> >However, no one has come up with even an unreasonable argument,
> >much less a compelling one, for why light rail must go down 5th St.
I don't know the answer to this question and have been curious
myself. However, I certainly would hope that the answer goes
something like this.
The overall construction of this line will cost far far more than the
cost of moving the Utility lines. While not a transportation expert,
I can imagine, that the likely success of the line could be
dramatically reduced by placing it on the wrong route. The success of
light rail will depend dramatically on how convenient it will be to
use. Shifting it one or two blocks, could reduce its ridership
substantially, simply by making it less convenient for many people to
use.
I'm guessing that expensive studies were done to determine, exacting
which routes would be most accessible to riders and lead to a
successful start to the line.
Can you imagine the criticisms that light rail planners would be
under, after spending hundreds of millions of dollars, for not even
putting the rail in the most convenient location.
At 10:19 PM -0500 6/18/01, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
>it seems to me that the city long ago
>abdicated their right to change the rules on the surface of that street
>without an extremely good reason.
I guess, my own thoughts would be that the primary purpose of the
street is transportation and that a huge investment in
transportation, would justify the movement of the utilities, which
are not likely to be as sensitive to location. I also think that the
entire point of the article that I posted, is that the city very
specifically did not abdicate their right to change the rules on the
surface. That in fact, the utilities were aware all along, that their
presence under the street, was at the convenience of the city and
that they could be asked to be move at any time.
Tim Erickson
From Across the River
Hamline Midway, St. Paul
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
--
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Tim Erickson http://www.politalk.com
St. Paul, MN - USA 651-643-0722
[EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 105978430
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