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jarvismj

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There was a brief mention in a Greenville News article today about Greenville city leaders briefing federal representatives in Washington on the city's new role leading GTA. Hopefully this will result in more federal funds for public transit in Greenville. The part about GTA is toward the end of the article:

http://greenvilleonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/...040/1004/NEWS01

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GTA is still eyeing that BRT line. The article in the Gville News today is cautiously optimistic about the line. The City also appears to recognize that in order for that to be successful, there needs to be a strong bus system to support it.

I think that all of this is generally headed in the right direction. I wonder if Mauldin would consider jumping on board with this? The rail line goes right through downtown Mauldin (correct?) and could help them start to develop a dense and 'real' downtown. Also, maybe the County would have less concerns for this project if they saw a greater number of people possibly affected...?

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I like the city's vision for the BRT line connecting CU-ICAR, Verdae, the downtown airport, Carolina First Center, and downtown. It is very progressive, and I am not surprised that the city sees the potential there. I am also not surprised that the county seems to be against the idea. These are the times I would like to see city and county governments consolidated in a way that gave the city government control over what happens in the county as well. That way, we wouldn't have to worry about the county owning a section of this railway and basically being skeptical that the idea is feasible.

I really hope they can make this work. It will be a big thing for Greenville if it happens.

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I am also not surprised that the county seems to be against the idea.

These two paragraph from the article REALLY irk me:

"He described the rapid bus line as a service for people at the International Center for Automotive Research and contrasted it with what he said is the county's concern for poor citizens who need better street buses to get to work."

"Until we solve that problem totally, I'm a little bit reluctant to put money out toward rapid (buses) or any other system that goes to ICAR or to the airport, where people can afford to do that on their own," Meadows said.

This guys doesn't have a clue.

Not to sound like I don't care, but if we are funding a transit system for the poor, then I am against it. I don't want my tax dollars squandered by the government to continue to turn our country into a welfare state (more than it already is). Give me a transit system that I as a middle class person will ride and support. I care for the poor, and reguarly help/give to charities, but sorry, a transit system should be for all. Transit systems should not be viewed as charities, which is what Meadows seems to imply.

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These two paragraph from the article REALLY irk me:

"He described the rapid bus line as a service for people at the International Center for Automotive Research and contrasted it with what he said is the county's concern for poor citizens who need better street buses to get to work."

"Until we solve that problem totally, I'm a little bit reluctant to put money out toward rapid (buses) or any other system that goes to ICAR or to the airport, where people can afford to do that on their own," Meadows said.

This guys doesn't have a clue.

Not to sound like I don't care, but if we are funding a transit system for the poor, then I am against it. I don't want my tax dollars squandered by the government to continue to turn our country into a welfare state (more than it already is). Give me a transit system that I as a middle class person will ride and support. I care for the poor, and reguarly help/give to charities, but sorry, a transit system should be for all. Transit systems should not be viewed as charities, which is what Meadows seems to imply.

Very well said! :good:

I think the main barrier to public transportation in any city is the opinion that it is only for the poor. And in Greenville, we're having to deal with morons in government who not only see it that way but who also fail to see the possibilities. How frustrating!

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Well said :thumbs up:

I think that all of this is generally headed in the right direction. I wonder if Mauldin would consider jumping on board with this? The rail line goes right through downtown Mauldin (correct?) and could help them start to develop a dense and 'real' downtown. Also, maybe the County would have less concerns for this project if they saw a greater number of people possibly affected...?

I don't know the politics of Mauldin, but it would definitely be a good idea for them to do this. Though supposedly they recently hired the County's transportation planning director to be some kind of planning czar (i don't know the specifics of the job). So I assume they have a good person to spearhed ideas like this, assuming Mauldin wants to back it.

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Three candidates for GTA top post will be interviewed next week

The candidates are:

  • D. David Bregger, a Buffalo area public transportation activist (and Author) who most recently served as chief executive officer for BFLO Transit Inc. in Buffalo, N.Y., where city, suburban, university, charter and contract bus services were integrated.
  • Michael Salamone, recently general manager for First Transit - Denton County Transit Authority in Texas, where he managed an 86-vehicle fleet with a $7 million budget. GTA's annual budget is about $3 million.
  • Thomas Williams, a 17-year executive who was most recently the transit director for Santa Fe Trails in New Mexico, where he managed a 110-employee, $7 million budget.

So far, I'm underwhelmed. If I had to pick any of these guys, I'd go with Michael Salamone, I think. The Denton County Transit Authority looks pretty impressive. Their web site rocks, at least. It almost seems as though First Transit was an outside management agency hired to run the DCTA. If anybody will be capable of progressing Greenville's transit toward rail transit, they look maybe to be the people to have.

Edited by RestedTraveler
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I was just reading this article. I'm excited about outside influence coming in. Hopefully their ideas for the system will be listened to and beneficial. I think the City is putting everything in place. There's no reason that things should not get better from here (hopefully including funding).

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...It almost seems as though First Transit was an outside management agency hired to run the DCTA...

Just following up on this...did some research and found that's exactly the case.

First Transit seems to have their act together with a track record of providing quality, safe, innovative transit services at a cost savings. This could be very good for Greenville.

Edited by RestedTraveler
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I agree that Michael Salamone seems to be an excellent choice for Greenville. When I first perused the candidates' credentials, I thought that someone in charge of transit in Denton (which I picture as a suburb of Dallas) would not be a good fit for Greenville. But after reviewing Michael Salamone's involvement with First Transit (who has some excellent projects) as well as Denton's transit system (which is planning for light rail), he seems capable of taking our transit to the next level. Hopefully he thinks outside the box and can move us toward a better bus system, implementation of BRT, and a quality long-term plan for adding light rail. The time to start planning all this is NOW, not in 20-30 years. We need a visionary, and this just might be our guy. :thumbsup:

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I agree that Michael Salamone seems to be an excellent choice for Greenville. When I first perused the candidates' credentials, I thought that someone in charge of transit in Denton (which I picture as a suburb of Dallas) would not be a good fit for Greenville. But after reviewing Michael Salamone's involvement with First Transit (who has some excellent projects) as well as Denton's transit system (which is planning for light rail), he seems capable of taking our transit to the next level. Hopefully he thinks outside the box and can move us toward a better bus system, implementation of BRT, and a quality long-term plan for adding light rail. The time to start planning all this is NOW, not in 20-30 years. We need a visionary, and this just might be our guy. :thumbsup:

Well said. I agree 100%. First Transit actually did a good job with GTA, despite some councilmen's opinions. Mr Salamone appears to be a strong candidate at least from my perspective.

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Amen. GTA/G-REX/Whatever the re-branding will be is going to be headed in the right direction, I'm sure.

RT, your post made me think of some additional names for our transit system:

Playing off of the "g"

-G (you know, sort of like riding the "T" in Boston...we could even use the Greenville "g" logo on buses and trains)

-G-Unit (would be even better if all fares were 50 cents!)

-G-spot (wonder if some people would have trouble finding where they need to be?) :lol:

-G Thang (because our transit system isn't a big deal...nuthin' but a G thang)

-G-string (maybe not)

Playing off of the "green"

-Verde ("green" in Italian)

-Vert ("green" in French)

-Grun ("green" in German)

Acronyms

-GUTS (Greenville Urban Transit System)

-BAG (Buses Around Greenville)

-TAG (Trains Around Greenville)

Despite all of these suggestions, I like GTA just fine. :)

Edited by Greenville
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Greenville County Council member Fred Payne distributed the following email yesterday. It was posted on another forum, but I wanted to share it with everyone here because I think his comments are spot on!

A Vision for a Successful Greenville Rapid Express (G-REX) Transportation System

Greenville Transit Authority (GTA) was given a new lease on life by County Council

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It is good to see at least one county councilman with some progressive thinking, that's for sure. A lot of those suggestions/ideas came from public input, I'm sure. It certainly sounds as if they did...I've seen many of them mentioned right here on U.P. before.

As for the re-branding...I kinda like an Ad Campaign with pictures of people on the back of a dinosaur and the sloagan, "Ride the G-Rex!" The buses could be painted up to look like dinos, etc. That's certainly better than my suggestion (i.e. get AstraZeneca/Nexium to help subsidize the system, paint the buses purple with yellow stripes, and use a slogan of "Does your commute give you heartburn? Take the Purple Pill!" showing a photo of a shiny new purple bus).

Regardless, we need to start now and insist on more transit-oriented development not just in Greenville but regionally/nationally.

Edited by RestedTraveler
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I like that vision. That will be a pricey one, but its certainly possible. Thanks for posting that email here.

I hope that he recognizes that this vision is an awesome one, but that the Upstate cities have to start designing neighborhoods that are more conducive to transit in order for this type of thing to be effective in the long run.

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According to this article in the Greenville News, at the board meeting on Wednesday, February 27 (day before email), the GTA board voted unanimously to approve new route signage that will cost GTA nothing and a new name for the bus service -- "Greenlink" -- that was suggested by the city."

I completely support the sentiment behind Council Member Payne's email, but it demonstrates to me how little our county understands about mass transit - even about planning in general. It also disappoints me that so much "branding" language went into the email when the subject had already been decided. Why argue about what its called? Its name makes very little difference.

Let's look at the initial statement: "Greenville Transit Authority (GTA) was given a new lease on life by County Council

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I completely support the sentiment behind Council Member Payne's email, but it demonstrates to me how little our county understands about mass transit - even about planning in general. It also disappoints me that so much "branding" language went into the email when the subject had already been decided. Why argue about what its called? Its name makes very little difference.

I respectfully disagree. The name makes a huge difference! When people hear a name or see a logo, they immediately form opinions (both consciously and subconsciously). I can guarantee that there will be more riders if the language used involves descriptive yet progressive terminology, as opposed to something bland or confusing.

Otherwise, I see the point of your post. We need everyone involved to truly put their money where their mouths are if public transit is going to get to the level described in Payne's email. Based on the history of public transit in Greenville, as well as that of County government, I consider it a monumental victory that County Council is even talking this way. :)

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