Comparing different modes of public transportation

By Megan Messerly

Monday, Jan. 18, 2016 | 1:48 a.m.

Light rail, modern street cars, bus rapid transit and monorails are all methods of public transportation that have their upsides and drawbacks. We compare the costs, speed, capacity, rider experience and ease of build for each method.

Light rail

Designed to transport passengers within an urban core, light rail systems typically include stops every half-mile or mile on lines that run 5 to 20 miles long, connecting suburban communities with central business districts. Light rails generally run on their own rights of way, usually a space separate from the road, although some run alongside roads. Most trains include multiple cars and are powered either by electricity overhead or by an electrified third rail on the ground. Rail cars can travel above ground level, at grade or below ground. Light rail has been especially popular in recent years because of its relatively low capital costs and increased reliability compared with heavy rail systems.

• Cities with light rail: Phoenix, Seattle, Denver, Los Angeles

• Cost to build and ride: $25 million to $60 million per mile for street level; $150 million per mile for below ground; $50 million to $150 million per mile for above ground. As for cost to ride? No one knows yet. The RTC proposes charging passengers for light rail service, but RTC General Manager Tina Quigley said the agency hasn’t decided how much the fares would be. Others propose a free system. They argue that mass transit is a public service and therefore should be free.

• Average speed: 20-30 mph

• Peak capacity: 2,000 people per hour

• Rider experience: Light rail vehicles are wide and long, providing seating and standing space to accommodate 130 or more passengers per vehicle. The systems run on predictable schedules. Stations typically offer many amenities such as park-and-rides, weather shelters, seating and ample lighting.

• Ease of build: More involved than modern streetcars or bus rapid transits. Light rail typically is offset from the street by a physical barrier that must be constructed, along with stations. Rails have to be laid and a power system installed. Above- or below-ground systems take longer to build.

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Modern streetcar

Operated on a shorter circuit than light rail, modern streetcars typically transport passengers within a contained, 5- to 10-mile area — for instance, up and down Maryland Parkway. The cars are powered by overhead lines or an underground electrified third rail but typically don’t have their own right of way, instead sharing the flow of traffic with vehicles and picking up passengers at sidewalk stops that resemble bus stops. Streetcars travel more slowly than light rail and typically run as single cars or shorter trains.

• Cities with modern streetcars: Dallas, Tuscon, Portland, Atlanta

• Cost to build and ride: $5 million to $20 million per mile at street level

• Average speed: 10-25 mph

• Peak capacity: 840 people per hour

• Rider experience: Like light rail, streetcars have set schedules and stops. The cars are shorter and narrower than light rail cars and carry 35 or more passengers each. Streetcar stops resemble bus stops, with limited seating and fewer overhead shelters.

• Ease of build: Easier than light rail, more difficult than bus rapid transit. Before streetcars can operate, rails and a power system must be built into streets, and passenger stations must be constructed.

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Bud rapid transit

Bus rapid transit is a faster, streamlined bus system timed to serve specific high-traffic routes. Buses make fewer stops, are given priority at traffic signals and drive in dedicated lanes, all to speed travel time.

• Cities with bus rapid transit: Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York, Boston

• Cost to build and ride: $500,000 to $20 million per mile. As for cost to ride? Strip routes cost $6 for a two-hour pass. The RTC’s Strip bus routes operate at a profit and subsidize the rest of the routes in the system. The RTC hopes that the lucrative system can attract a company to enter into a public-private partnership with the agency to provide funding to build a light rail system.

• Average speed: 15-25 mph

• Peak capacity: 480 people per hour

• Rider experience: Riding bus rapid transit is much like riding a bus, only with fewer stops. Although there may be some extra amenities at stations, most look like typical bus stops.

• Ease of build: Much easier than light rail or modern streetcar. Many bus rapid transit systems feature platform-level boarding, allowing riders in wheelchairs to embark and disembark more quickly than if the bus had to lower a ramp. Many systems feature designated lanes for the buses. However, no rails or electricity are needed.

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Monorail

The Las Vegas Monorail is an intra-Strip transportation system that runs on its own elevated track. Monorails typically aren’t used for mass transit in major metropolitan areas. The RTC has proposed extending the existing Monorail to the Mandalay Bay Convention Center and adding a stop at the Sands Expo Convention Center to make the monorail the easiest way of traveling the Strip for conventioneers.

So why build light rail when the Strip already has the monorail?

Light rail would serve a different purpose than the Monorail. Whereas the Monorail links Strip properties together, light rail would stretch beyond the Strip, south to the airport, north to downtown Las Vegas and possibly into North Las Vegas as well.

• Cities with monorail: Las Vegas, Jacksonville, Seattle

• Cost to build and ride: $50 million to $150 million per mile. As for cost to ride? For Nevada residents, it's $1. For everyone else, it's $5.

• Average speed: 8-30 mph

• Peak capacity: 1,800 people per hour

• Rider experience: To board the monorail, passengers will need to climb a set of stairs or take an escalator or an elevator, which may be difficult for some individuals. However, because monorails have stations above ground-level traffic, boarding is typically a smooth process. Stops are relatively frequent, and the monorail can travel faster since it does not have to stop for other traffic. Some riders may enjoy the scenery looking down on the city below them while others may feel that the monorail’s track mars the city’s landscape.

• Ease of build: More difficult than light rail, modern streetcars and bus rapid transit operating at ground level. Because monorail lines and stations are elevated, they typically take more time and money to build.