TransMilenio

The TransMilenio is a bus rapid transit system that serves Bogotá, Colombia. As of June 2007, the system runs throughout 8 lines, covering Av. Caracas, Calle 80, Autopista Norte, Av. Jiménez, NQS ("Norte Quito Sur"), Calle 13, Av. de las Américas, and Av. Suba. The system opened to the public on December 2000, covering Av. Caracas and Calle 80. Other lines were added gradually over the next 5 years, and the total length of the system is now 84 kilometres (54 miles). [ [http://www.transmilenio.gov.co/nuevapagina/index.asp?id=151 TransMilenio - Orgullo Capital ] ] The project consists of seven phases: Phase III, as of August 2007 Carrera 10th, and Av. El Dorado are to be contracted and Carrera 7th is still in the middle of public debate.

tructure

Based on the model used in Curitiba, Brazil, TransMilenio consists of numerous elevated stations in the center of a main avenue, or "troncal". Users pay at the station and await the arrival of the bus, whose doors open at the same time as the sliding glass doors of the station. A dedicated lane on each side of the station allows express buses to pass through without stopping while other buses stop to allow passengers in or out. International consulting firm McKinsey & Co. was hired as project manager and leading local investment bank Capitalcorp S.A. was assigned the financial structuring of the project.

The buses are diesel-powered, purchased from such manufacturers as the Colombian-Brazilian company Marcopolo-Superior, German conglomerate Mercedes-Benz, and Scandinavian based companies as Volvo and Scania. The buses are articulated (split into two sections with an accordion-like rotating middle to allow for sharp turns) and have a capacity of 160 passengers. On May 10th, 2007 a new larger bus with capacity for 270 passengers was presented to the public. This bus has three sections with two articulations and will be used in phase III of the BRT system.

As of August 2007 there are 1,027 buses circulating on the troncal system [http://www.transmilenio.gov.co/nuevapagina/index.asp?id=151 TransMilenio web site statistics] and the fare is 1500 Colombian pesos for a single trip (about EUR 0.51 or USD 0.79, as of May 2008). Cards use a contactless smart card (MIFARE) system, and it is possible to purchase multiple trips for one card. Most users are distrustful and purchase only one or two trips at a time, due to problems with the cards at the launch of the system.Fact|date=July 2008 Although the technical problems have been fixed, there are no financial incentives (discounts) for multiple purchases or public education campaigns (as have been recommended by urban planning consultants).

An additional set of 410 regular buses, known as "feeders" ("alimentadores", in Spanish), transport users from certain important stations to many different locations that the main route does not reach. Unlike the main TransMilenio buses, feeders operate without dedicated lanes, are not articulated and are green (regular TransMilenio buses are red). There is no additional fare in order to use the feeder buses.

Although TransMilenio stations comply with easy access regulations by virtue of being elevated and having ramps leading to the entrance, the "alimentadores" are normal buses without handicapped accessibility. A lawsuit by disabled user Daniel Bermúdez caused a ruling that all feeder systems must comply with easy access regulations by 2004, but this has yet to occur.

Costs and ridership

According to a United States Transportation Research Board (TRB) Report, the construction cost per kilometer for the first phase of 41 kilometers was US$240 million, or US$5.9 million per kilometer. Daily ridership quickly reached 800,000. According to TRB, TransMilenio has since been expanded and ridership in early 2006 was 1,050,000 daily.

Eventually, there is a plan to build 388 kilometers of route, which will provide a very dense network of rapid transit for an urban area with an estimated land area of approximately 500 square kilometers. For example, Madrid covers nearly as much land area and has one of the most dense Metro systems in the world, with approximately 230 kilometers of route. TRB reports that the 388 kilometer system is projected to cost $3.3 billion, which is only 10 percent more than a previously proposed Metro of 30 kilometers would have cost.

The system is overseen by a public body, which awards contracts to private bus companies on a competitive basis. According to TRB, Private contractors are paid based upon the total number of kilometers that their vehicles operate.

Routes

In May 2006 the TransMilenio Route System changed dramatically, with new sections added to the system. Instead of being numbered, routes have a combination of letters and numbers. In order to fill the information gap TransMilenio made available an interactive guide that includes routes, stations, near by places and routes combination, in a simple and efficient form.

[http://www.surumbo.com www.surumbo.com] Official interactive guide of TransMilenio.

New lines are considered to be added, including one in Carrera 7 (North-Downtown) -which has been criticized as there are certain parts in which the system might not fit-, one in Calle 26 (Downtown-West (Airport)) and the other in Carrera 10 (Downtown-South).

tations

There are five types of stations:
* "Sencillas" (Simple): local service stations, located approximately every 500 m.
* "De transferencia" (Transfer): allow transfer between different lines through a tunnel.
* "Sin intercambio" (No transfer): do not allow transfer from the north-south line to the south-north line; located in a stretch of the Autopista Norte
* "Intermedias" (Intermediate): service both feeder and trunk lines.
* "Cabecera (Portal)": near the entrances to the city. In addition to feeders and articulated buses, intercity buses from the metropolitan area also arrive at these stations.

All stations have electronic boards announcing the approximate arrival time of the next bus, and maps of the system. There are also station attendants to provide assistance to the passengers.

TransMilenio has 114 stations distributed as follows, in various areas throughout the city:

*:"' 14 stations
*:"' 15 stations
*:"' 14 stations
*:"' 14 stations
*:"' 11 stations
* station)
*:"' 12 stations
*:"' 16 stations
*:"' 2 stations

Criticisms

Most users will agree that TransMilenio is a vast improvement over Bogotá's previous public transit system, especially in comparison with the chaotic systems in place in cities like Lima, Peru. There are a number of criticisms based on the way the system works. [http://univerciudad.redbogota.com/ediciones/009/noticias02.htm]

*Buses and stations are often packed even during non-rush hour periods.
*The use of diesel buses has a greater polluting impact in a high-altitude city like Bogotá than at sea level (Bogotá is 2,600 meters above sea level).
*The stations have uncovered spots where, when it rains, passengers cannot avoid getting wet as they walk from one end of the station to the other.
*Mirroring the experience with crowded transit systems of all modes, many users complain about pickpocketing inside the buses, a problem which is made worse by the great extent to which the buses are packed.

Protests

On May 2 and May 3, 2006, several groups of ordinary bus drivers not related with TransMilenio held a strike, protesting against some elements and consequences of the implementation of the system. They disagreed with the amount of monetary compensation that they would receive in exchange for the disposal of old buses (10 to more than 20 years old), traffic restrictions on the TransMilenio main lines, and a new "Pico y Placa Ambiental" in some city areas, that would restrict the schedules of 10-year-old buses to early morning hours in order to reduce pollution in the city.

Some of the larger bus companies, which participate in TransMilenio, also retired their conventional bus lines during the strike. Public transportation ground to a halt in much of the city, though TransMilenio and a number of other buses continued operating they could not cope with all of the demand. Acts of individual intimidation and violence against some private vehicles, TransMilenio and conventional buses occurred during the strike, as well as clashes between some of the strikers and the police.

Bogotá's Mayor Luis Eduardo Garzón rejected the strike, firmly defended all of the measures as necessary for the city's transportation future, and stated that he was only willing to discuss the specific details of their implementation, as well as a further democratization of TransMilenio's operations, after the situation calmed down. During the second and final day of the strike, the local administration, the strikers and their companies agreed to begin talks.

During the strike, some protests included users of TransMilenio who complained because the buses were passing at a very low frequency. Several stations became so filled up that some people fell from them into the street. Even after the strike ended, some TransMilenio passengers have subsequently protested because they still find different aspects of the system to be inefficient and uncomfortable.

Security on TransMilenio

As in any other highly crowded area, users of TransMilenio must be aware that when riding the system they are exposed to pickpockets. Isolated instances of people getting mugged have been reported as well. Security on buses and in stations is handled by police officers employed by the city. However, most of the time the officers assigned are recently graduated high school students serving their mandatory year with the armed forces ('Policía Bachiller'). Higher ranking officers are assigned as supervisors and respond when a Policía Bachiller requests assistance.

ee also

* List of bus rapid transit systems
* List of articulated bus systems

References

External links

* [http://www.transmilenio.gov.co/ Official web site of TransMilenio]
** [http://www.transmilenio.gov.co/transmilenio/home_english.htm (English)]
* [http://www.surumbo.com/ www.suRumbo.com] Official interactive guide of TransMilenio
* [http://www.trb.org/news/blurb_detail.asp?id=6340 TRB Report on TransMilenio]
* [http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msa=0&msid=107033879206659819255.00043d6c94fb4bdbb21f2&ie=UTF8&om=1&ll=4.648974,-74.10862&spn=0.25117,0.32135&z=12 Unofficial map of stations at Google Maps]
* [http://audio.theworld.org/wma.php?id=12023 Bus Revolution] , by Chip Mitchell, The World (produced by the BBC, PRI and WGBH-Boston), December 2, 2005. Colombia, the site of a decades-old armed conflict fueled by drug production, would seem an unlikely place for a revolution in rapid transit. This five-minute story showcases a bus system that has dramatically improved mobility for the 7 million inhabitants of the nation's capital—at a bargain price.