SMART works out train scheduling

From November 2016: SMART test-run in Santa Rosa, Calif.

My email in-box is filled with regular updates as the date draws nearer when Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit will be open to public ridership.

With service slated to begin “late spring,” SMART has been working out details of train scheduling — particularly addressing reduced wait-time during peak commutes.

From an update on May 25: “The updated schedule includes 34 trips each weekday, with the first southbound train pulling out at 4:19 a.m. from the Sonoma County Airport Station, and the first northbound train leaving downtown San Rafael at 5:59 a.m. The last southbound train leaves the Sonoma County Airport Station at 6:49 p.m. and the last northbound train leaves downtown San Rafael at 8:35 p.m. The full 43-mile trip — including stops at all 10 stations — takes 67 minutes. The schedule includes 10 weekend runs on Saturdays and Sundays designed to meet the Larkspur Ferry schedule.”

Schedule planners, of course, must also consider run times of neighboring transit partners so that train-riders can make their connections. These partner agencies include Marin Transit, Sonoma County Transit, Golden Gate Transit, Petaluma Transit and Santa Rosa CityBus.

So many details, but in the end, I think the effort will be worth it — with one more option to reduce commuter gridlock on the Highway 101 corridor.