Burner Express 2016

[Just_Joe]

It looks like ticketing went live today and I see some major changes for this year.

-500 "BURNER EXPRESS BUS PLUS" TICKETS AVAILABLE (Entry ticket + Bus ride)
https://ticketsupport.burningman.org/cu ... s/articles

-WATER PURCHASE OPTION

-SATURDAY BUS PASSENGERS DO NOT NEED AN EA

https://burnerexpress.burningman.org/bu ... formation/

[lucky420]

Yep! Just bought my kids bus tickets for Saturday.

They're staying in a PnP camp this year...

[Leap]

Saturday arrival with water pick up in BRC... done!

[AntiM]

I have visions of land grabbers run amok.

[Meat Hunter]

Did you also notice on the Burner Express web page the notice that there will be a Burner Air Express this year that will also be in operation Saturday pre-event?

The link is not yet active and I do not know all the details.

What I do know is that they will be using 30 passenger Dash 8's with the intent of lowering the cost of flights from SF, RNO & S-CA and reducing the number vehicles entering BRC.

If you are flying into either of these three areas, it would be nice to also fly the remainder of you trip directly into BRC.

I suspect with the limited number of available seats and the reduced price that these seats will fill quickly.

I know nothing else. If you are interested, You might wish to keep checking the Burner Express web page for details.

[Captain Goddammit]

Is the plane gonna stop at WalMart to get water and supplies?

[Leap]

I didn't see that! I wonder how much it will be. The Bus tickets aren't cheap.

[Bless]

I wonder if they'll open the main gates for everyone on Saturday now, too.

[Leap]

Looks like they haven't updated the arrival page yet for that answer.

[lucky420]

I'm thinking Saturday arrival is an incentive to take mass transit...

[Bless]

I'm thinking Saturday arrival is an incentive to take mass transit...

You're probably right.

[some seeing eye]

I like that BMORG is thinking creatively about how to reduce traffic on 447 in order to lift the population cap in 2017. Burner Express was 3,884 last year and the total airport 2,330.
It would be amazing if the BE Bus went up by more than 1500 this year, and the airport by 800 ~30%.

(When the concierge camps start sending car service to pick up at the bus depot, we'll know we've won! - that's a joke, I think)

[bitsychi]

Got my tickets last night and really happy about the water option this year- it sucked when one of your two pieces of luggage was your water, that put a definite cramp on what you could bring in. I think this is a big help in making this a more reasonable option for people...not to mention reducing the amount of hauling 100 pounds of water around a bus traveler had to do

[Elderberry]

Is the plane gonna stop at WalMart to get water and supplies?

My guess is they will handle it the same way the Bus transport is--you pre-pay for water and fill-up when you get into the city.

[Eric]

I'm thinking Saturday arrival is an incentive to take mass transit...

This is absolutely and officially the reason for the EAs for Saturday arrivals.
The BMorg wants to get vehicles off the road, this will help do it, as will the new air service when that gets up & running (I don't have info on when that will happen) - this is just like EAs being incentives to get theme camps & villages up and running by the time Gate opens, but for general campers to not drive.

As for land-grabbing - Saturday arrivals will only be allowed to camp on G or further back, or in the official Burner Express camp if they want to be closer. The land-grabbing rules apply to everyone (including theme camps, art camps & Org volunteers), they'll have people checking for odd camps in weird places.


As for the new water plan - it's about fucking time. That's not official, that's me.

[Captain Goddammit]

This is all great stuff... but I can't help secretly thinking the easier they make it to go to Burning Man, the more traffic and overpopulation issues they create. Not less.

[Eric]

I don't think overpopulation is the problem, it's the traffic. If you can lessen the amount of cars on the road while keeping the population stable, that means the BLM & surrounding areas might be open to increasing the population cap as long as the alternative transportation continues to be robust. That creates more tickets for people, and would help release a tiny bit of the ticket pressure (though at this point there are too many people who want to go to loosen it a lot, we'd have to move up to 100,000 people to even get close and I think the whole thing would start to come apart at that point)

Will it be the same event it was 10 years ago, let alone 20? Nope. But change is part of life regardless of how we feel about it. We adapt or we move on.

[Captain Goddammit]

Traffic wasn't an issue when population was less.
The easier it gets to go to Burning Man, the more people will want to do it. The more people, the more traffic. The more people bussing and flying, the less people do what the Survival Guide says.
The less self reliance we have, the more spectators.
It's just the law of the jungle.
Change is inevitable. But the easier we make it to do this, the more we water it down. No pun....

[Eric]

Change is inevitable. But the easier we make it to do this, the more we water it down. No pun....

I won't argue with that.

[chrissalij]

Regarding water, it says:

Water must be filled upon arrival in BRC and is only available to Burner Express riders.

I'm assuming this means you have to fill up your contains pretty much as you get off the bus. No hauling your gear to the camp, then coming back to get all your water. And no coming back a couple days later to top up.

[SherieBerie]

In the FAQ about water it says:

Q: What about water?

New for 2016, you will be able to pre purchase up to 20 gallons of water through the Burner Express Bus program. Water will be sold for $1.50/gallon and in 5 gallon increments. You MUST BRING YOUR OWN water container with you. We recommend collapsible 5 gallon jugs you can find at camping stores.

Riders must purchase water tickets through the ticket purchase process before they arrive on Playa. Once on Playa, riders will be able to collect their water by redeeming their water tickets at the Burner Express Bus Depot. Water will NOT be sold on Playa; all purchases must occur prior to arrival.

This is a little confusing - can you come back to the bus depot at any time with your water tickets to top-up, or must you get all 20 gallons (if you purchase that much) only once, when you first get off the bus?

[lucky420]

If it's not clear on the bxb web page go ahead and email them. It's a pretty fast response time