SHOOTING FOR THE MOON IS LIGHTER THEN AIR!

So here we are in Jacksonville, more then once the home of lost causes. First we align with Mexican Pirates and declare ourselves the independent Republic of Florida, against the will of both the new US Nation and the Spanish Landlords. Next big deal was our attack on the federal invasion fleet some 15,000 men strong by 6 citizens of the local Confederate Signal Corps. We found a "cure" for yellow fever by burning sulfur and shooting off cannons, with some success, mosquito's don't like concussions and sulfur stinks. Next big adventure was to sell out our streetcar system so we'd become the "only" big GM distribution center on earth. When the results became apparent, we formed JTA to save us. Meanwhile we bought into "Floating Off-Shore Nuclear Power Plants". Screw the tropical storms, we had the corner on the market. Leap forward and we are the master jet base of the whole US Navy - no? Too much success in that. So another great idea. We'll take our former Jet Base and turn it into a SPACE PORT just like every other abandoned military airport, in every other state, but shhhhh! We think we're the only ones here.

Meanwhile in California, the future is being pioneered by the Zeppelin Corporation with the new NT airship. A giant leap backwards? Don't bet on it. Even in the tragic Hindenburg crash of the 1930's most passengers walked away from it, try that with a Skybus or 757. Lift, LTA (lighter then air) aircraft can adopt to the new era in aviation making up for a half a century of slumber.

They don't need runways. They can use modern power. They all use the latest electronics and avionics. Their air speed is about equal to High Speed Rail on land. Best of all, they can cross the Atlantic with the same amount of fuel that a 747 burns in the taxiway from the gate to the take-off point. With fuel costs soaring, a devoted few large companies, working with international governments, including our own have quietly gone about the re-birth of the great zeppelin era. Perhaps for the first time in our history, Jacksonville has the opportunity to jump on another idea that isn't tied down too tight. Odds are, this time we win. LETS LTA JACKSONVILLE!

Meanwhile, take a look at Southern California's own government secret as it floats up and out of the box.

SAN BERNARDINO - THE SUN

Blimp could revolutionize travel
Company hangars in San Bernardino
Ben Baeder, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 08/31/2008

BLOGGER NOTE: The newspaper story incorrectly identifies the air-ship as a "blimp". Blimps do not have frames or ribs. A rigid airship is called a Zeppelin and either can correctly be called dirigibles (French for steerable aircraft).

Tucked in a warehouse along the Rio Hondo River in Montebello, one of the world's few blimp companies is building a bulbous-looking, super- light flying cruise ship that company officials say could revolutionize air travel.

Called the Aeroscraft, the ship would be capable of flying 3,000 miles at 110 mph, hovering in place, and lifting 3 to 4 tons of cargo.

"Nothing like this has been done before," said Edward Pevzner, business development manager at Worldwide Aeros Corp., the company working on the Aeroscraft.
"We're still thinking of all the different ways we could use it," he said.
Larger versions of the craft in the future could transport 60 tons and hold hundreds of people, he said.

Founded by Igor Pasternak, a flight specialist from the former Soviet Union, Worldwide Aeros claims to produce some of the world's most advanced blimps, building electronically-controlled ships that need only one pilot for operation. Blimp companies are so rare that, at any given time, there are only about 20 in the world, company officials said.

With hangars in San Bernardino and its headquarters in Montebello, Worldwide Aeros has permission from the Federal Aviation Administration to operate its "Sky Dragon" blimp and is working on getting a certificate for a new version of that blimp, according FAA spokesman Ian Gregor.

But the rigid Aeroscraft is an entirely new concept in flight.

weight would be supported by helium kept in a compartment at the top of the craft. That cuts in half the amount of power needed to keep the Aeroscraft airborne compared to a conventional jet, Pevzner said. The rest of the lift would come from the force of air moving against the Aeroscraft, like an airplane.

The ship could cruise, hover, or move straight up and down, he said.
The Aeroscraft's ability to self-adjust its buoyancy is what makes it unique, Pevzner said. Typically, blimps cannot carry much cargo, because it is too difficult to adjust the amount of helium in the craft when the payload changes. But the Aeroscraft would be able to quickly adjust its buoyancy, sucking helium in and out of containers and using air as a ballast.

The idea for the ship - which is scheduled to be in operation in about two years - is causing a stir among technology buffs. Web sites about flight and technology are buzzing with comments from fans and skeptics.

"This is not a Blimp," wrote journalist Joshua Tompkins on the Web site popsci.com. "It's a sort of flying Queen Mary 2 that could change the way you think about air travel."

Research for the craft was funded by the government, which was looking for a way to transport cargo to areas without runways, according to statements from the company.

The company is now translating that research into civilian use.

The Aeroscraft could be used by oil companies in transporting equipment to remote regions, as a flying mansion for billionaires, or for corporate travel to places without major airports.

Aeros Worldwide caught the eye of Rep. Grace Napolitano, D-Santa Fe Springs, who noticed the company had moved to her district about 10 months ago from the San Fernando Valley.

The company relocated to Montebello to be closer to suppliers and FAA offices, and because the new building had a warehouse large enough to hold 150-foot-long deflated blimps. Most of the aircraft frames are handmade at the facility.

"I'm very excited about the technology they're bringing out," Napolitano said. "The application for moving air cargo impressed me. We're always looking for things that are innovative and environmentally friendly."

IF JACKSONVILLE LIFTED IT"S SKIRT

From the top Right to the Bottom Left of the photo - Asphalt - Brick - Cross Ties - Ballast - A Pipe - More Cross Ties - Bricks - Asphalt

Okay, every red blooded guy knows that rush when the beautiful woman exposes a bit of the under-skirt flesh. But what happens to the same guy's if they are Transit Advocates and happen to be in love with a city and it's history. What if the City lifted it's skirt to give us a small window on what is beneath her coverings? Behold, Tropical Storm Fay performed that feat in Riverside, on Oak Street. A lucky shot into the hole, reveals a pattern of beautiful pavement brick, and the abandoned streetcar tracks of the Jacksonville Traction Company. Who says we have no heritage?

JACKSONVILLE PARKS MONORAIL SYSTEM?

FOOD FOR THOUGHT - SOMETHING TO DO IN THE RIVER CITY BY THE SEA

Located in Japan, yet another mini-monorail system that would hold fantastic opportunities for our parks or our "Riverwalk". Imagine being able to take the family down to this thing and tour the waterfront with more ease then a bicycle ride. In this case - steel wheel on steel rail = almost no friction. The function could be not unlike the New Zealand system, and perhaps without the glass pod, heat would not be a problem in the summer.

We shall continue to watch for inexpensive ways to improve the quality of life in Jacksonville through advanced transit and mobility ideas, so keep watching for future posts.

37 YEARS TO KILL THE SYSTEM AND NOW IT'S AMTRAK TO THE RESCUE!

FEMA Announcement of new Amtrak Partnership

Greyhound, Amtrak routes canceled as city takes over transit station
Saturday August 30, 2008, 11:10 AM
CHRIS GRANGER / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

With Hurricane Gustav barreling toward Louisiana, Greyhound bus and Amtrak train service heading out of New Orleans from the Union Passenger Terminal this weekend has been canceled to accommodate the city's free evacuation program, leaving an unknown number of travelers holding worthless tickets out of town.

New Orleans city officials informed the transit firms all routes out of the downtown station would have to cease at 6 p.m. Friday, spokespeople for the companies said. "It's not our choice," spokeswoman Abby Wambaugh said. "It's what we had to do." Greyhound routes to and from Mobile, Houston and Baton Rouge are canceled until further notice, according to the company's Web site. An Amtrak spokesman said several train routes are suspended through early next week. The city owns the terminal, which is being used as a staging site for the city's free evacuation program. A city spokesperson could not immediately be reached for comment. City buses began shuttling around designated pickup sites in New Orleans at 8 a.m. today, ferrying residents to the Union Passenger Terminal. There, they can board state-chartered buses to shelters in north Louisiana and Tennessee. Elderly and infirm residents who arrived at the transit station can board Amtrak trains to Memphis. Similar programs were in place in Jefferson, St. Bernard and Plaquemines parishes Wambaugh said passengers holding canceled bus tickets may use redeem them for face value at any time within the next year. She did not know how many tickets were purchased for travel out of New Orleans this weekend. Amtrak officials called passengers scheduled to travel from New Orleans on Friday and notified them of the change, according to the firm's Web site. Refunds are available.

BLOGGER NOTE: As of Monday morning, Amtrak and the buses along with the highways have managed to evacuate 95% of New Orleans. While regular train and bus service was suspended, outbound trains and buses stood in lines. One Amtrak train to Memphis alone carried over 1,200 citizens. Buses were lined up 40 vehicles deep. Certainly a true case of Mass Transit at it's best.

PLAYING IN THE TROLLEY WIRE - STUPID IS AS STUPID DOES???

August 31, 2008

Trespasser Tries to Zap Amtrak Back with Lawsuit

An Astoria man is suing Amtrak because they "should have known that people trespassed" in the area of a Boston station where he was severely electrocuted two years ago. After a night of drinking in July 2006, 25-year-old Brian Hopkins went down to Boston's South Station at 2 a.m. after telling friends that he "wanted to get back to New York." There he tried to force his way inside an Acela and climbed on top of a parked train car when he was jolted by 27,500 volts from arcing overhead wires. He suffered third-degree burns over 85 percent of his body, and doctors have since amputated his left hand and leg. In the suit, his family claims that Amtrak should have taken more precautions to keep trespassers out of the potentially dangerous area.

BLOGGER NOTE: Jacksonville Streetcars or LRT would likely use
either 1,200 volt AC which is newer and has less moving parts (but is more
costly) or the standard 600 volt DC which lasts an eternity but will still turn
a human into a french fry in a flash. As I recall when the Kennedy Funeral Train made it's way along the electrified railroads of the Northeast, several persons were killed or seriously injured climbing on top of standing train cars to get a better view.

Fact is, the view is great from HEAVEN! Railroads, Streetcars or LRT are NOT PLAYGOUNDS.

HAVE CORRINE BROWN AND FDOT BYPASSED JACKSONVILLE ON AMTRAK?

One of the Last of the old school streamliners was the City of Miami, a often full train left out of the Amtrak System between Miami-Jax-Birmingham-Memphis-Chicago/St. Louis. Here we see her pulling away from us at speed on a cold Jacksonville morning. Symbolic? I hope not.

I Want To Know Where Jacksonville Terminal Station Fits Into This Plan!

By LINDSAY PETERSON
The Tampa Tribune

TAMPA - As passengers settle into the wide, reclining seats, the train pulls out of Union Station at the edge of downtown Tampa. After rolling through Ybor City, the silver locomotive picks up speed, whizzing past Brandon subdivisions and Plant City farms until it rolls into Lakeland 40 minutes later. The next stop is Kissimmee, 16 miles from Disney World, then downtown Orlando.

This isn't someone's vision of the kind of rail service they'd like to see. It happens every day on the Silver Star, an Amtrak train that stops in a dozen cities across Florida. There's one problem: You might not get back home the same day you leave, because Amtrak runs so few trains to these cities. But state and federal lawmakers want to change that. They're working with Amtrak and the state Department of Transportation to create a service that commuters can use.

The discussion began last month, when the state's plan to create a commuter rail system in Orlando stumbled in the Legislature. Lawmakers began looking for other ways to bring more passenger rail service to the state - especially after supporters of the Orlando plan said that its failure would doom efforts to bring commuter rail to Tampa.

Weeks earlier, Amtrak officials had visited Florida to talk about its efforts to run more trains on its established routes. Amtrak probably can't take the place of the multiple-stop system planned for Orlando, but it could add trains to its routes connecting Tampa, Lakeland, and several cities in the Orlando area and South Florida. It uses the same tracks that officials had planned to use for the Orlando system and would share several stations along the way.

Several lawmakers and state Department of Transportation officials met with Amtrak representatives in Tallahassee this month. Amtrak Vice President Anne Witt told the group that the agency had no interest in running commuter trains, but it could link several cities' commuter and light rail systems.

"It's all very preliminary," said state Sen. Paula Dockery, R-Lakeland, "but I think people got very excited thinking about what's possible."

With gas topping $4 per gallon, people are ready to give up their cars, said U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa, who recently voted with the majority in the House to reauthorize Amtrak for the first time since 1997. The measure included $2.5 billion for improvements to its intercity routes across the country.

"I see a great potential for Amtrak to take off in Florida," she said.
Already, dozens of people take the Silver Star out of Tampa every day - retirees, college students, families traveling to Orlando, Miami and other cities along the train's East Coast route to Boston.

Michael Durham, 22, of Altamonte Springs, rode the train from Orlando to Tampa on Wednesday to meet his family vacationing in Indian Rocks Beach. The train was running three hours late because of work on the tracks north of Orlando. "Other than that, it wasn't bad. It was cheap," he said. A round trip between Orlando and Tampa costs $18. If there were more trains, "I'd probably use it to come over here to see my friend on the weekend. It'd be great for that."

The Cost Of Expansion
About 22,000 commuters leave Polk County every day to work in the Tampa or Orlando areas, according to the Central Florida Development Council, a group that promotes business in Polk County. About 7,000 travel from the Tampa area into Polk.

As things are now, they wouldn't all be able to take the train. "The trick is, how do you get from the train station to where you want to go?" marketing manager Jim DeGennaro said.

Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio and others with the new Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority are working on that part of the problem in Tampa, mapping out a light-rail system linking downtown with the West Shore area, Tampa International Airport and the University of South Florida.

"I'm very optimistic," said Dockery, who helped organize last week's meeting with Amtrak.

But expanding Amtrak service in Florida won't be easy. It means negotiating agreements with the company that owns most of the state's freight rail lines, CSX Transportation. The Jacksonville-based freight company has said it doesn't want more passenger trains on that line between Tampa and Orlando, not without financial help from the government to expand the line's capacity.

The state took a different approach in its effort to bring commuter rail to the Orlando area. About two years ago, it began negotiations with CSX to buy 61 miles of track between DeLand and Poinciana. The deal ended up with a $649 million price tag, which included the cost of helping CSX expand a parallel set of tracks into a hub it plans to build in Winter Haven.

Several state lawmakers questioned why it cost so much to buy just 61 miles of railroad tracks. Dockery also worried about the additional freight trains that would come through Lakeland on their way to and from the Winter Haven hub.

What finally killed the deal in the Legislature, at least for this year, was a CSX demand that the state take liability for any accident involving a passenger train, even an accident caused by a CSX freight train on the tracks.

As lawmakers who favored the deal began working to revive it for next year, Dockery and state Rep. Dennis Ross, R-Lakeland, began talking to Amtrak.

The Amtrak Alternative
It's not the first time state officials turned to Amtrak as an alternative. In 2000, the DOT put together an intercity rail plan using Amtrak instead of a high-priced proposal for statewide high-speed rail.

The high-speed system would have connected Tampa and Orlando first, using the state-owned right-of-way along Interstate 4. Promoted by Dockery's husband, C.C. "Doc" Dockery, the effort ultimately failed in a statewide referendum.

The state's 2000 Amtrak plan also named the Tampa-Orlando route as one of the busiest, projecting that by 2010, more than 16 million people per year would travel the 90 miles between the two cities. It estimated that more than 15 million per year would travel the 230 miles between Orlando and Miami.

"I don't know why we abandoned that plan," Paula Dockery said. DOT spokesman Dick Kane said the plan had not been abandoned but that Amtrak doesn't typically operate commuter systems like the one Florida envisions in the Orlando area. Amtrak "will definitely be part of the study parameters" as the state develops its intercity rail plan, Kane said.The advantage of working through Amtrak is that federal law gives it the right to use existing freight lines, as long as its use doesn't interfere with freight train traffic.

It might not be as expensive as buying the lines, but increasing the number of Amtrak trains connecting Tampa, Orlando, Miami and Jacksonville will still cost money, Dockery said. It may require building a set of tracks next to the existing ones, which could cost tens of millions of dollars.

A possible source of money emerged this month when Congress reauthorized Amtrak. "We'll need to fight for the money through the appropriations bill," Castor said. "But we have people who believe in rail in the appropriations committee."

The bill also includes money to study the restoration of the Sunset Limited, which used to run through Florida to New Orleans but was discontinued after Hurricane Katrina.

A Liability Study
Castor said that if the bill gets final approval, Florida will have a good shot at a grant because one of its House members from Jacksonville, Corrine Brown, a Democrat, is head of the Transportation Committee's subcommittee on railroads, pipelines and hazardous materials.

Brown wants to see more Amtrak service in Florida, she said, but her first choice of routes is the one between Miami and Orlando because of tourist travel between the two places. Also, she said, Florida stands a better chance of getting federal money if it gets commuter rail going in Orlando.

"The state needs to show its commitment," Brown said.

Castor is trying to help solve the liability hang-up, she said. She and three other House members have asked the U.S. Government Accountability Office to study the liability agreements of all passenger rail agreements between government agencies and freight rail companies. One of the three is U.S. Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., head of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Another state, Massachusetts, is in a battle with CSX over its demand for liability protection in a track purchase deal similar to Florida's. Amtrak has given CSX liability protection in several of its contracts with the freight carrier and has had to pay millions to resolve liability cases.

The request asks the GAO to review court cases involving the type of liability agreement CSX wants and what the agreements cost states and other rail agencies, such as Amtrak.

It also asks that the review be completed by Dec. 9, before Florida's next legislative session.

SAY GOODBYE TO THE AUTO ERA?

View of Cliff Street, Scranton, PA. Abandoned

August 31, 2008

Washington Post Writers Group
By Neal Peirce

For close to a century, the automobile has so boldly seized Americans’ imagination — sparking the economy, paving the continent, designing our neighborhoods — that even the thought of curbing its dominion seems unnatural.

But check what’s happening right now:
High gasoline prices are prompting millions of us to think again about how often, and how far, we drive our cars. Recent months have seen total vehicle miles driven nationally fall off sharply– a radical reversal of decades of increase.

Across the country, there’s pressure to reclaim city streets for the city’s own people. Fueling this pressure is the alarm raised over high accident and death tolls from pedestrians struck by autos and trucks.

The “Complete Streets” movement — urging city and neighborhood streets be made as welcoming and safe for pedestrians and cyclists as they are for autos — is gaining attention, now backed up by legislation pending in Congress.

Public transit use is enjoying a banner year across the country.

A vanguard of cities is banning cars from their public parks.

There’s increased effort — lead cities range from Seattle to Buffalo, Toronto to New Haven — to tear down ugly motorways that divide neighborhoods and occupy valuable space near city centers. (Demolition of a Milwaukee freeway in 2003 helped unify the city’s downtown area and sparked hundreds of millions of dollars of new development).

Bike stations — quick ways to rent a bike, cruise around a downtown — are being proposed across the country.

A new “Walk Score” website (www.walkscore.com) lets users type in their home address and discover its “walkability” score — from 0 (”must have car”) to 100 (”walker’s paradise”).

BLOGGER NOTE: Jacksonville
ranks at the rock bottom of the walk score cities. Even our downtown with it's free shuttle buses, riverwalk and landing only gets 31 out of 100 possible
points, San Marco at 71 and 5-Points at 85 rank much, higher then our norm. Bottom line? We need walkable streets and public transit options NOW.

A few cities are starting to charge true market costs for parking on public streets. Example: fees of up to $40 for four hours near the new baseball stadium in Washington, D.C. The Nation’s Capital is, in fact, emerging as an epicenter of restraint on cars. One-way streets — virtual “freeways” through cities — are a first target. Already portions of Constitution Avenue N.E. have been transformed from a reversible commuter artery back to a quiet side street. Concerned about high pedestrian injury levels, the city may soon increase penalties — from $50 to $500 — for a vehicle encroaching on a crosswalk.

Some commuters are grumbling about Washington’s moves; a spokesman for AAA calls the Distict of Columbia “the most anti-car city in the country.” But city officials say they’re just intent on reclaiming Washington city streets for the people who live there, creating a walkable, bikable, transit-oriented metropolis.

In a parallel move, Washington’s Office of Planning wants to revise post-World War II zoning regulations — similar across the country — that require new buildings to provide ample off-street parking. Such city rules are totally outmoded, says parking reform advocate Donald Shoup. They inhibit smart compact development and drive up the cost of housing.

What made America such an incredibly pro-auto nation in the first place? Our wide open spaces, love of personal freedom explain a lot. But our streets, like those of all the world, were chiefly for pedestrians before the automobile emerged.

A new book by Peter Norton — Fighting Traffic — The Dawn of the Motor Age in the American City — recounts a concerted early 20th century campaign by auto makers and their allies to redefine city streets as motor throughways, with pedestrians “safely” relegated to sidewalks.

Unsatisfied with their initial success, automakers campaigned for more street space and Herbert Hoover, an engineer and future president, to convene a 1928 conference on traffic. It obligingly demanded more “floor space” for trucks and cars.

In 1939 came General Motors’ Futurama exhibit at the World’s Fair in New York. It depicted a world literally planned around motor vehicles. Superhighways (as wide as 14 lanes) would dominate the cities they passed over. The impression on the public was profound.

So are today’s auto-curbing efforts simply wisps in the wind? Possible– but not likely. Our once world-dominating automakers are tetering economically. “Peak oil,” mounting energy scarcity, climate change are realities.

Of course autos and trucks won’t disappear; they’re a key to modern nations’ economies. But one senses a new genie out of the bottle — a demand for streets, urban and town roadways that enhance peoples’ lives, restraining motor vehicles, not eliminating them. Every agenda from health (better air, less obesity) to aesthetics, energy-saving transit to quality of life, demands it.

And just think that our population will grow by 100 million by 2040 or so. Do we have the stunning amounts of steel, asphalt, public space to accommodate them as we’ve been living? We’re dangerously behind maintaining the vast but overtaxed roadways we have. Realism says this century simply can’t be a repeat of the heavily motorized 20th.

ARNOLD SAY IT ISN'T SO!

JACKSONVILLE REGIONAL RAPID TRANSIT - THE TRUTH BEHIND THE HYPE

JACKSONVILLE TRANSIT TRUTHS

Adapted from an article in the Marin Independent Journal

By Robert W. Mann

Some bare truth about the promises and complaints made about a Jacksonville Regional Transportation System. Considering a complete system as Light Rail-Streetcars, and Commuter Rail, which for the purposes of this article I'll lump together under LRT. Also a network of limited Light-Rail-Lite-BRT lines to feed into the LRT trunk and perhaps the Skyway, all of this complimented by a network of neighborhood transit buses that would tie it all into a complete network. So is this promise of a Jacksonville Regional Rapid Transit System ( or JRRT) really a transportation Valhalla? I'll be honest and you be the judge.

Will JRRT solve the traffic jams on the freeway?

The simple answer is no. There is no realistic solution to the perpetual rush-hour traffic jam. Even widening our freeways and highways will not do the trick. Suburban highway gridlock is a nationwide phenomenon caused by a land-use model based on single-family homes sprawled over a wide area. What JRRT can do is provide an auto-free alternative.

Would JRRT only help Jacksonville or downtown Jacksonville?

Yes and no. The biggest effect of the JRRT system will be to take Clay, St. Johns, Nassau County -residing workers to their jobs in Jacksonville. As long as Jacksonville, housing and cost of living are higher, its labor force needs to live somewhere. Many logically choose more affordable surrounding Counties. It's in Jacksonville taxpayers' interest to facilitate the commute for workers essential to the county's economic health and to do so in an environmentally sensitive manner.

Are there are other less costly solutions?

The reality is the retail clerks, office staff, restaurant workers and building trades employees who live in Surrounding Counties and help form the backbone of Jacksonville's economy can't telecommute. A separate BRT quick way-busway costs almost as much as rail and will, in the end, result in more buses and more roads without a marked upsurge in ridership, bottom line? Good transit needs to "Mix your Modes", offer choices, and network. BRT alone without rail will fail. Likewise rail without BRT or quality bus feeders also fails. Futuristic dreams such as our Jetsons-style monorail, for anything but local shuttle service, will be far more expensive than rail even in the unlikely event that their technical aspects are perfected. Remember, Buck Rogers technology costs big bucks. Except for corporate sponsored systems, anyone who claims their proposal will not cost taxpayers a cent is either a charlatan or hopelessly naive.

But isn't JRRT LRT ideas 19th century technology?

Untrue. The Europeans, Japanese or Chinese are all expanding both their commuter and long-distance rail lines to 21st century standards. Modern rail systems are regarded worldwide as an environmentally sensitive way to move large numbers of travelers. It's the single-passenger petroleum-propelled auto that represents the technology of the past.

Will anyone ride JRRT once its in operation?

That is a fair question with no definite answer. Will the trains run empty or will long-term spikes in gas prices boost patronage past JRRT's projections? Proponents of new rail systems tout ridership successes and opponents emphasize failures. If the numbers are substantial, the naysayers will disappear. If they tank, the Jacksonville will never hear the end of it. Of course, when the Matthews Bridge was proposed, some claimed that few would ever pay a toll to cross a highway bridge to no where.

A PROPHETIC ARTICLE FROM 1972

From the Washington DC, Gazette, Sam Smith, nailed the future of transit in this country. Freeways were the future, or so it seemed, and air travel would replace all others in longer markets. In fact railroads might be gone altogether in 20 years. Progressive cities would marry themselves to modern city buses, and more asphalt and concrete. Old buildings were to be torn down for sparkling new cities of the future. Suburban sprawl and urban exit was at it's zenith. Washington D.C. not unlike Jacksonville, was busy destroying it's history and creating auto-centric sprawl that would eventually cover large parts of two states. Here in the deep south, Consolidation and urban renewal were the war cries that destroyed historic Brooklyn, LaVilla and Fairfield, any "undesirables" that couldn't be contained with outright destruction were cut off by freeway grades, fences or fly-overs. Such were the times just 10 years after the last Washington D.C. streetcar was abandoned, in fact Jacksonville was 36 years "Ahead" of D.C. in this line of thinking.

Out of this smog choked murky dusk, came a spark of light. Perhaps Saint Elmo's Fire moving down some unseen trolley wire in the minds of a very few people. Bring back the Trolley's was only whispered, a lapel button here and there, maybe a hushed talk, then Toronto said no to abandonment. Following on their heals came Boston and San Francisco, who decided not only to keep the streetcars but expand them. Suddenly their was the light of a new dawn. Into this Sam Wrote the following incredible article with the foresight of an Old Testament prophet, he nailed it.

THE NEWS BEFORE IT HAPPENS:

A 1972 LOOK AT STREET CARS

Sam Smith, DC Gazette, March 1972 - The end of January marked the tenth anniversary of the last streetcar run in the District. Curiously, only Jack Eisen of the Post, the local freeway lobby's favorite journalist, bothered to note the event. The City Council might have commemorated the occasion were it not engrossed in hearings on how to get DC Transit's O. Roy Chalk to remove an estimated 86 miles of streetcar track remaining in the city. Mayor Walter Washington might have joined also, but he was too busy trying to get congressional approval of a bond guarantee for the Metro subway system.While generally sympathetic to the streetcar as a historical phenomenon, Eisen offered this ex cathedra assurance: "Streetcars as we knew them will never again run in Washington." Why not? Certainly logic does not rule out their return. Streetcars are efficient. Trolleys operating on surface streets can carry nearly ten times as many people per hour as automobiles and fifty percent more people than buses. Streetcars , while not non-polluting (since they require electrical power), at least remove the pollution from where it has its deadliest effect - high density center city areas. Further, streetcars are a pleasure to ride, are devoid of the noxious fumes created by buses and are aesthetically pleasing.One of the major reasons streetcars went out - and will have a hard time returning - is that they compete directly with the automobile. At the time of their demise, anything that competed with the car was considered unpatriotic, anti-Christian and perhaps even a bit perverted. A decade later, as we wheeze our way through the atmospheric swamp that covers our major cities, we are beginning to view the car with a bit more skepticism. Not enough, to be sure, to do anything serious about restricting its use, but the first glimmers of comprehension are there. A generation that built its foreign policy on faith in Chiang Kai Shek and its domestic policy on faith in General Motors is beginning to doubt its wisdom. Now that Mr. Nixon has gone to China, perhaps his next major journey can be a ride on a trolley.It is hard to write of streetcars without succumbing to nostalgia and laying oneself open to charges of infantile romanticism. But the reason one feels nostalgia is, after all, because one misses something one thinks was good. And since the choice of transportation modes is in part determined by psychological factors, as any Freudian analysis of the automobile in American society will point out, a system that engenders a certain amount of romantic attachment may also guarantee itself ridership as well.Recently the city of Toronto reversed itself and decided not to end streetcar servi^ there. Said Ralph Day, chairman of the local transit commission, the streetcars are "liked by all users and detested by all motorists." Day has given us here a capsule criterion for the ideal urban transportation system. If we are to be-serious about building mass transit we must confront the automobile directly.It is not enough just to provide alternatives to the car; we must put obstacles in its path.One of the many fraudulent aspects of the Metro subway is that it is really designed not to compete with the automobile. One need look no further, than the freeway plans. The highway lobby hasn't whittled its ambitions one inch because of the prospect of Metro. Every freeway that was planned before Metro is still being pushed by highway builders. . . .Metro has plenty of other problems as a mass transit system. It costs too much, for one thing. . . As the largest single public works project in the world's history, Metro hardly qualifies as an economy. There is no doubt that DC could get more mass transit for its money by not building a subway and turning instead to a mixture of surface mass transit including rail commuter lines, streetcars, buses and jitneys.Secondly, Metro has already disrupted many communities in the city and will disrupt many more. Businesses and homes are being lost as Metro reveals its true nature as not merely an underground transportation system, but an aboveground land development scheme. Metro joined urban renewal as a major element in the city's reverse land reform program, which takes land out of the hands of the many and puts it in the hands of a. few. A surface transit system would not have been as amenable to such cynical and deceitful expropriation of land.Thirdly, Metro is primarily another means of providing safe, fast entrance and egress to DC for non-taxpaying suburban parasites. A streetcar system, along with other surface transit facilities, would be much more orientated to the needs of the local citizenry, as it was when it existed.Fourthly, Metro is inflexible. Where Metro goes, it will stay. The cost of adding new lines, or abandoning them, would be astronomical. Since a city is always in a state of flux, there is a need for a transit system that can bend to meet changing situations. A surface system is much more adaptable. . .Let us not forget that we live in the city that, more than any other, has surrendered itself to the automobile. Of course, it began a long time ago. The original L1Enfant Plan of 1791 proposed that 59% of the area of the federal city be set aside for highways. Thanks to George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and the Congress, the first highway lobby was restrained somewhat, but L'Enfant's successors have more than made up for the loss.Other cities have shown considerably more wisdom, and today some of these transit-oriented towns are taking another look at streetcars. Eisen reports that "Boston and San Francisco, aided by the U.S. Department of Transportation, have agreed upon the specifications for a new generation of trolleys to equip their remaining lines. . . San Francisco even has plans - and the promise of federal money - to expand its electric streetcar system as well as to renovate its cable car lines." And one of the least nostalgic men around, DC Transit's O. Roy Chalk himself recently wrote Eisen: "Maybe the reason passenger losses developed (in the transit industry) was not higher fares but elimination of trolleys. It is an interesting concept.How about a new trolley system, instead of a subway, with automatic (i.e. reserved) trolley lanes?"If a streetcar system were built here, there is no reason that it should be a replica of the former one. The reserved lanes suggested by Chalk would be one improvement. Use of cars in tandem, as is done in Boston, is another. The streetcar could be just one element of a rational, flexible, urban-focused, economical transit system. . . The unused commuter rail lines that lead into the District could be turned into mass transit systems. And a range of bus types, from small jitneys (like airport limousines) to double-deckers, could supplement the rail systems, replacing the single-size buses that DC Transit uses on nearly all its routes. It is not likely that the government or business interests will press for these improvements.It must come from the riders. The whole history of mass transit in this country is one of politics first, riders last. When jitneys started competing with streetcars in the early part of the century, the trolley companies got the courts and state legislatures to drive them out of business.Later, as Eisen points out, "A national transit holding company allied with bus-manufacturing interests. . . embarked upon a deliberate program of replying trolleys with buses in dozens of cities from Baltimore to Oakland." And, of course, the bus companies got their come-uppance not long after as the auto craze was fostered by a combination of highway builders, car companies, and cooperative public officials.The other day I saw an official of the Department of Transportation wearing a button that proclaimed: "Mix Your Modes." It's a nice sentiment, but one that has yet to gain credance in local transportation planning. Yesterday's fad was the freeway; today it's Metro. But monomania won't solve our transit problems. We have lots of different places to go and we need a variety of ways to get there. Streetcars should be one of them. Then getting there will no longer be half a pain

THE NEW AQUATIC ROADS OF JACKSONVILLE

Sometimes, a hard lesson from Mother Nature, can reteach public transit 101. In a generally low laying Coastal Port City like Jacksonville, having just experienced a week of endless rain, an elevated train system like our Skyway isn't looking like such a stupid idea after all. In fact if this storm experience proved anything, it's that leaving our monorail system 1/3 finished is mega dumb. Funny thing is, three of the 4 unfinished lines of the Jacksonville Skyway would go into the hardest hit flood areas. Riverside/Brooklyn, San Marco, and Springfield, all look like inland seas and it's only going to get worse as the water that fell on Central Florida makes it's way north on the St. Johns River - only to "stack up" in the narrows downtown. Meaning the worst of the flooding could still be ahead of us in the areas that can least afford it. A Skyway tied to new development, streetcars, commuter rail and bus transit, routed on the dryer high roads, would do wonders for mobility in the next few weeks. But City Hall doesn't want to hear about Skyway's, or other pie-in-the-sky projects. We'll study the problem and for the price of the study we could buy every citizen of these inner neighborhoods a canoe.

JaxPort Reaches For Number One

New Cranes (on the left) are still on a barge, while being transferd to join their sisters on the shore.


The economy has crashed, and money is tight everywhere, across the American heartland, the prices of new homes are about equal to the Florida market in 1990. South Florida tourism has suffered, and the State is scrambling to make do with a tight belt. The fuel situation has caused many in the old American oil patch to go back to work for the first time since the 1980's. Things are looking better out on the rigs, but the nation is hardly beating a path to their doorstep. Here in Jacksonville we are an island of explosive growth in a sea of doom and gloom, and JaxPort is lighting that fuse.



On a once-sleepy strip of Dames Point overlooking the St. Johns River in northeast Jacksonville, crews are busy with the biggest contract in Jacksonville Port Authority history — the construction of a terminal for Tokyo-based Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, which will provide the first direct container ship service between northeast Florida and Asia.


On the land, the crews are laying rails 100 feet apart for hulking new cranes that can lift up to 50 tons of cargo at a time. In the water, dredges are scraping out a turning basin to make room for larger ships that will eventually triple Jaxport’s container capacity.


Another new terminal, for Seoul-based Hanjin, is also in the planning stages — along with a boatload of infrastructure projects. Those include an intermodal facility where containers will be transferred onto trains, and a deepening of Jaxport’s shipping channel to 45 feet — by itself at least a $400-million prospect. “The opportunities are lining up,” says Rick Ferrin, Jaxport’s executive director. “If we play them right, we’ll be one of the top 10 container ports in the country.”



While talking on the phone to my oil driller son in Oklahoma, and hearing him complain about the civic jealousy that has sent the OKC talk show hosts into a Jax-Bash routine on such subjects as "small town", "no sports", "no future", "terrible football"... And so it was as the Florida Highway Patrol closed down the Broward/Dames Point suspension bridge. Concerns over clearance gave them a 5 foot safety margin at low tide. I watched as they docked the massive cranes next to the earlier arrivals, which are already in place. Two more enter our port in October or November.

Already companies from around the world are scrambling to our door as distribution centers, warehousing and terminal facilities boom. Thousands of new jobs in the making. Not amusement park, hotel or minimum wage jobs either. This is Jacksonville, the City that works and smells like money. I was standing in miles of new pavement, as if awaiting the first of some million containers per year that will will soon arrive. I chuckled, that two or three of those containers might even find their way to some Oklahoma City Wal-Mart, perhaps a container of footballs, or Jacksonville Jaguar jerseys, I hope they can afford to buy them.

After all, it's not Oklahoma City, headed for the status of 3Rd Largest Atlantic Port, or that the world is already calling

"The Port of Gold"

Can Simple Vintage Trolleys Morph?

morph, originally uploaded by bobissouthern.

Dallas, Vintage streetcars suddenly perform as modern machines.

Vintage Trolley Becomes Modern Transit.

“I am coming, I am coming! Hark you hear my motors humming? For the trolley’s come to conquer and you cannot keep it back;And Zip! The sparks are flashing as the car goes onward dashing;Yes the trolley’s come and conquered so look out and clear the track!”

Thus did a late 19Th century author describe the advent of the electric streetcar, an event that literally changed the way Americans went to work and play and moved about the cities. Jacksonville boasted one, then two, four, six or more fairly large streetcar companies, all of which eventually folded into the operations of The Jacksonville Traction Company. Today we are faced with another major change in individual mobility, $4-a-gallon gasoline is causing JTA, and many other Americans to rethink the way they get around and to look more to public transit to fill the void.

As an industry that is historically underfunded and equipment-hungry, many operators are struggling to meet the demand. How does a small transit operator with a fleet of vintage electric streetcar equipment rise to meet this challenge? In the case of McKinney Avenue Transit Authority (MATA) in Dallas, Texas, a $1-3 million dollar a mile, mostly volunteer organization, we decided to examine just what it was that it did, and who it was. The answers enabled them to reaffirm their identity as a vintage operator, while plotting a course to meet the demands and expectations of new customers and take advantage of 21st century technologies.

Throughout the past year as we have seen gasoline prices spiral upward and McKinney Avenue also noticed steady ridership increases during the regular commute times. Ridership for 2008 is up 20 percent over the same period last year. In particular, they have seen a large increase in the number of passengers transferring to the streetcars from light rail stations of the regional transit authority (DART). These numbers, taken in conjunction with on-car surveys, told MATA that they were experiencing a basic change in their ridership demographics. Dallas took a hard look at what the commuter passengers expected their streetcar system to do for them.

Early in the year it was decided to air condition the fleet of vintage streetcars. A grant from the Sue Pope Foundation enabled MATA to begin addressing this issue, and in May the first air-conditioned 1920 Birney safety car in the world rolled out of the shops to the delight of our riding public. Four other cars will follow during the course of the summer, and the further addition of AC traction motors, solid-state controllers and resilient wheels over the next two years will enable them to increase safe operating speeds, decrease headways and provide a higher level of comfort and service to the riding public while maintaining the ambiance and look of the antique cars. The ambiance alone merits note, as completely missing from the scene are the large expanses of wood stained plywood seen on the faux trolley's of Jacksonville. This is REAL craftsmanship, wood and stained glass, velvet, and brass, tongue and grove perfection and vintage wavy glass windows.

A recent trip on the large "Turtle-Back" Streetcar in Dallas, with it's fancy RV style AC unit running full tilt, was proof of the success. The car was comfortable, and roomy, there was no loud noise, no bang or clatter, just the hum of the motors beneath the floor and the air compressors tale-tale thump-thump-thump when we paused. The streetcar is right in the flow of traffic in a Dallas equal of San Marco, Springfield or Riverside. The major developers have stampeded to the fixed route transit and converted the old brick warehouse and shanty town into an upscale marvel of reclaimed buildings and life. Something we so desperately need in Jacksonville.

Greenhouse gases, NOC emissions, global warming and, on a more visceral level, the cost of gas at the pump has caused Americans to re-ask the question of the World War II generation, “Is this trip really necessary?” It should cause each of us, as Jacksonville citizens, to ask some important questions about what kind of transit we want and how our various City and State agency's, can re-equip ourselves to do the job ahead of us.

Roll up your sleeves folks, it’s a big job and there’s work to do! We Must have rail to compete and perhaps to survive.

BRT vs LRT vs CR vs BUS vs AUTO...?

KEEPERS OF TRANSIT AQUARIUMS IN JACKSONVILLE?

In response to several articles that have labeled rail transit, light rail and streetcars as "political graf", an interesting side by side comparison has been done. Does the highway based transit really work "Just like rail only cheaper?". In balance, keep in mind that NO WHERE would I suggest that Light Rail or any rail take on the transit for Jacksonville by itself. Can't be done without the buses, and frankly a Light Rail Lite BRT system, one that extends the reach of those trains, or streetcars, is just what the doctor ordered. We need them ALL.

When we resort to claims that transit XXX is going to be the save all of the world, and transit YYY must go, it reminds me of a famous Evangelist. Billy Sunday, once said, in consideration of our no longer going out and winning folks for Jesus, rather we were stealing members from each others churches. "Lord, we are no longer fishers of men but keepers of aquarium's." Ditto for the single mode transit lobby.

From the Orphan Road:

King County = Seattle, Washington
vs
Washington D.C.

For an example of how rail can more more people more cheaply, we need only look to Washington DC. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, the operator of DC Metro, spends almost exactly the same amount of money as King Country Metro does, $560 million to $580 million. Except for that $560 million DC metro moves almost a million people a day on rail (three times what KC metro moves per day with its buses) and the WMATA agency provides buses that carry another 120,000! It’s only possible because of the investment put in place years ago, and residents there can reap the benefit of a reliable, traffic-separated transit system that’s relatively cheap.

And DC's population density is roughly the same as Seattle's, so it's not like they've achieved this amazing transit ridership simply by crushing everyone into Manhattan-style apartments.

VALDOSTA TRANSIT Coming Soon!

WILL THIS MEAN A NEW AGENCY TO WORK WITH FOR JOINT PROJECTS ? YOU BET IT WILL, ONE MORE VOICE NEVER HURTS.

Above: Amtrak train in North Florida, doing a modern "Royal Palm" imitation. Below: Vintage Royal Palm Ad showing Valdosta and Jacksonville, Macon, Atlanta, Chattanooga and Cincinnati.

Valdosta, Ga., Gets Ready to Ride With Transit System

Kari L. Sands
The Valdosta Daily Times

GEORGIA - After much planning and several meetings, the city of Valdosta's transit system plan is well under way to develop a more efficient public transportation system to address the needs of Georgia's 10th largest city.

Though a great amount of planning has been done, the city of Valdosta still has several steps to take during the development of the city's transit system, including types and size of buses, location of pick-up points, and funding.

However, the city hopes to see buses rolling in as early as 18 months as federal funds have already been applied for, according to Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) Coordinator, Corey Hull.

"The next step is to hire a consultant to perform the actual implementation study or report. The MPO is in the process to do this. The study or report will be detailed to show routes, the number of buses, personnel, maintenance and other pertinent information," said Hull.

Over 18 months ago a feasibility study was conducted, and it was clear from the consultant point of view that a transit system would be beneficial to the urbanized area, according to City Engineer Von Shipman. The MPO is taking the lead on the city of Valdosta's transit system project since it will involve the use of federal funds to cover a portion of the cost.

"The current effort to implement a public transit service in Valdosta has been in active for about five years. In 2006, the Valdosta-Lowndes Metropolitan Planning Organization conducted a study to determine the feasibility of implementing transit services in the Valdosta Urbanized Area," said Hull. "This study found that the introduction of transit service would have a fairly high probability of success based on ridership potential and public desire for transit services for access to work, shopping and medical trips. During the hiring of a consultant to aid in the development of the transit plan, we will be seeking public participation on final route and stop locations, marketing strategies and operations plans."
Valdosta Mayor John Fretti is also optimistic about the timeline for the transit system's implementation.

"The federal government has allocated funds for the last couple of years to assist in the capital asset purchases of buses, a terminal and maintenance facility. Through the MPO, we are in final negotiations with a company to implement this system and have a functioning fixed base bus system in around 24 months," said Fretti.

Fortunately, the designation of Valdosta as a metropolitan city has made the MPO eligible for federal funds for both implementation and operations, although it is certain that ridership fees and local subsidies will be needed, according to City Manager Larry Hanson.

"To secure federal funding for implementation of the system, a implementation plan must now be developed which will include the routes, times of operation, the number and frequency of the pick-up points, and the participation of interested parties," Hanson said. "The MPO has conducted and completed interviews with professional firms and is presently negotiating with the firm selected as the most qualified."
Shipman also said that it should be understood that funds generated by those who use the system will not make up the shortfall received from the federal government.

"This will require local governments to come up with the balance of the funds needed. A final decision on this matter can only be made after the implementation report is completed and funds are budgeted," said Shipman.

Transit ridership is up around the country by 28 percent, according to Fretti. "With fuel prices so high, there may not be a better time to provide transit for our citizens to use for work and recreational commuting. Our time has come."

"We believe the transit system will help the entire area by reducing traffic and pollution, improving access to jobs and services, and supporting the needs of a growing city, county, University and Technical college. It is a major part of an overall transportation plan to reduce the emphasis on vehicles and single trips and encourage the cooperation of all governments and all involved parties to improve our overall quality of life," said Hanson.

The MPO has worked with the city of Valdosta, Lowndes County and other transportation planning partners to work to implement public transit services in and around the Valdosta Urbanized Area. The information received from the public and contained in the recently adopted Transportation Master Plan will be used as public transit service is implemented in Valdosta. The official timetable for the transit plan is still in the planning stages, but buses could start rolling as early as 18 months or the process could take as long as two years.

Blogger Comment: INCREDIBLE OPPORTUNITY to extend a hand over the State Line into Georgia and pick up a friend, to push for Regional Rail, Commuter Rail and the return of the famous Royal Palm-Royal Poinciana-Ponce De Leon Trains between Jacksonville and Atlanta, via Valdosta. Any good transit agency in a states 10Th largest City is bound to get some attention, toss in Florida and Jacksonville and we could push this idea over the top. Macon? Atlanta? All Aboard!

To see more of The Valdosta Daily Times, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.valdostadailytimes.com/