Urban Jacksonville

I bet BRT design/construction contracts are easier to award to the local GOB contributors. light rail money might go outside the family

I actually thought about the 3 million comment when he was saying it because that is something I have heard from JTA before. Or something along that line. I also wanted to point out that we keep putting money into JTB and that road will never pay for itself. We have ROW all the way to the beach. A good deal of people would ride that rail in and out to avoid sitting in their personally expensive cars not moving.

TheUrbanCore, three years ago JTA also said that building BRT was cheaper than investing in rail based transit and that a bus mall down Adams Street would improve the quality of that corridor. Both of those tall tales were proven wrong through a grass roots effort that continues to expose real life examples of projects in other cities suggesting otherwise.

JTA: Why BRT is the Better Choice for Jacksonville
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2007-d...

JTA: BRT is Better! Metro Jacksonville Responds
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2007-d...

BRT & Transit Malls: Do they create Vibrant Cities?
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2007-a...

BRT vs. Rail: A Tale of Two Urban Transit Systems
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2007-a...

The "we need 3 million" comment needs to be erased from our vocabulary because its flat out wrong and is easily discredited when cities like Salt Lake City, Tucson, Albuquerque and Nashville already operate and continue to grow rail-based mass transit options in their community.

Also, speaking of getting to the Beach, if you wanted to there is no reason why that JTB, Beach or Atlantic could not be used. There's more than enough width along JTB for mass transit and the medians could be used in Beach or Atlantic (ex. Houston Metrorail)

Houston Metrorail - a 7.5 mile start up line with 40,000 daily riders.
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/photos/thumbs/...

Great interview but Delaney is dead wrong about our city needing 2 to 3 million people for rail transit to work. Maybe for heavy rail (ex. Atlanta's MARTA, DC's Metro, Chicago's EL, etc.) but its the perfect size for commuter rail, streetcars and light rail.

Examples of cities/metros/urban areas smaller than Jax with these systems already operating successfully include Memphis, Little Rock, and Kenosha and Charlotte.

There is a need for a serious need for a stronger educational movement regarding the different types of rail. We can do more with the BJP money than using it for ROW purchase only.

Here is a link to a story on this we ran on Metro Jacksonville and few months ago.

Understanding Transit in Jacksonville
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2009-m...

I'm Smaller than Jax and I have Rail
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2009-a...

Lake, good point re: transportation and population. What are your thoughts on urban living and population? I always say Jacksonville needs more people before we reach a density in urban neighborhoods.

Joey, regarding urban living and population, I believe Jacksonville already has enough. Considering our urban core is larger and denser than Charlotte's, yet that city still successfully implemented a light rail starter, tells me we have to stop with the excuses for remaining status quo.

The problem I see is that our urban neighborhoods have become isolated pockets of density divided by neighborhoods that have been demolished because of failed urban renewal stratgies.

If you really want the population to grow and densify, you need to install the conduit that caused them to densify in the first place. That conduit is fixed mass transit. Its the vehicle that reconnects vibrant districts and stimulates redevelopment in the dead zones that disconnect them. Without it, grow in the urban core will continue to remain at a slow pace.

Instead of worrying about immediately getting transit to the Beach, start small by reconnecting the urban core neighborhoods, which will create a true vibrant urban core and expand from there.

Well said, I see your point about urban density pockets.

I tried to subscribe last night but for some reason my computer takes forever to download from Itunes...it never used too..so I canceled it, but I will try again when I have more time..maybe I can just download select ones? I'll figure it out. okay bye!