David Greene asked what the Lyndale alignment was for the SW Corridor. TI:
The Lyndale option was one of three main ways into downtown the study looked at, two of which are no longer to be foudn on teh site, as they were ruled out quite sometime now. The route would take it along the Greenway through Uptown to Lyndale, where it'd raise up to the level of Lyndale, then turn north onto Lyndale and run north. Parking would have been removed. The route would run north past the Basillica and then back to the train tracks by 394, then connect to 5th Street. Why was it a poor route to study? On-grade on Lyndale would require the removal of parking and perhaps additional traffic lanes in an already very congested area at rush hour. Would have required many additional minutes of riding time for riders further out. Would have cost a fortune. Took people on a quirky route into downtown, meaning you'd enter downtown on the southwest side of the CBD but wouldn't be able to really get off until you're on the northeast side of the CBD. (ie. many would continue to use the bus as it'd be quicker). -- I still contend that a Greenway streetcar and part of the SW light rail would be able to occur and utilize shared facilitis. Perhaps it could be done by the city paying for the Greenway streetcar with some sort of development tax within the corridor or other creative solution. The city could pick up the bill for making the tracks between Nicollet and the west side of the line (Uptown or Chowen) perhaps...if it'd make the Nicollet alignment happen. Why the Nicollet Alignment? Since so many people take the bus downtown everyday from areas like Hennepin-Lake, Lyndale-Lake, Nicollet-Lake...why wouldn't we give significant consideration to a route that provides improved service to an area that already uses transit well? I know I'm not going to walk 4 blocks to Uptown to catch a trolley so I can transfer to either SW or Hiawatha or a 35W busway. Just not going to happen. I could see people doing it if it meant that they'd arrive within a block of their jobs. But so many downtown jobs are 3+ blocks south of 5th Street. -Thatcher Imboden CARAG REMINDERS: 1. Be civil! Please read the NEW RULES at http://www.e-democracy.org/rules. If you think a member is in violation, contact the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:mpls@mnforum.org Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
