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Best Light Rail Systems


Urbanrailfan

What is the best LRT system?  

124 members have voted

  1. 1. What is the best LRT system?

    • St. Louis
      5
    • San Francisco (MUNI)
      19
    • San Diego
      6
    • New Orleans (streetcars)
      9
    • Denver
      6
    • Dallas
      18
    • Portland
      33
    • Boston (Green Line)
      21
    • San Jose
      2
    • Minneapolis
      5


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^^A new six mile segment of the SD Trolley line was completed in July, with five new stations added. Due to the topography of the city, most of the new segment is either elevated or runs underground. Two of of the stations are on elevated tracks, while the only underground station is located in the center of San Diego State University (See Below).

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trolleymap.jpg

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Salt Lake City was left off of this list. It's not the largest system, but it's certainly large enough.

San Diego has a nice system (they actually refer to it as a trolley), but, in the several times I've been there since the system opened I've never used it.

Phoenix will also soon have a light rail system.

http://www.valleymetro.org/rail/

Well, 2008...

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I won't vote in this poll since I haven't ridden any light rail systems outside Boston. But I will say a few things about Boston's Green Line.

(Of note: the Green Line isn't the only light rail in Boston. The "Mattapan High Speed Line" is a trolley route running historic PCC streetcars 3 miles beyond one of the Red Line's (heavy rail) southern branches.)

greenfocus.JPG

- The Green Line is 4 above ground trolley lines that converge underground as they enter downtown and the Back Bay. In the underground parts where all four lines run, the headway averages just over 90 seconds during rush hour.

- There is, I believe, only one part of one line that runs for any significant length in mixed traffic. The rest of the system runs in some sort of right of way, though there are places where it runs in a median and can be slowed by having to stop at intersections.

- It is America's first subway. The first underground stretch opened in 1897.

- It is heavily used and is part of the character of the areas it serves.

- The state has recently announced plans to extend the Green Line 4.2 miles north through Somerville, one of the most densely populated municipalities in the country.

greenextension.JPG

- Negatives: the MBTA has recently replaced the last small downtown stretch of elevated tracks with a tunnel extension, and this has meant bus replacement service between the last three stations on the northern end for over a year. And the MBTA has had major problems, such as frequent derailings, with a recently ordered batch of modern, low-floor trolleys. And in general the Green Line is, despite its short headway, considered the slowest moving of Boston's subway lines.

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  • 7 months later...

Don't know about the best, but Santa Clara County's VTA Light Rail is definitely not it. Waste of money and a nuissance at best in many parts, limited routes. Little incentive to use it. Now that San Diego system looks nice....

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  • 5 weeks later...
  • 4 weeks later...

The state of New Jersey actually has three light rail systems, the Newark Subway and Hudson-Bergen Light Rail, shown here as the brown and dark blue lines:

newark-map.gif

The Newark Subway is quite old and opened in 1935 in the bed of the old Morris Canal. A new extention is very nearly complete in the first of what will hopefully be a more extensive system. The HBLR, opened in 2000 coincided with the redevelopment of the Hudson and Bergen County Waterfront, which was one a blighted industrial area and is now very pricey real estate. In fact HBLR just opened new stations including 1 "subway" underground station. here's pics.

The third system is the River LINE, opened in 2004 between Camden and Trenton. I won't bother posting the map here as it's quite large. It has been quite successful despite initial and still-continuing mistrust of it. Some local paper, I can't remember which one predicted some ridiculous death toll of dozens to be caused by River LINE within the first year which thankfully was proven wrong - no deaths have resulted to date.

All 3 systems are not connected directly but by NJ Transit Commuter Rail and other local rail/subway/bus transit. NJ railfans such as myself hope to see the system grow over the coming decades. :)

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  • 1 month later...

Minneapolis' system is very nice, though small. With the planned extensions, however, the system would serve most of the heavily populated areas of the metro.

Currently the Hiawatha Line runs southeast from downtown along U.S Hwy 55 to the Airport where it continues to the Mall of America. The line features elevated and tunnel portions, runs on a dedicated track in some areas, and runs at street level in downtown and a small portion where it detours down a side street away from 55.

The Central Corridor will likely be LRT connecting downtown St. Paul to downtown Minneapolis along University Avenue. (also connecting to the University of Minnesota).

Also with the green light from state and local officials, commuter rail is on the way along U.S Hwy 10 to Big Lake, Minnesota NW of the Twin Cities with future expansions to St. Cloud and Rice likely.

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Why separtate the green line in Boston from the rest of the Boston rail and transit system. It is a subway for miles and connects to other heavy rail subway lines and commuter rail lines. It blows away the other lines in this thread. LRT lines along streets are not even close to the utility of the green line in Boston.

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