|
|
|
|
|
| |
| What's the Light Rail For Again!?
Posted: 7/8/2009 11:24:31 AM | with the new hrs on fri/sat the light rail service has gotten even better.
and if you venture around the light rail stations, you will see a hotbed of development, even in this dire economic state.
A good example of this is the corner of mclintock and apache; it was for a VERY long time an area wrought with drugs/prostitution. Now, with a new station there is a terrific new building going up on the corner, and new retail opportunities.
On Mill, the south end of the street has all but been abandoned... go to the north side where the light rail is, and you see businesses doing well; especially the yogurt shop Mojo, and I can attest to the influx of traffic in that area.
The idea, at least to me, for the rail, was to given a central spine to the city. Was it done 100% perfect? No. Is it more impressive than I thought it would be? Most definitely.
I challenge any naysayer to actually ride it; it makes living in the valley and traveling a completely different experience. I actually enjoy going down washington now. And I can walk to the station in tempe, ride it to George n Dragon in PHX, and get home the same way. Without my car, without getting a cab, without a potential DUI if i am drinking... Its fantastic.
In 10-20 yrs we can look at the light rail and feel proud that we did something for the city beyond expanding its borders into the desert and putting up more freeways to no where. | |
|
| What's the Light Rail For Again!?
Posted: 7/22/2009 4:27:49 PM | rode it once, from the end of the line in Mesa to the other end and back, during its
innauguration week when it was free. I can't see me using it much, the depot's don't have bathrooms and they don't plan on building them. I prefer the comforts of my
own car and can stop when ever I have a whim. I also think it just takes too long to
get somewhere on it as does the city bus. Other towns have much better public
transit systems and I think Phoenix really lacks in that dept. | |
|
| What's the Light Rail For Again!?
Posted: 10/21/2009 12:51:25 AM | The light rail is not for everyone, just as bus lines and subways are not for everyone.
In a city with subways, you'd better be close to the station or you're gonna do a lot of walking. But then, you're probably going to walk a lot anyway between the stations and your destination. If you hate walking more than 100 feet across a parking lot, MASS TRANSIT IS NOT FOR YOU.
I've been on subways in Tokyo, London, Washington DC, and Paris. Riding a subways requires a lot of stairs to get to and from the trains. A friggin' lot of stairs, and each stairway is jammed with people moving about. It's organized chaos, but it works. It's not for people who need their "own space" or want to take detours every day.
Light rail is similar in many respects, but at least you don't have to wind your way up and down levels of stairs and wonder if you're facing the right way like a subway line. You don't have to deal with darkeness and crowding, you can get AWAY from the station quickly.
Light rail is similar to bus lines in that you're on/off at the street corner, but rail loads/unloads much quicker, and doesn't get delayed in city traffic. Yes, you destinations are limited, but the same is true for buses. Again, if you can't be away from you car, home or office for more than 15 minutes, MASS TRANSIT IS NOT FOR YOU.
I like light rail, but the current line is not suited to my commutes. I pass it each day driving to/from work and I see crowded trains, which means SOMEONE finds them useful. People who don't have cars. Students who like cheap travel and don't carry a lot of stuff. Others who like being able to read on the train instead of driving and parking downtown.
Eventually the system will expand. Expansion always follows demand. No city can accurately predict where people will cluster 10 years ahead of time. This is why highways, services, retail and mass transit are always lagging behind home development and business growth.
I'm happy to take the seat on the light rail for those of you who have no need of it. Enjoy your commute. | |
|
|
|
Home
login 
