PHOENIX GETS IT - FLORIDA DOESN'T

Amazing how Sunbelt Cities are catching the railroad bug. Just a couple of weeks ago we were offering congratulations to Albuquerque, and Santa Fe, New Mexico, for their new RAIL RUNNER commuter railway. This week it's the return of the PHOENIX to the Light Rail club.

Once again Florida residents must sit in near 100 degree temperatures, parked on endless pavement and traffic jams and wonder why? Why hasn't Central Florida Commuter Rail taken off yet? Why has Miami Streetcar gone so slowly? Why isn't Sarasota or Ft. Lauderdale putting down tracks? Why is Jacksonville's mayor suddenly lost his mental facilities and decided to try and torpedo all city transit? Why wouldn't anyone notice that this very mayor is wealthy due to owning the largest Oil Company and Concrete Plants in Jacksonville? Why isn't the news doing an investigative report? Why is some female representative from Volusia, not worthy of a name, trying to kill the Duval, Volusia, Clay, St. Johns, Orange, Seminole, and Osceola County's efforts to study or otherwise get funding for rail? According to the faceless lady in Volusia, "We simply can't afford the costs of rail..."

Boy does that sound original. We Transit people have been hearing that claptrap since the last stage coach bit the dusty trail, and Henry Ford rolled out the Tin Lizzy. People that say these things almost all have one thing in common:

1. They have never experienced modern or quality urban rail, if any.
2. They take all their information foundations and "think-tanks", steeped in oil or auto money.
3. They are clueless on the cost of rail -vs- highway.
4. They are clueless on the capacity and economics of rail operations.
If Florida continues to elect and support these out dated schemes, we'll find ourselves a century behind the rest of this country within 20 years.

Arizona is to be congratulated! Right under the nose, and in the land of "The Anti-Train" John Mc Cain, PHOENIX GETS IT!

SCREW CHRISTMAS TRANSIT IN JACKSONVILLE

The Republican Mayor of Jacksonville, John Peyton, has recently announced his own stimulus package. The details are horrifying. We have $100 million dollars in a special account for Mass Transit Improvements, plus a dedicated half cent tax that goes directly to the Jacksonville Transit Authority (JTA).

To make matters worse, just as President Elect Obama comes along and asks for "ready to go plans for Transit", our own JTA has just finished stage one and two of Streetcar, Commuter Rail, and BRT studies. They also have a plan to reopen the downtown train station as a transportation center, and city money was already earmarked for that project as well.

Along comes mayor Peyton, the Concrete and Oil magnet, with a plan to raid all mass transit funds for new highways around the port. Further the funds for Transportation Center have vanished into a smoke screen of "3,000 new construction jobs".

Yeah, right Mr. Mayor, and after the roads open? Then what?

There will be no land run on Highway Adjacent Development that the Port Of Gold wouldn't create on it's own. With rail being the weak spot of our port (for the most part locked into one railroad company), and that same mainline has been identified as the backbone of commuter rail. Everyone See's a win-win situation for a sweeping purchase-lease back agreement and upgrade.

Over in City Council, the idea is being floated around to tear down the $200 million dollar monorail and replace it with streetcars! This idea is just short of crazy as the two systems could compliment each other and the City would gain from a multi-modal approach. But there's no funding to do any of those projects, no matter how good or crazy.

If the Council rubber stamps the mayors suicidal transit plan, Jacksonville might just as well roll it's name back to Cowford. It's been a long, long time since Jacksonville had a true multi-modal mass transit system, and it was taken down by National City Lines and their oil, asphalt and rubber tire friends. Today it's concrete and oil that enriches the Peyton family's pockets and he seems content to pull us back to 1932.



'Twas the night before Christmas
And all through the town,
Not a person was moving
No bus could be found.

The transit dreamers,
Were snug in their beds,
While visions of streetcars
Danced through their heads.



Our stations are empty
They sleep through the night.
No headrests and pillows
So restful and white.

The Skyway had been
of their very own choosing,
So tempting and good
There was just no refusing.

The evening they'd spent
Seemed wrong for this Season.
Since Peyton killed Transit
Without purpose or reason.



On Commuter Rail,
So spacious and bright,
All might have sang,
Christmas carols that night.

"'Tis a most happy Christmas,
"They’d sing with delight,"
'Travel at its best --
What a wonderful night."

And when it came time
That Christmas was there,
We had nothing to show,
And few who would care.

As to Town Center they sped
On through the storm,
A city without transit,
And Freeways the norm.



No thanks for our train,
So streamlined and fine,
No streetcars, no buses,
Just Peyton sublime!

"This is," we had said,
"The one way to go --
The Double Track Route
For comfort, we know."

Then without heeding the call,
As he turned out our lights,
"It's a Peyton Christmas...
For all a GOOD night."

Merry Christmas Jacksonville

CHRISTMAS CHEER IN SANTA FE

Governor Bill Richardson Announces Debut of Rail Runner Express in Santa Fe

SANTA FE – Governor Bill Richardson today announced that after nearly a year-and-a-half of construction the New Mexico Rail Runner Express is ready to ride into Santa Fe. On Monday, December 15, 2008 the Governor will be joined by state, local and tribal officials, and several members of the public for the first inaugural train ride from Albuquerque into Santa Fe.

“This is a historic event that will bring long-term economic benefits to New Mexico and change the way we travel along the Middle Rio Grande Corridor,” Governor Richardson said. “During these tough economic times, the Rail Runner Express will provide thousands of commuters a much-needed savings while offering them a safe, viable and efficient transportation alternative.”

“The Rail Runner Express will change the face of transportation in New Mexico,” said State Transportation Secretary Rhonda Faught. “With initial estimates of nearly 4,500 commuters riding the train between Albuquerque and Santa Fe on a daily basis, this will not only take a lot of stress off our roads, but will also enhance safety.”

“Bringing the train to Santa Fe represents the historic culmination of five years of hard work, and a significant investment in the future of New Mexico,” says Lawrence Rael, Executive Director for the Mid-Region Council of Governments. “As a regional organization, the Council of Governments has been proud to work with the Department of Transportation to make this project a reality. This is about our children having an alternative transportation system to work, play and travel in the region for generations to come.”

This amazing project has been done in record time. Traffic between Santa Fe and Albuquerque on I-25 is very heavy. The sight of these trains racing past in the median will be their own best advertising. Congratulations to the forward thinking Governor, Mayors, NMDOT and people of New Mexico.

Isn't it a shame that here in the Southeast we continue to have freeway robber-barons that have never seen a highway they didn't love? Atlanta's recent and completely antiquated editorial calls for more highways and less nostalgia. Meanwhile in Jacksonville, even with gas at $1.60 per gallon, transit ridership is holding firm on JTA buses and monorail at over 1 million a month! These numbers are 25 year records, yet mayor Peyton is trying to sink the entire mass transit system by stealing the funds for pet road projects.

The battle cry is always, "We just don't have the density," (though we're more densely populated then Charlotte). This is hogwash, the Rail-Runner in New Mexico passes through several miles were I defy our mayor or anyone else to find a single living thing. Maybe it's just a ghost from our own past, this time WE are ALL THE SLAVES to our own STUPID ACTS. JT

CHECK YOUR BRAIN AT THE DOOR - City Watch -V- Rail

CITY WATCH PROVES "BRAIN DEAD" IS STILL IN VOGUE!

The anti-transit crowd is at it again, more questionable math, more bent logic and more bowing to the almighty automobile, in a land where you can see what you breathe. City Watch a "Urban Think Tank" could have published this in Jacksonville, Atlanta, Tallahassee or Tampa and been just as suspect for accuracy.

Here in Jacksonville the JTA and Jacksonville Traction, two entity's fighting for a piece of the transit pie, are doing battle with the 99% highway boys. We thought this would be fun to answer "as if" from Jacksonville. You Californians hang on to your hats, it's not revenge I'm after, it's a reckoning... besides I spent my teens and 20's in Los Angeles.

The City of Los Angeles has a chicken-and-the-egg problem when it comes to development. Many neighborhood activists assert that development shouldn't happen in their neighborhoods unless and until Los Angeles has a public transportation system on a par with, say, the San Francisco Bay Area. On the other hand, transportation officials argue that they can’t provide (or obtain funding for) public transportation until a ridership base is in place, that is after the development occurs. With respect to rail transit, funding and construction can be decades away. We seem to be at an impasse.

Gee, the same thing is being said in Jacksonville, only we're bigger then Los Angeles in square miles, and only 9 places behind in population.

For much of Los Angeles, it is a myth that frequent, comprehensive transit service does not exist. Vast swaths of Los Angeles have frequent bus service, especially during commute hours and especially to and from downtown. For example, Metro’s “12 Minute Map” (available here ) shows where buses run at least every 12 minutes during the day. This includes every major east-west street, and most major north-south streets, between downtown and the Westside. And lots of Angelenos travel to work using our public transit system. Newly released data from the US Census Bureau shows that, during the 2005-2007 time period, 11.5% of Los Angeles residents who work commuted by public transportation. This figure is not that much lower than in the Bay Area (excluding San Jose and the Silicon Valley), where 14.9% of workers commuted by public transportation.

Let's look in on Jacksonville, the sprawl capital of the nation. Even so our public transit hovers at the 5%-7% of all commuters. This includes the forever-unfinished monorail system, The Jacksonville Skyway.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Poorly planned development threatens our environment, our health, and our quality of life. In communities across Massachusetts "sprawl" - scattered development that increases traffic, saps local resources and destroys open space - is taking a serious toll. Many of the effects of sprawl can be traced to poorly planned transportation infrastructure, including highway and airport expansion. The Massachusetts Sierra Club is working throughout the state to find solutions to our transportation and sprawl problems. We are working to promote rail - the most environmentally sound form of transportation - over continued highway and airport expansion. (SIERRA CLUB)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The most striking difference between public transportation in Los Angeles and the Bay Area is the balance between bus and rail. In the City of Los Angeles, 95% of public transportation commuters travel by bus, compared to about 50% in the Bay Area. In the Bay Area, 45% of transit commuters travel by rail (including BART, Muni Metro light rail, or Cal-Train), compared to only 5% in Los Angeles. I suspect that many of the people who complain about LA’s transit system simply believe that bus service is per se inadequate and demand rail.

Here again, the parallels are striking, we demand rail. Hell, so does Miami, West Palm, Sarasota, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Orlando - Deland to Poinciana. Jacksonville's problems are not unique as this writer so clearly points out.

The problem is that rail is quite expensive and most routes don’t have ridership levels to justify the cost. Even where rail makes sense, the high cost means that rail service is years, if not decades, away.

...And here is where our highway centric story teller goes off into left field. He is but a parrot for Detroit and the old school development companies that haven't discovered the Transit Oriented Development, and don't want to rock the boat by offering inter modal transit. More of the, "What was good enough for Grandpa should be good enough for you, mentality."

-----------------------------------------------------

item.......................$ Costs per Vehicle Hour....Seats....$ Cost per seat Hour
Diesel Bus....................42.58...........................45.......... .95

Regiosprinter DLRT* .....66.79...........................75.......... .89

Electric LRT**..............92.87..........................160.......... .58

* One-car train, preliminary maintenance costs during 6-month trial, can be operated in MU** Average of 2.5 cars per train

(data from Light Rail Now)

---------------------------------------------------------------

In Boston, do buses cost less?

No matter what color you paint a bus, it still gets stuck in traffic. Over 15 years ago, the MBTA – after tearing down the elevated Orange Line – promised equal or better service. For 15 years, that service was a dirty diesel bus that contributed to residents' suffering asthma rates six times higher than the state average. Now the MBTA has unveiled its equal or better plans: building an elaborate tunnel system underneath downtown Boston so buses can turn around. Otherwise known as the "Silver Line Phase III," this plan will cost millions more than using existing tunnels and restoring light rail service on Washington Street. Even MBTA studies showed using the existing tunnel for Green Line-type service is only a matter of new lights and tracks, a substantial savings. (SIERRA CLUB)

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FACT IS: A mile of first class single track railroad, with welded rail and concrete ties, is cheaper to build then a mile of standard two-lane highway. Moreover, that mile of single track railroad has the PPHPD (Passenger Per Hour - Per Direction) capacity of 3 highway lanes. Railroads don't need a wide right-of-way either, taking perhaps half the space of the two lane highway Development? Only 7% of national Transit Oriented Development is centered around bus systems, the rest are on rail.

Even if this nation could figure out a way for automobiles and buses to burn dirty bath water and emit only pure mountain air, we have still paved over the equivalent of 8 northeastern states. Is that enough to change your environment? Let's hope not.

So under the banner of "understanding" and "helping" to solve the urban problems of today, one can see this author is already sold out to Detroit.

But there are ways to improve bus service that might get us out of the transit vs. development impasse. First, we need to speed up bus service. Except for the Orange Line and parts of downtown LA, buses are stuck in the same traffic as cars. Because buses also make frequent stops, this puts buses at a severe travel time disadvantage compared to cars or dedicated rail lines. Bus-only lanes are an option. Currently, Metro and the City are exploring whether to make the curb lanes on Wilshire Blvd bus-only lanes during peak hours. This would speed up buses relative to cars, and make bus schedules more predicable. If they are serious about encouraging transit use, Metro and the City of LA should consider implementing peak-hour bus-only lanes on every heavily-used bus route with peak-hour “no parking” curb lanes.

Let's cut through the double speak here and note the facts. "Buses are at a disadvantage compared to dedicated rail lines." Amazing observation, being stuck in traffic is worse then being over, under, or beyond the reach of traffic on the rails. So his solution follows his logic...Let the railroad lay and build more freeway lanes for buses.

Second (and related to the first), due to the poor condition of pavement in curb lanes, riding the bus is uncomfortable. It is hard to read or work; indeed, it is sometimes hard to stay in one’s seat. In an era when Washington is talking about funding infrastructure projects, Los Angeles could seek funding for smooth, concrete bus lanes so that riding in these lanes is as comfortable as riding the Orange Line. On many streets, the condition of the curb lanes is so bad that very few cars use them. Thus, converting them to bus-only lanes wouldn’t significantly affect automobile traffic in the other lanes.

Here the pace picks up to downright excitement. Let's blow out the curb lanes on the roads, nobody likes them anyway. Forget parking, no one needs curbside parking, expensive meters or conversion to bus only lanes will create boulevards where buses can play-like-trains and blow past every mom and pop store, shop or boutique in town. Don't expect this to be welcome by the small retailer - restaurateur's, but who cares, this is about highways, and everyone knows highways are more important then people, livelihood or community.

Third, Metro could speed up service on the Rapid Bus lines by allowing passengers to board at any door. Particularly when wheelchair users are disembarking, forcing all passengers to board through the front door causes significant delays. Rapid bus systems in cities such as Curitiba, Brazil use simple technologies to permit boarding through all doors.

This isn't such a bad idea really, why not go one step further and make transit like City Parks and Libraries? FREE. If we must charge, get the fare collection off the buses and trains and into station vending machines, convenience stores, super markets and Wal-Marts. We should all follow Curitiba's example. Apparently not informed, the writer fails to acknowledge that Curitiba's highly praised Bus Rapid Transit only moves at an average speed of 12 MPH, and has failed to keep up with the crowds. Oh what to do? Curitiba is building rail as fast as they can.



Fourth, it often seems that Los Angeles’ transit system is the designated day care center for our mentally ill and homeless population. We should provide treatment for people who cannot care for themselves, and not just hand them a bus pass.

I seriously doubt that the homeless are given bus passes en-masse in Los Angeles or Jacksonville (though the disabled or jobless should be first in line for a free pass). Fact is, we care for our homeless with beds, roof, room and board, does the City of Angels do the same? This isn't a transit problems per se, rather a social illness that infects most of the larger American Cities. I have no problem riding a bus with someone who isn't in full control of their mind or abilities, I'd rather we reach out and give them a hand up, instead of tossing them out But isn't this the stigma that follows buses everywhere? "They stink," "they are full of crazies", "who rode the short bus in high school?" Labels that give away the true meaning of this article, "Improve Buses for the Poor and don't spend an extra nickle on rail for the same crowd..."

Rail is an essential part of the solution to Los Angeles’ transportation problem. But it is an expensive, long-term solution that makes sense in only a handful of places. We must build more housing so our children have places to live when they become adults. That means we must selectively increase density. To break the logjam, wherein people legitimately object to density without transportation improvements, we should take advantage of relatively low-cost, easy-to-implement projects that could significantly improve the performance and appeal of Metro’s extensive bus network.

Suddenly a severe swerve in the road, I note that on my far right is John Birch, and these boys are once again preaching the, "rail-is-expensive," and, "rail-is-severely-limited," mantra. The illusion changes to one of building rail will mean we won't have houses for our children. Let's take the cheap route and build more highways and buses. In Los Angeles and Jacksonville let's build for the bus and the poor children, keeping our wallets close to our hearts. The quick cheap solution...

Well it might fly in some circles but I'm calling you out on this one. You buy into this cheap argument and I've got some mountain top land to sell you in the Okefenokee Swamp. One thing is true in his argument for "CHEAP TRANSIT" - You'll get what you pay for.

(Jeffrey Jacobberger is an attorney, a Public Policy major and a neighborhood council activists. Jacobberger is a CityWatch contributor.)

(Robert Mann, Your blogger, is a Monster of Mobility, Transportation Consultant, Old Hippie and unabashed defender of rail in any form).

Another Jacksonville Area City Joins The Transit Big League

BRUNSWICK PLANS FOR MASS TRANSIT !

More then just another tour bus, the Brunswick system has the potential to build-in the tourism and intermodalism unlike any other new-start bus operation on earth.

These coaches by Silver Eagle go way back with me. While sitting in a sales meeting with a Canadian coach builder the salesman said, "You don't want an Eagle, they are built by sub-standard Mexican workers..." Sub-Standard? Did this guy know my wife who was sitting across the dinner table was from COLOMBIA? All racism aside, if your in the business and haven't looked at an Eagle, let this old Trailways Supervisor introduce you to the most beautiful and comfortable Motor Coach in the World. JTA? Brunswick Transit? For those longer commuter runs - LOOK AT A SILVER EAGLE!

Amtrak comes screaming through Folkston, Georgia, close to the stop listed for "Brunswick and The Golden Isles". Did you think High Speed Rail was only in the North? Watch these trains pass and just try to focus on a single car, I dare you.

You want opinion? Brunswick's Historic Waterfront is a Post Card waiting to happen - All of the time! By the way, so is the rest of the reigon, and yes, they have hotels.

First came Valdosta TRANSIT'S Announcement, with a state university and Moody Air Force Base, a mere 75 miles on the arrow straight Norfolk Southern Railway from Jacksonville.

Now comes word that little cousin to our North, the one time Airship capital of the Southeast, Brunswick, Georgia, is also about to get on the bus.

This is fantastic news, as both are within the window of Jacksonville's direct economic impact zone, trade zones, and potential SMA.

For those that missed Brunswick, it is off of I-95 some miles to the East along the Coastal Georgia Islands and resorts. As a child I marveled at the great Naval airships which were stationed at NLTA Glynco. The hangers were so big, they had their own weather forecast INSIDE! Today the former base is a national law enforcement training center and center for the FBI. Brunswick, though it is off the beaten path, is nestled among some of the most beautiful resort islands in the world, as much a step back in time as Seville, Spain; St. Augustine, Florida; or Cartagena, Colombia.

Brunswick is also a booming deep water port directly served by two major railroads and one terminal line.

Brunswick also has commuter air service, and regular scheduled Greyhound Bus service and several charter lines on the "GOLDEN ISLES ROUTES".

Between Brunswick and Jacksonville is St. Marys and the old WWII army port of Kings Bay. Though that base was completed as the major load point for transports with a deep harbour, it opened too late to be of any use in the war effort. So for many, many years, it simply slept, no one really knowing what to do with this giant unused base and port facility. Then along came the Trident Nuclear Submarine fleet and a need for an East Coast home port with deep water. Suddenly Kings Bay Naval Station was born, at the time the 7Th Naval base in the Jacksonville district.

Though the bases have been cut back to 5, they still play a huge role in the local economics.

One would hope with the plans for Jacksonville Transportation Authority to go regional, someone would include Valdosta and Brunswick as well as Waycross, Georgia in these plans.

Here is the Newspaper story out of Georgia:

Brunswick Public Transit System Possible
Jess Davis
The Brunswick News (Georgia)

GEORGIA - A public bus system could be begin operating in Brunswick and the Golden Isles late next year.

The Brunswick Area Transportation Study Policy Committee, which includes representatives from the city, county and business community, adopted findings of a recently completed transit study Monday and voted to move forward with a plan that could create public transportation here by the end of 2009.

Federal grant money would pay for buses and bus stop shelters.

Brunswick and Glynn County have already set aside $200,000 each for the system.

Instead of setting up a cost-sharing agreement to fund administration of the system, the committee voted to request bids from outside management companies. The company would use from profits from operations to pay administrative costs of running the system while the city and county would provide the buses and bus stops.

The transit plan, written by consultant URS, calls for initial creation of two routes, with options for adding two additional routes.

The first route would run weekdays at 30-minute intervals along a 6-mile route between Mary Ross Waterfront Park, downtown, and the Glynn Place Mall area. Service would be from 6:15 a.m. to 6:15 p.m.

The second route would run weekdays along a 10-mile route between Mary Ross Park and Interstate 95 interchanges at U.S. 341 and Spur 25/Golden Isles Parkway. Service would initially operate from 6:15 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. on a 60-minute frequency.


The third route would run from the city to the southern end of St. Simons Island. It is being considered optional because fewer people would expected to use it than the initial two routes to get to and from work.

The fourth would be weekend service on the weekday route of Mary Ross Park to Glynn Place Mall.

Planners anticipate that the total plan would require 10 years to phase in all routes.

A few possible hurdles could delay the bus system, but the county has taken steps to expedite getting grant money from the federal government, said Dave Hainley, community development director.

"This has been a long-range desire for the county," Hainley said. "We are one of a few counties our size that don't have public transportation."

The Transit Blogger has a couple of suggestions for this study.

1. Brunswick has always had a dedicated railroad (AMTRAK) stop over on the mainland. As more schedules or trains are added, why not schedule one of these smaller coaches to meet not only the Amtrak Trains but also the aircraft with direct connections to the hotels, history, port and the Golden Isles resorts. In other words get public transit into the game of serving all level of patron.

2. Work with the US Navy at Kings bay, the historic towns of St. Marys, Georgia - Fernandina Beach, Florida, to create sweet lollipop shaped routes that circulate the respective metro, then fly to tie it all together. JTA buses would circulate the main hotels, airport and transit centers in Jacksonville, then make a freeway dash North to Fernandina Beach, St. Marys-Kingsland, and Brunswick. Meanwhile the BRUNSWICK TRANSIT buses would make the circuit of port, airport, law academy, tourists islands, then break for a similar freeway dash south ending in Jacksonville. As commuter rail, Southeast High Speed Rail, and expanded Amtrak come into play the schedules could be altered to serve all modes.

3. Don't forget, AMTRAK and the AIRLINES often carry advertising in their schedule cards, folders or national timetables. The best way for a transit agency to assure it can stand up to Hertz or Avis, is to have a few words in these publications and websites to let the passengers know that you offer a service - fast - clean - comfortable - kind and far cheaper then another car rental or taxi.

4. It should be remembered that Greyhound and perhaps some of the Trailways partners are operating along these routes. If they could be made interested, what a fantastic opportunity to create a true cooperative network from the Golden Isles to the Port of Gold on Florida's First Coast. What a micro-mega system this would be with Amtrak-JTA-Greyhound-Trailways-Brunswick Transit all on board as players.

Brunswick, lead on little cousin, lead on!

JAXPORT GETS A 6 BILLION DOLLAR BOOST!

Holy Tug Boats Batman, at this rate 10 years down the road, we will be LOS ANGELES EAST!

Let's hope we can get the City moving with the Mass Transit plans before the crowds start to hit town. $6 Billion dollars to spend is a bunch of bucks to scatter over our explosive growth city.

For those at a distance, perhaps you think I am stressing this too much. I CAN'T! The Northside of the City is looking more and more like old Tombstone - the wild west silver mining camp in Arizona... It should be remembered by historians though, that along with the wild growth came rail passenger service.

Sorry for the crass-commercial advertisment, but here is a video of the announcements. Enjoy.

Port of Gold
JaxPort
international shipping
hanjin

ANOTHER BILLION FOR THE PORT OF GOLD

Sunrise over the St. Johns River - Just beyond this scene, around the bend is The Port Of Gold.

How Long Until The All Aboard?

Finally, some great news from a City that isn't falling apart. Another Billion in economic impact, hundreds of millions in new spending, and at least 5,500 more jobs.

Now the Transit and infrastructure race is on.

As Jacksonville scrambles to improve the parkways around the St. Johns River, the sea port is gobbling up land faster then a starving badger in a meat shop. Even in this time of credit crunches and cut-backs we're on a roll.

A trip along Zoo Parkway or Hecksher Drive is like driving through Disney World when it was nothing but endless dirt and dozier's. Miles and miles of dirt and dozier's.

Every bridge along the waterway, which Floridians know crosses countless estuary rivers and creeks, are having to be rebuilt for container traffic.

Up in the CSX Railroad tower downtown, plans call for a new freight rail line which will go North from JaxPort along the old Seaboard mainline, then cross over to the current CSX Jacksonville-Folkston mainline on the old Gross Cut-Off.

The Jacksonville Transportation Authority is wrestling with conceptual ideas on Commuter Rail to the foot of Zoo Parkway, Dunn Avenue and I-295E. From those stations buses, either regular transit buses or BRT could take the hordes of new employees to and from their jobs.

Some may recall with humor the funny advertisements Jacksonville Economic Development ran back in the 1970's. "Why are thousands of New Yorkers leaving town for the BIG CITY? - JACKSONVILLE!" But my hands down favorite was, "Ask any Atlantian the way to THE PORT - JACKSONVILLE!" Atlantians, got up in arms over those full page spreads, but it's all water under the keel now. Since that time we have long since trumped Atlanta's population within our corporate boundary's. Time will tell if there is a another transportation office tower rising on the banks of our majestic river.

FROM THE ATLANTA BUSINESS CHRONICLE:

After months of negotiations, Hanjin Shipping Co. Ltd.’s board of directors has approved a 30-year lease with the Jacksonville Port Authority.

The South Korean company, which has its U.S. corporate headquarters in Atlanta, will open a $300 million container terminal in Jacksonville and have it operating in late 2011. The move will create more than 5,600 jobs and have a nearly $1 billion annual impact, according to JaxPort officials.

Construction of the 88-acre terminal facility is expected to take about two years once the permitting process is complete. It will be adjacent to the TraPac Container Terminal, which will be open in January 2008 to handle Mitsui OSK Lines.

“This is the one-two punch we have been working toward,” said Jaxport Executive Director Rick Ferrin in a news release. “TraPac put us on the map. Hanjin makes JaxPort a major player in Asian and European trade and together the new terminals help fulfill our mission of bringing jobs and opportunity to the region.”

The Hanjin terminal will be the company’s first dedicated operation on the East Coast and will capitalize on the increased traffic spurred the expansion of the Panama Canal.

****************************************************

FROM THE JACKSONVILLE BUSINESS JOURNAL:

Jaxport, Hanjin complete terminal deal
Officials with the Jacksonville Port Authority and Hanjin Shipping Co. Ltd. put the finishing touches on a 30-year lease for 90 acres Wednesday.

The South Korean company’s $300 million container terminal at Dames Point, which is expected to be operating in late 2011, will create more than 5,600 jobs and have a nearly $1 billion annual impact, according to Jaxport officials.

Jaxport Executive Director Rick Ferrin said the deal is part of Jaxport’s goal of being a global gateway and having different types of cargo flowing through the port.

“Hanjin is a key development to that success and vision,” Ferrin said.

Hanjin Senior Vice President C.S. Choi said the company’s Jacksonville terminal will be the most efficient automated terminal Florida has ever seen.

Construction on the terminal is expected to take about two years once the permitting process is completed. It will be adjacent to the TraPac Container Terminal, which will open next month to handle Mitsui OSK Lines. The addition of Hanjin, which operates 200 ships, will triple the cargo-handling capacity at the port.

When finished, the terminal will be able to handle up to a million containers annually.

*************************************************

So there you have it, another DONE DEAL in Jacksonville's Port Of Gold. Watch the lift off of Commuter Rail and BRT in the very near future, as this sleeping giant rockets toward a new position as America's 9TH or 10TH largest city. Boisterous? You bet, I call it home town pride - just watch us grow.

The $100 Million dollar question is how long until we get off our collective wallets and build the promised Rapid Transit lines?

Port of Gold
JaxPort
international shipping
hanjin

Aircraft Carrier Battle Rages on the East Coast of Florida

A Norfolk Nightmare?

Zeros, Kates? Foxbats? Bears? Converted Cropdusters?

REMEMBER, IT'S ALWAYS

DECEMBER 6, 1941

- 0700

DECEMBER 7

COULD BE JUST HOURS AWAY

Disperse the Fleet, a move to Mayport, Kings Bay, Charleston, Key West, Pensacola, is a move toward national security.

Norfolk could always remain the fleet service station for all major overhaul and repair.

Imagine if you will, a country dumb enough to place all of it's major capital ships all in one port. What if, for example, one was to place nearly the whole Pacific Fleet in Pearl harbour? Certainly times have changed, nobody is expecting any B-5-N-2Kate Torpedo Bombers to suddenly appear in the Sky's over Hawaii.

What if Admiral Kimble was right, and the threat would have been from Japanese Terrorists? Could a well placed bomb in the USS Utah or Arizona produced the same results? Certainly they could. Hit the ships magazine and thousands of bombs will either detonate, or fly through the air while detonating to rain down on everything for miles around. Horror of horrors.

Here in Jacksonville's Port of Gold, we have so many things happening on the maritime side, it's hard to keep up with the daily announcements. New channels, turning basins, container yards, warehousing, wharfs, roads, railroads, in what resembles one of the worlds largest construction sites.

Mayport,founded in 1563, is a tiny suburban fishing village, that guards the mouth of the majestic St. Johns River, lighthouse and jetty's. Today, Mayport is wholly within the corporate bounds of The City of Jacksonville. It is also home to a large US Coast Guard station, a historic shrimp fleet and sundry seafood shops and restaurants, as well as the future home of JaxPort's new cruise ship terminal. But the thing Mayport is most known for is the US Naval Station Mayport.

NS Mayport, guards JaxPort, and is the 4TH fleet (South Atlantic and Caribbean)headquarters.

When the John F. Kennedy left Mayport last year, it left the huge carrier basin without a carrier.

Meanwhile in Norfolk, Virginia, the entire East Coast compliment of capital surface ships (4 carriers) is in one place. Norfolk Naval Base is at the end of a long narrow channel leading from the sea, a dozen or so miles from the shipping channels.

"Not to worry," says Virginia, "They'll never bomb this place..."

Sort of reminds me of the Yankee General during the War of Yankee Aggression, who rose in his saddle to rally his men and yelled, "Come on boys, they couldn't hit an elephant at this dis--." DEAD!

So Virginia has changed her tune, "Carriers will kill whales and destroy the whale migrations off the Florida Coast." Really? We're not exactly the whale headquarters of the Atlantic. In fact in 54 years - including in the Navy here, I've never seen a single whale off Jacksonville. Besides wouldn't a whale swimming off Florida follow the gulf stream up to Norfolk where that Chesapeake Bay dumps millions of gallons of fresh water and new sea life into the ocean?

Wouldn't the whales be 5 times (another carrier is about to be commissioned at Norfolk) more likely to be confused into sonar suicide by the constant movement of carriers in and out of Norfolk.

"WHAT VIRGINIA SAID..."

Carrier battle is really all about the money
Tamara Dietrich
December 10, 2008

Nobody can accuse Virginia's federal delegation of not pulling every rabbit out of the hat to try to thwart U.S. Navy plans to take one of our nuclear aircraft carriers and give it to Florida.

It's flawed military strategy, they argue. It's fiscally irresponsible. It will needlessly uproot thousands of Navy families.

And, as of Monday, it could harm whales and manatees.

Sens. Jim Webb and John Warner just released a statement of their "serious concerns" over the lack of sufficient review of the risks to sea life off the Florida coast if 5.2 million cubic tons are dredged at Naval Station Mayport near Jacksonville, Fla., to accommodate a nuclear-powered carrier.

It's an environmentally sensitive argument, but could it stick?

Doubtful.

When creatures of the earth run afoul of national security concerns, the boogeyman nearly always wins.

Sorry, whales and manatees.

Still, we can throw environmental concern in the mix and see if the totality of Virginia's argument persuades the Navy to change its recommendation and leave the carrier here.

Norfolk has four nuclear carriers, with a fifth set to be commissioned next month. We're the only nuclear port on the East Coast, which concerns the Navy enough to want to spend between half a billion and a billion dollars to retrofit Mayport as a secondary port and disperse the carriers.

They don't want another Pearl Harbor-style disaster inflicted by God nor man.

Still, the last few years have taught us that the unthinkable really isn't. Could God or man ever inflict enough damage on the Norfolk station itself to seriously hinder the comings and goings of our nuclear carriers? Might a secondary port — the West Coast already has them — be a wise idea?

These political prognosticators haven't a clue how tragic this scene could become. Have you ever stood on the fantail of an aircraft carrier and looked into the broken hearted eyes of a sex starved bull whale that just tried to mate with spinning propellers? Tragic indeed.

All of this environmental concern for Florida, from our neighbors in Virginia, is deeply appreciated. But it's appreciated in the abstract - like a bad case of hemorrhoids.

Could it be that someday in the future, we will stare in disbelief at our TV screens broadcasting the wreckage of our entire Atlantic Carrier force? We owe the Imperial Japanese Navy one debit of gratitude, they proved we are not untouchable by a lesser power. To ignore history is to be cursed to repeat it.

Frankly, even if we don't want to face it, 911 taught us, it that it's always December 6, 1941, and the clock is ticking...

Jacksonville
International Port
JaxPort
Port of Gold
international shipping
National Transportation Policy

HIGHWAY HIJINK'S AND MUSHY MAYORAL MATH

Just another Jacksonville rush hour

At a meeting of US Mayors, some very interesting items came up for consideration by the Public Transportation World. Stimulus is the catch word of the hour and everyone is looking for a piece of this golden fleece as the nation try's to spend itself rich.

Here in Jacksonville, our Mayor, John Peyton, just shocked the City last week with a call for a new $100 Million dollars of local spending to jump start the economy. Where pray-tell will the Mayor find $100 Million dollars laying around - useless? Why the funding for the Transit arm of our Transportation Authority of course. Currently the JTA enjoys a 1/2 cent on the dollar appropriation from the City. The Mayor wants to take that money away, money that was promised to the Transit Needy and Transit Savvy citizens of Jacksonville when we agreed to remove the tolls from our many bridges. So now Transit will have no toll money and no City money except that Peyton's big idea is to link the Transit funding with monthly sales tax revenue. In other words, 35+ years of Amtrak disasters look like success to this guy, after all, he now wants the same funding program for JTA.

I wonder if his daddy hadn't made a fortune in Gate Concrete and Gate Petroleum and bought him a mayoral ticket, how he would feel? He claims his $100 Million in new highways will create thousands of jobs and cause JaxPort (also know as The Port of Gold) to blossom even faster. Fat chance, (non transit type's should know that a single interchange can cost $150 Million). So where are these jobs going to come from? Not one mayor in any of the cities at the meeting had a clue. Tuscon, Arizona calculates that a $30 Million dollar road program in that City will cause 1,050 jobs. Certainly some sort of new version of the tired old "Trickle Down Economics" of Tricky Dicky and The Late Great Ronald Reagan.

If Jacksonville uses Tuscon's numbers as an example, the Mayors great rescue will amount to 3,500 new jobs in a metro of 1.4 Million people. BIG DEAL. One has to wonder how many of these jobs will be screeding concrete at Gate Products? Even if 500 of those jobs were professional trades and construction related, what happens when the money runs out? Of course we could just sell another bus. So are the other 3,000 jobs going to be burger flippers at the corner Gate Gas Station? You bet they will.

Oh but Mr. Mayor, you forgot that those folks won't make enough money to buy an automobile to get to work in this, the most sprawled, and largest City in land area in the Western Hemisphere. So they'll just take the bus right? OOP'S tossed those out for another guard rail on I-10, just another of our soon to be 4 interstate highways built with Gate Concrete.

Let's look at the mayors conference, from the Arizona Star:

$110 million for a new streetcar system that is scheduled to receive $87 million from the Regional Transportation Authority and requires only $75 million in new funding to complete.
Tucson Mayor Bob Walkup said the projects were included on the list submitted to the Conference of Mayors because that's what they wanted.

"They said 'Give us your list of things that are ready to go,'" he said.

Some of those on Tucson's list, however, are not on its five-year construction plan.

And Walkup said that if the feds picked up the tab for something like the streetcar project, "we'd probably have to pay them back."

Monday's report is in response to statements last month by President-elect Barack Obama saying he wants to create or save 2.5 million jobs by 2011.

Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, who chairs the conference, said that dovetails with the needs of cities that have infrastructure projects facing them.

"We need to invest where we can get the biggest return," Diaz said at a press conference in Washington. "We are not here for a bailout."

But if Tucson's job-creation figures are any indicator, the claim that projects from the 427 cities surveyed would create 850,000 jobs may be questionable.

Consider the item seeking $30 million for pavement rehabilitation and preservation, which Tucson says will mean 1,050 jobs.

Walkup said that does not mean 1,050 people filling potholes.

So where does the number come from?

"Nobody could explain it to me adequately," the mayor said. The best answer he got, Walkup said, was the idea that money spent on the projects would "trickle through our community."
"This is going to improve dry cleaners and people that are in the service industry by virtue of the fact that capital money is spreading," he said.

So Mayor Diaz of Miami says we need to invest where we'll get the most return. Great idea. Let's look at The Port Of Gold - JaxPort. Certainly nobody would suggest a Port that will triple in size in as many years should go wanting. But to rob the city of an already sketchy Bus System, and kill hopes for Rapid Transit in the process? That is just rabidly short-sighted. For all of these new Port highways, has one moments thought been given to a neutral railroad access or terminal company? Shhhh! We wouldn't want to tick off the resident brass hats in the CSX tower downtown.

But aren't Tuscon, Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Sarasota all planning streetcars. Yes they are but the Florida Cities won't let the cat out of the bag. Why? Maybe it's because Jacksonville has already raided the Ports from Seattle to Key West to Bangor, and positioned itself to become the second or third largest port in the nation in a few years. God knows we wouldn't want any of that success to spill over to Mass Transit.

What success you say? Well, Tuscon is planning a complete modern streetcar system for a mere $110 Million Dollars - COMPLETE. I'm sitting here with two studies on my desk that say Jacksonville could self fund and have Commuter Rail with rebuilt RDC cars up and running next year for about $50 Million or half of the Mayors highway hijinks's.

Would the Streetcars make money? Of course they will, they'll make as much as City Library System, The City Parks and all those roads the mayor is so fond of. But it's the fallout from streetcars that is so attractive to everyone but Jacksonville's leaders. Tampa, for example built a historic tourist type streetcar only a mile or so in length and has seen $1.5 Billion in economic development follow along it's route. Isolated case? I think not. St. Louis Metro-Link Light Rail, $4.5 Billion in new development, Portland, Oregon, has reaped a cool $6.5 Billion.

This isn't hamburgers Mr. Mayor, this is real development, condos, retail, light industrial and corporate headquarters that follow the rails wherever they lead.

Oh, I almost forgot, we have THE PORT. Who needs a $6.5 Billion dollar legacy project when our children's children look at those big chain link fences and say, "Teacher told me to thank Mayor Peyton for dat daddy." Of course the kids will have to have a way to get to the port and Peyton won't be getting any credit for that little oversight.

So here we sit on a pile of cash, able to self fund rail if we so desire. Keeping our brain trust in our neither region's has crippled the council, defamed the mayor, and sent the press off on wild tales about losing money on rail. They say a photo is worth 1,000 words so let me insert one for our consideration:

Meanwhile having blown the whistle on this self serving foolishness, I find myself deep in an old and familiar drama:

--Do not arouse the wrath....

-- Toto at my feet --

--CAMERA PANS right with him as he runs to a veil that hangs near the throne steps

-- PEYTON'S VOICE ...of the Great and Powerful PEYTON! I said -- come back tomorrow!

-- Bob speaks as he looks to the right

-- CAMERA PULLS back to Toto - starts to pull back Peyton's veil

--Bob, "If you were really great and powerful, you'd keep your promises, talk to you constituents and educate yourself!"

--PEYTON'S VOICE Do you presume to criticize the....

-- Toto pulls back the veil to reveal the Mayor at the controls of the throne apparatus

-- his back to the camera PEYTON'S VOICE ...Great PEYTON?

--You ungrateful 800 Pound Monster of Mobility!

-- The press folds and reacts with fear

-- PEYTON'S VOICE Think yourselves lucky that I'm...giving you audience tomorrow, instead of....

-- The Mayor at the controls -- his back to camera -- he speaks into the microphone

-- he turns, looks and sees that the veil is gone

-- reacts and turns back to the controls

-- PEYTON'S VOICE ...twenty years from now.

--Oh -- oh oh! The Great PEYTON has spoken! Oh -- Oh PEYTON'S VOICE Oh - I - Pay no.......attention to that man behind the curtain. Go - before I lose my temper! The Great and Powerful ---Peyton has... uh....yes....spoken.

This scene is repeated over and over all across America, as the grass roots Mass Transit Advocates try and educate the public. As for Jacksonville and the Oil and Concrete Mayor?

No disrespect intended Mr. Mayor, but you won't piss on my leg and tell me it's raining!

monorail
highway
jacksonville transportation authority

A Website To Cause The Anti-Rail Crowd Bed Wetting And Nightmares

Hello General Motors, remember us? You last saw us on that rainy December day back in 1936, then you warmed your hands as our streetcars burned. Well guess what America? We're Back!

see the site at: http://www.freewebs.com/lightrailjacksonville/

We have created a WEBSITE as a bi-product of the JACKSONVILLE TRANSIT BLOG that ought to keep the BRT "Just Like Rail Only Cheaper", crowd up with some high voltage bad dreams. In fact we think the articles we have created, borrowed, stolen, begged and otherwise obtained for publication will make the Anti-Rail crowd sit down and cry.

Good. This was designed to get the attention of a brain dead City leadership and shake the grates on the hard core fossil fuel hogs. It might even be a one stop shop for many of the facts and figures you can use in your own local battles.

The site contains: Streetcar Facts, Light Rail Facts, BRT Facts, Jacksonville Streetcar History, Monorail Facts (positive), Video, Charts, and tons of photos, many created with the help of cyber-savvy photoshop boys at the Metro-Jacksonville site. So come on over and warm up by the fire. The warm glow of burning highway tires can be felt around the world. Comments and contributions are welcome, just drop me a note.
Bob at : lightrailjax@gmail.com

Commuter Rail
Bus Rapid Transit
Light Rail
transit

Lake and Sumpter County Florida In The Commuter Rail Race

MORE OF FLORIDA GETS ONBOARD THE COMMUTER TRAIN

Florida Central Freight heading southbound on the CSX mainline at the Orlando Florida Amtrak (future Commuter Rail) station.

Just an example of creative thought in Commuter Rail. This is called the Mount Dora Champion, (Champion - for the famous ACL passenger train of the same name) a dinner train on the Florida Central, or a ticket to the Magic games in downtown Orlando. Take another look at the photo, think commuter, think a bigger Florida Central locomotive, think dollars not Millions. THINK! It's already there for the taking.

What great news for the good people of Central Florida. The Lake - Sumpter Counties MPO has made it official, THEY WANT COMMUTER RAIL. This is along the lines of the former Seaboard Air Line, Lake Charm (Orlando) Subdivision which is operated today by the Florida Central Railroad. The track extends from Mount Dora and from Umatilla/Eustis to a junction near Tavares, located in the Orange groves north of Orlando. From Tavares the line runs southward through Plymouth/Apopka and into the heart of downtown Orlando. Due to the way the line enters the CSX mainline it misses the new Lynx Terminal which is destined to become the commuter hub of the City, instead it picks up Church Street Station and Orlando Amtrak, as the mainline continues on toward Tampa.

This railroad has already shown a willingness to run passenger trains, being the home to a handful of tourist railroads and train operations. They have continued this with Magic Basketball specials which are usually sold out in advance.

FROM THE ORLANDO SENTINEL:

Lake sees commuter rail line in future
Christine Show Sentinel Staff Writer
December 7, 2008

After throwing support behind Central Florida's main commuter-rail project, local planning officials said they hope consideration is given to a similar passenger line running between the Golden Triangle and Orlando.Lake-Sumter Metropolitan Planning Organization members last week approved a resolution supporting the proposed 61-mile train route from DeLand through downtown Orlando and on to Poinciana. The state Legislature stalled plans for that rail project this spring.But proponents -- namely, U.S. Reps. Corrine Brown, D-Jacksonville, and John Mica, R-Winter Park -- recently said their goals may be aided by the Barack Obama administration, its economic-stimulus plan and an emphasis on transportation and environmentally friendly projects.If that commuter-rail proposal moves forward, MPO officials would like to see Lake County follow close behind, said T.J. Fish, Lake-Sumter MPO's executive director.
"We expect the next step to be the northwest corridor," he said.Plans for the commuter line through Lake call for trains running from Orlando and traveling west and north past Apopka to downtown areas of the Golden Triangle with stops in Eustis and Tavares.Those involved with the main commuter-rail line planned through Volusia, Seminole, Orange and Osceola counties are focused on seeing that project through, said Christine Kefauver, Orlando's transportation manager.But they are open to plans for service in Lake County in years to come, she said."Is it in the vision for the future? Absolutely," she said.Lake-Sumter MPO officials are interested in a rail stop in Mount Dora, but firm plans are not set, Fish said. The city is still considering the best location for passengers to board the rail line -- perhaps on the city's south end, he said.Mount Dora City Manager Michael Quinn could not be reached for comment.A commuter-rail stop in downtown Eustis is something James Rotella, outgoing Eustis commissioner, would like to see. As the MPO's second vice chairman, Rotella supported a northwest corridor route.Once a commuter himself, Rotella became a rail supporter 25 years ago after driving between Eustis and Orlando for work."It improves our mobility and connectivity," he said, referring to commuter rail. "Our biggest problem in transportation is that we have too many automobiles on asphalt. We need to reduce the congestion on the roads we have."MPO officials also discussed a second commuter option -- rapid-transit bus service on highway lanes reserved for buses only. Those routes would run along State Road 50 from Orlando to Winter Garden to Clermont.But commuter rail -- which has been pushed before in Lake without success -- dominated most of last week's discussions.A rail line through Lake County comes with convenience, Fish said. The CSX A-line train tracks are already in place to carry trains from Orlando into downtown Tavares.Although some areas of track need improving, they have good potential for use with a commuter-rail system, said Tavares City Administrator John Drury. And he noted that the timing may be in Lake's favor, too."We'll be looking at the president's new economic-enhancement program," Drury said.The existing tracks already have been used to bring Lake residents to Orlando Magic games. Tavares sold out 12 trips to games this year, with the train carrying about 60 to 80 people each trip. Tavares officials plan 17 trips to Magic games this year."We are a great capture point," Drury said. "It makes sense to look toward the future, going beyond tourist-related activities and looking some day at the possibility of actual commuter-rail service."With the city prepared to make upgrades to the existing tracks, Drury said a commuter-rail line into the county would protect the environment, help spur the economy by creating new jobs and enhance the surrounding communities."The timing couldn't be better," he said.

The amazing thing is the Orlando Commuter Rail project is held hostage by the legislature of the State of Florida. Thus far, they have simply refused to grant CSX (or others - implied) an insurance agreement that would hold the railroad harmless for damages done due to Commuter Rail operations. In effect the State of Florida is holding Jacksonville, Tampa, Orlando and now Lake and Sumpter Counties hostage.

Even more amazing is no one in the Olando MPO seems to realize that Commuter Rail on the shortline FLORIDA CENTRAL would be much easier to achieve then any deal with the CSX.

Certainly the track needs some work, but even so it is good for 20-30 mph today. New ties and ballast, tamping and leveling, would do wonders for the ride quality. The shortline as are most shortline's, is creative and hungry for ways to turn a buck or improve the railroads physical plant. This is a win-win for them and there is no reason to think that if the Counties approached the railroad independent of Orlando or the State, they would be running trains while Orlando is still doing surveys. All of this would cost Penny's on the dollar to what the state has in mind. I implore anyone in those counties to contact this blogger and I will put you on the track of contractors and equipment that will leave you with your jaw agape.

This is totally doable. Please lead on and let's teach our big sister city to the North how its done.

Jacksonville
jacksonville transportation authority
Commuter Rail