I don’t mean to be negative but I find it disappointing that planners haven’t been able to better coordinate efforts in what I’m going to call the “Triangle Core”.
Hub RTP, the new planned RTC, and the reworked GoTriangle 100 on I-40 are all frustratingly close, but just far enough apart that the connection will be not just mildly inconvenient, but quite impractical.
The original proposed location for the RTC relocation was better: north of NC54. Not sure what happened with that one.
Meanwhile, Hub RTP is about 3/4 mile west. 1/2 mile is usually regarded as the limit of “walking distance”, not to mention that the infrastructure for walking is poor to begin with here.
I can see the 100’s diversion to reach the RTC taking as much as 10 minutes from when it leaves the highway until it gets back on. It looks like a small diversion on this map but everybody on board those buses will feel the delay acutely.
The FAST study calls for “direct access ramps” so that buses can get on and off of I-40 more quickly, - but if the RTC were situated closer to I-40, buses would not have to leave I-40 at all and could instead have a “direct access station” which would allow the most seamless connection possible between rail and buses.
I do understand that when it comes to transit we aren’t really in the position of being picky: we can’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. But it all just feels like a missed opportunity.
Lastly note that I am not including RDU in my list of disappointments. As @core2idiot (and Jarrett Walker) have pointed out, RDU is a cul-de-sac and it’s difficult to serve as a stop “on the way” from anywhere to anywhere else. As such, a high frequency shuttle connection is probably the best solution. Over time, perhaps we can make the shuttle connection shorter by improving the infrastructure and perhaps moving the connection point on I-40 closer to the airport. For example, the FAST study shows “direct access ramps” there as well.