TU Staff Editorial: Rail gains credibility

[thelakelander]

The TU gets it.  How about JTA?

By The Times-Union

If the Charlotte experience is any indication, rail transit might be a good option for Jacksonville.

Charlotte uses buses and a trolley for mass transit. And it soon will have light rail.

Just a couple of days after Thanksgiving, the LYNX Blue Line is to open, the city-county Web site says.

The trains will run nearly 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at 15 stations on the 9.6 mile line, picking up commuters every 7.5 minutes during rush hour.

Buses will provide direct service to the rail stations.

The project was funded by a half-cent sales tax.

Because of cost overruns on the project, however, there was a movement to repeal the tax and stop further expansion of the system.

It was on the ballot Nov. 6. More than 70 percent voted to keep the tax, the Charlotte Observer says.

The mayor, who supported light rail, was re-elected by a landslide, carrying key Democratic precincts even though he's a Republican.

Why does that matter to people in Jacksonville?

The Jacksonville Transportation Authority wants to build a bus rapid transit system that would take people from the airport to The Avenues mall and from Orange Park to the beaches.

Land planner Ennis Davis and others, however, want a hybrid system that would involve running trains on that north-south corridor.

Some critics had questioned the wisdom of such an arrangement, citing the controversy in Charlotte.

The vote puts that to rest.

Would rail be feasible in Jacksonville? Maybe. Maybe not. But the JTA should explore the possibility.

This story can be found on Jacksonville.com at http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/112307/opi_219508262.shtml.

[alta]

Does the Times Union have plans to run an in depth series about light rail or commuter rail?  It's great that they even acknowledge that there is another option.  It would be great if they researched other cities where light rail is cheaper than our proposed bus rapid transit system and is hugely popular with the citizens it serves i.e. portland, salt lake, dallas, denver.  If the city would realize the huge increase realized in property taxes around well designed mass transit system they might change their mind.  In the case of JTA I honestly just don't get it.  They won't to pay top dollar for a low quality system. 

[Ocklawaha]

Don't get it? JTA and FDOT sadly, have never seen a stretch of pavement that they didn't love. Florida trails most of the nation in Transportation. The highway PAC's have always held a stranglehold on Tallahassee. They have even hosted partys when a rail line died! "Getting rid of a little used rail line and replacing it with a trail will greatly enhance the comunity livability." "Replacing a former railroad branch with BRT makes sense for Miami and if the BRT demand reaches a critical mass, we can always build rail in the future." A wink, a toast, and jingle...jingle...we all go home a little fatter and a little richer. "The Public Be Damned," what they don't know won't hurt them.

If the TU were really interested, they would be exploring the failures of FDOT to do their job. Just how successful is the Hart-JTB freeway? How about the Skyway? Where are it's crowded vehicles? Why haven't we HAD to expand it to 4 cars? Why didn't it replace the bus routes downtown? Where are it's extensions into the "suburbs?"  JTA told me it was FAR SUPERIOR to Light Rail, I just want them to explain it... I'm waiting??? What about the University Bl. bridge over the St. Johns? Oh my bad, the 20Th street bridge? Park and ride garages with no freeway access? Downtown trolleys that are not trolleys? Fare increases on empty buses? Planned bus routes on Freeways (as IF anyone lived there)? Duplication of the unfinished Skyway? Bike trails through ghetto projects on prime transit corridors? Airport "service" with fewer arrivals and departures then JIA on a Saturday? A transit system that dies after sunset?

Not that I'm critical mind you... I just want to know. Why do we accept JTA or FDOT's word on anything? Investigative reporting anyone? Or will "JTA" continue to mean, JACKSONVILLE - TRANSIT - ATROCITIES?  
Ocklawaha

[Charles Hunter]

Interesting stuff, Ock, may I play Devil's Advocate for a minute?  And provide some background for those new to the game?  And intense interest of the local media (heck, any interest) in transportation issues would be a good thing.

Don't get it? JTA and FDOT sadly, have never seen a stretch of pavement that they didn't love. Florida trails most of the nation in Transportation. The highway PAC's have always held a stranglehold on Tallahassee. They have even hosted partys when a rail line died! "Getting rid of a little used rail line and replacing it with a trail will greatly enhance the comunity livability." "Replacing a former railroad branch with BRT makes sense for Miami and if the BRT demand reaches a critical mass, we can always build rail in the future." A wink, a toast, and jingle...jingle...we all go home a little fatter and a little richer. "The Public Be Damned," what they don't know won't hurt them.

If the TU were really interested, they would be exploring the failures of FDOT to do their job.
Just how successful is the Hart-JTB freeway?

Wow, haven't heard about that in a long time.  For the newcomers - as originally conceived, the Hart Xway did not stop at Beach Boulevard, near Parental Home Road, it was supposed to continue southeast, and then follow the JTB route from around (I forget), either Southside or St. Johns Bluff, to the Beach.

How about the Skyway? Where are it's crowded vehicles? Why haven't we HAD to expand it to 4 cars? Why didn't it replace the bus routes downtown? Where are it's extensions into the "suburbs?"  JTA told me it was FAR SUPERIOR to Light Rail, I just want them to explain it... I'm waiting???

Where is the large development surrounding the Jefferson Station (paging Bucky Clarkson)? Don't know why it hasn't replaced the downtown bus routes, JTA says people don't like to transfer.  And it was never intended to be extended to the suburbs - the Hospital complex, Sports complex, and Brooklyn (BCBS), yes, but not the 'burbs.

What about the University Bl. bridge over the St. Johns? Oh my bad, the 20Th street bridge?

The Port stopped the 20th Street Bridge in the 1960s, a bridge between Ortega and San Jose (old money) is a non-starter, politically.  Maybe there's a reason new bridges are "to nowhere" (see Mathews and Dames Point).  If nobody lives there, nobody to complain - or buy out.

Park and ride garages with no freeway access? Downtown trolleys that are not trolleys? Fare increases on empty buses? Planned bus routes on Freeways (as IF anyone lived there)? Duplication of the unfinished Skyway? Bike trails through ghetto projects on prime transit corridors? Airport "service" with fewer arrivals and departures then JIA on a Saturday? A transit system that dies after sunset?

All good questions, that even the devil has no answers for! 

Not that I'm critical mind you... I just want to know. Why do we accept JTA or FDOT's word on anything? Investigative reporting anyone? Or will "JTA" continue to mean, JACKSONVILLE - TRANSIT - ATROCITIES?   
Ocklawaha

[thelakelander]

This editorial has spurred another good debate on the TU board.

Rail in Jax: http://cgi.jacksonville.com/cgi-bin/msgboard/boards/news/view.cgi?section=29508

[tufsu1]

Don't get it? JTA and FDOT sadly, have never seen a stretch of pavement that they didn't love. Florida trails most of the nation in Transportation.  
Ocklawaha

really? perhaps in your "rail-only mind"

don't get me wrong....I'm not one to defend JTA or FDOT often....but you should check the stats....Florida's overall transportation system is considered one of the best in the country....we have better highway conditions than molst states, several major seaports, and two of the highest ranked airports (Orlando and Tampa)....and our commute delays aren't bad considering we have more major metro areas than any state other than Texas and California

I realize the missing piece here is rail....but I think your statement is very misleading!

[Ocklawaha]

Sorry TUFSU1, but the "rail only mind" is present only in your imagination. Rail planning is my RECENT background, go back further and you'll find: Trailways, Transit Center's, Several Towns, Piedmont Airlines, Continental, United, Emery Air Freight, the USPS and Trucking. I figure that's a pretty broad selection to draw my opinions from. Here are some selections for y'all to consider:

Florida Drives the National Auto Market


Though it is the fourth most populous state, Florida has moved past Texas into second place behind California among the nation's largest vehicle markets. In the process, selling and maintaining cars has become a substantial part of Florida's economy.

In Florida, cars outpace people
Even though it's slowed in the past year, Florida's car growth has exceeded even the state's booming population growth. The number of vehicles registered in the state soared 44 percent from 1997 to 2005, to nearly 16 million, according to the Federal Highway Administration. Meanwhile, the population rose by 21 percent, to just under 18 million people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau (see chart). During that period, total cars registered nationwide increased just 16 percent, the Federal Highway Administration said, while the U.S. population rose by 9 percent.
Residents,  take to the open road
The basic factors that make Florida such an attractive car market are simple: It is a large state, with nearly 18 million residents, and few residents use public transportation. Less than 2 percent of Florida households with people who commute to work used transit in 2005, compared with just under 5 percent nationwide, according to the U.S. Bureau of the Census.

Talk about having our prioritys in all the wrong places...Imagine a vehicle tax that would pay for alternatives.

WEST PALM BEACH (NEWS)â€" Dane Sak is really fed up with all of the excuses he's heard why Tri-Rail frequently runs late.

On average, he figures the train is behind schedule three out of five days. Sometimes the delay is only five or 10 minutes. Other times, it's an hour or longer.

I've called and called and called, and they just give us the run-around," said Sak, 43, who's been riding the commuter rail for three years. "How long can they blame it on signaling problems?"

On Monday, Sak circulated a petition demanding Tri-Rail improve service and the "deplorable conditions" on trains and at the stations. He hopes to gather at least 1,000 signatures - nearly 10 percent of the average weekday ridership - by the end of the week before sending the petition to Gov. Charlie Crist, state lawmakers and county commissioners.

There's no denying on-time performance is poor, said Joe Giulietti, executive director of the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority. In June, 61 percent of trains ran on time. It's up to 66 percent this month. That's far from acceptable, Giulietti said.

When your chances are a little better than 50-50 that your ride is going to be late, I think it's about time to find a new ride. But it's not just the performance issues that have customers frustrated.
Passengers say station maintenance leaves much to be desired. The stair tower at the West Palm Beach station stinks of urine, and there's often feces on the stairs, they said. And restrooms on the trains are often filthy.

To which I would say, "Welcome to public transportation!" But wait. Tri-Rail personnel are surly, too.
Waiting for a southbound train at the West Palm Beach station, riders were advised to board on the east platform. But the train pulled in a few minutes later at the west platform.

Passengers scrambled to get back to the other side. The elevator was broken, so the only access was the two-story stair tower. Several elderly people and mothers with young children did not make it before the train pulled out.

"You know what the conductor said to us? 'Well, you should have been faster,''" Sak said.

This may be an appropriate time to point out that compassion is not exactly South Florida's strong suit.

Great job down in Miami, now FDOT wants to take the Tri-Rail money to fund ORLANDO! What a great idea...

Orlando Sentinel Friday Editorial and Forum
Buses are certainly not the answer. Traffic congestion is just a symptom of much larger problems, such as our overreliance on fossil fuels, unchecked growth, and an unwillingness or unawareness of the need to comprise convenience for the public good. The solution is electrified light rail, commuter rail and trolleys. Devising a transportation system based on a depleting resource at this point is just poor judgment.

Basing our transportation infrastructure on electricity will give us the flexibility we will need to meet the challenges of climate change and oil depletion, and make our economy less vulnerable to oil shocks. Electricity can be generated from a number of sources and eventually new power plants can be built from renewable and nonpolluting sources.

It will be much more difficult to do this if we continue to rely on petroleum, leaving ourselves no time to make critical changes in our transportation infrastructure. Rebuilding and electrifying our rail system will create jobs, boost the economy, and insulate us against ever rising oil prices.

Wake up, people! Europe is way ahead of us on this.

Something I have been saying, so is SOUTH AMERICA!

AVIATION DAILY: The Best Of Airports - Attracting That All-Important Air Service
Dear Readers:
Even editrixes need to take a bit of vacation.  And since Aviation Daily will also be on hiaitus the week of Christmas, so will the blog.  But not to fear - I'll be posting "The Best Of"  while I'm away.  And if you haven't been reading us since we began in August, the posts will be new to you!
The Story of the Week in the Sept. 12 issue of Aviation Daily's Airports (available here for free) is about how Baltimore-Washington and San Jose International airports were recognized by ACI-NA for their separate efforts to woo service from Mexicana to Mexico City.  The airports placed second and third, respectively, in the "Partnering with Carriers" category of ACI-NA's annual Excellence in Marketing and Communications Contest. 
It goes without saying that we go to airports to travel -- except if you're flying to Ponca City, Okla., where you go to eat at Enrique's for the best Mexican food north of the border.  But I digress.  And if your airport isn't bringing in new service, it can mean money and a fight for survival.
So airports have been forced to become very creative in putting together incentives and programs to support the airlines that they have attracted.   My hometown airport -- BWI -- has been very aggressive in finding airlines to fly out of its beautiful international terminal, currently home to Air Canada/Jazz, Air Jamaica, British Airways, Icelandair and Mexicana.  The airport developed an advertising campaign in the U.S. and Mexico touting the new service and held an inaugural at BWI and Mexico City for media to launch the new flights.
San Jose, which sits in the middle of Silicon Valley, has Mexicana service to Mexico City, Guadalajara and Morelia and American Airlines service to Tokyo, although that service is ending Oct. 27.  The airport has made adding international service a key goal as part of its efforts to attract new service.  It even created a program giving airlines offering new service a year's worth of incentives, including free landing fees and reduced rents (The DAILY, May 19).  In its efforts, San Jose developed a comprehensive Spanish-language media campaign using television, radio and print to encourage residents in both cities to visit family.
I did a story in the Aug. 31 issue of Aviation Daily on the first-place winner, Port Columbus Airport, which has brought in service to Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Hartford, Los Angeles and Salt Lake City on Delta, Miami on American Eagle, and Washington Dulles on the defunct Independence Air since creating its Airline Incentive Program  in 2002.  There have also been stories on airports ranging from Fort Wayne, Ind.'s, Traffic & Revenue Improvement Plan to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport's Air Service Incentive Program.
It seems that most airports now are offering some type of incentives, whether it be marketing/advertising support, revenue guarantees or reduced rent/landing fees.  It's one thing to get the airlines to your airport -- it's quite another to get them to stay for the long haul after the assistance runs out.

So what are WE doing? Japan? Korea? Germany? Colombia? Italy? (homes of our international port and business partners) How about Macon? Ocala? and Pensacola?

FLORIDA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE: Urban highway congestion is rising. Investment in new highway capacity has not kept pace with demand over the past decade, leading to rising congestion statewide. Between 1980 and 1995, total vehicle-miles traveled increased 83 percent, but highway lane-miles increased only 18 percent. Over 65 percent of all urban freeway miles are moderately or severely congested, according to the Florida DOT. The Texas Transportation Institute ranks Miami as the fifth most congested urban area in the nation. Congestion is further aggravated by limited multimodal travel options in most urban areas and along major intercity corridors.

Air and water quality are emerging long-term issues. In 1998, 42 percent of Florida’s population lived in counties exceeding EPA air quality standards, up from 38 percent in 1987. Florida ranks 37th among the states for this measure. With coastal communities increasingly developing and spreading inland, concern about long-term water availability and quality is growing.

Leading in automobiles and trailing in highways and transit, this is a marriage made in hell! Oh and Lake, this same report also covers and cites poor urban planning throughout the State.

Ocklawaha