| Title | Houston North Freeway Contraflow Lane Demonstration: Final Report |
|---|---|
| Record ID | 48785 |
| Personal Name Creator |
Atherton, Terry J.; Eder, Ellyn S. |
| Source | 308p. in various pagings |
| Corporate Creator | Cambridge Systematics |
| Corporate Contributor |
John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (U.S.); United States. Department of Transportation. Urban Mass Transportation Administration. Office of Service and Management Demonstrations; United States. Department of Transportation. Urban Mass Transportation Administration. Office of Technical Assistance |
| Publisher | United States. Department of Transportation. Urban Mass Transportation Administration |
| Publication Date | 19821201 |
| Language | English |
| Abstract | On August 28, 1979, the Metropolitan Transit Authority (METRO) of Harris County in Texas, in cooperation with the Texas State Department of Highways and Public Transportation and the Urban Mass Transportation Administration, began operation of a contraflow lane on the North Freeway as one element of a comprehensive corridor transportation improvement program. Metro's objectives in implementing both the contraflow lane and associated corridor improvements were to: 1) decrease or slow the growth of corridor vehicle miles of travel and associated fuel consumption and vehicle emissions; 2) increase vehicle occupancy in the corridor; 3) reduce congestion and therefore, decrease travel time; and 4) encourage acceptance and usage of public transportation. This report presents an evaluation of the impacts related to contraflow operation of Houston's North Freeway. In the Houston demonstration, a 9.6 mile contraflow lane was available for use by buses and vanpools during the morning and afternoon peak periods. In addition to the contraflow lane, a number of other transportation improvements were also implemented in the North Freeway Corridor. In particular, bus service was expanded considerably and two park-and-ride lots were built and a third leased from a church. This evaluation focuses on the feasibility, in terms of adverse impacts on non-priority users, safety, enforcement, public acceptance, etc., of the contraflow lane. Contraflow operation resulted in a average round-trip travel-time savings of 40 minutes for bus riders and vanpoolers using the contraflow lane during the peak hour. As a result, bus ridership and to a lesser extent, vanpooling increased considerably. The feasibility of contraflow operation as a high occupancy vehicle priority measure was also demonstrated by this project. Appendices A through E in the report are, respectively: Survey Administration and Questionnaires; Contraflow Driver Training Manual; Newspaper Articles, Editorials, and Letters to the Editor; Bibliography; and Report of New Technology. |
| Rosap ID | dot:10277 |
| Rosap URL | https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/10277 |
| TRT Terms | Ridership; Bus lanes; High occupancy vehicle lanes; Contraflow lanes; Peak periods; Travel time; Vanpools |
| Classification | NTL - HIGHWAY/ROAD TRANSPORTATION - HIGHWAY/ROAD TRANSPORTATION; NTL - PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION - Transit Planning and Policy; NTL - PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION - PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION; NTL - PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION - Bus Transportation |
| Geographical Coverage |
Houston (Texas) |
| Contract Number | DOT-TSC-1405 |
| Report Number | DOT-TSC-UMTA-82-56; UMTAMA-06-0049-82-12 |
| Resource type | Tech Report |
| URL | https://ntlrepository.blob.core.windows.net/lib/48000/48700/48785/DOT-TSC-UMTA-82-56.pdf |
| Format | |
| Database | NTL Digital Repository |