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MTI REPORT F-04-01
BUS IN THE FAST LANE: A FORUM ON BUS RAPID TRANSIT IN THE BAY AREA
May 2005
The bus, that most basic staple of public transportation, is being transformed by 21st century
high technology. However, new capabilities have also brought challenges to the ability of
traditional public transit infrastructures to adapt. Bus in the Fast Lane: A Forum on Bus Rapid
Transit in the Bay Area looks at the technical, operational, political, and social issues arising
around Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) as it is being developed in the San Francisco Bay Area. It
continues the long-running series of Mineta Transportation Institute Hot Spot Forums. The
goal of these events is to move toward consensus through information transfer. Their success is
due to the abilities of willing participants, with the required expertise, to share their
knowledge in a meaningful way with the general public.
We were blessed to have such a team co-sponsor this event. Most generous with their time and
with the expertise and cooperation of their staff were: Dennis Fay, Executive Director,
Alameda County Congestion Management Agency; Ric Fernandez, General Manager,
Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District; Steve Heminger, Executive Director, Metropolitan
Transportation Commission; Roger Snoble, CEO, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority; and Bijan Sartipi, Director, California Department of
Transportation/District 4. Also invaluable to the team were the Commonwealth Club of
California and the League of Women Voters of the Bay Area.
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Bus Rapid Transit planning, development, and implementation in the San Francisco
Bay Area was the subject of this public forum held November 12, 2004 in Oakland,
California. It was another in a series of Mineta Transportation Institute Hot-Spot
Forums designed to explore controversial topics and help participants reach consensus.
Steve Heminger, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission,
delivered the keynote address which placed Bus Rapid Transit development in context
with regional long-range transportation goals. A panel of transportation planners and
elected officials reviewed the challenges and responses to the Alameda County Congestion Management Agency SMART Corridors Rapid Bus project on San Pablo
Avenue. They also reviewed and discussed proposals for future rapid bus and dedicated
Busway transit projects being planned for other corridors in the dense urban areas of
the San Francisco region’s East Bay. Questions from the audience supplemented
discussions by the panel. A concluding capstone presentation aimed at tying together
earlier discussions was made by Rex Gephart, Director of Regional Transit Planning
for the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. He compared the
local efforts to those of other similar programs elsewhere in the United States and the
world. Another short question-and-answer period followed the presentation.
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