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Comments
Of course the A goes to
Of course the A goes to Brooklyn (though it's famous for being the way to Harlem).
Buy it back as a spare for Mattapan line
n/t
I Had The Same Thought — Trade Them A Breda For It
re: Red Hook
I miss the good ol' days when new train lines brought with them crime, drugs, and white flight, not wealth, prosperity, and displacement.
Care to point out a few?
Care to point out a few? Historically new lines have always brought more investment and money to where they go - very little to do with urban decay decades later. I mean, despite NIMBY fears, even during the height of urban decay here, the expansions of the Red Line and expansion/rerouting of the Orange in the 70s/80s didn't seem to cause those communities to implode.
I know
I was mocking the NIMBY types who claimed that the Red Line into Braintree (for example) was going to bring crime with it. Look up old articles about the extension and the opposition. It seemed to be a popular refrain among those who didn't want rapid transit (or "undesirables") in their neck of the woods.
The same argument has been used for bike paths, too
This was Weston's reason for blocking a bike path thru the town in the late 90's. Really. A bike path was going to bring crime to Weston?
Ditto for the Minuteman
We had a neighbor who was so paranoid that he sold his house and moved "while it was still worth anything". It wasn't the only reason, but it was one of the reasons for exurban flight.
They came back every year to trick or treat because they moved to a deserted area in Billerica, and were astonished at what places were selling for 5 years later in that area of Arlington.
I didn't say "I told you so" because I had told them so at the time that all the data available said that was what would happen.
Now there are "open house" signs lining the path all summer.
Did you know that Belmont is
Did you know that Belmont is considering an extension to the Linear Park that goes from Alewife to a sort-of dead-end by Blanchard Rd.?
The most vocal opposing abutters are claiming it will bring drugs and crime into the neighborhood and even worse, children (CHILDREN!) will be attacked!
And that is in 2016.
Belmont resident here
And I'm in favor of this extension. I need to get off my duff and start attending town meetings.
Right now there's no good way to get from the end of the Fitchburg Cutoff at Hill's Crossing to the Belmont Center area by bicycle. I think there used to be an informal cut-through to Channing Road by cutting through a parking lot and going through a hole in a fence, but as I understand it, this has now been closed off. (And it may never have been legal--seems to me that if you took that route you were trespassing on private property.)
I'm sure a lot of folks would love a direct path between J.P. Licks in Davis and Rancatore's in Belmont Center.
It was Lexington which was
It was Lexington which was against the Red Line out of fear of urban crime.
Nah
It was Arlington that feared people who couldn't figure out how to take a bus down Mass. Ave. would take the subway instead and kill them all.
Word is that Georgetown in DC
Word is that Georgetown in DC turned down the Metro because of the fears of crime.
Opps
Sorry - didn't get the sarcasm going on there - never can be too sure in the Uhub comments :)
You'd feel right at home
At Cobb County, Georgia where they consistently vote down MARTA expansion to their county because it would bring the 'undesirables' to their community.
(hate to pop their bubble but criminals have cars too!)
(Edit: Fixed Spelling mistake hours later)
Better Yet, Nashville — Their Entire System Was Cancelled
Most of the residents wanted the new BRT system that was proposed, but a few wealthy neighborhoods were afraid that the riff-raff might travel there, so they had it cancelled. ( with more than a little help from some infamous brothers who spend millions to actively eliminate funding for any form of mass transit! )
Houston
Someone with more info could confirm/deny this, but a friend of mine who spent a bit of time in Houston said there was a proposed bus line from the richer areas into downtown Houston. They had a pilot project for it, and they set it up so the buses would have to stop at every bus stop, even if there was no one waiting for the bus. Needless to say the ride into town would take forever, and the project "failed" (just how it was drawn up).
It's Possible To Make Busses Work Like Trains
( but you need to put them on tracks! )
Yes
There was a in dept Boston Globe article about this subject a few months back.
Extremely disturbing that these brothers have that much power to buy politicians to ax this plan when it was something most residents wanted, and even the mayor and city council wanted.
I guess these brothers don't care about people getting to jobs to grow the economy. They fail to see that transit = growth = jobs = more spending (which in return would make these jackasses richer)
oh hey
oh hey
With A Spur To Buckland!
There are also two Boston PCC's in Shelburne Falls; ironically repainted into Brooklyn & Queens Transit Corp. colors.
Public Transit - the best and worst of both worlds
The irony is, as the folks in Red hook get older, the street car would help them get around, and perhaps gain them more independence so they don't need to drive, and when they are too old to drive. I find it funny that people feel Red Hook is a 'hidden gem' - I mean, I was in Brooklynn recently and the cute little hipster cafes and condos wee right next to two blocks that looked like the set of "The Warriors" and a gigantic scrap yard, and about 6 gas stations.
It is actually too bad people here are foolish enough to take sides with the 'populist' movement of bikes and cut into already busy streets with bike lines. Honestly, we'd be better off using that lane as a dedicated bus lane with more frequency, then just putting in bike lanes. I noticed this quite a bit in London, and I spoke to a few locals and they said how 'daft' it would be to give a whole lane to cyclists.
I mean, look at the nimrods on Comm Ave and in the general area of the BU bridge. Someone on a Hubway thinks because they have a bike lane and an ipod they are invincible. We've sadly seem time and time again they are not.
What's wrong with a bus/bike
What's wrong with a bus/bike lane combo? I'm not a traffic engineer, but avg. bus speed is probably on par with a bike. Cyclists get an even safer, wider lane. It worked like a charm in Paris when I was there - it was so awesome to be able to bike anywhere.
Upside/downside
We have some sections of bus/bike shared lanes on the Silver Line. What you say about width and average bus speed is true. However, the buses, when moving, tend to go faster than the bikes. My experience when riding in such lanes is that I feel the need to go as fast as I can as I approach a stop, so as to avoid the bus closing in behind me. They are better than nothing, but a lot of less experienced cyclists are not going to want to be chased by a bus. The very best option in my opinion is a cycle track. I also favor bus lanes, and believe that both types of improvements will take cars off the street. Cycle tracks and bus lanes can move far more people in less space than is required for personal motorized vehicles.
Bakers in a selling mode with
Bakers in a selling mode with public transit, so maybe he will just sell the whole subway system to NYC, he can use the money to invest in highways like his pal Christie wanted to when he cancelled the Hudson River tunnel. Great egos think alike.
Watertown Square
Watertown Square