TransitTales

U and Met Council Tentatively Agree on Central Corridor

I've been ignoring the blog, even with this ongoing brouhaha in a beaker--and now it seems to have been resolved after much public finger-pointing, the casting of aspersions, leveraged deadlines, the initiation of legal action, and mediation.

Now MPR and the Met Council need to agree about the other end of the line.

Northstar Line Opens

The Strib reports on the opening of the Northstar commuter rail line.

The Twin Cities now has a light rail system. Embryonic to be sure, but more than just the lonely Hiawatha light rail line.

Will the Central light rail corridor move ahead on schedule, or will the U of M's dispute with the Met Council de-rail it? Details at 11 (or thereabouts).

Check out...

Hennepin County's Transit Vision

Click on a corridor to get more info.

Dinner and drinks

Waiting for the 3 near Dinkytown:

Cell Phone Guy: "Jim? Dave here. I'm on my way to Bloomington. Hey, I was just a Class A co-dependent enabler. Eddy just had dinner on my dime at McDonalds. But then I saw him in the liquor store. Said he'll be sleeping under the bridge."

[Silence]

Cell Phone Guy: "It won't happen again."

[Silence]

Green Apples at Bus LRT Station?

The Apple Valley Transit Station, part of the Cedar Avenue Bus Rapid Transit line, is now being built, pace John Kline.

The Strib article says that it's a green building, but how green is space for 750 cars, with only 10 bike lockers?

"Packed Like Lemmings in Their Shiny Metal Boxes"

It's a commonplace that American commuter culture overwhelmingly comprises solo riders in cars built to seat 4-7 passengers.

Still, as I biked across the Franklin Avenue Bridge at 5:20 pm today, I was struck by the two lanes of predominantly one-person cars, lined up in two Eastbound lanes, bumper to bumper across the breadth of the Mississippi River Gorge. And a couple hundred yards upstream, the same scene stretched across the I-94 bridge.

Until we have good transit options--or $4-a-gallon gas--most commuters will put up with the delays and frustrations of going solo.

The Eight Billion Dollar Question

Will the $8 billion in stimulus funds for high speed rail be a down payment on transit infrastructure comparable to "the Interstate Highway System in the 1950s?"

We're supposed to find out which regions will get the cash by the end of the summer. As the article points out, the midwest region, with a Chicago hub and a very hard-hit economy, should be able to make a strong case to be part of the early answer.

High Speed Ohio?

Ohio's jumping on the high speed rail proposal bandwagon

Seeing the Light (Rail)

See what one successful light rail line and the prospect of federal money for more transit development can do?

Who knew the governor and the Chamber of Commerce would so quickly do an about face and get on board the transit bandwagon?

Northern Light Express Project

RFP for the Northern Lights Passenger Rail Project: hIgh speed rail, Minneapolis to Duluth

Main page of NLX here

The Recession's Growth Industry

On the Hiawatha Line:

Rider 1: So what do you do?

Rider 2: I'm in collections. We used to be a law firm that did some collections, but we've morphed into all collections.

At the Metrodome Station

Crowds appear on the plaza, clustered lines:
Winter's sand blown dry across the bricks.

Final Dome Opener

Made my usual transfer from bus to train at the Metrodome station.

On Opening day for the Twins.

While waiting for the train, I strolled the Plaza on Kirby Puckett Place, and decided to buy a bag of kettle corn to bring home to make our TV viewing of the game feel a litttle more like Dome, Sweet Dome.

It's the puffy, Teflon and plastic stadium's final year as home of the Twins.

With temps in the low 40's and a stiff northwest wind blowing, most fans were probably happy to retreat indoors for one final home opener. Next year, people will need to ride a few more stops to het to Target Field. (Also, see Target Field webcams )

Play ball.

A Philosophy of Cars

Creative Commons

Found myself humming this old Paul Simon song:

Cars are cars/ All over the world/ Cars are cars/ All over the world/ Similarly made/ Similarly sold/ In a motorcade/ Abandoned when they're old

"Cars are Cars," from
Hearts and Bones

It's always seemed like a disposable sort of song--it's my least favorite on an otherwise strong if overlooked album--but but its cheesy pop sound was part of the point about commodification and disposability.

Transportation Choices 2020

The Transportation Choices 2020 Initiative Includes eight projects to create a true regional transit system.

Take a look at this map to get a sense of what could be. For $100 million a year.