Group members: Hugh Shin, Kyle Arnolds, Justin Bischof, Jun Huang, Herrick Lam
History of NYC transportation (Jun Huang):
- Timeline of public transportation:
- The earliest form of public transportation is the ferry, dating back to 1642
- NJ ferry in 1661
- Harlem ferry in 1667
- Staten Island ferry in 1712
- 1814: The Fulton Ferry became the first steamship service connecting both Fulton streets in Manhattan and Brooklyn. It reduced travel time to only 14 minutes.
- In 1827, the first omnibus (horse-drawn carriages that ran on metal tracks) was introduced. However, much of this technology were initially reserved for the wealthier classes. By 1855, 593 omnibuses traveled on 27 Manhattan routes. Ground transportation became a lot more efficient and this became the first mass public transit.
- 1883: opening of Brooklyn Bridge + cable-powered railway enabled ground transportation between the 2 boroughs
- Elevated railway service began in 1870. First subway operated by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) in 1904
- Private transportation
- Automobiles weren’t first introduced in NYC, but it’s growing popularity certainly attributed to New Yorkers. In November of 1900, there were roughly 500 automobiles in all of NYS. But But after the first auto show in the Madison Square Garden, automobile popularity skyrocketed. Within a decade, 300,000 automobiles were in the U.S.
- As a result, NYC (and the entire country) began investing in private transportation
- Building highways (Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 – $26 billion)
- Robert Moses suggests building the Belt Parkway in 1930 and also the I-278 (which then led to the construction of the Gowanus expressway)
- The beginning of congestion
- As transportation was separated into many different categories (like buses, trains, bikes, personal automobiles, and even taxis), the transportation system developed many complications.
- The early 1900s was a prosperous (and problematic) era. Total population grew by ~1.3 million between 1900-1910 and 1920-1930. The growth between 1910 and 1920 were just shy of a million. Over these 3 decades, the population grew more than the rest of the century combined. In fact, the population grew by nearly 3x between 1900 and 1930 than it did for the rest of the century. At that time, mass transit was still developing. It was nowhere near ready to accommodate the mass influx of immigrants. So congestion isn’t really a modern problem. Since the 1900s, it has been building up to the congestion that we experience today.
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- So why is congestion such a huge problem in NYC? There are plenty of cities out there with dense population. Tokyo’s current population is 9.2 million as of 2015 while NYC only has a population of 8.5 million. The answer lies within technology. In other countries, their mass transit systems are much more advanced and sustainable because they were built using much more modern technology. In Tokyo, Japan, for instance, their first subway system wasn’t established until 1927. It is much easier for their upgrade their tracks and subway cars than it is improve than some century old tracks.
Studying other Case Studies and Recurring Problems of Traffic Congestion [Hugh]
https://www.geotab.com/blog/reduce-traffic-congestion/
Adaptive traffic signals: government is testing traffic timing by analyzing the amount of time cars idle at signals and flow of traffic during different times of the day and year. Better analysis can result in better-timed traffic signals.
Smart cars: significant decrease in accidents, and overall control of traffic could make ‘traffic blocks’ move around more effectively. Groups of cars can all be sped up or slowed down autonomously
Pedestrian and housing analysis: by analyzing pedestrian traffic patterns and congestion, housing contractors can get a better understanding of where to build new housing to alleviate traffic congestion.
Drones replacing cars: this is for tasks where human presence is not required. Already being done by Dominos Pizza (smart car drives to customer, customer can put in code and receive pizza from car door that opens).
https://www.smartcitiesworld.net/special-reports/special-reports/cities-in-a-jam-reducing-urban-traffic-congestion
HOV policy in Indonesia: regulation so each car is required to have at least 3 passengers to avoid single-occupancy cars. Tests indicated that without this policy, speed of cars during rush hours were significantly slower.
Traffic signal AI: *note this isn’t in the article, my idea*, many basic AI models are based on a program trying out every possible outcome at an incredible speed. Make a mistake at step 1, repeat, get through step 1, 2, make mistake at step 3, repeat, and keep going until it seems the AI accomplishes the perfect solution seemingly on its first try. Similar mechanics could be implemented into real-time, reactive traffic signals.
Stockholm and its congestion tax: what’s important in this aspect is not the tax, but the holistic approach. The city recognizes congestion is a multilateral problem and also tackles future housing design, adding additional ferry lines, new traffic management center, and other solutions.
https://www.businessinsider.com/cities-going-car-free-ban-2017-8
Banning of cars: many of these plans aren’t simply getting rid of cars, but they’re implementing other means of transportation. By identifying areas of heavy traffic, they have designed faster walking methods and technology and such areas. The core idea is that it should be easier to walk than to take public transportation.
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20140611-can-we-ever-end-traffic-jams
Can a city be car-free?
The big issue with congestion is not the congestion itself, its the mountain of problems hidden beneath it that aren’t easily evident at first. Congestion occurs for deep-rooted serious issues like overpopulation, lack of housing or poor design in housing location, or inefficient traffic systems and routes. Another issue is the lack of ‘communication’. For most traffic jams, there needs to be some sort of organization to unclog the jam. But with each car having its own drivers all trying to get home first, jams become a lot worse than they could be. By creating autonomous systems of cars, traffic signals, or roads themselves, it can significantly reduce congestion. This article talks more about how traffic congestion is a problem that could very realistically be solved: https://issues.org/samuel/
Proposed Plan [Herrick L]
Give public buses their own traffic lights in addition to the normal traffic lights to make public transportation faster for people
- Very often, buses have to stop for the bus stops and for traffic lights making the ride extra long
- We can make the stops at the traffic lights go by faster by giving buses their own lights in addition to the traffic lights already in place
- This way, private cars have to wait longer while public transportation becomes faster
Change the fare system for public transportation
- Make the fares so that it is based on distance but up to a certain distance
- So, for example, if someone is only taking the bus or subway for a few stops, charge them depending on how far they go
- Apply this fare system up to a certain number of stops and then apply a single fare for any distances beyond that number
- This will be beneficial for both the long and short distance travelers
- For people who take private cars over a short distance which causes traffic, this system will allow them to take public transportation at a lower price
- For example, if a student is trying to get from Penn Station to Baruch, which is a substantial walking distance, rather than use a private car or paying for an overpriced subway ride because it’s only a few stops, they can take public transportation at a lower price based on that distance
Improve the comfortability of public transportation/Prevent overcrowding
- People generally view public transportation as being stuck in a crowded space with a lot of people crammed together
- The overcrowding in public transportation makes taking subways and buses very unappealing and unattractive to potential riders
- By preventing the overcrowding, people can enjoy taking public transportation which incentivizes them to take it more often
- They should create a system where the subway car or bus knows when it’s at max capacity based on weight and close the doors automatically when it reaches that weight limit
- This way people know which cars aren’t as crowded and they can enter cars that don’t have a lot of people creating an equal spread of people on subways
- Nothing is worse than finding out that the subway car directly next to yours is nearly empty
Build elevated roads throughout the city for public transportation
- Another way to alleviate congestion is to build new roads and there is an ample amount of space in the sky
- I’m proposing building elevated roads that provides more space for public transportation
- This way, there will be two “floors” for traffic to run through because more space equals less traffic
Not a short-term plan
- These plans that I’m proposing are not short-term solutions but rather for the long-term
- To implement these plans, the city would have to do extensive planning and construction that will likely take decades to accomplish
Implementing these plans in outer boroughs first to test if it works
- Before implementing these plans, the government should test them out on the outer boroughs before hitting the main parts of the city.
- They should test them out on smaller neighborhoods and gradually move into the bigger neighborhoods and eventually into the center of Manhattan
Potential Obstacles Accompanying Our Proposed Solution (Justin Bischof)
Pushback from car/other private transportation companies
-Car companies, as well as private transportation companies (e.g. Uber/Lyft) will obviously be upset if the city were to introduce a cap on cars/congestion pricing
-DeBlasio actually attempted (and failed) to place a cap on the number of for-hire vehicles available through the city (source: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/26/nyregion/new-york-city-council-uber-limit.html)
-The number of these vehicles have surged throughout recent years and now another proposal for changing the legislation surrounding these vehicle is coming
How do we solve this issue?
-The city can incentivize companies to manufacture eco-friendly and autonomous vehicles; these vehicles would help with both lowering emissions and reducing congestion
-Oslo, Norway is a perfect example. Here, nearly a third of the cars are electric and there is a trend of replacing normal gas cars with electric cars like Teslas.
-The government incentivizes people to buy electric cars. Citizens get free parking, access to the HOV lane (less traffic), no registration fees, tax deductions, no tolls, etc.
-On the business side, companies like Tesla don’t have to pay a sales tax
-Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSjYra7cYqY
-In London, the Ultra Low Emission Discount (ULED) provided free access to congestion pricing zones to any drivers using vehicles that met certain strict efficiency standards
Greater Reliance on Outdated/Ineffective Public Transportation
-Like Herrick mentioned, the city will need to upgrade its current public transportation if we were to incentivize it
-Redesign stations to get people on and off faster
-Modernize the signal system
-Add, replace, and upgrade subway cars
-Implement a new fare collection system
-More regularly scheduled and predictable patterns of bus/train times
-Efficient or even autonomous buses
-Quick look at Tokyo and how they do public transportation the right way:
-Separately owned and operated rail systems that are interconnected; this lowers the pressure of publicly owned and operated systems (MTA)
-Seamless transfers through geniusly designed stations
-Fares depend where you are going and how fast you want to get there
-Schedules are planned ahead of time and trains tend to stick to those schedules
Cost
-Drones and new technology will be costly to integrate, but the benefits will outweigh the costs
-Congestion pricing will help fund maintenance and expansion of the new technologies/public transportation
-In the long run, money saved from negating pollution from transportation in NYC could actually fund the incentives for owning electric/fuel-efficient vehicles
*Need to figure out specific numbers based on other cities and their own plans
Public Outcry
-Ultimately, a city without private transportation would place on pressure disabled and elderly citizens
-Some residents, especially in the outer boroughs still live nearly a 30 minute walk from the nearest station
-Construction can interfere with daily routine and take a long time to complete
-People will complain about any fare increase or tax or congestion pricing so long as it affects their wallets
Ultimate benefits of a future that is not reliant on cars (Kyle Arnolds)
- Better for the environment
- Reduces Greenhouse Gases
- Transportation accounts for 29 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States.
- Heavy rail transit such as subways and metros produce on average 76% lower greenhouse gas emissions per passenger mile than an average single-occupancy vehicle (SOV). Light rail systems produce 62% less and bus transit produces 33% less.
- Reference:https://www.transit.dot.gov/regulations-and-guidance/environmental-programs/transit-environmental-sustainability/transit-role
- Facilitates Compact Development
- In Public transportation can support higher density land development, which reduces the distance and time people need to travel to reach their destinations, meaning fewer emissions from transportation. Compact development also leaves more land in the region for parks, wildlife preserves, forests and other uses such as agriculture. Finally, it reduces the need for pavement, meaning less run-off that degrades the water supply.
- Reference: https://www.transit.dot.gov/regulations-and-guidance/environmental-programs/transit-environmental-sustainability/transit-role
- Improves Air Quality
- Reducing overall vehicle emissions will lead to a reduction of smog in urban areas.
- Reference: https://www.transit.dot.gov/regulations-and-guidance/environmental-programs/transit-environmental-sustainability/transit-role
- Reduces Motor Vehicle Fatalities
- Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death for people in the United States ages 1 to 34.
- Public transportation is safer and has a lower accident rate than independent vehicles.
- https://www.sycamoreinstitutetn.org/2017/02/21/transportation-impacts-public-health/
- Promotes Physical Activity
- Regular physical activity reduces risk of type two diabetes, some cancers, cardiovascular disease, and premature mortality.
- Studies show that every 60 minutes spent in a car per day increases a person’s likelihood of becoming obese by 6%.
- https://www.sycamoreinstitutetn.org/2017/02/21/transportation-impacts-public-health/
- Attracts Investment
- Billions of dollars have been invested in financial districts, residential communities, office buildings, and sports facilities along transit lines
- Saves on Infrastructure Costs
- Because of public transportation, municipalities spend less on paving, road building, and utility extensions. This frees up valuable government resources for education, safety, and social services
- http://www.voicesforpublictransit.org/content.aspx?page=issues&id=Issue1
