Walking home from the grocery store the other day, it started to rain. Right then I saw an empty bus ride past me. I didn’t think of flagging it down and riding it home. Why? Because that would have cost me $2, and a 6-block trip isn’t worth $2 to me, even in the rain.
Does this situation seem strange to anyone else? A bus paid for mostly with sales taxes (not fares) driving by empty when it could have saved a citizen several minutes and some comfort?
The problem, as I see it, is the fare model. We have a flat fare for simplicity, and we’ve chosen $2 as a rate that will attract the average rider and keep them out of their car. But that makes short-distance bus trips a bad buy while giving long-distance trips a great value.
I propose that once we have ORCA we should consider distance-based fares. Four blocks costs, say, $0.10. Four miles would be around $1. 12 miles would be $3. This not only encourages bus use for those that live close to their workplace, but also encourages using the bus for something other than commuting.
It’s not paid for at all by property taxes. It’s paid for by sales taxes.
Oops. You’re right, thanks (changing post).
Matt, that’s great in theory–actually I would love it in theory, that discourages sprawl–but that’s very difficult to do on busses. Problems I see:
(1) Payment. ORCA is obvious, but what about everybody else? It’s impractical to get a card to every transit rider. So: do you make people “report” on and off and pay when they leave, even going downtown? Do you simply make the cash fare equal to the max and penalize tourists, occasional riders and the poor? How do you make that work?
(2) Enforcement. Distance-based fares require the system to know when you got on and when you get off. ORCA helps, but how do you have people swiping on and off? If you let them swipe back-door, do you hire fare inspectors? If not, do you eliminate free ride? Additionally: what’s to keep folks from boarding at 4th and Union, swiping “off” at 6th and Olive, and then riding all the way to Everett or Issaquah or Tacoma or Gold Bar on a $0.20 fare?
Like I said, it’s a concept that would be fantastic, but I don’t see how you can make it work without the advantages of rail.
(1) Sneaky how you tucked “the poor” into that question. I don’t see income as a barrier to a smart card. How I’d deal with the rest is the standard fare system. No ORCA card? Maximum fare.
(2) How about we put the back scanner outside the back door? Enter front, leave front or back. Yes, swipe on and off. I’m fine with getting rid of the ride free zone if we have a distance based fare – nobody will mind paying a dime or two.
I agree that the fare structure needs to be more equitable. For example, I can ride the 342 from Shoreline down to Renton and pay a single zone fare or I can get to Renton via Seattle and pay two-zones for a trip takes twice as long. However, making a complex fare structure probably requires a move to “proof-of-payment” aka honor system. The task of enforcing fares needs to be taken off the drivers and placed in the hands of fare inspectors. I don’t want to see drivers arguing with passengers on the correct fare, slowing things down and causing trouble.
Many European transit systems use distance-based fares in the form of many small zones. They also use the proof-of-payment system, on rail and even on buses since the late 1960s. Enforcement is key to success. Portland tried it on their buses in the 80s and it was a failure because their enforcement was weak and the equipment broke down often. One of the reasons they wanted to do POP was to make the fare structure more equitable by having more zones.
Here’s a bit of history about Metro fare zones
So there’s your distance-based system. I don’t know how it performed though.
I don’t think ORCA will be a problem for tourists as long as they set up a system for returning cards. When I was in Singapore I got a stored-value card with a deposit and then returned it for my deposit.
I have always thought that if we collect fares at all, it should be with a card and the charge should be per mile. It’s not like we don’t have GPS and everything else we need to do it.
We’ll have distance-based fares on LINK
But seriously, where’s your bus pass, Matt?
As the kind of guy who walks home from the grocery store(!), you’re a shoo-in for a transit pass.
I’d rather see us figure out a way to get transit passes in more people’s hands. Hopping on a bus for a 6-block jaunt is only going to be viable for a certain subset of the urban population — the folks who live near frequent transit lines. The other way to crack this nut is just to work on policies that increase the percentage of those folks who have bus passes, either through subsidies, by offering better service, etc., etc.
Even when I had a job and commuted the whole 2.5 miles downtown, and couldn’t carpool for a few months, the bus pass would have cost me an extra $8 more than just paying cash. Now, being a stay-at-home dad until the economy picks up? That’s $72 a month that can be used on food.
I live close to 5 separate lines and a bus pass doesn’t make sense for me. The reason? Our rates are really set up for long-distance daily bus commuters or people without cars.
When you had a job? You got laid off? That really sucks.
That’s our economy. It started with the Architects and has made it to the Engineers. At least I made it to the second round of layoffs in my company. Anyway, don’t worry about me – I’m happy to take care of my son for a few months until work heats up again around here.
Viscerally, I want to live in the world where all you said is true. However, Metro has attempted FARE FREE circulators that would have/should have taken people short to medium distances to do what they must (I’m thinking Ballard LINK for all you vets). The fact of the matter is that Seattle is just as American as any other city – there will need to be a cultural revolution before masses take transit, regardless of fare – or lack thereof.
In a comment above I suggested using GPS to calculate distance-based charges. It could be easier- just figure the miles the bus rolls with the card on it. Swipe on where the driver can see you, swipe off any door.
You know, here’s an idea on distance fares: round each trip to the nearest mile, and charge a fare of half the US GSA car mileage rate (currently $0.55/mile). That would constantly remind people that driving their car is ALWAYS going to be more expensive, though it could of course also be more convenient.