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[quote user="daveklepper"] [/quote][quote user="daveklepper"] 1. Dallas which eshewed the low-floor trend and uses high platforms and regular four-wheel trucks under its cars, and its cars have mu-capability and use it.    2.  Before DART's first line opened, was there serious highway congestion during commuter hours in the Dallas area?  If there was, then DART not only benefits its riders, but those who continue to drive as well.  ...it is possibly that shifting 10% of the rush-hour road users off the highway can result in a nearly-doubling of speed for the remaing drivers, to the 30-35mph range.  And usually, buses don't have quite the drawing power to get people to use public transportation than rail services have. [/quote] DART has never had high level platforms.  The original equipment consisted of two vehicles that were semi-permanently coupled together onto a common truck.   They require a passenger to get to the floor level via three steps.  To comply with ADA requirements, i.e. make the vehicles accessible for mobility impaired passengers, DART constructed a short, high level lift platform at the end of each station platform for people to board through the first car of the train. The platforms had lifts for people who could not manage the ramp. Subsequently, DART management realized its mistake in not opting for low floor equipment, although I am not sure that it was a viable alternative when the equipment was ordered in the late 80s or early 90s. Sometime after 2000, if I remember correctly, it retro-fited the original equipment with a splice unit between the first and second units, which has a low floor in the center of the car.  This made it possible for DART to tear down the ADA compliant ramps and lifts at the ends of the platforms.  The cars (vehicles) share a common truck between them, i.e. a four wheel truck at the front and back of the train and a common four wheel truck between the units.  Thus, the back of the first unit and the front of the splice unit share a common truck. Central Express Way was a parking lot when I moved to Dallas in 1974. It is still a parking lot, so to speak, even after a massive investment to improve it. The other main north/south arteries are The Tollway and Stemmons Freeway (I-35E).  They too are semi-parking lots during rush hour.   It appears that the light rail system has taken approximately 40,000 to 45,000 vehicles off the road for at least part of the journey to work. But then too did the express buses, which were DART's first commuter offering to the suburbs.  Whether the reduction in vehicle traffic on the roadways has resulted in a significant reduction in commute time is difficult to say because of the tremendous growth in the DFW Metroplex.   A key question, from my point of view, is whether the cost of the light railway system has been justified by the results?  Answering it is probably impossible.  I was an enthusiastic proponent of the light rail system, but given the results, I am not sure that it was the best choice. As to the argument that people will ride a light rail train but would not ride a comparably modern rapid transit bus, I would like to see some hard evidence for that assertion.   Capitol Metro has introduced rapid bus transit in Austin.  I have ridden it several times.  It is quick, comfortable, and appears to be drawing a good crowd.  Also, San Antonio has introduced rapid bus transit, again with seemingly good results.
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