Loopy Figures

While I'm waiting to hear back from some of the people I emailed for information today, I'm also looking into user statistics for the bus loop. Richard Drdul includes a Transportation Status Report with most of these numbers on his blog and the rest are from the Comprehensive Community Plan and Campus Transit Plan.

• Ridership increase since 1997: 140%
• Total weekday transit trips to and from UBC: 45,600
• Percentage of trips made to and from UBC on transit: 42%
• Weekday transit trips per prson: 0.86
• Peak transit time: 9:00-15:00 (18,270 trips or 40%)
• Student population at UBC in 2005: 43,550
• Staff population at UBC in 2005: 7,650
• Faculty population at UBC in 2005: 2,100
• Total UBC population in 2005: 53,300
• Estimated transit ridership for 2011: 56,300
• Estimated number of incoming buses (morning) in 2011: 141
• Estimated number of incoming buses (morning) in 2022: 165
• Estimated time elapsed between arriving buses (morning, 8-9 am, 2003): 50 seconds
• Optimum capacity for bus loop until 2028: 40 buses
• Increase in trips per person between 1997 and 2005: 91%

The UBC Campus Transit Plan also identified several concerns regarding a below-grade transit station:

• Fear that the station and bus tunnel would be ugly
• Location of bus entrance to station may avoid traffic better south of University Boulevard
• It may be difficult to ventilated the station and there may be impact on the surrounding air quality
• It may be difficult to make station secure

It lists the following as advantages of a below-grade station:

• Faster transit service/fewer delays because station would be fare-paid zone
• avoidance of traffic congestion and delays at pedestrian crosswalks
• Could be designed to allow for the implementation of rapid transit at a future date (the Comprehensive Community Plan says that one of the principles for transit is to
  provide flexibility for changing transit configurations over time such as planning the transportation system to accommodate a potential future LRT route and stations.)

The CCP has "Placemaking Principles " for both open space and urban form, and lists Planning objectives for the University Commercial and UBC Academic Core.

New Bus Loop Approved!

I had my second meeting with Thesis Advisor M today. She's approved the bus loop concept, and we made a list of people I should contact to be on my committee and a list of things that I should get/find out for my first meeting. Apparently another professor might have access to some plans and things for the site which could cut down on a lot of work.

The bus loop is part of a larger University Boulevard Competition that was held in 2005. Moore Rubel Yudell of Santa Monica teamed with Hughes Condon Marler and won the conceptual design competition (announced April 28, 2005). In 2006 Moore Rubel Yudell pulled out of the project and were replaced by Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects out of Toronto. (from the Ubyssey)

The University Boulevard Competition excluded the design of the underground bus loop, which was designed by engineers. This design can be seen online and seems to focus on weaving. I'm not crazy about the design because I think the residential blocks completely mask the War Memorial Gym and will cast unpleasant shadows. The project includes:

• construction of realigned University Blvd including revised intersections at Webrook Mall and East Mall
• Transit station and ramp with the trolley station at grade including associated reconfiguration of underground utilities
• Two buildings adjacent to the student union building and Aquatic Centre
• Extensive Landscaping renovation
• Vehicle access and parking adjacent to Bookstore

Construction is slated to commence in June 2007, be completed in April 2009 and be occupied in September 2009.

The bus loop itself was designed by VIA Architects, who were also the urban design consulting firm for the 2010 Olympic Village. They have done a ton of transit work, including three of the new Millenium Line stations, the furniture design for the Millenium Line stations and the Burrard and Granville Stations for the Expo Line. I've sent them an e-mail, so hopefully they will get back to me with some interesting information.