Background

Bus lanes have been around for decades and were initially identified with white pavement markings. Tinted pavement bus lanes first surface in international cities. In the US, city bus lanes conformed to signage and markings described in the Manual for Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUCTD). This began to change in 2017 with pilot tinting allowed by the FHWA and was formally approved by the FHWA in 2020. Since then, many cities have implemented red tinted bus lanes as part of both BRT projects and non-BRT bus lane projects. The expansion of the concept suggests wide success, but little is known about their successes/failures and policy, technical and operational issues. How do tinted bus lanes compare to physically separated exclusive BRT lanes? What have been key factors to the success of the painted bus lanes and what are the key challenges? Observations in San Francisco indicate that right turning motorists better understand the red tinting and that enforcement is critical to their success. Other regions are exploring this approach as a means to help motorists better navigate an increasingly multimodal arterial cross-section. Foundational questions remain - are the tinted lanes safer, do they improve operations and how important is enforcement?

Synthesis Objective

The objective of this synthesis is to document the current state of practice in the performance and implementation of red tinted bus lanes. 

Information To Be Gathered

• Definitions of tinted bus lane concept;
• History and context of red tinted bus lane as well as the authority to implement the tinted lanes
• Reasons for implementation
• Locations and features of the tinted bus lanes including links to BRT and other high- frequency transit services (road type and lane type)
• Available performance information (e.g., travel time and reliability, self-enforcement, compliance, safety, durability)
  • Tenure of lanes
  • Measures of effectiveness (KPI, metrics, etc.)
• Implementation costs;
• Responsibility for ongoing maintenance and costs;
• Material selection process (e.g., road type, closure time);
• Enforcement responsibility, experience, and effectiveness;
• Fiscal impacts including operational and enforcement cost savings (if available);
• Interaction with bikes, taxis, delivery vehicles, emergency vehicles and other modes

How the Information Will Be Gathered

Information will be gathered by a literature review (e.g. agency reports, peer reviewed journal articles, web articles) and a survey on a broad range of North American transit agencies. The report should include a minimum of five case examples that have operational and geographic diversity and will gather information on the state-of-the-practice, emphasizing lessons learned, challenges, and gaps. 

Information Sources

• Transit agencies
• TRB and other research
• MUCTD