Tempe Modern Streetcar Open House August 30th, 2011
Open house to review Tempe Streetcar track and stop locations
METRO and the city of Tempe invite you to attend an open house to review and comment on stop locations and street configurations for the 2.6-mile Tempe Streetcar project being developed for the Mill Avenue corridor. The meeting will be conducted in an open house format to individually talk with community members about their interests. A formal presentation will not be given, so please stop by at any time throughout the evening.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
6 – 8 p.m. open house
Tempe High School, Cafeteria
1730 S. Mill Ave., Tempe
For additional information or to make reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities, please contact Carla Kahn at 602-744-5552/TTY 602-251-2039 or ckahn@metrolightrail.org.
Additional project information is available on the METRO website at www.metrolightrail.org/tempestreetcar
Rail system definitely makes sense April 14th, 2011
Published in Opinion, The Arizona Republic, 2011-04-04
Robert H. Bohannan, Phoenix
In his Wednesday letter “Rail-system plan makes no sense here,” Roy Miller asserts that “socialist central planners” want to “force us out of our cars and on to mass transit.”
Who, if not planners, does Miller think is responsible for the freeways? A society without planning is like a government without a constitution.
Transportation planning enables an orderly and fiscally responsible programming of infrastructure improvements as needed. Besides, I don’t recall any of our light-rail-system users claiming they were forced to ride it.
Miller states that “not a rail system in the United States” pays for itself. Roads don’t, either. Seventy percent of the Proposition 400 tax enacted by Maricopa County voters in 2004 is earmarked for freeways and streets, and only 30 percent for transit.
Rail systems foster economic growth and development. Phoenix’s Metro light-rail system cost $1.5 billion to build, but over $5 billion in investment has taken place along the rail corridor – half of it private-sector development. A regional rail network would provide similar benefits.
Miller asserts that “Arizona is one of the least dense states.” In fact, Arizona has a few large urban corridors where forecasted population densities rival those of urban areas where regional and local rail transit has been successfully implemented.
I applaud the efforts of the Arizona Department of Transportation in seeking a more balanced transportation system for Arizona.
- Robert H. Bohannan, Phoenix
The writer, a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners, is president of the Arizona Rail Passenger Association.
Phoenix METRO, March 2011 Ridership April 12th, 2011
The Phoenix trolley (“light rail”) system had a good March even as weekday ridership declined slightly. Saturdays now see as many riders as weekdays did at the system’s opening, and Sunday ridership is nearly at the originally-projected weekday levels.
Phoenicians are using the trolleys not just as “commuter trains” but as all-day-long trolleys for school, shopping, and fun.
Can there be a clearer reason not to build the second line along Highway 10, but rather west on Thomas Road from Midtown Station (Thomas and Central) to 35th Avenue and out to Downtown Glendale? See How a METRO Green Line Might Look.
| February 2011 | March 2011 | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Boardings | 1,080,821 | 1,214,276 |
| Average Weekday | 45,074 | 42,234 |
| Average Saturday | 29,006 | 35,692 |
| Average Sunday | 21,680 | 25,029 |
From: METRO
Dallas Tests Battery-Power Streetcar March 15th, 2011
DALLAS, 8 March 2011 — One of the streetcars being considered by the City of Dallas took a test drive on DART Rail tracks March 8, transporting DART officials and news media between Akard, Victory and Baylor University Medical Center stations.
The ameriTRAMâ„¢ prototype is manufactured by Kinkisharyo, the maker of DART’s [and Phoenix's] light rail vehicles. The ameriTRAMâ„¢ is electric and is powered by either overhead catenary, like DART Rail, or on-board lithium-ion batteries. The vehicle can travel up to five miles on a full charge. It is 100% low floor and fully accessible. DART is working as a technical advisor with the City of Dallas on a number of streetcar projects, including the planned connection to Oak Cliff, a connection with the McKinney Avenue Trolley and a future downtown streetcar network.
Video and rest of the story here.
How A Metro Green Line might Look February 24th, 2011
Click above to see how METRO on Thomas Road would complement the existing line (shown as the Red Line, for the bus it replaced).
These are example stations only, but are representative of the areas the train would serve.
For complete detail, see John Gale’s article, “METRO should be on Thomas, not I-10″.
