TAKE ACTION

Mayor Levar Stoney will host several community office hours sessions over the next month or so. This is an excellent time to talk to the Mayor, face-to-face, about the importance of transit. Not sure what to ask? Here are some potential questions to get your brain going:

• Every transit rider begins and ends their ride as a pedestrian. What is the city doing to move forward on their Vision Zero pledge?
• Many cities give high school students bus passes, which increases their access to after school programs, internships, and cultural resources. Is this something you'd support in Richmond?
• How can the City work with the region's universities to get college students on the bus, building lifetime riders?
• What's the next expansion of local GRTC service you'd like to see? How would you like to see the system grow regionally?
• Compared to transit companies in other cities our size, GRTC is incredibly underfunded. Will you continue to increase funding for GRTC in your budget?
• Where do you wish the bus went that it does not currently go?

You can see the full list of community office hours dates and locations here.

P.S. If you're a Chesterfield resident, please take exactly one minute to send your Board of Supervisor representative an email supporting public transit down Route 1 over to the Government Center. I've already done all the work for you, all you have to do is click/tap here!

AROUND THE REGION

The first round of our awesome Regional Transit Map T-Shirts have successfully funded! This means that if you bought one you should expect it in the mail in the next couple of weeks. If you missed out on the first round, fear not, for the next round is up and running and awaiting your credit card information.

ELSEWHERE

For the next couple of weeks, this section of our wonderful weekly email will be provided by our new intern Zac. He'll be helping us with some research, planning, and writing—including, among other things, this!

Everyone knows the feeling of waiting for a bus, wondering exactly when it will show up. The New York City MTA estimates that one minute of waiting feels like the equivalent of one minute and 45 seconds of actually riding on the bus—this phenomenon is known as the waiting penalty. New York City plans to bring countdown clocks to the city’s bus stops so riders can see exactly when their bus will arrive. Easing the waiting penalty through this simple change is predicted to increase ridership.

Chinese company Chіnа Railway RоIIing Stоck Cоrp (CRRC) has developed the world’s first Autonomous Rail Transit (ART). ART is a cross between a train and a bus. Instead of running on a rail, the entirely electric ART uses sensors to ride a “virtual rail.” Advocates in Milwaukee say the technology could be used in a future expansition to the upcoming Milwaukee Streetcar, set to open in 2018.

In cities across America, businesses partner with transportation authorities to offer bus passes to their employees. These partnerships are intended to make transit more afforable and appealing to potential riders, but those without employment, including the elderly, low income, and students, are excluded. In Denver, the Regional Transportation District has put together a group, called the Pass Program Working Group, to bring discount passes to more of Denver's residents.

If you'd like to support RVA Rapid Transit's work to bring a truly regional transit system to Richmond, consider picking up an awesome transit map T-shirt or making a tax-deductible donation.

—Ross Catrow