MORE RIDING, LESS DRIVING GAS PRICES FUELING TREND
- photo illustration by PETER CIHELKA/THE FREE LANCE-STAR
- photo illustration by PETER CIHELKA/THE FREE LANCE-STAR
Gas prices create demand for bus, train service from Fredericksburg area to Metropolitan Washington
Date published: 4/12/2008
By KELLY HANNON
Fredericksburg-area commuters are getting out from behind the wheel.
Both FREDericksburg Regional Transit and the Virginia Railway Express report significantly higher passen-ger numbers January through March, compared with those same months last year.
In addition, the agency that coordinates ride sharing in the region, GWRideConnect, has seen requests double to get into carpools, vanpools and private commuter buses. There were 200 new applications last month.
Nationally, commuters are boarding buses and trains in record numbers.
Americans took 10.3 billion trips on public transportation in 2007, the highest number in 50 years, according to the American Public Transportation Association in Washington.
Systemwide, the VRE has seen a 5.8 percent increase in passengers from last year.
"In true terms of people, that's about 810 more people on the train per day than there were last year," said Mark Roeber, VRE spokesman.
Between 55 and 75 new passengers board VRE each month, he said.
Fredericksburg's regional bus service, FRED, is picking up more riders.
With a 25-cent base fare, FRED is a bargain compared with filling up a gas tank.
Still, the increase in riders is not unexpected: FRED has increased annual passenger totals every year since it began operating in 1996.
FRED expanded service in the city and Spotsylvania recently, and added two VRE shuttles that bring commuters from satellite locations to the Fredericksburg train station.
FRED is advertising, and the new terminal on U.S. 1 could be a draw, with a waiting area and restrooms.
"I think it would be wrong to point to gas prices as the only thing that's driving it," said Arnold Levine, FRED senior adviser. "It's one of a number of factors."
FRED's base fare hasn't increased, although transfers cost an additional 25 cents.
VRE officials say gas prices are a secondary factor when people choose to ride transit.
"In my mind, when you're talking about VRE, you're talking about reliability," Roeber said. People ride the train when they know they will arrive at work on time, he said, versus the odds of traffic on Interstate 95.
Fredericksburg Line VRE trains arrived on time more than 80 percent of the time in January and February.
Still, gas could eventually be a larger factor. The cost of driving adds up for commuters traveling 40 to 70 miles to work.
"I would think if you live farther out, you seriously have to look at your options, because that's going to become a very expensive commute as you move forward," Roeber said.
The popularity of FRED's VRE shuttles is growing. In Spotsylvania, commuters can board the shuttles at the Gordon Road and Ukrop's commuter lots off State Route 3.
The two Spotsylvania shuttles have a combined average daily ridership of 152 people, compared with 74 people in October, the month service began.
The city shuttle's average daily ridership has grown slightly, from 18 to 21 people.
Whatever the reason behind the transit boom, most agencies are prepared to welcome riders.
"We're happy to accommodate our riding public," Levine said.
A gallon of unleaded gasoline cost an average of $3.43 in the District of Columbia on Tuesday, $3.30 in Maryland and $3.27 in Virginia. All three prices are record-high averages, according to AAA Mid-Atlantic.
A 100-mile round-trip solo drive from the Fredericksburg area to Washington would cost $12.92 in gas for a car that gets 25 mpg, and if the gas was purchased at the state average price of $3.27 a gallon. Of course, gas costs will vary depending on the vehicle type, and drivers must weigh the cost of vehicle insurance and depreciation.
A round-trip fare on Virginia Railway Express, if a rider buys two single-trip tickets from Fredericksburg to Union Station, is $17.60. VRE riders can save money if they purchase a 10-trip ticket or monthly VRE pass.
Some transit commuters also get Metrochek benefits, which can offset travel expenses. Metrochek is a monthly $110 benefit public and private employers can give to employees to spend on transit, including vanpools.
Monthly summer averages at the pump could hit $3.60 in June, the federal Energy Information Administration forecast this week.
With sustained gas prices over $3 a gallon, motorists have hit some sort of tipping point, said John B. Townsend, AAA Mid-Atlantic's manager of government and public affairs.
A recent survey of Washington-area motorists--including Fredericksburg-area residents--had 12 percent reporting more transit use and carpooling.
And that survey was done in February, before gas hit record levels.
"These gas prices are like green kryptonite to motorists," said Townsend, employing a Superman analogy. "It kills them, and they look for any means necessary to avoid them."
Kelly Hannon: 540/374-5436 khannon@freelancestar.com
ridership due to high gas prices?
Not completely, says Arnold Levine, FRED senior adviser.
VRE more reliable than I-95?(posted by
get_a_life
, Apr. 12, 2008 8:13 am)
Hum - 80% on time... Thats pretty good for VRE. With that said, that means I would only be late to work and dinner only 1 day per week! Unfortunately, even though I bought a house next to a VRE station, I think I'll stick with "unreliable" I-95... It seems to get me to DC faster and on time more often than 80% - especially if I compare it to VRE's scheduled times of about 1 hour and 20 minutes from FBG to DC.
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