Cars All but Banned on One of Manhattan’s Busiest Streets
I&#x27;m actually thrilled about this idea, and I hope it spreads to other cities.<p>The key to effective mass transit is not the type of equipment (train vs. bus) or the surface (rails vs. asphalt).  It is the right-of-way, plain and simple.  All other things being equal, a transport that has right-of-way, unimpeded by cross traffic, will be faster than a transport that has to deal with stop lights, cross traffic, etc.<p>That being said, mass transit can be extremely expensive if you take too many pains to construct the right of way off the surface.  Digging is expensive and dangerous.  Building elevated platforms is also more expensive, and often unsightly.<p>Now let&#x27;s compare the means of traction: rails provide only fixed paths.  They&#x27;re relatively time-consuming to fix if they break.  And if there&#x27;s an equipment breakdown, if there aren&#x27;t redundant paths with effective switching, it can cause a head-of-line blocking problem (comparable to a message queue).  Meanwhile, tires are cheap and safe, while steering can easily avoid obstacles and other dangers.  And repairing asphalt streets is relatively inexpensive.<p>So: we have good road technology.  We have wide-enough arterial roads, many of which are already redundant. We have good-enough signaling technology now to create a virtual right-of-way (by setting lights to red before the vehicle crosses).  Buses are pretty reliable these days, and far cheaper to manufacture than train cars.  They can also be outfitted to be quite nice inside.<p>So, to me, dedicated bus thoroughfares using existing streets are a no-brainer.  They win on cost, they win on effectiveness, and they win on time-to-market.<p>I can totally see 1 out of every 4 streets being used in major cities as dedicated bus thoroughfares as a viable alternative to building super-expensive and relatively unreliable transit alternatives.  I&#x27;ve often said I&#x27;d love to see it happen in San Francisco.   (The 1-in-4 idea being an approximation for most people to walk to their ultimate destination in a reasonable amount of time, but it&#x27;s obviously adjustable according to block size, geography, etc.)<p>(Footnote: for those who maintain residences on the impacted streets, there should be various accessibility exceptions.)