-term basis. Qualified station
car users will be able to use station cars whenever they wish
at any of the station car sites. A user fee will be charged for
car use. Typical station cars users will access Caltrain stations,
drive to nearby jobs, or make other short trips during the day.
Multiple trip
use of individual station cars will be achieved by:
commuters
going from homes to train stations
train riders getting from train stations to job destinations
mid-day travelers on work and personal trips from job sites
“company fleet” users for some vehicles
commuters returning to Caltrain stations from jobs
A fleet system manager will employ advanced technology systems
to run the station car system, track station car logistics, and
manage customer service. Each station car will be equipped with
a vehicle locator device, on-board computing to track vehicle
status and communicate with the fleet management center, and wireless
electronic readers to identify qualified drivers and authorize
vehicle use. Some station cars may be repositioned by the fleet
manager during the day to service demand by multiple users.
Several vehicle
types will be included in the station car fleet mix. Most will
be two-passenger small, electric cars, some will be four passenger
hybrid-electric, and a limited number will be larger vehicles
to accommodate more passengers or longer trips.
Significance
to State
Extreme
roadway congestion is pervasive throughout California, the San
Francisco Bay Area, and Silicon Valley. The dominant reliance
on autos is the primary cause of congestion. Expansion of the
highway system is not a viable solution to this problem. Transit
services must be made more effective to address mobility needs
and address congestion in the State’s urban areas.
Large investments
in transit infrastructure – over $7 Billion near term and
$72 Billion long-term - are being made in California. But these
corridor system investments do not solve the fundamental requirement
for easy access to the corridor and egress to ultimate destinations.
Silicon Valley
is an ideal setting for the innovative Caltrain/station car demonstration
project. The project brings collaboration of world-class technology
partners, high visibility and international attention, and execution
of an “integrated-systems approach” to transportation
service .
Partners
A
broad public/private partnership will sponsor the station car
demonstration project. Partners in the venture are expected to
include the State of California, the Caltrain Joint Powers Board,
auto manufacturers, Silicon Valley technology suppliers, major
employers, academic researchers, and local communities.
Project
Cost and Funding
Estimated
costs to implement and operate the Silicon Valley Caltrain/ Station
Car Demonstration Project total $54 million -- $48.6 million for
capital costs are $5.6 million for operations and maintenance
of the project for two years (including fleet license and insurance
renewals).
State matching
funds of $27 million are requested for the demonstration project.
The balance of the demonstration project funding in cash or in-kind
contributions will be provided by the private sector, Caltrain,
other local entities, grants and users. Auto manufacturers will
be major participants as part of their response to the Air Resources
Board’s zero emission vehicle regulations.
Timeframe
The
station car demonstration project can be underway immediately
and operational in 2002 - 2003. The demonstration project will
operate for at least twenty-four months. The expected success
of the demonstration will enable it’s expansion to stations
along the full Caltrain corridor, to BART, and to other corridor
transit systems in the state and the Bay Area.
Why is corridor
congestion so pervasive and so extreme? And what strategies and
solutions are on the near-term horizon to address it effectively?
These are key questions that this proposal targets.
The root cause
of today’s widespread congestion is over 50 years of California’s
continuing population and job growth in a dominantly suburban
context. State population has mushroomed from 10.4 million to
34 million while jobs grew fourfold to 16.4 million; the hallmark
of the explosive growth is suburban dispersed, low density housing
and employment. That pattern is the result of multiple forces
– of which auto use is among the most powerful.
The consequence
of this long history is an auto-dominant, solo driver travel environment
in which autos converge from dispersed neighborhoods into highly
congested freeway corridor channels (the analogy with water flow
from streams to creeks to rivers flood stage is very apt).
Autos collect
via short surface street trips from dispersed homes to freeway
corridors where overwhelming vehicle numbers reduce the corridors
to stop-and-go traffic. At destinations, drivers exit the freeway
and again use surface streets for short trips to dispersed worksite
destinations.
Projections
by Metropolitan Transportation Planning Organizations provide
little solace – all foresee a sharply degraded future. The
Bay Area scenario is a 249% worsening of regional congestion.
More or larger freeways are not seen as viable solution. Investments
in transit infrastructure are increasing markedly, but will they
prove effective in attracting more riders?
Corridor transit
is convenient only to homes and worksites that are within walking
distance of stations. Therefore it is not competitive with autos
in serving many dispersed suburban homes and jobs. Adding shuttle
bus or feeder bus connections at transit corridor stations to
dispersed worksite destinations has limited appeal to users and
is very costly to operate.
Auto access
from homes to corridor transit stations has become a dominant
pattern. But station parking is a significant problem. Moreover,
adequate access to dispersed destinations (especially in suburban
settings where the primary job growth has occurred for decades)
remains an unsatisfied need. This Achilles Heel undermines the
effectiveness of corridor transit systems and investments. THE
RESULT: Rail systems like BART and Caltrain deliver less than
2% of workers to jobs outside central city downtown districts.
Augmenting
Corridor Transit with Station Cars dramatically expands the utility
and attractiveness of the transit system to compete effectively
with congested highway corridors. Corridor transit provides superior
corridor service and station cars enable short-trip auto flexibility
to easily reach stations and get to nearby worksites. The corridor
transit/station car system provides commuters a competitive option
to congested solo auto trips.
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