Re: FTA demands reality from Raleigh light rail program

hancock4@xxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:


John Lansford wrote:
It's past time for this consultant and politician's boondoggle to be
cancelled once and for all. There is zero evidence that it would ever
meet any goal set for the light rail project, and the costs just keep
going up while TTA continues eliminating stations and options that
will make it even less convenient for people wanting to use it.

The capital cost of building this system is $800 million, correct?

Would you know how many weekday riders are expected?

Would you know the farebox recovery ratio for operating expenses
expected?

All this was mentioned in their EIS, and nowhere did they say the
ridership would be enough to make the operation of the system
financially stable. State and local funding would be needed to keep
it working.

As to the other issues mentioned in this thread:

1) Building public works projects to make a place a "real city" is
nothing new. A nice example are sports stadia. Since sports teams
make a fortune, why should tax dollars be used to help build them?

I'm not for that either. Sport team owners are usually
multi-billionaires. Let them build it themselves with minimal public
help.

They tell us "because it's good for the city".
Building a transit line solely to be cool is not a valid reason, but
not a reason to reject it either.

I disagree.

2) Transit lines do not bring in crime. It's pretty hard to carry out
a big screen TV set on a trolley.

But easy to carry drugs back in your pocket, now isn't it?

3) Transit can bring desirable economic development. I don't know the
area served by the proposed line but the much maligned NJT River Line
has inspired development along its route which was a primary reason it
was built.

4) It would seem rather strange that a university would reject a
transit line near it. I wonder if that assertion is really true.

It is. Duke University specifically blocked adding a station anywhere
near their campus.

Unversities suffer from campus traffic congestion and parking problems
which a transit line could alleviate.

5) For unknown reasons, the idea of a walkable or higher-density
community terrifies some people. Why is that? Nobody is forcing
anyone to live in such an area if they choose not to. But such
communities are doing well. They built townhouses across the street
from me and they have had tremendous appreciation; obvously there's a
market for such properties. Are suburbanites afraid walkable might
become widespread?

No, not really. Not me anyway. Purchasing private homes and
businesses to build train stations and condos however, IMO is wrong.

John Lansford, PE
--
John's Shop of Wood
http://wood.jlansford.net/
.

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