Four Wheels Bad: Car Loses Austin Rush Hour Race to Bike, Bus, Pedestrian

[TexasTowelie]

?

It was a simple enough idea. Last Friday, five Austin Post reporters set off across the center of town around 5 p.m. to see how our city's transportation options stack up: just a little more than four miles through rush hour hell.

We avoided the parking lot that was I-35 and the river of cars known as Mopac. No, we were in the mood for a multi-modal race, and we also wanted to test the powers of the new MetroRapid bus. We chose Guadalupe as our race route because it traverses the living, breathing (if not always moving) heart of the city and can be traversed any way you like, short of water travel. And so: 38th and Guadalupe to South Congress and Monroe.

Five travelers, five modes:

* MetroRapid Bus

* Regular Bus

* Car

* Bike

* On Foot

We assumed our pedestrian would come in last. Austin traffic might be horrendous, but there’s no way a not-particularly-athletic person can walk 4.5 miles faster than a car can drive it, right?

Well, you know what they say about assumptions: don’t make any when it comes to how bad Austin traffic can be. We'll let the results speak for themselves:

?

More at http://www.austinpost.org/article/great-transportation-race-bike-beats-bus-beats-foot-beats-car .

[flying rabbit]

1. This is how you do it. nt

[hobbit709]

2. I won't even go by that route in non rush hour.

[hobbit709]

3. I was at 38th and Lamar at 5:30 today

I got home at 6:05 and I live south of Stassney and S. 1st. But I didn't try to get down Guadaloupe and Congress.

[TexasTowelie]

4. That is still a long time though considering that is only about eight miles or so.

I hate rush hour in Austin.

[hobbit709]

5. That's twice the distance in half the time.

[TexasTowelie]

7. But if you had rode your bike you would have been in Kyle instead...

...as if there was a special reason to go to Kyle.

[hobbit709]

8. If I was on a bike I'd be in the ER