Plans advance for Philly-South Jersey BRT, in addition to intrastate light rail to Glassboro Options

[KevinKorell]

Philadelphia, PA Inquirer, 6/11/12:

A proposed bus "rapid-transit" route designed to reduce traffic and ease commutes on the heavily traveled South Jersey corridor that includes Routes 55 and 42 and I-676 was approved Monday by the NJ Transit board.

Story is here.

OK.... but simply put BRT will have to get stuck in some traffic, if not on the freeways then on the Ben Franklin Bridge. And it will not quite noticeable what a mistake this is as the PATCO trains fly by on the sides of the bridge.

The rapid-bus system would allow buses to travel in dedicated lanes, with traffic-signal priority, to speed the commute to Philadelphia.

Traffic signal priority? There are already no traffic signals on the freeways nor on the bridge; just in Philadelphia.

The plan chosen as the "locally preferred alternative" would call for 26 buses to run at 10- to 15-minute intervals during rush hours from Winslow to a location west of City Hall on Market Street in Philadelphia.

West of City Hall? That would be outside the bus loop that NJT's commuter routes now follow around Philly, and also apart from the downtown terminal (Greyhound) that the longer distance NJT buses use. Both are most convenient to SEPTA's Market East station. A point west of City Hall might be closer to Suburban Station. Hmmm I wonder if Comcast has a stake in this (it would bring commuters to its front door)??