OKC Regional Transit System

[okcrun]

I will say, I’m just at peace (for now) they are actually looking to do an LRT line instead of settling for a BRT to connect the airport to downtown.

I'd rather have rail as well but we are still looking at 2-3 years before it would be open. A dedicated BRT between the airport and downtown with no stops in between could be implemented almost immediately, just use one of the existing downtown stops and build one at the airport.

[David]

There was a RTA town hall meeting yesterday with the final recommendations for the west and airport corridors. They are recommending a light rail line from the Sante Fe station downtown to the airport and a BRT for the west corridor. Next steps are final board approval next month and then work on putting a sales tax or similar proposal out for dedicated funding where they will be able to apply for Federal match dollars for the project. They said they would expect a vote would take place sometime in 2025.

Here is the town hall meeting: https://kimley-horn.zoom.us/rec/shar...7z3bTjbEEVsEyZ

All the presentations from that meeting and prior meetings: https://engagekh.com/rtamoves/resources/

The two initial recommendations from the 5/14 meeting:





It's not explicitly called out on any of the airport corridor slides that I can find but I wonder if the plan is to share the Reno Mini Hub between both lines.

[warreng88]

I'm trying to envision where that Reno mini hub will go. It looks like it points to just west of the OnCue on the back of the Wal-Mart. If they wanted something bigger (not sure what it will entail), there is land on Reno behind the Best Buy that is empty. That is further west than where the pin is.

[bison34]

Imagine how long it will take to create light-rail tracks from downtown to the airport. And how bad the traffic disruptions will be.

[BoulderSooner]

Imagine how long it will take to create light-rail tracks from downtown to the airport. And how bad the traffic disruptions will be.

and the cost

[Mississippi Blues]

I'd rather have rail as well but we are still looking at 2-3 years before it would be open. A dedicated BRT between the airport and downtown with no stops in between could be implemented almost immediately, just use one of the existing downtown stops and build one at the airport.

I wouldn’t be opposed to a temporary setup in the meantime. Again, money, but a BRT and LRT line working in unison could be nice as well. Could mitigate the number of stops needed to be made by light rail without having to skip out on more intermediate stops, not that there’s a ton between downtown and the airport.

[Mississippi Blues]

Imagine how long it will take to create light-rail tracks from downtown to the airport. And how bad the traffic disruptions will be.

Cities can’t just not invest in upgrading/updating infrastructure due to the temporary inconveniences or because it’ll take time to build. The alternative is playing catch up for the indefinite future and/or biting the bullet and building anyways but after the costs have ballooned for economic reasons.

[bison34]

Cities can’t just not invest in upgrading/updating infrastructure due to the temporary inconveniences or because it’ll take time to build. The alternative is playing catch up for the indefinite future and/or biting the bullet and building anyways but after the costs have ballooned for economic reasons.

Oh, I know. I agree wholeheartedly. Just dreading it. I know progress is sometimes short-term pain for long-term gain.

[mugofbeer]

and the cost

But there's literally hundreds of billions available for all the clean energy projects from the infrastructure bill!?

[Teo9969]

Why in the heck would you not include the fair grounds in that proposal?

[citywokchinesefood]

Why in the heck would you not include the fair grounds in that proposal?

BRT goes down tenth and goes past May, they can easily have a stop at the fairgrounds. The LRT also does it but at May and Reno, so what are you talking about?

[Teo9969]

BRT goes down tenth and goes past May, they can easily have a stop at the fairgrounds. The LRT also does it but at May and Reno, so what are you talking about?

It needs to get into the site, not just pass by it. As it stands now it would be similar to dropping people off at the swing back loop at WRWA.

[nickeljoshua]

I'm trying to envision where that Reno mini hub will go. It looks like it points to just west of the OnCue on the back of the Wal-Mart. If they wanted something bigger (not sure what it will entail), there is land on Reno behind the Best Buy that is empty. That is further west than where the pin is.

The Reno Mini Hub is not a new concept. That is what Embark calls the two on street stops that has 5 different lines stop there. It is called the Reno Mini Hub on Embark maps. It is located on Greenfield Center Drive. https://www.google.com/maps/place/S+...g%2F11b6_h6dw7

[warreng88]

The Reno Mini Hub is not a new concept. That is what Embark calls the two on street stops that has 5 different lines stop there. It is called the Reno Mini Hub on Embark maps. It is located on Greenfield Center Drive. https://www.google.com/maps/place/S+...g%2F11b6_h6dw7

Ah, got it. I forgot that was there. I have driven by it multiple times but didn't know that's what it was called. Thanks for the clarification.

[baralheia]

It needs to get into the site, not just pass by it. As it stands now it would be similar to dropping people off at the swing back loop at WRWA.

Considering that the Union Pacific Oklahoma Sub goes right through the Fairgrounds, and largely parallels the west corridor LPA, I'm really surprised that heavy rail was not considered here. Maybe due to there being no direct connection between the east-west Oklahoma Sub and BNSF's north-south Sooner Sub? A connection could be built to get those east-west trains up to Santa Fe Station but maybe they thought it'd be too expensive or something.

[okcrun]

funny in the airport example pictures they use the DENVER airport HEAVY rail pic ..

does any one know why heavy rail was not picked / considered more for the airport line??

I don't understand why A6 wasn't the obvious choice. As far as I know, that diagonal stretch of rail is no longer used. It's the most direct route and already has existing infrastructure for a lot of it. They did point out in the presentation the benefits of the businesses hotels on Meridian so maybe that was the driving factor here?

[Mississippi Blues]

Considering that the Union Pacific Oklahoma Sub goes right through the Fairgrounds, and largely parallels the west corridor LPA, I'm really surprised that heavy rail was not considered here. Maybe due to there being no direct connection between the east-west Oklahoma Sub and BNSF's north-south Sooner Sub? A connection could be built to get those east-west trains up to Santa Fe Station but maybe they thought it'd be too expensive or something.

I could see them wanting to play it slow for now to get things rolling. My biggest fear with transit of any sort in cities like ours is that the average citizens just isn’t going to be interested in funding “a train/bus to nowhere” which is already a notion that has arisen with how the streetcar has been handled. While getting expensive projects done first can lay groundwork for a great system pretty quickly, there’s the risk of momentum being hampered or killed off before it even gets going just because the public and the city by extension can be opposed to costs, especially if it’s considered to be in competition with personal vehicle infrastructure.

It’s a very different situation with starkly different controversies than what an RTA would likely encounter but having experience with California High-Speed Rail (CAHSR) and the resistance that has come out of that has hardened my mentality on how to approach the implementation of transportation infrastructure that aren’t already widely accepted in that area.

[Jersey Boss]

Has there been any polling on this in Edmond, Norman, or OKC?

[Jersey Boss]

^ Within the last year.

[BoulderSooner]

I don't understand why A6 wasn't the obvious choice. As far as I know, that diagonal stretch of rail is no longer used. It's the most direct route and already has existing infrastructure for a lot of it. They did point out in the presentation the benefits of the businesses hotels on Meridian so maybe that was the driving factor here?

it was shocking to me as well

[The]

I don't understand why A6 wasn't the obvious choice. As far as I know, that diagonal stretch of rail is no longer used. It's the most direct route and already has existing infrastructure for a lot of it. They did point out in the presentation the benefits of the businesses hotels on Meridian so maybe that was the driving factor here?

Is A6 in one of the presentation slides above? I can’t get any of the links to open.

[David]

Is A6 in one of the presentation slides above? I can’t get any of the links to open.

[Urbanized]

I will say that the diagonal rail alignment shown is DEFINITELY still in use west of Agnew. It’s also a single track over that section, though I’m sure ROW would exist to double track. I’m only saying it wouldn’t be uncomplicated, and probably not quite the discount one might think it would be.

[Richard at Remax]

I think chances are that there would be a much higher rider count on A1 and that's why it was recommended

[HOT ROD]

and a MUCH longer trip. Hence why it and all OKC transit routes always fail.

Can we ever utilize express bus (via freeways) for at least some of our transit infrastructure? Not everybody wants to take an hour to get from the airport into the city when one can drive that in less than 20-30 minutes, even in rush hours.

We should use hub and spoke network, where we have transit centers with local buses for local area, with Express or feeder bus/BRT to connect them. The system we have now is a single transit center with local buses feeding it no matter how far away, hence the low ridership.