Maybe not that unpopular – I think the 100 deviating to the airport permanently is a good idea. Don’t get me wrong, it’s much better for Raleigh folks than Durham/CH – but nonetheless, now that it’s 15-minute all day service, it’s still more frequent than the current RDU shuttle, so delays shouldn’t matter as much.
1 Like
As a former Raleigh-RTP daily bus rider back when there was the 100 (via RDU) and the 105 (direct to RTC) having to catch the 100 at certain times of day when the 105 was not running was really awful.
Similarly a diversion to RTC, even the new RTC, would be very annoying to DRX/CRX riders.
Not on board with something that prioritizes high frequency bus service to the airport (that almost nobody will ever use) over daily commuters.
3 Likes
GoTriangle’s plan is to upgrade Route 100 to 15-minute service with all trips operating through RDU. This would be done concurrently with upgrading midday DRX service to 30-minute headways. The June 4th Planning & Development Committee meeting documents noted that 40 percent of Route 100 and 700 passengers transfer to the other route at RTC.
3 Likes
Yeah, or a GoRaleigh 70L extension via RDU that goes to the RTC. It’s pretty insulting that Wake County residents have to go past the airport on the 100, just to double back to the airport on a shuttle.
3 Likes
Agreed. I also have a lot of coworkers at RTP who live in Brier Creek. In order for them to take transit to work, they have to take the 70L->6 → 100->Lyft (RTP Connect). Nobody’s going to do that.
The triangle has a lot of job sprawl, which is bad for transit but GoTriangle needs to work to serve the region as it is, not as we wish it to be. If they could take RDU Shuttle → Lyft (RTP Connect) we might get some usage and the new Triangle Mobility Hub is better situated for a lot of people at RTP, as well as move to a better strategy than Lyft for last mile we might be able to get some usage. (bike share and Via Microtransit?)
It’s also not just Wake County. People who live in Durham County around there have a similar problem. They need to trek back, to transfer to GoTriangle to get to RTC and getting from Chapel Hill to Brier Creek, means going to Durham first.
For buses to the airport, I wonder if the new DDI at Airport Blvd couldn’t be leveraged to create a (nearly) inline station where buses running along I-40 can get off at the exit, stop to exchange passengers, and get right back on. Since this would be a dedicated airport facility, RDU could spend airport money (rather than county sales tax money) to build it, and run a shuttle bus every 5 minutes or less such that there is always one on the platform.
6 Likes
I’ve never had to ride the shoulder on my trips. I wonder how it feels as a passenger.
3 Likes
I did it on the DRX a few weeks ago. It was absolutely wild. Not sure if it was just this driver but he was swerving in and out of traffic around the on/off ramps like it was Mad Max. Pretty bumpy due to the rumble strip and bus not fitting entirely on the median, but skipping traffic rocks!
4 Likes
As somebody who rode on the 100 quite often until very recently: RUMBLE-RUMBLE-RATTLE-BAM! Or if you happen to catch an electric bus, more bounce than rattle.
The fact that this cuts the commute from RTP to Raleigh in half more than makes up for it.
1 Like
Speaking of Bus On Shoulder, NCDOT has plans to widen I-40 (add an “auxiliary lane” where the onramp from one exit feeds directly into the offramp for the next) between Harrison Avenue and Aviation Parkway. This will solve IMO the most annoying spot for buses on the shoulder: the bridge over Reedy Creek where it’s too narrow and there is no shoulder.
It seems like the new bridges that are being built (for Reedy Creek Road as well as for I-40 over Reedy Creek itself) will leave room in the median for future managed lanes.
9 Likes
311 was my hoss back in the day. Times change but glad to see it back!
5 Likes
GoTriangle CEO Dr. Brian Smith is stepping down after 14 months in the role. He is returning to Hampton Roads Transit, where he served as Deputy CEO before coming to GoTriangle, as CEO. Press release states that Deputy CEO Katharine Eggleston will act as an interm CEO while they find yet another replacement…
4 Likes
I was just coming here to post this 
I thought I saw good things coming from him but GoTriangle feels really disfunctional and I don’t feel like I know what he accomplished.
2 Likes
Go Triangle has always had its issues unfortunately.
If nothing else, he got GoTriangle to focus on its core mission as regional bus service provider. They are well on their way to providing 15-minute headways on all of their core routes in the near future.
3 Likes
I would love to see that and have really enjoyed the bigger focus on the 100s routes, than the DRX/CRX. As well as the take over of the 420, launch of the 311, all day service on the WRX, and ZWX. Other than being a good face and appearing to show up to operators on social media, I can’t tell how much of that he had a hand in, vs how much was trying to make up for the death of commuter rail on the part of staff.
2 Likes
Exploring the outer reaches of the GoTriangle network. Had dinner at Norse Brewing Longhouse, easily accessible from the ZWX. Delicious bison Viking burger. Delicious cider, pilsner, and Amber Beers. 
Take the 5:15 ZWX out of RUSBUS and you’ll have about 2 hours to have your meal and relax before taking the 8:15 ZWX back to Raleigh 
16 Likes
What a grear tip!! Thanks for sharing. This sort of tip seems like a great way to get folks to try the bus. Do you have a website?