Would a BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) line qualify as a light rail line? The Greater Cleveland RTA opted to use articulated 2-car-long, wheeled buses in lieu of installing rails for light rail, modeled on the system in Curitiba, Brazil; however, it works just like light rail, with platforms with wheelchair access where tickets are purchased, all the doors on one side open just like light rail cars, and the vehicles run on a schedule that is more frequent than the rapid transit lines in the RTA system.
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Mara Baum
Partner, Architecture & SustainabilityDIALOG
674 thumbs up
May 24, 2010 - 9:00 pm
Great question. By the literal LEED language, this would obviously qualify as a bus, not a rail line. However, based on intent and function, the BRT should act as a rail or subway line. Are you able to prove that the BRT line(s) in question have the speed and capacity of an average subway? If so, then you may have an argument for categorizing the BRT as a subway. From what I know, however, BRT statistics fall somewhere between subways and regular buses. I don't know how GBCI will respond.
Pittsburgh, PA has both a old bus rapid transit system (its "busways") and a lot of LEED certified projects. You may be able to find out if any of those projects have crossed this bridge before.