Rutland Transit Exchange

[Catri]

I'm not a transit user and I only drive up Dougall Road every couple of months, but in the 4+ years it's been there, I have never seen a bus (or any people for that matter) in the Rutland Transit Exchange so I had a look at the bus routes and it seems that it's not actually on any of them. There was a fairly big hoopla and grand plans when it was opened in 2013 https://www.castanet.net/news/Kelowna/9 ... in-Rutland and yet it seems to be just sitting there, unused and unloved. White elephant much?

[Lady tehMa]

Huh, I don't recall ever seeing it in use either

[Jflem1983]

I go to the market on sundays. Used to often. Never seen a person or a bus at that loop .

Funny i never see the HOV lanes being used properly either. Maybe all this progressive nonsense is just no good . People are not interested

[whitecandle]

Will have to check with one of my regular bus drivers. Remember one of them saying that transit loop wasn't designed properly so buses couldn't access the drop off/pick up points.

[Catri]

Will have to check with one of my regular bus drivers. Remember one of them saying that transit loop wasn't designed properly so buses couldn't access the drop off/pick up points.

Wow! That would make sense as a reason for not using it, but disheartening to think they would drop the ball that badly. Of course that it's sitting idle after all this time does suggest a pretty big ball drop.

[oneh2obabe]

Rutland Exchange was built wrong and the big buses can't access it. Talked to transit and the lady said it's up to the City of Kelowna to rectify the problem. Hah, don't hold your breath on that getting done in a timely fashion.

[Bsuds]

Didn't they screw up the bus stops on Hwy 97 when they were built too? I seem to recall them being too high for the Buses.

Those Engineers must have been Home Schooled.

[Even Steven]

Rutland Exchange was built wrong and the big buses can't access it. Talked to transit and the lady said it's up to the City of Kelowna to rectify the problem. Hah, don't hold your breath on that getting done in a timely fashion.

That is awesome on so many levels. Awesome meaning dumb and stupid.

[oneh2obabe]

Didn't they screw up the bus stops on Hwy 97 when they were built too? I seem to recall them being too high for the Buses.

Those Engineers must have been Home Schooled.

Yep, curbs were too high for the buses. They had to redo them before announcing Rapid Transit was ready to go.

[Dizzy1]

Only the #14 is able to use the Rutland exchange due to the size of the bus, if conventional buses are to be able to access it, the exchange needs to be larger - BC Transit is actively trying to get approval but there are some groups stalling it.

IIRC, it was designed with the newer, smaller 30ft conventional buses in mind, not the standard 40ft - however, the ridership on the number 8/10 runs far out exceed the capacity of the smaller buses.

[GordonH]

Rutland Exchange was built wrong and the big buses can't access it. Talked to transit and the lady said it's up to the City of Kelowna to rectify the problem. Hah, don't hold your breath on that getting done in a timely fashion.

Hopefully the engineer involved was given the boot over this one, as Bsuds said home schooled engineering. lol

[oneh2obabe]

Looks like someone lit a fire under CoK's *bleep* ...

RFQ to identify qualified respondents posted yesterday
https://www.kelowna.ca/business-service ... nd-transit

Scope of Work
https://kelowna.bonfirehub.ca/opportunities/13619

[Dizzy1]

Yep, curbs were too high for the buses. They had to redo them before announcing Rapid Transit was ready to go.

The curbs were too high for the buses that weren't intended to be used on the 97x due to the door design on the Enviro500s and NewFlyers - they were designed specifically for the intended bus on the route, the Nova LFS, as it would allow the bus floor to match curb height eliminating the need to deploy the wheelchair ramp and expediting the boarding/unboarding process.

[Grandan]

I'm not a transit user and I only drive up Dougall Road every couple of months, but in the 4+ years it's been there, I have never seen a bus (or any people for that matter) in the Rutland Transit Exchange so I had a look at the bus routes and it seems that it's not actually on any of them. There was a fairly big hoopla and grand plans when it was opened in 2013 https://www.castanet.net/news/Kelowna/9 ... in-Rutland and yet it seems to be just sitting there, unused and unloved. White elephant much?

I drive by the Rutland Exchange on a regular basis and it never occurred to me the reason there were no buses there was due to the inability to fit. It doesn't surprise me given the competence of the high priced planning staff at the City of Kelowna that City council does not listen to. If it was you or me presenting the design it would be panned by staff. There really are a bunch of incompetent goofs in there that have been there too long but somehow manage to rise up the ranks and end up in dead end positions ready to block every fresh new idea that comes in the door.
Someone had an idea and it was more about giving Rutland something, anything to make them feel they were getting a perk.
How much did the fancy galvanized steel sign cost? Now they seem to think that the road needs to be pushed through the park to Rutland Road to somehow justify the whole project.

[Catri]

I sincerely hope that moving forward with phase 2 isn't throwing good money after bad. I can't help thinking that if this had been built anywhere within 1000m of the lake there would have been some remedial action before 4 years had passed, but Rutland, well, it's outside the lakeside zone of civic importance, isn't it?