SunRail

[elefants]

1 hour ago, Dale said:

And if it’s any consolation, Charlotte’s light rail continues to underwhelm.

I lived in Charlotte for a short while and used it extensively.  I'd love to have something similar here.

[codypet]

" In other words, CSX would like some more bucks from Lynx, which is proposing the area’s light­rail plan. One alternative Lynx has is to pay the cost of moving most CSX freight lines off the downtown tracks and onto a route west of Orange County”"

Hmmm sounds like CSX got their way anyways.

[Dale]

2 hours ago, elefants said:

I lived in Charlotte for a short while and used it extensively.  I'd love to have something similar here.

Obviously, some use it, however few. It’s primary function has been to stimulate development. But it was supposed to have taken cars off the road. 

I love trains. But generally light rail functions as a civic feather-in-the-cap.

 

 

[elefants]

20 minutes ago, Dale said:

Obviously, some use it, however few. It’s primary function has been to stimulate development. But it was supposed to have taken cars off the road. 

I love trains. But generally light rail functions as a civic feather-in-the-cap.

 

 

Sorry, I was trying to say that it of no consolation that they have a very convenient (if not underwhelming?) light rail system and we don't. 

[Naqiy90]

On 10/31/2019 at 3:47 PM, prahaboheme said:

I'd really love to see them dust off those old light rail plans from downtown to I-Drive and make it happen.  Orlando metro has added more than 15 million tourists a year since those plans were rejected (by a single vote)  and it stands to reason that it would pass now.

With the gridlock in the I-Drive only increasing (especially with Universal's expansion), there has never been a better time for a true light rail system (better yet, heavy rail...one can dream!).

By the way, does anyone have a map of the proposed light rail route from the 90s?  Can't seem to locate anything about the plans.

https://ufdc.ufl.edu/UFE0024547/00001 Here's a Master thesis about the whole sad affair,  there's a map of the planned project on page 60. my opinion is Jeb Bush was the ultimate cause of the light rail cancellation. At the same time, Jeb canceled true HSR Florida was developing under the ol He-Coon  Lawton Chiles called the Florida Overland Express( FOX)that the state had already spent something like $40m on; probably told his boy Mel Martinez to flip his vote against Orlando's light rail too at the bidding of his Texas oil donors. Very Tragic how close Orlando was to having real rapid transit. It's insane that the most visited city in the country has a worse transit system than smaller cities with no tourists across the county. Las Vegas, Orlando's closest counterpart, might not have rail, but has frequent 24/7 bus service between the airport, the Strip, and Downtown. The fact that Orlando has no 24 hour bus service is real slap in the face to the low paid service workers the local economy is built on.

[spenser1058]

I question the Jeb Bush connection. Not because Jeb! was any fan of transit (he wasn’t) but because light rail would have served the needs of his good friends at CSX for a sweetheart deal just as SunRail eventually did.

Also, he appointed Glenda Hood as his Secretary of State despite the fact she was a leader (in fact, she kept fighting for it after others were backing off) in the move to secure light rail for Orlando.

[Naqiy90]

3 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

I question the Jeb Bush connection. Not because Jeb! was any fan of transit (he wasn’t) but because light rail would have served the needs of his good friends at CSX for a sweetheart deal just as SunRail eventually did.

Also, he appointed Glenda Hood as his Secretary of State despite the fact she was a leader (in fact, she kept fighting for it after others were backing off) in the move to secure light rail for Orlando.

True those are valid points, it's just a conspiracy theory of mine but I was 9 at the time so I don't know the full story. I just know Jeb! was anti-transit like most Republicans and Mel switched his vote suddenly I believe after Jeb! canceled the Florida Overland Express so I assumed there was a connection but I may have the dates wrong. I know the light rail would have used CSX ROW  partially but not entirely on it like SunRail  which definitely resulted in a larger check to CSX then the light rail would have. 

Regardless the light rail was a missed opportunity whatever your politics are considering it was Fully Funded and would have served the tourist areas which have unquestionable demand for greater transit options, the buses that serve the parks have the highest ridership and are always packed! I imagine light rail will eventually get built in the future but probably 30-40 years after it should have been built. At this point i'd rather try to build a comprehensive network of gold standard Bus Rapid Transit along the major corridors, but that would require taking lanes from cars for bus lanes which would likely inspire too much opposition, so I don't have faith for a much improved Orlando transit system any time soon.

[ChiDev]

I am hoping that autonomous buses make light rail systems obsolete over time.  Lane dedication for the service combined with adaptive schedules could replace the massive infrastructure costs needed for a light rail.

[smileguy]

1 hour ago, ChiDev said:

I am hoping that autonomous buses make light rail systems obsolete over time.  Lane dedication for the service combined with adaptive schedules could replace the massive infrastructure costs needed for a light rail.

Why not this!? 

 

[codypet]

Beep Beep!  I'm a train!

[Uncommon]

20 hours ago, smileguy said:

Why not this!? 

 

Very cool. But that would take foresight, planning, and a collective vision; all things Orlando city leaders have never shown to possess.

Edited November 5, 2019 by Uncommon

[HankStrong]

9 minutes ago, Uncommon said:

Very cool. But that would take foresight, planning, and a collective vision; all things Orlando city leaders have never shown to possess.

I know it is a tired saying, but be part of the solution, not the problem.

I don't actually think this bus/train weird thing took that much foresight.  It took cracked eggs and made omelets.

[prahaboheme]

51 minutes ago, HankStrong said:

I know it is a tired saying, but be part of the solution, not the problem.

I don't actually think this bus/train weird thing took that much foresight.  It took cracked eggs and made omelets.

Not that I disagree with you, but it’s easy to state: “be a part of the solution”

What does the solution look like? 

[HankStrong]

18 hours ago, prahaboheme said:

Not that I disagree with you, but it’s easy to state: “be a part of the solution”

What does the solution look like? 

The solution starts with ideas, continues with sharing them, and doing anything you can to promote them.

I have attended several SunRail (as well as Beep, Lynx, and Brightline/Virgin) events, spoke with responsible parties, participated in public meetings, and emailed ideas that other areas are doing to our city/county leaders.  Has it worked?  Absolutely not.  Have I committed to trying to be part of the solution? Absolutely yes.  If I keep talking, keep attending, and sending in ideas they might reach the correct person.  I've met several like-minded people at these events and they are doing their own things.

I do agree with the comment that someone made the other day about ultimately trains and roads may not be the solution, but autonomous vehicles might.  I think that might be closer than most of us imagine.  I've commented before that sometimes insane things happen in transportation.  Cars went from a novelty for the rich to basically replacing horses in a decade or so.  The airplane went from a less than 1000' flight in 1903 to full-fledge aerial combat in WWI (even being such a concern that international laws were written only 8 years after the Wright Brothers flight about using airplanes in combat) which is nuts.  The first object to orbit the Earth was in 1957.  The first object to achieve escape velocity from Earth was in 1959.  By 1969 people were walking around on the moon. 

Of course, it also took from about 600BC to 1804 for the train to get an engine and from 1804 to 1964 for the train to make any serious improvements.  We also fly in planes that (beyond fuel efficiency and electronics) are basically no faster or fundamentally different than planes from 60 years ago.

 

I have no idea if Uncommon is doing things, but just complaining about it and mocking it doesn't fix anything.  My comment was more of a general comment that got pointed at one specific person.

[Uncommon]

3 hours ago, HankStrong said:

I have no idea if Uncommon is doing things, but just complaining about it and mocking it doesn't fix anything.  My comment was more of a general comment that got pointed at one specific person.

I’m not complaining and I’m not certainly not mocking. I’m merely stating my opinion, which is literally what this entire forum is designed for. Have you never complained about the weather? Should people also stop voicing displeasure when it rains since it won’t fix anything? My point is, I’m well within my rights to state my opinion without worrying about whether or not it will correct a problem.

[ChiDev]

Im thinking dedicated lanes plus a mass buy of mid size bus units like this https://easymile.com/solutions-easymile/ez10-autonomous-shuttle-easymile/

[HankStrong]

35 minutes ago, ChiDev said:

Im thinking dedicated lanes plus a mass buy of mid size bus units like this https://easymile.com/solutions-easymile/ez10-autonomous-shuttle-easymile/

Admittedly, I'd like them to have higher passenger capacity.  You know that Beep in Lake Nona is running the Navya Autonom?  It's virtually the same thing.

[ChiDev]

22 minutes ago, HankStrong said:

Admittedly, I'd like them to have higher passenger capacity.  You know that Beep in Lake Nona is running the Navya Autonom?  It's virtually the same thing.

Got a link by chance? would love to check it out.   

[jgardnerucf]

Go down there in person and watch it move at 2mph.

[HankStrong]

15 hours ago, ChiDev said:

Got a link by chance? would love to check it out.   

https://www.go-beep.com/

 

I'd imagine that since Beep is already in Lake Nona, which is actually legitimately annexed into Orlando city limits, it would be much easier for them to expand their coverage than to have a totally new company come in to serve downtown.  That is, if that sort of thing would ever happen.

 

9 hours ago, jgardnerucf said:

Go down there in person and watch it move at 2mph.

They can go up to 16mph, which still seems insanely slow.

https://static.wixstatic.com/ugd/7c68d6_4e3b688db72e43b0b1dca48fbf6b93a2.pdf

[spenser1058]

27 minutes ago, HankStrong said:

https://www.go-beep.com/

 

I'd imagine that since Beep is already in Lake Nona, which is actually legitimately annexed into Orlando city limits, it would be much easier for them to expand their coverage than to have a totally new company come in to serve downtown.  That is, if that sort of thing would ever happen.

 

They can go up to 16mph, which still seems insanely slow.

https://static.wixstatic.com/ugd/7c68d6_4e3b688db72e43b0b1dca48fbf6b93a2.pdf

Do they have Fred Flintstone pedaling?

[HankStrong]

3 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

Do they have Fred Flintstone pedaling?

Yabba Dabba Doo!

[prahaboheme]

On 11/6/2019 at 11:38 AM, Uncommon said:

I’m not complaining and I’m not certainly not mocking. I’m merely stating my opinion, which is literally what this entire forum is designed for. Have you never complained about the weather? Should people also stop voicing displeasure when it rains since it won’t fix anything? My point is, I’m well within my rights to state my opinion without worrying about whether or not it will correct a problem.

And continue to state your opinion.  The "be a part of the solution" argument is cheap (at best).

[HankStrong]

On ‎11‎/‎8‎/‎2019 at 4:38 PM, prahaboheme said:

And continue to state your opinion.  The "be a part of the solution" argument is cheap (at best).

Honestly, I think it isn't.

You can do both.  Sometimes little things just deserve a "that sucks" but bigger problems usually can be helped by active solutions.

[prahaboheme]

6 hours ago, HankStrong said:

Honestly, I think it isn't.

You can do both.  Sometimes little things just deserve a "that sucks" but bigger problems usually can be helped by active solutions.

Fair enough.  I just wouldn't discourage people from sharing their views on a forum where (literally) that is all we actually do.  And that doesn't come with a pre-requisite to be active in local politics.