Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is like any transportation facility or service in that it is capable of influencing the type, scale, value, and timing of surrounding development. Or not, depending on the presence and influence of the myriad of other factors that also shape those same features. In this review of international examples drawn from Busways in the U.S., Canada, and Australia, a range of development impacts may be observed. Impacts can occur on the nature of development in the immediate vicinity of busway stations; along the guideways; and on a suburb-wide basis. Specific examples of Busway impact on development in cities (Ottawa, Pittsburgh, and Brisbane) are provided. The effect of BRT service on the development of an entire suburb in Ottawa, a picture of specific new and adaptive development over a fifteen year period along Pittsburgh's East Busway, and the immediate impact on property values in Brisbane's South East Busway corridor are highlighted, as examples of the influence of Busways on their surroundings. The paper concludes with a "catalog" of 48 Busway stations, constituting the majority of the stations currently in operation in Ottawa, Pittsburgh, Brisbane, and Adelaide. Each entry provides a high-level photograph of the station area (where available), a description of the facility, its setting, a summary of the new development that has occurred since station opening (where information is available), and an overview description of the development situation within which the station sits.
Abstract