Festival ‘Sparks’ Ridership Boom on Skyway

[ProjectMaximus]

With the increased demand, you can start charging people to use it again, couple-up cars to increase capacity, and sell more advertising on cars and stations. To save costs, go ahead and make It land-based like a trolley, or better yet retrofit that dragstrip off of the Hart Expy. for trains and have all cars exit onto Bay St from the Hart Bridge to spur further development in the area.

I can dream, can't I...

I might as well be the one to tell you that the monorail cannot be land-based, unless you don't plan on having any at-grade crossings along the monorail's path. That is, where the monorail runs at street level you'd have to block off its path. 

[mbstout]

Perhaps a simple 1 station extension a hop, skip, and a jump over 95 and the rail yards to the Faemer's Market (and New Town/Mixon Town) be a good first step in achieving higher ridership..

[tufsu1]

^ that's like a 1+ mile long "simple extension" which would likely cost nearly $50 million

[thelakelander]

Yeah. I don't think many people really realize how expensive the Skyway is, in comparison with other modes of transit.  At $50 million a mile, you're in the price range of Charlotte-style LRT. There's a reason none of these things were built in other cities after Jax, Miami and Detroit got theirs.

[exnewsman]

If you asked 100 people in Jacksonville about Skyway expansion - 95 of them would say to the Stadium. But as pointed out here - the Skyway was not really designed to haul that sort of high capacity "sporting event" crowd. With a 25-year old system and technology, JTA must decide how it will continue (patchwork the current system or transition into some other type of technology).

A dozen football games does not justify the cost of an expansion to the stadium. However, if the Shipyards sees a major development that drives regular daily traffic - commercial/retail/residential - then you may be able to start that conversation. But it still may not be feasible with the current system for capacity issues alone.

Having a convention center at the courthouse location plus a major development at the Shipyards - maybe a hotel and/condo combination like the W near American Airlines Arena in Dallas.

The one thing One Spark has done is re-open the conversation to all the possibilities for the Skyway/LRT /commuter rail and more.

[jaxjaguar]

If the shipyards are developed I could see us winning the next tiger grant. It would be extremely beneficial to have the sky extended towards the stadium with one or two stops along the way. They could probably convince the feds that we need it to go to 5-points and san marco at that point as well.... Just food for thought.

[tufsu1]

^ I think there's a pretty good chance of getting a TIGER grant for the Brooklyn skyway extension regardless of what might happen at the Shipyards

[thelakelander]

Nothing significant is going to happen with the Shipyards anytime soon. If we have to wait on the development of the Shipyards to justify expanding the Skyway in that direction, it won't be happening this decade.

[RiversideHusker]

I parked at the Convention Center and rode the Skyway to One Spark, more for the novelty factor than anything. It was kind of cool, but it just seems a little rinky-dink and inefficient. Hemming Plaza is only a mile from Convention Center and I think most people could easily walk that (and could use the exercise.)

It's a nice way for people to move around, when they're downtown, but I don't think it will ever become a way for people to get to downtown.

[thelakelander]

Yes, it was never meant to be used by people to get downtown.  There was supposed to be complementing LRT and commuter rail lines to serve that purpose.

[jaxjaguar]

I parked at the Convention Center and rode the Skyway to One Spark, more for the novelty factor than anything. It was kind of cool, but it just seems a little rinky-dink and inefficient. Hemming Plaza is only a mile from Convention Center and I think most people could easily walk that (and could use the exercise.)

It's a nice way for people to move around, when they're downtown, but I don't think it will ever become a way for people to get to downtown.

When it's 100 degrees outside and you're in a suit that mile of air conditioned goodness can't be beat.

[Steve]

Or it's a Florida Summer afternoon and the sky opens up.

[thelakelander]

Unfortunately, you can keep your suit dry by staying in your SUV and parking in a garage that's attached or immediately adjacent to your office building....

[jaxjaguar]

Unless you're lowly and poor and trying to save money where you can by not paying for parking

[thelakelander]

^Then you probably aren't wearing a suit to get to an office or using the Skyway on a regular basis because most of the existing bus lines aren't really integrated with it.