Bus stops/pads/pulloffs on interstate highways?

[orulz]

I have a question regarding bus stops on interstate highways.
(1) Is it allowed to add bus stops to a (non-business) interstate highway? I mean, obviously, not in a way that requires a bus to stop in a traffic lane or even on the shoulder, but as a minor pull-off without necessarily having to follow all the standard requirements for an exit?
(2) Are you aware of any examples of such? How are they handled? (dedicated pulloff, or is it attached to an existing onramp or offramp? How are shoulders handled? How much width does it add to the corridor?

Googling led me to find at least one example, where I-35W crosses Lake Street in Minneapolis.

Aerial Map: https://goo.gl/maps/27MdnQwbf4v
Street View 1 (surface street view) https://goo.gl/maps/Szr1yc24g1p
Street View 2 (interstate view) https://goo.gl/maps/tdsC6NaYX782

So this has been done before. But as we all know, interstate standards have become more stringent over the years and I am wondering if any such thing could be allowed as an addition to an existing interstate highway, or as a part of a new-build highway, and yet still retain an interstate designation.

The reason I ask is that, in my hometown of Raleigh North Carolina, I-440 (locally known as the Beltline) goes very close to some pretty dense areas and major destinations with still more dense, mixed use developments planned along the corridor. I think that these sort of bus stops, perhaps with a few more amenities than the one linked above, combined with BOSS (Bus On Shoulder System) implemented elsewhere in the metro area, which would allow buses to use the shoulders when a highway is congested, could make for a great and low cost but very high quality and high speed Bus Rapid Transit route with essentially a dedicated right-of-way. Certainly this would be good for Raleigh but there are doubtless many other parts of the country with well-located highways that could benefit from this as well.

[mapman1071]

I-10 Phoenix
A Express bus stop was constructed in the Deck Park Tunnel, It was never used it's has gates at each end.
I do not know if the platforms and/or stairs & elevators were constructed inside the tunnel.

[cwf1701]

In Detroit, I-94 was built in the 1950s with such pulloffs at Livernois and Woodward. The stairs was removed from the Woodward exit before I-75 was built in the early 60s. 

[TheHighwayMan3561]

That section of I-35W has two bus stops. There's a bus stop in the median south of 46th St.

[orulz]

That section of I-35W has two bus stops. There's a bus stop in the median south of 46th St.

Thanks for the pointer. So that's obviously pretty new, right? Do buses cross each others' paths to board on the "wrong side" of the island platform so standard buses with right hand side doors work, or do they have special double-sided BRT style buses for this station? I found the web page for that bus stop: http://www.metrotransit.org/i-35w-46th-street-station They mention that it is the first online bus station where the buses don't have to leave the freeway, but it would seem the Lake Street bus stops probably came first, no? Also seems they are planning to rebuild the Lake Street stop into something more like the 46th street station: http://www.metrotransit.org/i-35w-46th-street-station.

Comparing the two as they are now, the 46th street station is clearly much heavier in terms of infrastructure and therefore obviously much more expensive to implement. The full length including acceleration and deceleration lanes of the 46th street stop is 1/2 mile, whereas Lake Street right now is more like 1/4 mile.

The Phoenix example looks even heavier than the Minneapolis one since express buses appear to have a dedicated tunnel for the entire length of the park deck tunnel.

I was kind of hoping that something lighter than that, but still in compliance with modern regulations (ADA, Highway standards, etc) could still possibly be built. Something like this: https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=zDxDEf2QTUKg.kvP0SSI17oo0 which could go at Six Forks Road immediately adjacent to North Hills, a new skyscraper district which is turning out to be sort of Raleigh's secondary CBD.

[D-Dey65]

In Buford, Georgia, there's a separate buses only lane at the southbound on-ramp of I-985 at Exit 4 (US 23-GA 20). A Park and Ride is right behind it.

For some reason, I'm starting to think something like that would be good for Islandia, New York at Exit 58 off the Long Island Expressway.

I don't think it's good for the interstate itself. Service roads and maybe some off-ramps? Fine. But not random spots along the sides of the road like you've got there.

[orulz]

In Buford, Georgia, there's a separate buses only lane at the southbound on-ramp of I-985 at Exit 4 (US 23-GA 20). A Park and Ride is right behind it.

That's pretty cool. That Buford Park & Ride is more in line with what I was thinking of, in terms of scale, and it seems to be relatively recent and looks like it probably meets modern highway standards. I assume this is the end of the line for the bus route(s) that stops there, and buses use the exit to turn around?

I'm hoping to find examples where a bus doesn't have to wait at any traffic signals - where as soon as any passengers have gotten on and off the driver can go straight back up to highway speed. Add a minute or so for signals at every stop and you could have a 15 minute run turn into a 30 minute run quite easily.

At the location I diagrammed (I-440 in Raleigh at Six Forks Road: https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=zDxDEf2QTUKg.kvP0SSI17oo0 ) ramp metering is eventually planned; ideally, a bus stop could be coordinated with the metering so that the bus slip ramp gets a meter signal too, and when a bus triggers a sensor as it's departing the platform, the other meters turn red to let the bus in.

[FrCorySticha]

Do buses cross each others' paths to board on the "wrong side" of the island platform so standard buses with right hand side doors work, or do they have special double-sided BRT style buses for this station?

If you look at the satellite view, it does look like the buses cross over. You can see the tracks from the buses just north and south of the station: https://goo.gl/maps/HhMmwqGNTX72. IMO, it's a pretty clever way to handle buses on a freeway.

[Pete from Boston]

There are bus stops in both directions on Interstate 95 in Fort Lee, New Jersey, just west of the George Washington Bridge.

[froggie]

That section of I-35W has two bus stops. There's a bus stop in the median south of 46th St.

Thanks for the pointer. So that's obviously pretty new, right? Do buses cross each others' paths to board on the "wrong side" of the island platform so standard buses with right hand side doors work, or do they have special double-sided BRT style buses for this station?

Yes, buses paths cross each other on each side of the station, controlled by a traffic signal.

I found the web page for that bus stop: http://www.metrotransit.org/i-35w-46th-street-station They mention that it is the first online bus station where the buses don't have to leave the freeway, but it would seem the Lake Street bus stops probably came first, no?

Correct.  The Lake St stops have been around for about 40 years...but they are little more than a bus stop along the side of the freeway, whereas the 46th St station is an actual station.

Also seems they are planning to rebuild the Lake Street stop into something more like the 46th street station: http://www.metrotransit.org/i-35w-46th-street-station.

Also correct.

[Bruce]

Plenty of buses stop in specially-built freeway stops. The Silver Line in LA uses a bunch of median stations on I-110. Seattle has quite a few median- and offramp- stops that are for regular commuter/express buses.

[mgk920]

Bus stop pull-off areas are very common on motorways in Europe.

Mike

[jeffandnicole]

There are bus stops in both directions on Interstate 95 in Fort Lee, New Jersey, just west of the George Washington Bridge.

Heck, it's in the *middle* of the highway, between the lanes for the upper and lower levels of the bridge!  Access is provided via staircases from a nearby overpass.

[Pete from Boston]

There are bus stops in both directions on Interstate 95 in Fort Lee, New Jersey, just west of the George Washington Bridge.

Heck, it's in the *middle* of the highway, between the lanes for the upper and lower levels of the bridge!  Access is provided via staircases from a nearby overpass.

Yes.  This is where you drop people off when your commitment to getting them into the city stops short of paying a $15 toll.  ($15!)

[orulz]

Bus stop pull-off areas are very common on motorways in Europe.

Mike

I also noticed that they are common in Japan when I was living there. I think that the reason they are more common elsewhere is twofold: The US's interstate highway standards are some of the strictest in the world, making it difficult or expensive to build them, and public transit use is lower in the US, so in many places even if they did build them, the ridership would not merit the cost.

[Bruce]

In the middle of SR 520, WSDOT build this magnificent bus station, complete with elevators and a huge lid with a view of their new floating bridge:


Evergreen Point Freeway Station by SounderBruce, on Flickr


Evergreen Point Freeway Station by SounderBruce, on Flickr

The old stops were just shelters on the shoulder of the freeway: https://www.google.com/maps/@47.6370488,-122.2362731,3a,75y,261.92h,79.79t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sj96sMF2J1xBMqzaM5s1F_w!2e0!5s20110701T000000!7i13312!8i6656

Montlake Freeway Station (west of the lake on SR 520) is the same way, albeit more protected:


Montlake Freeway Station eastbound by SounderBruce, on Flickr

[D-Dey65]

There are bus stops in both directions on Interstate 95 in Fort Lee, New Jersey, just west of the George Washington Bridge.

Yes, but those are fairly separate from the rest of the main traffic.

They should have signs along I-95 telling motorists that the bus plaza is along the ramps at Exit 73. Also does anybody think that plaza should be expanded to the westbound lower level road between the Lemonie Avenue and Center Avenue bridges? Or should it just be left to the PANYNJ maintenance crew there?

[TEG24601]

WSDOT has several bus stops along I-5, one is a freeway station as above, whilst others are at Interchanges, with a stop on a Bus Only ramp between the Off Ramp and On Ramp.


Prior to 2000, when SR 525 was a "Super Two" between SR 99 and I-5/405, there was Bus Stop at 164th St, at only about two bus widths away from the traffic lanes, with no barrier.  There are/were many more bus stops, but many have been replaced with left HOV/Transit only exits that feed a Park and Ride adjacent to the freeway (and, when HOV, provide a bypass of traditional Interchanges.


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In the Detroit Metro, there are/were (last time I was there) several locations where it appears they originally planned for freeway bus stops, or actually had them, usually because there is pavement that would take you back to the freeway that is only really blocked by a curb.

[davewiecking]

Hard to tell, but this (https://www.google.com/maps/@38.87121,-77.04404,164m/data=!3m1!1e3) is a remnant of an old bus stop on the shoulder of Shirley Highway near the Pentagon/site of the old Twin Bridges Marriott.

[Jardine]

As good a place as any to highlight this little anomaly:

41  20' 47.69" N

95  57' 07.68" W

[Jardine]

{feels like I just threw a live goat in the tiger cage, heh heh}

[kphoger]

The sign says "NO PARKING ANY TIME", so I'm good with it.

[orulz]

The Barrington Road interchange on I-90 near Chicago is incorporating exactly the sort of infrastructure I was thinking about when I first opened this thread.
http://www.illinoistollway.com/documents/10157/11979590/2016_90_BarringtonRoadInterchange_MAP
s
The eastbound Wiehle Avenue offramp on the Dulles Toll Road in Reston,VA has a bus stop with multiple bus pads on the offramp. It is not an online bus stop however. I think it is used for buses from Loudon County or some such to come off the tollway, stop at the metro station, and turn back around and head out of town.

[mrsman]

Los Angeles has a bunch of these online freeway bus stops.  Some bus stops are still in operation, others have been rerouted.

I-10 El Monte Busway parallels the regular freeway and buses pull off into the curb at two stops: Cal State LA, County-USC Med Ctr.  The HOV lanes aren't in the freeway median, but run along their own roadway just to the north. 

I-110 has similar bus stops along the median at Slauson, Manchester, I-105, and Rosecrans.

More commonly, there are buses that exit the main freeway at an offramp, drive on a special lane alongside the freeway, and then merge into the on-ramp lane back to the freeway.  These exist on some of the freeways, particularly those that head toward downtown LA.  there are usually stairs to connect to street level.  The newer ones also have elevators due to ADA requirements.  Many of these ramps no longer serve freeway buses as the rail system in LA has rendered them obsolete.

Examples:  US 101 at Alvarado, Vermont, Western. 

I-110 at Carson, PCH

CA 110 at 7th Street (long abandoned, but you can still see the stairs between the street and the freeway if you look closely.) 

I-10 along the Santa Monica Fwy has these accident investigation sites that I believe were planned to be used as bus stops as well.  From GSV, it is not clear what path pedestrians would use to connect to the bus stops from the street.  I don't believe these were actualy used in service.  An example is at La Brea Avenue.   

See also:  https://transitingla.wordpress.com/2013/01/28/bus-stations-on-the-hollywood-freeway/