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I've been blasted in threads for stating the obvious that the accidents cause major disruptions. It doesn't have to be runaway trolleys, either. Cars hit the trolleys, too. I repeatedly said that the city should be looking at replacing the trolley lines with light rail lines.
That's a nice idea, but someone has to pay for it. The new rolling stock that'll be introduced with Phase 2 completion of the streetcar will help with the stopping concerns. My hope is we build out phase 2 of the line as planned then consider different options for the extension into East Charlotte. There are some smaller fixes the city can put in place to improve the system that will greatly assist it.
Those 3 replica Gomaco trolleys were originally purchased to run on dedicated ROW that either was separated from traffic, or where there were gates/flagmen where the route crossed a street. Basically it was the LRT route from Dilworth to 9th St. I'm guessing they were not configured for driving on city streets if what is said above is true. It seem are are few to no safeguards built in.
This entire trolley project seems to be executed on an ad hoc basis by the city of Charlotte since it isn't an officially funded MTC project. (they dropped it several years back) The issue with traffic might be a symptom of that.
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
23,814 posts, read 34,670,113 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by WaldoKitty
Those 3 replica Gomaco trolleys were originally purchased to run on dedicated ROW that either was separated from traffic, or where there were gates/flagmen where the route crossed a street. Basically it was the LRT route from Dilworth to 9th St. I'm guessing they were not configured for driving on city streets if what is said above is true. It seem are are few to no safeguards built in.
This entire trolley project seems to be executed on an ad hoc basis by the city of Charlotte since it isn't an officially funded MTC project. (they dropped it several years back) The issue with traffic might be a symptom of that.
The feds no longer support streetcars/trolleys.
Having shared the road with trolleys I can say that it's not the same as sharing the road with busses. The compromise is trackless trolleys. If John Doe has a heart attack while driving, his car can plow into a trolley. Thr driver might see it coming and can't swerve to avoid it. If Bill Smith's car suddenly stops & he is driving in the same lane, in front of the trolley, the trolley is going to plow into him. It's that simple.
Having shared the road with trolleys I can say that it's not the same as sharing the road with busses.
Amen to that. I really think the share the rode with traffic trolley is the worst thing the city could have down as far as its mass transit priorities.
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
23,814 posts, read 34,670,113 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NC-guy
Amen to that. I really think the share the rode with traffic trolley is the worst thing the city could have down as far as its mass transit priorities.
I remember the feeling of absolute joy when Philadelphia converted a couple of trolley routes in Center City to trackless trolleys & ripped up the tracks & resurfaced the roads involved. I'd been playing dodge the trolley since I was 19 years old. Everyone who I knew who drove in the city was elated.
The first day the new section of 485 opened, there was a bad car accident.
Today, someone was killed in an accident
Yesterday I think I got an alert a motorcycle accident occurred with serious injuries
A day before the streetcar got in an accident, I passed an SUV that got tore up from a CATS bus in Huntersville at the Gilead Statesville Road
The day the streetcar got in an accident due to operators issue, I passed two vehicle accidents and it took like 10 minutes per mile in stop and go traffic on I77. I could walk faster than that.
I have the WBTV app and majority of my alerts are of vehicle accidents
How many pedestrians and cyclist have been killed this year from vehicles?
A girl was struck and killed on July 4th from a person drinking and driving a boat
Vehicle accidents are soooo common and so many people a year die from vehicle accidents, I guess we are just used to it. But an error from a streetcar operator occurs and people go ham.
I guess every time I see someone killed in a vehicle accident on local social media, I'll be sure to post snarky comments regarding the streetcar
And for what it's worth, the gold line will carry a much much higher capacity than the red line from uptown to North Lake, Huntersville, Cornelius, Davidson and Mooresville. It will offer more seats, have a larger ridership than the red line. The population density that will be around the gold line is enormous. Uptown and SouthEnd alone will probably exceed Mooresville's population by 2020. and that's less than 3 sq. miles compared to Mooresville 21
The gold line serves high density areas. Unlike a commuter rail to Mooresville or any other commuter line fantasies
Last edited by Charlotte485; 07-24-2015 at 10:40 AM..
Why are you making a comparison to the Red Line? This is about the trolley obliterating a minivan.
What about all vehicles obliterated today? I seen a lane on 485 was shut down and one person airlifted to a hospital due to an accident. Amazingly, no one bats an eye nor seems to care.
I guess it has to be Transgendered people using a bathroom, confederate flags, black lives matter or Streetcar to get people talking because serious issues never do. Just like councilwoman Mayfield said when tons of crazies came packed city council for the issue of transgendered bathrooms but no one showed up for a discussion on tax increases.
The streetcar in actuality is very cheap for our city. It's a fraction of the taxes that went to panthers upgrades (12 million vs. 28 million) Its less than a high school is getting for renovations.
It's just so silly of all things to say about the streetcar.... Safety is brought up.... Vehicles are much much much more dangerous than streetcar can ever be. To other vehicles. To pedestrians. To bicyclists.
Last edited by Charlotte485; 07-24-2015 at 12:01 PM..
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