Stimulus Plan for Rail Line Shows System of Weak Links

“Stimulus Plan for Rail Line Shows System of Weak Links”

By Michael Cooper

NY Times

March 22, 2010

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/23/us/23train.html

Recently, the Obama administration awarded Florida $1.25 billion in stimulus money to link Orlando to Tampa with a fast train to encourage high-speed rail service in the United States. The train would reach speeds of 168 miles per hour and make five stops along the 84-mile route. It is expected to make the trip in 54 to 58 minutes, while test drives along the same route took 82 minutes; shaving off only 30 minutes of the trip. Travelers may also be disappointed with their transit options upon arrival in either city; Tampa, in particular was noted in Frommer’s travel guide as being nearly impossible to navigate to major sights and restaurants without a car. Light rail is planned in both cities, but no connections to the high speed rail are planned. Also, the rail would go to downtown Tampa, but not the airport, and it would go to the Orlando airport, but not downtown Orlando. America 2050, a planning group, found that to capture riders, cities must be at least 100 miles apart; an estimate that is nearly 20 miles longer than the proposed route. Studies have estimated that the train would draw 11 percent of the 4.5 million people who drive between the Tampa and Orlando each year, but this would not be sufficient numbers to improve traffic flow on Interstate 4. The Obama administration saw the route as the fastest and cheapest way to get a high-speed line up and running because most of the right of way has been acquired and plans have been in place for decades. If the project is built and not successful, it may be harder for other high-speed rail projects to get money in the future.

on the wording of the Hillsborough tax referenda

http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/local/hillsborough-transit-tax-issue-bogs-down-again/1078886

This article details on how the Hillsborough County commissioners have come into a deadlocked in a 3 on 3 vote on how the proposed transit sales tax referendum is worded. which is how the money is going to be used and if it isn’t, for the tax referenda to be repeal. The detail is that 75% is to go for the new rail system and expanded bus service while the remaining 25% would go for other road and transportation needs. The article goes on to specify how and why Commissioner objected to how the wording of the propose tax referendum. Commissioner Ferlita wants two things. 1, that no more that 25% would go for road needs and 2, if the county cannot obtain the needed state and federal funding for the rail system that the tax would be repeal. In that last part the commissioners decided to create an oversight committee. the committee would be 9 people in size, each with some form of education that can be related to the transportation issue.

I change my mind, 5% of it

http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2010/03/22/story4.html?b=1269230400%5E3052891

Intro:
As many of my fellow classmates know I use the bus system. It was a conscious choice that not many people do. I did it for the environment and my wallet. I remind you of this fact so I can tell you that from my own personal experience I disagree with some of the conclusions that I have learned over this past semester, not just this class. I now go back to the article that I summarize in class a week or so ago and the question that I brought out for the class. That question was “how can you get more people to ride the buses?” As some of you may remember, I stated that it was a trick question because the market was not going to grow any larger, percentage wise. I now have changed my mind, about 5% and not much more. This leads to reason that I picked this article. I will state that reason at the very end. That means that if you don’t read my summary of this article, you’ll at least have to scroll down if you’re curious enough to learn why.

The article summary:
Now that the Stimulus funding has finally been disbursed this article is a list of how public transportation system agencies in the bay area are now spending their stimulus funding. Some agencies are increasing their fleet while others are retooling their fleet. This article states that Kimmins Contracting Corp. won a 4.9 million dollars contract to extend the Tampa’s streetcar system. what I learned in this article is that most of Florida’s major transit agencies belong to the Florida Public Transit Association, a nonprofit consortium. The article protrades this association main function is to buy heavy duty transit buses in bulk in order to get the lowest price possible.

I choice this article for only one reason:
The reason I choice this article is when read on how one of the ways the Recovery Act funding is being used. That is the how to bring the bus schedules to handheld devices. The article doesn’t state how the system is going to be implemented but if it has a real-time GPS, Global Position System, information online fort the riding public this new system would address one of the major reasons people do not use the public bus system, the wait time. Throughout the semester we have all seen the top 10 list of why people do not used the public transit system. The “wait time” is in the top 3 in the list. This new information system that makes available to the public the bus schedule with a GPS it just might increase the ridership market size by . . . 5%.

Tampa mayor: Mass transit 'the big issue of our time'

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/mar/10/tampa-mayor-mass-transit-big-issue-our-time/

TAMPA - Mayor Pam Iorio, in her annual state of the city address today, urged support for a mass transportation system she said will allow Tampa to retain a competitive edge in attracting companies and jobs. Mass transit development is one of the major topics talked about in out community. It has gotten great attention. Most people support mass transit because they are sick of being car dependent. Tampa is highly bases on cars and people do not have the option anymore to travel around in any other modes.

Efficient, economical mass transit "will define how we grow and prosper and bring jobs to this community in the future," she told an overflow crowd of government officials.

Urban planning errors of the 20th century, if repeated, will continue to encourage sprawl and keep people dependent on cars, Iorio said. "I see a lot different view of how we can grow and prosper. We are not defined by our problems; we are defined by how we solve our problems."

Looking down the road

http://northwest2.tbo.com/content/2010/apr/14/nw-looking-down-the-road/

This article is addressing the community efforts to be involved with the light rail that will be built in Tampa. Carollwood and Northdale residents have developed a plan to make Dale Mabry Hwy more pedestrian friendly and more character identified. Their plan includes signage standards and walk ability safety. although the community have been working and meeting on developing such a plan, commissioners are emphasizing that Dale Mabry is not in the primary plan for the light rail. Such a plan for Dale Mabry Highway will serve as a future saved plan for extension and expansion of the light rail that would be built.

It is very important for communities to get involved and have a say in what they want and what they don't want in regards to community improvements and transit development.

American Planning Association - Suncoast Chapter

Last Thursday, I had an opportunity to attend my first APA - Suncoast Chapter meeting downtown. The Chapter meets on the first Thursday of each month and they are looking for participation from USF students interested in getting involved. Specifically, they have several events coming up, including a large conference in September. They will be looking for volunteers to get involved. The conference will be held in Tampa this year.

Additionally, the Chapter head, Laura Everitt would like students interested in getting involved to contact her at leveritt@tindaleoliver.com to get on the weekly email list. Student fees to be a part of the Suncoast Chapter are only $5 annually. I would encourage all of you to get involved, there is definitely a lot to be gained by getting involved.

chris

Public Meeting To Discuss Bruce B. Downs Boulevard Widening

Here's the press release for the public meeting I mentioned last week. It's on Thursday, April 1st at 6:30PM

Public Meeting To Discuss Bruce B. Downs Boulevard Widening

Hillsborough County and the Hillsborough Metropolitan Planning Organization will hold a public meeting to provide information and discuss Segment A of the Bruce B. Downs Boulevard widening project from Bearss Avenue to Palm Springs Boulevard in the New Tampa area. The purpose of the meeting is to receive input from citizens as to whether this segment should be reconstructed as a six-lane roadway, per the recently adopted Long Range Transportation Plan, in order to preserve right-of-way for future rapid transit, or as an eight-lane roadway as currently designed. Construction is estimated to start on the designed eight lanes in the summer of 2011 and should be completed by spring of 2014. The projected cost of the project is approximately $55 million. County and MPO staff, local agencies and consultants will be at the meeting to discuss the details of the project and future transit plans and to answer any questions residents may have. Please attend; we welcome your input. Date: Thursday, April 1 Time: 6:30 p.m. Place: Tampa Palms Elementary School , 6100 Tampa Palms Blvd. All meeting facilities are ADA compliant. For additional assistance, or for more information, please call Steve Valdez, Public Works Department at 272-5275 (TTY: 301-7173) or visit the MPO website at: www.hillsboroughmpo.org Para información, llamar al 272-5275.