Bus Rapid Transit: Bogotá
Want to learn more about Bus Rapid Transit? Watch this video and let Streetsblog editor Aaron Naparstek show you how BRT works in Bogotá, Colombia. Take a gander and you'll see an efficient, modern and -- relatively speaking -- inexpensive way of moving 1.3 million people per day.
In Bogotá, where the BRT system goes by the much more sexy name, TransMilenio, you'll travel almost three times the speed of the typical New York City bus. The average TransMilenio vehicle travels at 17.4 mph. In New York City, buses poke along at 6.2 mph. Some TransMilenio routes average nearly 25 mph!
For quite a few years now, New York City's Department of Transportation and the MTA have been studying and studying and, sigh... studying the possibility of implementing BRT routes on selected corridors. And if Mayor Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan passes, a significant portion of the promised $354 million in federal funds will go towards launching new BRT lines.
Hopefully, New York City's BRT system will offer many of the excellent features that we saw in Bogotá; features like physically-separated bus lanes, pre-boarding fare payment, wide doors that open at boarding level and a control room nerve center that monitors and manages the entire system. These features give Bogotá a bus system that really works. Take a look.
[bus braking]
Aaron Naparstek: [0:10] At the end of September, I went down to Bogota, Colombia with Clarence Eckerson from Streetfilms, Karla Quintero from Transportation Alternatives, and actually even Ken from Project for Public Spaces was along for the ride as well. We were taken around by Guillermo Gil Penalosa, who is the brother of the former mayor, Enrique Penalosa. [0:32] And he gave us a great tour. We saw all of these incredible urban design innovations that the city of Bogota has been working on for the past dozen years or so. And it was really impressive. We got to take a look at that city's bus rapid transit system, which is called TransMilenio.[0:51] About 10 years ago, when Enrique Penalosa became mayor, there was a plan on the table to build a network of elevated highways all throughout the city of Bogota. It was incredibly expensive, and multibillion dollar project.
[1:07] And Penalosa and his administration looked at this project and said, this isn't going to do anything actually to solve our traffic congestion problem. It's going to create huge negative environmental impacts on the city as a whole.
[1:21] So Penalosa decided to scrap that project, and instead for a fraction of the cost, replace it with what, I think, still today is the world's most advanced bus rapid transit system.
Aaron Naparstek: [1:34] Tell us what is TransMilenio?
Edgar Sandoval: [1:37] TransMilenio is our bus rapid transit and economical model, specially developed to operate in Bogota in the main corridors. The objective is to give a segregate lane, exclusively for big buses, in order so that people can move very quickly, but with 10 times less the cost of the traditional mass transit systems in the world.
Aaron Naparstek: [1:59] Some people call it surface subway. And you could kind of see why, its buses are on rubber wheels, just like you see buses in New York. But what you see they've done is, in the middle of these busy multilane avenues, almost highways, they've taken away a couple lanes in the middle and they've built these stations. [2:19] And next to the stations, you'll see usually two lanes of buses running on either side. You have a lane for local bus traffic and for buses to pull into the station and you have another lane for the express buses.[2:32] The buses pull right up to the platform so that the floor of the bus is level with the floor of the station. So it's really easy for wheelchairs, and older people and people pushing stroller to get on and off the buses.
[2:47] I got to interview the CEO of the TransMilenio system, and she's someone who is there from the very beginning of the system and kind of worked her way up.
Angelica Castro: [2:55] Before TransMilenio, in 1998, one trip of 30 kilometers can be done in two hours, two hours and 15 minutes. That same trip you can do it today in 55 minutes.
Aaron Naparstek: [3:13] And how many people are you moving everyday?
Angelica Castro: [3:15] Around 1.3 million people per day. I think nobody believed in Bogota that we could change the way to transport our people. Because since 1947, we started doing and doing some studies, 50 years trying to do some things about it, but nobody said we are going to do it.
Aaron Naparstek: [3:40] They took us on a tour of the TransMilenio control room, it was almost like air traffic control, and in fact that's how they compared it. Six different companies actually own and operate the buses themselves.
Aaron Naparstek: [3:52] How many buses are you guys controlling in here at rush hour? Man 5: [3:55] In a peak hour, like 1,000.
Aaron Naparstek: [3:59] You've got sense of an average speed? Man 5: [4:01] 28 kilometers per hour in an average. But we have lines of nearly 40.
Aaron Naparstek: [4:09] Wow. [4:10] The central hub that we visited dispatches the buses and follows them around the city in real time, they can communicate with drivers individually. And you see the photo of the bus driver pop up on the controller's computer screen when he's getting ready to talk to that guy. They can see if buses are starting to bunch or stack up together.[4:33] In most of the TransMilenio system are these double long red buses, but traveling around through city neighborhoods, you see these much smaller green buses, and those are called feeder buses. And what the feeder buses do is they travel through neighborhood streets and pick up people and take them to the bigger bus stations.
[4:56] One of the interesting things about the green feeder buses is that they're free. You don't pay for your TransMilenio ride until you get to the bigger bus station. That's one of the things that really speeds up the loading and the unloading, like the subway in New York. You're paying for the bus and the station, rather than having to pay the driver and wait for everyone else to pay the driver.
[5:16] One of the most impressive intermodal transportation features that we saw while we were in Bogota was this bike parking facility inside of a bus station.
Aaron Naparstek: [5:28] The TransMilenio system is a very important integration between transportation means. We have today, three terminals and one station with bike parking facilities. In this case, we are in the Americas Terminal. This parking facility has a 750 capacity. It's very safe; it's a good feeder system for the TransMilenio and it's for free. Man 6: [speaking Spanish] [5:48]Man 7: [speaking Spanish] [6:06]
Aaron Naparstek: [6:20] They believe that for every 20 people they can get to bike to the bus station, that's one less of these green feeder buses that they need to operate. And that saves the transit system a lot of money. [6:33] So for Bogota, bicycles are really, critical part of the mass transit system. One of the things that's striking about TransMilenio is all times of day, it was just packed. I mean, almost if there is a criticism of the system, that had to be it.[6:49] But it was really mind blowing. I mean, the fact that as an American, I mean don't know much about Colombia, I think of it as a developing nation or a Third World country. This bus system is so much more advanced and high tech than anything I've ever seen in the US.
[7:05] How has TransMilenio Changed the city?
Angelica Castro: [7:08] Before, we couldn't dream to be talking with you, saying we are going in New York to change something and we want to see you, Bogota. The name of our nation now is in the world and for good things, and TransMilenio is one of the best things that we've had in the last 10 years.
Aaron, forget about blogs.. ! interviewer .. you are so naturally good at it ..
the feeder system is brilliant ...
and yes the key to it is take away a lane and protect it . If we only had the guts to do this ..
I volunteer 9th avenue to test..
Nice film, thanks. I've heard a lot about BRT but was never able to quite imagine how it worked. It's surprising how much it is like a more flexible rail system.
Love the last line "the name of our nation is in the world now -- for good things." Good transit could be great PR for our own dear USA too... someday.
Great job, and hats off to Aaron for presenting this with such clarity. This should be required viewing for the ditherers at NYCT and the MTA. 100 years ago, the expanding subway system was held up, rightly so, as the sign of a great, progressive city. Why not BRT?
BRT routes don't have to be on dedicated rights of way, although what they did in Bogota (and Ottawa, and - up to a point - in Boston) sure is nice. BRT could be a way to knit together outlying subway and commuter rail lines, and to provide a transit option in existing corridors. Think BRT on the Staten Island Expressway, or Flatbush Avenue, or the Long Island Expressway east of Flushing Meadow, for example.
Just a heads up folks...
We've gotten alot of positive feedback and an incredible amount of debate on our cross-posting on Streetsblog if you'd like to check that out (or join in the opinion banter):
http://www.streetsblog.org/2008/01/28/streetfilm-brt-in-bogota/
[...] et de distribution. La dernière publication de Streetfilms est passionnante : le réseau Transmilenio de Bogota (Colombie) : un réseau de bus ultra-rapides (quelque 40 km/h de moyenne !) transportant [...]
Well, if they studied "ideas" for 50 years to get to TransMilenio, then NYC should have something on this level in the mid-2040's, right? I'm holding my breath.
Great job, Aaron, Clarence, Carla...and Enrique Peñalosa.
Congratulations on the vid - I was down in November and am in the process of putting thing similar together (totally independent), but yours is really polished and nice.
The thing that most impresses me about the Bogota BRT model are the stations. Form the rider perspective they really take it from being a bus on a busway to a *transit system*.
Very nice system! I would like to see it electrified and put on rails. Then it would be perfect!
Morgan, that was just it - if they had put in rails they wouldn't have been able to afford such an extensive system. It is about tradeoffs and for the time being, I think they made the right choice
Great system. Couple of comments:
> do they have GPS so people know when next bus is coming?
> do these get held up at cross streets or do they have signal priority/
and finally,
> great future project for BOGOTA would be to make those buses trolley buses, ie: string cable overhead and electrify the system!
Just one comment: no rails please! Extra expense: not required. Just electrify and they'll be fine!
Rails don't really cost that much more in a trunk like system such as this and over time you'll use less energy & money operating it.
I'm currently living in Jakarta, Indonesia. Our city implement Bus Rapid Transit similiar to the one in the video called Transjakarta Busway.
http://trans.jakarta.go.id/home/index.php
But it has been a complete failure here. Now, the lanes are even smaller than before and barricading has been very dangerous for both motorcyclist and drivers.
Our government is useless. I hope they can come up with something better.
I visited Bogota w/ my family in December of 2006 and the Transmilenio was AWESOME...what a great SOLUTION to public transportation and an opportunity for COLOMBIA to shine around the world...Que verraquera!
I just had to post this which came from our cross-post on YouTube. It might be the funniest comment we have ever gotten. Enjoy:
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Is this Transmilenio a big deal in Colombia? I am English and am currently chasing after a foxy Colombian girl. I got to spend some quality time with her yesterday for the first time and she spent half an hour showing pictures of buses in Bogota. This was probably the most boring half an hour i have ever endured. Is everyone from Bogota like this or is she just a bit dull
[...] MTA are, for the most part, not creating physically-separated bus lanes as is done in cities like Bogota, Colombia and Paris, France, bus-mounted cameras will be essential to keep lanes clear and make BRT routes [...]
Very amazing story!!! I lived in Colombia from 1984-1986. The transportation system was absolutely chaotic. It was a daily risk of your life to try and ride the bus system. Buses would stop in the middle of the street in traffic for passengers to dart into the street and jump on. Drivers would behave like kamakazi pilots racing through traffic. I can imagine that the greatest benefit of this new system is the decrease in traffic fatalities. It was highly common for individuals to die in traffic. You would see buses driving down the street so full that people would be hanging out the door with one foot on and one hand hanging on.
Amazing story!
[...] Colombia - 82,509PARK(ing) Day San Francisco 2006 - 60,436Summer Streets 2008 (NYC) - 50,950Bus Rapid Transit: Bogotá - 37,218Hal (and Kerri) Grade Your Bike Locking - 36,528Bike vs. Car vs. Transit - 28,420Portland: [...]
[...] Colombia - 82,520PARK(ing) Day San Francisco 2006 - 60,436Summer Streets 2008 (NYC) - 50,952Bus Rapid Transit: Bogotá - 37,220Hal (and Kerri) Grade Your Bike Locking - 36,538Bike vs. Car vs. Transit - 28,421Portland: [...]
BRT without barrier separation is . . . not BRT. Duh. Furthermore, added urban highway capacity for BRT = Veronic Moss getting more highway lanes in the name of transit. That evil little . . . lobbyist.
Is to give an answer to Raquel.
THANKS for your concern; yes the people is in and out of the transmilenio, (and I use the transmilenio from north to south, east to west) (I was there) WALK UNDER THE TUNNEL TO THE EITHER SIDE OF THE ROAD AND ALSO USE A WALKING BRIDGE IN ALUMINUM OVER THE STREET AS SAME TO EITHER SIDE AND PLACE ELEVATORS FOR THE WEEL CHAIRS AND FOR OTHER CITIZEN UNABLE TO WALK DISTANCES. As you can see in the video, the transmilenio run on the middle of the estreet in both sides.
It's true this project was interesting but after some years, the clients expend to much time for the specific bus and them in the congestion hours is extremely a mess, so my question is what is the advantage of this kind of transportation, if the services is terrible?
[...] http://www.streetfilms.org/bus-rapid-transit-bogota/ [...]
[...] click aquí para ver un video en inglés acerca de Bogotá y su [...]
I have read a lot about BRT in Bogota but it has been good to see your video Mr.Clarence Eckerson. the video would have been even more informative if it included 1)how BRT lanes are designed in cross roads/ junction dealing other vehicular traffic and the BRT buses 2) how people get out of buses and cross the roads to enter their neighbourhoods (foot over bridges etc) 3) Road signal system..
poornima
in the crossroads the bus obviously stops, but as transmilenio is only in the huge highways, as for example in the nqs highways 14 lane width, the streets that intersect the highwat usually join to it or have a bridge to overpass it, so cross roads are not to much common
for the people, the stations , each bus has different routes , most of the way is in a rect line, so the system is even faster, there is also a normal bus adjunted to the TM that is the alimentador or feeding bus that goes from the station to the neighborhoods near the big stations like the portals or mid big stations where two "troncales" cross, and there is also a bike adjunted system for 200 pesos a day (10 dollar cents)