Take a peek inside Detroit's new Qline streetcar! (Royal Oak, Ferndale: 2013, apartment)

[Republic of Michigan]

Take a peek inside Detroit's first QLine streetcar | MLive.com

[Coldjensens]

Nice. Looks like slightly upscale people mover cars. Hope the keep them nice.

[TheProf]

Good for Detroit. These cars do look nice; spacious... I hope the Q-Line lettering on the windows is just for these initial promotion of the Q-Line and that once they are in service, the number of "wraps" can be limited. I realize that advertising wraps have been the hot thing for transit vehicles for the last decade or so-- everything from buses to streetcars to commuter trains... While they look cool from the outside, I hate riding in them because all that wrap gunk definitely fogs the windows and I like looking out when I'm riding transit.

[highlanderfil]

Looks nice (very similar to street cars in Western Europe) but I still don't see the point.

[Coldjensens]

I will use it. I can walk outside our office and run up to midtown for lunch, or go to a Tiger game, or run down to the Ren Cen if it is raining or for some reason I do not want to walk.

[SQL]

Neat! Hopefully this is just the beginning, and this rail will be extended to other neighborhoods throughout the city and metro.

[highlanderfil]

Originally Posted by SQL

Neat! Hopefully this is just the beginning, and this rail will be extended to other neighborhoods throughout the city and metro.

That's the only scenario under which it makes any sense. Got to extend to the 'burbs.

[Coldjensens]

Originally Posted by highlanderfil

That's the only scenario under which it makes any sense. Got to extend to the 'burbs.

Probably not going to happen. There is no more private funding for that large an undertaking and no interest in the burbs in paying for it. Detroit/Wayne county certainly do not have a couple of billion to spare.

Maybe some day there will be some Federal funding for this, but not likely in the foreseeable future.

It is possible the State, county and city could jointly fund a few more miles each decade or so. Get to the burbs by 2050.

If the burbs were closer, it might come to pass, but Detroit is just too big and there is a vast wasteland of nothing to stop at which the train would have to pass through to get to the first suburb. Maybe it could get to Hamtrammac if there is some further funding.

Bill Gates, you interested?

[highlanderfil]

Originally Posted by Coldjensens

Bill Gates, you interested?

Dan Gilbert, more like.

I really don't get the appeal of a 3.5 mile streetcar track. For those residing alongside, sure, but how will this thing ever pay for itself?

[usroute10]

Originally Posted by Coldjensens

Probably not going to happen. There is no more private funding for that large an undertaking and no interest in the burbs in paying for it. Detroit/Wayne county certainly do not have a couple of billion to spare.

Maybe some day there will be some Federal funding for this, but not likely in the foreseeable future.

It is possible the State, county and city could jointly fund a few more miles each decade or so. Get to the burbs by 2050.

If the burbs were closer, it might come to pass, but Detroit is just too big and there is a vast wasteland of nothing to stop at which the train would have to pass through to get to the first suburb. Maybe it could get to Hamtrammac if there is some further funding.

Bill Gates, you interested?

Maybe extending the streetcar out to say 6 Mile Road will bring interest in redevelopment in the North End/Woodward Village, Highland Park, and Palmer Park areas. It is longshot for Highland Park. It does have a remnant of a downtown and mostly superior housing stock. My dream is that, one day, Chrysler and Ford, who both were headquartered in Highland Park at one time, would redevelop those strip malls in the downtown strip by building satellite offices and shops. Obviously crime and blight would need to be addressed.

Shelbourne Development has re-developed 3 apartment buildings in the Palmer Park district and more is on the way:

La Vogue

courtesy of curbeddetroit

Palmer Lodge

courtesy of shelbourne development

Palmer Square



There is great housing adjacent to Woodward that can't be found in Ferndale, Royal Oak, or really anywhere else in the metro area such as:

Woodward Village

The North End

Highland Park's Highland Heights

Palmer Park Apartment District