SMART revises passenger rail service after facing criticism

Faced with a public backlash over its announced schedule for passenger rail service, officials Tuesday at the Sonoma Marin Area Rail Area Transit authority issued a revised version they say shortens wait times during peak commute hours.

“Based on the feedback we received from the general public, businesses, and schools, we adjusted our schedule to shorten the wait times during the peak commuting hours,” Debora Fudge, Windsor’s Mayor and chairwoman of SMART’s board of directors, said in a statement.

SMARTfaced criticism over the schedule it put out last Wednesday, particularly over 90-minute service gaps during peak commute times. Many flooded the agency’s Facebook page with complaints. The agency’s post about the schedule was removed.

The revised schedule now includes 60-minute wait times during the longest gap periods, and 30-minute intervals at other hours of peak service.

For instance, there will now be trains departing San Rafael at 7:26 a.m., 8:26 a.m. and 8:56 a.m.

The previous version had trains leaving that station at only 7:26 a.m. and 8:56 a.m.

SMART says it lacks the equipment and personnel to uniformly offer service on a 30-minute time-table during peak hours.

The 2008 ballot measure North Bay voters approved to support the rail initiative stated passenger service would be delivered at 30-minute intervals during “rush hours.” A 2014 strategic plan for the system also stated that trains would be “spread across the morning and evening commute hours with roughly 30-minute headways,” and that trains would travel approximately 30 minutes apart.

SMART is planning to start passenger service within a month.

Check back later for more on this breaking news story.

You can reach Staff Writer Derek Moore at 707-521-5336 or derek.moore@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @deadlinederek.

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