Detroit People Mover
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| Detroit People Mover | |||
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| Info | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Locale | Detroit, Michigan United States |
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| Transit type | People mover | ||
| Number of lines | 1 | ||
| Number of stations | 13 | ||
| Daily ridership | 7,500[1] | ||
| Operation | |||
| Began operation | 1987 | ||
| Operator(s) | Detroit Transportation Corporation | ||
| Number of vehicles | 12 | ||
| Technical | |||
| System length | 4.7 km (2.9 mi) | ||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 81⁄2 in) | ||
| Minimum radius of curvature | (?) | ||
| Electrification | Third rail | ||
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The Detroit People Mover is a 2.9-mile (4.7 km) automated people mover system which operates on a single-track, one-way loop through the central business district of downtown Detroit, Michigan.[2]
The city's only local rail system, the People Mover is run by the Detroit Transportation Corporation of the City of Detroit, which is not part of the Detroit Department of Transportation, which runs the city's transit buses.
It uses Bombardier Advanced Rapid Transit technology and the cars are driverless. A siding allows the system to be used in a two-way bypass manner when part of the circular track is closed.
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[edit] History
The Detroit People Mover has its origins in a federal bill in 1966, when Congress created the Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA) to develop new types of transit. In 1975, following failure to produce any large-scale results, and increased pressure to show results, UMTA created the Downtown People Mover Program (DPM), sponsored a nationwide competition, and offered federal funds to cover most costs of planning and construction of any such system. UMTA selecting proposals from four other cities, then recommended that Detroit, Miami, and Baltimore also be permitted to construct systems, but only if they could do so with existing grants. Though the four selected cities ultimately withdrew from the program, Miami and Detroit persevered to build theirs.[3]
The People Mover was intended to be the downtown distributor for a proposed $600 million city and metro-wide light rail transit system for Detroit in the early 1980s committed by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter; however, after his re-election defeat the plans and most of the money offered was lost, and then area politicians never fully agreed on a future for the system. At the time of planning, the system was projected to have a ridership of 67,700 daily.[4]
The system opened in 1987 using the same technology as Vancouver's SkyTrain and Toronto's Scarborough RT line. In the first year, an average of 11,000 riders used the People Mover each day; the one-day record was 54,648.[5]
Among the busiest periods was the five days around the 2006 Super Bowl XL, when 215,910 patrons used the service.[6]
As of 2008, the system moves about 7,500 people per day, about 2.5 percent of its capacity of 288,000.[7][8]
When the People Mover opened, it traditionally ran counter-clockwise. In August 2008, the system changed direction and is now running clockwise permanently, although it ran in both directions whenever it was forced to close several sections for track replacement construction.[9]
[edit] Cost effectiveness
The People Mover operates at a high cost per rider. The system was designed to move up to 15 million riders a year, yet in 2008 saw just over 2 million riders. In fiscal year 1999-2000 the city was spending $3.00 for every $0.50 rider fare, according to The Detroit News. The system has also required costly repairs. In October 1998, the demolition of the Hudson's building damaged the track, closing the People Mover for two months, with full service not restored until the following year. Renovation at the General Motors headquarters at the GM Renaissance Center kept the People Mover from offering full-circuit operation from September 2002 to September 2004. In 2006, the Mover (which costs $12 million annually in city and state subsidies to run) filled less than 10 percent of its seats.[10]
[edit] Expansion
There have been occasional proposals to extend the People Mover northward to the New Center and other areas not within walking distance of the city's downtown. A proposal has been put forward by Marsden Burger, former manager of the People Mover, to double the length of the route by extending the People Mover along Woodward Avenue to West Grand Boulevard and into the New Center area.[11] New stops would include the Amtrak station, Wayne State University and the cultural center, the Detroit Medical Center, and the Henry Ford Hospital. The plan would tentatively cost $150-200 million, and would be paid for by a combination of public and private financing.[12]
[edit] Ridership
| Year | Riders | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 2,048,900 | Motown Tranzit |
| 1997 | 1,711,000 | Motown Tranzit |
| 1998 | 1,989,100 | Motown Tranzit |
| 1999 | 763,000 | Motown Tranzit |
| 2000 | 1,485,900 | Motown Tranzit |
| 2001 | 2,370,000 | Detroit News |
| 2002 | 2,186,600 | Motown Tranzit |
| 2003 | 1,267,900 | Motown Tranzit |
| 2004 | 932,400 | APTA[13] |
| 2005 | 1,792,900 | APTA[14] |
| 2006 | 2,368,300 | APTA[15] |
| 2007 | 2,320,600 | APTA[15] |
| 2008 | 2,059,600 | APTA[16] |
[edit] Stations
The DPM stops at 13 stations, eight of which were built into existing buildings. Each station has original artwork.
- Times Square Station
- Grand Circus Park Station
- Broadway Station
- Cadillac Center Station
- Greektown Station
- Bricktown Station
- Renaissance Center Station
- Millender Center Station
- Financial District Station
- Joe Louis Arena Station
- Cobo Center Station
- Fort/Cass Station
- Michigan Avenue Station
[edit] Rolling stock
- Manufacturer: Urban Transportation Development Corporation (now Bombardier Transportation)
- Type: ICTS Mark I
- # of cars: 12 cars
- Maximum speed: 56 mph[2]
The system operates in 2 car pairs.
[edit] Photo gallery
 Interior seating of People Mover. |
 Bricktown station is a few blocks away from Greektown station. |
 Catching Up by J. Seward Johnson, Jr. at Grand Circus Park. |
[edit] See also
- List of rapid transit systems
- List of United States rapid transit systems by ridership
- Toronto's Scarborough RT line
- Vancouver SkyTrain
[edit] References
- ^ American Public Transportation Association, APTA Public Transportation Ridership Report, First Quarter 2008.
- ^ a b The Detroit People Mover - Overview
- ^ The Downtown People Mover Program
- ^ Wendell Cox. "Analysis of the Proposed Las Vegas LLC Monorail". 14. http://www.publicpurpose.com/ut-lvmono-0006.pdf. Retrieved on 2007-09-20.
- ^ Detroit downtown peoplemover, advanced automated urban transit
- ^ Detroit Transportation Corporation
- ^ http://www.apta.com/research/stats/ridership/riderep/documents/08q1rep.pdf p13 as of 2008 12,000/hour * 24 hours/day = 288,000/day
- ^ Is there people-mover in your future? | Railway Age | Find Articles at BNET.com
- ^ [http://www.thepeoplemover.com/resource/attach/69/DPMAug16OpeningPressReleaseFinal.doc Detroit People Mover Reopens and Makes Changes
- ^ People Mover grows up
- ^ DetroitPeopleMover2
- ^ Detroit News[1]
- ^ American Public Transportation Association, APTA Public Transportation Ridership Report, Fourth Quarter 2005.
- ^ American Public Transportation Association, APTA Public Transportation Ridership Report, Fourth Quarter 2006.
- ^ a b American Public Transportation Association, APTA Public Transportation Ridership Report, Fourth Quarter 2007.
- ^ American Public Transportation Association, APTA Public Transportation Ridership Report, Fourth Quarter 2008.
[edit] External links
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