Well put, Erik. Who knows, maybe four or five modes are in the future.
Maybe mini-buses will drive onto trains for the last leg... And yes, let's
not underestimate the importance of "interfacial strength." Certainly
there would be (is) a need/desire for a train from Hudson, etc. (These
Curdish trains would need bar cars, of course.) And they would need to
mesh with the "HO-scale" trains/trams at Union Depot, e.g.
Could it be that we're simply to spread out to do without Park 'n' Ride
lots here and there? Whatever the case, they could start saving up to
build one at Fort Snelling right now. Maybe it will inspire the Feds to
fix up those wonderful houses in the Fort.
A node can be an end-node that moves with time, so I'm into the spur idea.
Today anyway.
And what's up with The Republic Of Railroad? Did we form another country
when James J. Hill "and his ilk" were given land to facilitate the
settlement of the West? In this day and age of computer-controlled
everything, how hard could it be to share track with freight? The Empire
Builder does it every day. If I were King, I'd have someone think of
incentives for the RRs to get into the passenger market. Or at least
loosen their grip on the existing corridors. What wil become of the line
from the Ford Plant to downtown?
If the Swiss can build a train to Jungfraujoch, surely we can cross
streets. All Met Council and DOT officials should go to Switzerland for
"training." Bad/Cheap engineering is un-American. ;-) (Will I be
penalized if I don't use emoticons?)
AMH
Riverview Corridor
Andrew M. Hine
Corporate Research Materials Laboratory
3M Center 201-1W-28
St. Paul MN
55144-1000
USA
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Tel: (651) 733-1070
Fax: (651) 737-5335
Lab 201-W110
Erik Hare
<[EMAIL PROTECTED] To: "St. Paul Discuss" <[EMAIL
PROTECTED]>
g> cc:
Sent by: Subject: Re: [StPaul] Re: Light Rail
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
orum.org
08/11/2004 11:52
AM
On Wed, 11 Aug 2004, M Charles Swope wrote:
> The reason there is a difference of opinion about
> whether the St. Paul LRT should be on University Ave.
> or on I-94 (or the existing tracks North of
> University) is that there are differing notions of the
> purpose of it in the first place.
I know I repeat myself on this, but I think it is important to get it into
people's heads:
Lite Rail is designed to be all things in all places. It is a high speed
train, it is a trolley. It can serve locally, it can serve regionally.
The confusion about it is totally natural, and really is by design.
The problem with LRT is that this All-In-One approach has a cost
associated with it. A neighborhood that might be well served by a trolley
(the weight of a bus) winds up with the equivalent of a railroad track
down the middle of it to accomodate the very large weight of LRT. And all
the utilities have to be moved from the streets, too -- that's what's so
damned expensive about the thing.
If we get away from the one-size-fits-all approach, and look at a
multi-modal transportation system -- one that might include cars at
park'n'rides, for one -- we can look at what is appropriate for a given
location. AND (this is very important) we can do it a lot cheaper -- or,
more accurately, stretch the precious transportation money a lot further
and serve more people.
University Avenue could use a trolley system. Or, frankly, a cable car
system suspended overhead and dodging traffic from above. This would need
to feed into a fast rail system, which could be built on existing tracks
using existing bridges and connect people not just to suburbs, but to all
of Minnesota.
Two different needs, two different systems. It's the interface between
them that becomes critical, but it's entirely do-able. And instead of
talking about getting from Downtown to downtown, we're looking at getting
anywhere in Minnesota (and not messing up the parking along University,
too).
LRT is not the only answer. We have to think about what need we have
first, and then decide how to meet that.
Erik Hare [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.comcast.net/~wabbitoid/
Irvine Park, West End, Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA, North America, Earth
Fine Amish furniture, cedar chests, and crafts http://www.harmonycedar.com
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