skyway blog entry

[thelakelander]

The smart thing to do with the skyway now has changed, but back then, the sports complex was much less seldom used than the convention center (especially if they had actually taken it all the way up to Shands). I'm not arguing that an expansion to the sports complex alone is the way to go. But it's abundantly clear the thing won't be successful without expanding it.

I believe in both cases (then and now) its a bad idea to terminate a fixed transit line at a destination that doesn't stimulate ridership on a daily basis.  Perhaps we didn't know better back in the 1980s, but now there are several good and bad case studies confirming this.

If and when BRT, commuter rail, and streetcar come online, I do believe the skyway can be successful even if it isn't the transit mode accessing the stadium.  The key is to make sure all modes and adjacent land uses complement each other, thus feeding each with ridership and support.  San Diego Trolley's Green Line is a great example.  It was extended to Qualcomm Stadium but instead of terminating there, it continues into the suburbs picking up a medical center, San Diego State University before terminating at a River City Marketplace style shopping center called Santee Town Center.  So they get the stadium ridership as a bonus to the everyday usage stimulated from Alvarado Medical Center and other destinations.

Moving forward, we've got to transit plan in a similar matter.  Instead of focusing only on the skyway, streetcar, BRT, FEC Amtrak, etc., we've got to make sure that each corridor link serves a greater purpose as a part of an integrated transit network.  In addition, we've got to make sure that each line ties in multiple everyday destinations no matter how long or short it may be.  If we can do that, Jax be fine.

Brown hasn't endorsed the streetcar or the other recommendations of his transportation transition committee. It was his committee and he supported expanding public transit during his campaign, so there's hope. But considering he's backed away from some of the more politically risky things he supported in his campaign (notably pushing for LGBT anti-discrimination laws), I wouldn't expect him to do this until he's certain it's a good (or popular) idea.

The key with the streetcar is to not separate it from any other project within the mobility plan.  In the plan and fee structure, it's no different from the roadway, bicycle, and pedestrian mode improvements that will be funded by the mobility fee.  The transportation committee didn't isolate the streetcar from the mobility plan in it's recommendations.  Brown or the Council didn't stop the the mobility plan from being passed, so in that essence, they support the mobility plan & fee as a replacement to fair share concurrency.  However, they did allow for a year long moratorium of the fee after pressure from the Northeast Florida Builders Association (NEFBA) and developers like Toney Sleiman in the hope of spurring short term construction jobs.   

Nevertheless, going back to Brown's committees, the downtown committee had a trolley mentioned in their report but it was Mike Langton's narrow gauge concept that had nothing to do with the mobility plan or the streetcar project commonly mentioned here. 



Shown above, Jax Zoo's narrow gauge train is an example of what the downtown committee recommended.  If I'm Brown, I'd tread lightly with that as well.

[thelakelander]

The mobility plan is dead so there is really no funding mechanism to pay for streetcar.  JTA does not care about streetcar (or public transit in general) so they will not be contributing.  So unless someone breaks out their checkbook- streetcar isn't happening anytime soon.

Yes, until that mobility fee moratorium is allowed to sunset, we won't have a streetcar starter, a Southside Blvd widening, a pedestrian crossing over the Arlington Expressway, or commuter rail (the fee generates the local cash needed for JTA to attract federal funding) and a host of other mobility projects.

[cline]

The mobility plan is dead so there is really no funding mechanism to pay for streetcar.  JTA does not care about streetcar (or public transit in general) so they will not be contributing.  So unless someone breaks out their checkbook- streetcar isn't happening anytime soon.

Yes, until that mobility fee moratorium is allowed to sunset, we won't have a streetcar starter, a Southside Blvd widening, a pedestrian crossing over the Arlington Expressway, or commuter rail (the fee generates the local cash needed for JTA to attract federal funding) and a host of other mobility projects.

Well we will have all those awesome projects FDOT wants to pay for.  9b comes to mind.  Maybe we can even get the "northern" outer beltway.

[fsujax]

^^that will probably get funded before any fixed guideway transit line!

[mtraininjax]

But on the bright side, the Golden Spike Train Show will be at the Prime Osborn this weekend, Saturday, tix are 7 bucks. Come see some working trains on display!