fortworthhorn

Completely random example:

If someone wants to build a store and thinks they will do just fine with only 3 or 4 spaces, the code might require them to have 10.  Now that they have to have 10 spaces, there might be more land used for parking than the actual store.  It might even be more land than is available.  Now you've gone from having a nice little neighborhood store to having nothing.

 

Key point there.  Thank you for posting that.  And in FW, that usually means a giant above ground garage.  We have to be competitive on the amount of parking garages against the rest of the country in terms of scale.

Pretty extensive cover story in the FW Weekly containing quotes from Kevin Buchanan. Surprised that it wasn't already mentioned on here:

 

http://www.fwweekly....transit-future/

Thanks for posting that.

By definition, streetcars don't run on their own ROW. A "streetcar" line that has its own dedicated ROW would be considered a light rail line.

 

As far as I'm aware, El Paso's "BRT" (which is supposed to act like light rail, but acts more like a streetcar) does not run on its own ROW.

Yes, hence my point about FW and the streetcar and streetcars in general.  Seattle is the only city I know of that is forward thinking on the streetcar.  They are planning on opening their City Center Connector in 2018 that will have a dedicated downtown lane or lanes.  I believe they are also still considering giving the existing South Lake Union line a dedicated lane.

Meanwhile, El Paso is putting streetcar system in place. http://www.elpasotim...elded/86264540/

I believe El Paso has done well with their BRT "Brio" system as well.

Here's the story from a couple of Atlanta TV stations: http://www.fox5atlan...156195808-story . http://www.wsbtv.com...23730/316586170

 

Seems like the state of Georgia and the private company it hired are blowing a bunch of small issues out of proportion.

 

That said, the low ridership numbers are disappointing, and likely a result of the small size of the starter system.

 

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As for the DART D2 alignment, I agree it should get built right the first time and be completely underground through downtown.

I have been following the Atlanta streetcar from the jump.  They really messed up without the dedicated ROW.

Thread bump.  Atlanta's streetcar is about to go in the trash: http://politics.blog...-the-long-view/

I think its important to note that a streetcar system without proper planning and dedicated ROW is not the savior to central city transit.  It was highlighted during the T's most recent Master Plan efforts by it's consultants and from the public.

Atlanta is a prime example of how you can permanently damage multi-modal transit in an urban area.  They might never get another chance, especially with the current political climate.  It's important to get it right here in FW whether it is streetcar, light rail, or BRT.

I think BRT is the most likely and feasible from a dollars standpoint.  The execution from planning, marketing, and customer service will be critical.  Look at the battle Dallas is having right now with their D2 alignment.  You have a bunch of people trying to do it right IMO by going underground.  They recognize what will happen if you are wrong.