Virginia Beach Rejuvenated

In Virginia Beach’s Oceanfront, the streets are alive with people at all times of day, which is how it should be during peak tourist season. I was pleasantly surprised by this summer’s rebirth, and I surmise that a reckoning moment had come in the city’s Tourism Bureau after a lackluster performance in the first post-pandemic summer of 2022. Much credit has been given to the return of the Summer Work Visa, in which young adults, mainly from Eastern Europe, share an apartment and work for the summer. I have heard them working- with Slavic language- in places ranging from a Japanese buffet to hotel lifeguarding work. I have realized that transportation is a barrier for getting locals to take these jobs. The neighborhoods closest to the Oceanfront are upscale, with the fact that those youth have other summer opportunities. The Virginia Beach Oceanfront is served by one through-bus line, which ends 90 minutes away in the inner city of Norfolk. (A daytime express service is geared to tourists). While there are many moderate-income families living near the downtown terminus, I would predict that the teenagers are already likely to have year-round after-school employment. Overall, it appears to be easier to commute across the ocean from Europe than from adjacent Norfolk. Credit should also be given to the tourists themselves, who have given Virginia Beach a new look. The city may have been overlooked during last year’s “revenge travel” trend, but being within a day’s drive of a quarter of the US population makes for a friendly destination in economically inflationary times.

Naval Base Shuttle is no Squeaky Wheel

I’ve used up several blog posts to discuss buses, bus networks, bus system funding; and thankfully, this effort has paid off at Naval Station Norfolk. The crux of the transportation issue was severe gate traffic, as 50,000 daily commuters in mostly single-occupancy vehicles needed to pass through a limited number of Entry Control Points. In addition, 12,000 junior enlisted sailors live onboard ship or in barracks onboard the Naval Station. The local transit provider, Hampton Roads Transit, had until 2017 served the Naval Base at the end of several regular routes. Because gate traffic, and gate closures, were so unpredictable, Hampton Roads Transit ended on-base service as part of a “Service Reliability Plan”. Some rush-hour commuter routes continued until COVID-era restrictions in 2020. Without reliable transit service, the junior enlisted sailor heads to a car dealership on Little Creek Road to sign an expensive lease, or make a purchase at a high interest rate. While there was no base-wide transit coordination, some ships and shore commands did take their own initiative to furnish vans for the convenience of their sailors. These were often funded by profits from onboard ship’s stores. I performed research into furnishing similar service to the predominately-civilian Military Sealift Command. It all came down to funding: due to “prevailing maritime practice”, beer, cigars and other “vice” items could only be sold at a 10% markup; in contrast to the market price allowed for warships. Another option was the commuter benefit program, but that would require close cooperation of shipboard supervisors, who are preoccupied with other ship’s business. Nevertheless, I had a plan on paper. While on-base transit service is usually paid for from facility operating funds, Naval Station Norfolk restored on-base shuttle service with a three-year grant from the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Department of Rail and Passenger Transportation. With 50,000 commuters, the lack of on-base transit was of statewide significance. Ironically, the service was contracted to James River Transportation, the same firm I had identified in my own transit plans. Hopefully, a permanent funding mechanism will be identified before the grant money ceases. Our sailors deserve it.

Systems Engineering by Bus

You may remember the park-and-ride blog post I wrote several years ago. I have to admit, I like to draft bus maps and schedules, and have done so well before pursing my master’s degree in systems engineering. In my coursework, I got credit for doing what I love: making bus schedules. In the era of work-from-home, it seems a bit untimely to be thinking about the topic. But COVID-19 had pummeled transit agencies and private bus companies to the ground, so the only trendline is upward. Tools used: -Google Maps, whose driving times between destinations are overly optimistic -Local transit schedules for major cities, which have included traffic conditions that vary on time-of-day -Driving the route itself. - Transit maps from the early 1970s, as these maps show the dense neighborhoods where transit was economically viable prior to federal subsidies. -Excel Spreadsheets, Got to have them. Throw in real-world constraints: -People don’t like to sit on buses that take them on a circuitous ride. Put straight lines on the map, preferably on freeways with exclusive transit lanes, and try to get people to work in 30 minutes or less. -Choice riders (aka, the middle class) will not tolerate unreliable or infrequent service. Buffer time must be included to improve schedule adherence. -The most efficient use of buses is to serve a prosperous central business district with high parking costs. Focus on routes to big cities. -Subsidy of commuter passes, as required for employers in Los Angeles and Washington, DC; are effective at increasing ridership. Focus on routes to big, environmentally progressive cities. - Equipment Cost of Ownership, Fuel, Union-Level Wages. Cost Per Operating Hour, or about $110 per hour for private operators, is a good metric. Consult the experts: -Randall O’Toole of the libertarian Cato Institute had put public transit in his crosshairs. But to know his enemy, he did extensive research on alternatives, such as Uber and immigrant-run jitney services in New York. -Studies performed by the US Department of Transportation, and states such as New Jersey and Virginia, during the transition to industry deregulation in the 1980s. Titles include “Private Sector Options for Commuter Transportation, 1984” and “Financing Public Transportation in Virginia, 1979”. Put it all together, and you get short and sweet routes through dense, but low-traffic neighborhoods. A real-world example of this model is the eponymous Short Line in New York; or DeCamp in New Jersey. Both pea-shoot passengers through the Hudson River’s Lincoln Tunnel, use exclusive transit lanes, and quickly arrive in walkable suburban neighborhoods.

A Century of the Park and Ride.

 

The concept began in early upper middle class suburbs, likely the 1920s in places like F Scott Fitzgerald’s Great Neck, NY, some 20 miles from Manhattan. Urban-working Professionals would “motor” to the train station and commute to downtown on the railroad.

In World War Two, fuel rationing combined with the construction of military facilities and factories on the fringe of cities, such as Farmingdale NY, required the use of carpooling by war workers.

Even in the automobile friendly 1950s, city planners recognized that freeways and road widening could not solve the urban traffic problem - even the infamous General Motors admitted so in their half hour documentary “Let’s Go to Town”. Fringe parking outside of downtown were put into service, saving motorists downtown parking fees and the aggravation of stop and go driving.

 Later, approaching and during the 1970s fuel crises, these park and rides were placed closer to residential areas, and dedicated bus lanes, such as those between DC and Alexandria VA, and on NYC’s Lincoln Tunnel Approach, were put into service.

A decline in carpooling came with the rise in dual-income households: husbands now took responsibility for a “honey do list”, domestic responsibilities such as grocery shopping and dry-cleaning pickup on the way home from work. This often required bringing one owns car to the office, instead of sharing the ride with a co-worker.

Revitalization and construction of new downtown sports stadiums in the 1990s required proactive traffic management. The lots and light rails that served office commuters by day could serve tourists in the evening.

Greyhound, the intercity bus company, realized that most riders had at least occasional access to a car for local trips. Bus stations moved out of downtowns to highway-adjacent park and rides. In states that have taken an interest in preserving regional bus access such as Colorado and Virginia, park and rides serve as the gateway to other regions of their respective states.

In addition to its service in preserving the walkability of downtown areas, the park-and-ride has also impacted the human experience at seaports, piers, and shipyards. In the United States, Boston Ship Repair in Boston, MA; and Deyten's in North Charleston, SC, deserve applause for avoiding the trend of turning port areas into vast asphalt parking lots. At these shipyards, mariners and shipfitters can easily walk to lunch outside the company gates. Reducing the need for a personal automobile increases quality of life. Long live the park and ride!