Airport link makes Sound Transit line the train to somewhere

Started by JeffreyS, November 20, 2009, 03:30:41 PM

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JeffreyS

November 20, 2009, 03:30:41 PM
Airport link makes Sound Transit line the train to somewhere

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/editorials/2010270760_edit16rail.html
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Airport link makes Sound Transit line the train to somewhere

Sound Transit light rail will finally go the airport on Dec. 19 The airport segment is good news for transit riders and makes a ton of sense.



Sound Transit trains will be pulling into Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in the middle of December.


LIGHT rail to the airport begins Dec. 19. Now there's a concept, and a good one.

The true test of the usefulness of current light-rail service didn't really begin when Sound Transit light rail opened in July, running from downtown to Tukwila.

Yes, early numbers show usage so far is not overwhelming. Since light rail opened, the agency reports about 16,000 one-way trips a day, about 10,000 fewer than the agency's target by late 2010.

A far better test of the value of light rail â€" until subsequent additions north to Husky Stadium in 2016 â€" involves traffic to a significant destination with expensive or inconvenient parking, such as Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Obviously, stops downtown and near the sports stadiums have some of those same characteristics.

The airport line is not expected to have a huge impact on near-term ridership, but routing to such a logical place squelches earlier complaints that light rail is the train to nowhere.

South Tukwila, where the current route ends, was an embarrassment to transit planners who could not afford and design an airport station in time for the opening of the first segment.

The airport stop wasn't ready in the summer but it should make a difference for travelers who want a quicker, more hassle-free ride to Sea-Tac.

The very good news is the airport stop opens six days before Christmas â€" at the peak of the holiday travel season.

The airport segment is two weeks ahead of schedule and on budget. A bright moment for transit in our region
Lenny Smash

CS Foltz

#2
November 21, 2009, 06:06:21 AM
Christmas is coming......and I have been a good boy ..............so lets see what Santa brings!

thelakelander

#3
November 21, 2009, 08:30:36 AM
Santa brings you......

State Road 9B  ;D
"A man who views the world the same at 50 as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life." - Muhammad Ali

BridgeTroll

#4
November 21, 2009, 08:31:55 AM
Ho Ho Ho... :)
In a boat at sea one of the men began to bore a hole in the bottom of the boat. On being remonstrating with, he answered, "I am only boring under my own seat." "Yes," said his companions, "but when the sea rushes in we shall all be drowned with you."

Ocklawaha

#5
November 21, 2009, 08:44:57 AM
QuoteYes, early numbers show usage so far is not overwhelming. Since light rail opened, the agency reports about 16,000 one-way trips a day.

Is it just me, or does this seem like about 15,000 trips PER YEAR more then the deadend Skyway gets? CITY HALL? DO SOMETHING OR GET OFF THE THRONE!

Time to pull your head out Mayor Peyton!

OCKLAWAHA

aaapolito

#6
November 21, 2009, 09:01:51 AM
I was in Portland, Or. in August and rode the Maxx from PDX (the airport) right into Pioneer Sq. (the middle of downtown Portland).  The ride only took 30 minutes and it was great. 

Just think about how great it would be to ride a train from JAX to downtown.  That kind of option makes the city more accessible to travelers and saves on having to rent a car.

CS Foltz

#7
November 22, 2009, 07:49:27 PM
Ock...........the only thing the "Boy Blunder" is doing right now is trying to do something about a Legacy.....what ever in the hell that translates for him.

Steve

#8
November 22, 2009, 11:08:39 PM
Quote from: thelakelander on November 21, 2009, 08:30:36 AM
Santa brings you......

State Road 9B  ;D

If that's all Santa has for me, I'll take coal.

Doctor_K

#9
November 25, 2009, 09:03:31 AM
"Boy Blunder!"  Bwaahahahahahahahahaa! 

"Holy failed administration, Catman!"

Any chance of *any* forthcoming Mayoral candidate being pro-transit?  At all?
"Imagination is more important than knowledge. For while knowledge defines all we currently know and understand, imagination points to all we might yet discover and create."  -- Albert Einstein

Ocklawaha

#10
November 25, 2009, 09:56:14 AM Last Edit: November 25, 2009, 10:01:50 AM by Ocklawaha
Quote from: aaapolito on November 21, 2009, 09:01:51 AM
I was in Portland, Or. in August and rode the Maxx from PDX (the airport) right into Pioneer Sq. (the middle of downtown Portland).  The ride only took 30 minutes and it was great. 

Just think about how great it would be to ride a train from JAX to downtown.  That kind of option makes the city more accessible to travelers and saves on having to rent a car.
http://www.youtube.com/v/SYxvVe9y5NQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca&border=1

It might help if we had more then 5-10 flights a day, half of the time walking through that terminal one can hear his foot falls echo along the concourse. Shades of passenger railroading circa 1969. Yeah, I know it's more then that, it just feels like another failure since we had the jump on every other city on the coast with the first of everything. Other cities our size have excellent service and one would think we would have done a better job with airline services. PDX and JAX is a great illustration of how backward we have been.

OCKLAWAHA

CS Foltz

#11
November 26, 2009, 07:07:34 PM
Doctor K...............I have no idea in hell! Too far out for any announced candidate to have any platform that even might discuss or have an agenda regarding "Mass Transit"! I have hopes on one but they have not said much of anything so I guess time will tell..............we will see what takes place!
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