Post by admin

Bus Rapid Transit vs. Light Rail Transit. Currently that’s the major transit debate in the english-speaking world.

Each have their advocates and their detractors and each have their own list of positives and negatives. And each want each other’s share of the market.

Problem is, BRT and LRT aren’t the only combatants. While BRT and LRT duke it out with each other, they both have to contend with the private automobile driver who doesn’t want to see an inch of road space given over to public transit, especially via semi-private rights-of-way.

The private automobile lobby is strong and large simply by virtue of sheer numbers. The vast majority of commuters use private vehicles, not public transit. This means BRT and LRT must also contend with politicians, justifiably frightened that a new light rail or bus corridor will hurt their prospects in upcoming elections.

I suspect drivers aren’t against public transit; they just don’t want to see it clogging roads and increasing already long travel times. It’s hard to argue against that.

So why not take the High Road? It’s difficult to imagine drivers arguing against CPT, given that the technology frees up road space. My guess is, drivers would probably rally behind the idea.