High Speed Rail

[Adam_5]

I think a reliable and efficient public transit system would be great to have in Greenville and the surrounding areas. I would gladly ride the train to work each day if it meant that I didn't have to deal with the traffic in certain parts of Greenville. I totally realize that Greenville isn't considered big (like Atlanta, Chicago, etc), however there are some CRAZY drivers in Greenville! If a transit system meant that I didn't have to deal with the crazy drivers, then I'm all for it.

[wheatie]

Ummm...where do I start, eh?

You're in Canada. I'm speaking of experiences that are AMERICAN. Fact is, save some large cities where lack of available land spurred mass transit more than anything, people in the suburbs of AMERICA tend, "tend", to shun mass transit, for a variety of reasons.

[RestedTraveler]

Something about making assumptions and making an ass out of someone and somebody else comes to mind here...

All poor assumptions aside, fromsc2tx does raise somewhat of a valid point here: cities where there isn't enough available land for roads/highways tend to develop mass transit more readily. Perhaps it's because large cities have large low-income populations? I doubt it though. If I lived in Boston or DC or New York, I'd ride the T, the Metro, or the Subway. If I lived in Chicago, I'd ride the El. If I lived in Portland, I'd use Max. I'm by no means low-income and I am 100% red-blooded American.

If you notice: it's also cities such as these that don't shy away from the huge challenge of changing cultural views on mass transit...they're the more liberal, "can-do" type places, too, and not the conservative, "I don't want to have my taxes raised and I'd rather drive my car" cities (and I'm not referring to political views, just attitudes). As a society in the United States, we have become entirely too dependent on automobiles. I'm no different. I'll ride the tram-trail into downtown from T.R. when it's up and running, though. And if we had light-rail, I'd take it. And I'll surely jump on the high-speed rail line to go over to Atlanta or Charlotte for a day trip...it'd be a hell of a lot better than driving. I could kick my feet up, read a book or work on the laptop or just enjoy the scenery. Imagine the productivity gains we would have as a nation if more people were able to ride and think/work/produce than waste their time driving...I'd think that alone would be a benefit that would outweight the costs.

[Greenville]

Imagine the productivity gains we would have as a nation if more people were able to ride and think/work/produce than waste their time driving...I'd think that alone would be a benefit that would outweight the costs.

[gvillenative]

I second that, Myself and a co-worker were talking last night. If they had light-rail or BRT and it came all the way to Fountain Inn I would ride it to work, bring my bike with me so when I get to the station I could ride my bike to work. I HATE driving around here because for the most part the other drivers are so inconsiderate they would rather run you off the road if it meant they didnt have to stop moving for one second. And I'm not "low income" either. Just someone that craves convenience.

[vicupstate]

Mass Transit, particularly Light Rail or even a RELIABLE, FREQUENT, CLEAN, bus sytem would be embraced in a big way once one or both of these things happen:

1)Gas hits $5 a gallon in today's money

2) Enough of the Baby Boomers get too old to drive

The baby boom generation has driven our entire culture to a large degree since WWII. Once there are a significant number of them unable to drive, the politicians will stop spending all the money on highways and start spending that money on rail and decent bus systems.

[breed]

Mass Transit, particularly Light Rail or even a RELIABLE, FREQUENT, CLEAN, bus sytem would be embraced in a big way once one or both of these things happen:

1)Gas hits $5 a gallon in today's money

2) Enough of the Baby Boomers get too old to drive

The baby boom generation has driven our entire culture to a large degree since WWII. Once there are a significant number of them unable to drive, the politicians will stop spending all the money on highways and start spending that money on rail and decent bus systems.

[gvillenative]

Actually I think if we had a reliable transit system and it went somewhere rather than the edge of town it would be embraced. Just my opinion.

[linkerjpatrick]

Actually I think if we had a reliable transit system and it went somewhere rather than the edge of town it would be embraced. Just my opinion.

[greenvillegrows]

BRT to Traveler's Rest. BRT through Mauldin and Simpsonville to Fountain Inn. BRT to Greer. BRT to Spartanburg and Easley. Everything else gets connected by normal bus service with a mixture of vehicles to include small, medium, heavy, and trolley types depending on load and area of service.

Our area actually lends itself nicely to that type of service. What we don't have are leaders who see the benefit. The City of Greenville comes closest to being a mass transit supporter, but even their vision is extremely limited to 1.) service that serves the poor and 2.) tourist/visitor routes.

For real mass transit, the County will have to plan on spending real money on the issue because the city doesn't have the ability to connect all the dots. All of the destinations are either inside of or adjacent to the County. The city could benefit from connecting some markets, but really only from a visitor perspective.

Once BRT service demand proves that transit works, light rail could potentially be implemented although the trend seems to be that once BRT proves itself, the "need" for light rail goes away so is rarely implemented.

[breed]

BRT to Traveler's Rest. BRT through Mauldin and Simpsonville to Fountain Inn. BRT to Greer. BRT to Spartanburg and Easley. Everything else gets connected by normal bus service with a mixture of vehicles to include small, medium, heavy, and trolley types depending on load and area of service.

Our area actually lends itself nicely to that type of service. What we don't have are leaders who see the benefit. The City of Greenville comes closest to being a mass transit supporter, but even their vision is extremely limited to 1.) service that serves the poor and 2.) tourist/visitor routes.

For real mass transit, the County will have to plan on spending real money on the issue because the city doesn't have the ability to connect all the dots. All of the destinations are either inside of or adjacent to the County. The city could benefit from connecting some markets, but really only from a visitor perspective.

Once BRT service demand proves that transit works, light rail could potentially be implemented although the trend seems to be that once BRT proves itself, the "need" for light rail goes away so is rarely implemented.

[gs3]

Stop running transit like a government agency and run it like a for profit business. Run it like Target or Best Buy.

I like what several of you have hinted at. Run a "for profit" service and target the middle class. Get the middle class out of their cars. Have cup holders on the buses (for coffee), wi-fi, free coffee at the transfer point, play new age music on the bus, have a plasma screen on every bus playing CNN, etc, etc, etc. And please, please, please....go places I as a middle class citizen want and need to go....ie: the airport. If our transit ran to the airport, I'd be on it 3 days a week. Give me a reason to get out of my car and want to ride.

Our current transit system simply serves the poor. Create a for profit system that runs efficiently and has the image of "Target". Market it in a hip manner. Attract the middle class with their disposable dollars. DON'T however screw the poor. Continue routes to poor neighborhoods and offer hardship passes.....a person making less than "x" amount can get a pass to ride the bus for half of what the middle class in the Golden Strip would pay.

Be creative with the service and run to major events (ie: Freedom Weekend Aloft, BMW Pro-Am, etc, etc).

Effective marketing and out of the box thinking could do wonders. Until that creative level is reached, the middle class will continue to think of the transit system as what it currently is, a government funded system for the poor. It's the GTA's responsibility to change that perception.

[lbs5015]

Stop running transit like a government agency and run it like a for profit business. Run it like Target or Best Buy.

I like what several of you have hinted at. Run a "for profit" service and target the middle class. Get the middle class out of their cars. Have cup holders on the buses (for coffee), wi-fi, free coffee at the transfer point, play new age music on the bus, have a plasma screen on every bus playing CNN, etc, etc, etc. And please, please, please....go places I as a middle class citizen want and need to go....ie: the airport. If our transit ran to the airport, I'd be on it 3 days a week. Give me a reason to get out of my car and want to ride.

Our current transit system simply serves the poor. Create a for profit system that runs efficiently and has the image of "Target". Market it in a hip manner. Attract the middle class with their disposable dollars. DON'T however screw the poor. Continue routes to poor neighborhoods and offer hardship passes.....a person making less than "x" amount can get a pass to ride the bus for half of what the middle class in the Golden Strip would pay.

Be creative with the service and run to major events (ie: Freedom Weekend Aloft, BMW Pro-Am, etc, etc).

Effective marketing and out of the box thinking could do wonders. Until that creative level is reached, the middle class will continue to think of the transit system as what it currently is, a government funded system for the poor. It's the GTA's responsibility to change that perception.

[Greenville]

Stop running transit like a government agency and run it like a for profit business. Run it like Target or Best Buy.

I like what several of you have hinted at. Run a "for profit" service and target the middle class. Get the middle class out of their cars. Have cup holders on the buses (for coffee), wi-fi, free coffee at the transfer point, play new age music on the bus, have a plasma screen on every bus playing CNN, etc, etc, etc. And please, please, please....go places I as a middle class citizen want and need to go....ie: the airport. If our transit ran to the airport, I'd be on it 3 days a week. Give me a reason to get out of my car and want to ride.

Our current transit system simply serves the poor. Create a for profit system that runs efficiently and has the image of "Target". Market it in a hip manner. Attract the middle class with their disposable dollars. DON'T however screw the poor. Continue routes to poor neighborhoods and offer hardship passes.....a person making less than "x" amount can get a pass to ride the bus for half of what the middle class in the Golden Strip would pay.

Be creative with the service and run to major events (ie: Freedom Weekend Aloft, BMW Pro-Am, etc, etc).

Effective marketing and out of the box thinking could do wonders. Until that creative level is reached, the middle class will continue to think of the transit system as what it currently is, a government funded system for the poor. It's the GTA's responsibility to change that perception.

[RestedTraveler]

Stop running transit like a government agency and run it like a for profit business. Run it like Target or Best Buy.

I like what several of you have hinted at. Run a "for profit" service and target the middle class. Get the middle class out of their cars. Have cup holders on the buses (for coffee), wi-fi, free coffee at the transfer point, play new age music on the bus, have a plasma screen on every bus playing CNN, etc, etc, etc. And please, please, please....go places I as a middle class citizen want and need to go....ie: the airport. If our transit ran to the airport, I'd be on it 3 days a week. Give me a reason to get out of my car and want to ride.

Our current transit system simply serves the poor. Create a for profit system that runs efficiently and has the image of "Target". Market it in a hip manner. Attract the middle class with their disposable dollars. DON'T however screw the poor. Continue routes to poor neighborhoods and offer hardship passes.....a person making less than "x" amount can get a pass to ride the bus for half of what the middle class in the Golden Strip would pay.

Be creative with the service and run to major events (ie: Freedom Weekend Aloft, BMW Pro-Am, etc, etc).

Effective marketing and out of the box thinking could do wonders. Until that creative level is reached, the middle class will continue to think of the transit system as what it currently is, a government funded system for the poor. It's the GTA's responsibility to change that perception.

[breed]

If you are looking at transit as a "for profit" enterprise, it's not going to work. Even European systems aren't money-makers.

Operating with a "for profit" mindset is good... but expecting financially profitable results is not realistic.

[JCT]

Stop running transit like a government agency and run it like a for profit business. Run it like Target or Best Buy.

I like what several of you have hinted at. Run a "for profit" service and target the middle class. Get the middle class out of their cars. Have cup holders on the buses (for coffee), wi-fi, free coffee at the transfer point, play new age music on the bus, have a plasma screen on every bus playing CNN, etc, etc, etc. And please, please, please....go places I as a middle class citizen want and need to go....ie: the airport. If our transit ran to the airport, I'd be on it 3 days a week. Give me a reason to get out of my car and want to ride.

Our current transit system simply serves the poor. Create a for profit system that runs efficiently and has the image of "Target". Market it in a hip manner. Attract the middle class with their disposable dollars. DON'T however screw the poor. Continue routes to poor neighborhoods and offer hardship passes.....a person making less than "x" amount can get a pass to ride the bus for half of what the middle class in the Golden Strip would pay.

Be creative with the service and run to major events (ie: Freedom Weekend Aloft, BMW Pro-Am, etc, etc).

Effective marketing and out of the box thinking could do wonders. Until that creative level is reached, the middle class will continue to think of the transit system as what it currently is, a government funded system for the poor. It's the GTA's responsibility to change that perception.

[gs3]

Continue to subsidize. Let me word it differently. Run the system like a for profit business. Still receive the government funds.

My main point was to stop running it like a government welfare program. I agree with your points to demand that it should be well managed and wasteful spending should stop. That's part of where I see running it like a business. It may not make a profit, but run it in that manner. Have daily and monthly benchmarks / goals to achieve. Focus on customer service. Focus on perks. Marketing. Run it like a business, not like a typical government handout.

Additionally, the marketing must change. It must become a system (with slick marketing and perks) that attracts the average citizen. It can't continue to be a transport system only for the poor and needy.

Again, I'm asking GTA to give me a reason to ride it. If they can get service to the airport....get CNN on the buses.....etc, etc, then I'll ride. I'm not married to my automobile.

[jarvismj]

Continue to subsidize. Let me word it differently. Run the system like a for profit business. Still receive the government funds.

My main point was to stop running it like a government welfare program. I agree with your points to demand that it should be well managed and wasteful spending should stop. That's part of where I see running it like a business. It may not make a profit, but run it in that manner. Have daily and monthly benchmarks / goals to achieve. Focus on customer service. Focus on perks. Marketing. Run it like a business, not like a typical government handout.

Additionally, the marketing must change. It must become a system (with slick marketing and perks) that attracts the average citizen. It can't continue to be a transport system only for the poor and needy.

Again, I'm asking GTA to give me a reason to ride it. If they can get service to the airport....get CNN on the buses.....etc, etc, then I'll ride. I'm not married to my automobile.

[JCT]

Continue to subsidize. Let me word it differently. Run the system like a for profit business. Still receive the government funds.

My main point was to stop running it like a government welfare program. I agree with your points to demand that it should be well managed and wasteful spending should stop. That's part of where I see running it like a business. It may not make a profit, but run it in that manner. Have daily and monthly benchmarks / goals to achieve. Focus on customer service. Focus on perks. Marketing. Run it like a business, not like a typical government handout.

Additionally, the marketing must change. It must become a system (with slick marketing and perks) that attracts the average citizen. It can't continue to be a transport system only for the poor and needy.

Again, I'm asking GTA to give me a reason to ride it. If they can get service to the airport....get CNN on the buses.....etc, etc, then I'll ride. I'm not married to my automobile.

[gs3]

In the vein of increasing the number of riders, I would like to see provisions for bikes on public transit. Cycling and transit work well together in many cities since the stations are sometimes a bit too far apart for walking. Planning for bicycles has increased the number of riders almost everywhere it has been implemented. I posted about that yesterday. Check it out here if you are interested.

http://bikegreenville.blogspot.com/2007/06...s-on-buses.html

[breed]

What kind of examples are there of a public transit system being managed by a private company?

[mallguy]

What kind of examples are there of a public transit system being managed by a private company?

[JCT]

Why doesn't GTA hold a community forum and let us have imput (maybe they have and I've missed it). Let the people that will be using the system, "design" the system.

[Greenville]

You can express your ideas on the online survey

http://www.greenvillecounty.org/survey_tra...ationsurvey.asp