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Old 01-27-2013, 09:19 AM
 
420 posts, read 860,791 times
Reputation: 275

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Quote:
Originally Posted by SeaSpur View Post
However, the think that bugs me about Tampa most...or should I say the most disappointing missing feature...is public transit. Ridiculous to have this many people in an area without it. The economy would boom with it because I know I'd love to have drinks in downtown Dunedin, tailgate for a Rays game, or go to a street festival in Safety Harbor and have a few without worrying about driving.
Agreed. I recently read about a poll suggesting that an increasing amount of people are supporting public transit so maybe it's in the near future. I sure hope so.

I'm not too familiar with Pinellas, but I was in downtown Dunedin for the first time two weeks ago (that Mexican place is great!). Isn't there a trolley that follows the Pinellas trail? Do people use it much?
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Old 01-27-2013, 09:27 AM
 
Location: Tampa, FL
27,798 posts, read 32,244,989 times
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I normally use the free trolley from downtown St Pete to the Trop - and so do hundreds of other people.......they (Rays) might consider doing this on a large scale. I lived in San Antonio and would do a Park and Ride type of deal for Spurs games. It was a major way for the Spurs to get fans in the seats.
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Old 01-27-2013, 09:32 AM
 
Location: South Tampa
1,163 posts, read 2,089,955 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BucFan View Post
I normally use the free trolley from downtown St Pete to the Trop - and so do hundreds of other people.......they (Rays) might consider doing this on a large scale. I lived in San Antonio and would do a Park and Ride type of deal for Spurs games. It was a major way for the Spurs to get fans in the seats.
Eh, that is just a tease and only useful for those who live downtown St Pete. Most of those attending the games (and probably some of your trolley buddies) still have to drive.

We need a cooperative effort by Hillsborough & Pinellas County to engage in the largest structural project the area has ever seen: a true public transit system. Quit building highways and shortcuts to other highways and invest in moving people efficiently!
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Old 01-27-2013, 09:57 AM
 
Location: Tampa, FL
27,798 posts, read 32,244,989 times
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you'll never get a transit system here that allows you to walk outside your surburban home to take you to the heart of either cities.....you'll have to drive part of the way to a hub - unrealistic to think/wish otherwise in this area
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Old 01-27-2013, 10:12 AM
 
Location: South Tampa
1,163 posts, read 2,089,955 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BucFan View Post
you'll never get a transit system here that allows you to walk outside your surburban home to take you to the heart of either cities.....you'll have to drive part of the way to a hub - unrealistic to think/wish otherwise in this area
Not for 100% of the people, but to say it isn't possible for most isn't correct either. Look at Atlanta, no one has more of a problem with urban sprawl than that city...yet they do pretty well with how MARTA works.

I am not suggesting you walk outside of your home or even your own street. Walking a few blocks or a 10 minute walk to a stop isn't out of the question and is more in line.

Just 1 line (of an entire system) running down in the South Tampa area (along Dale Mabry, for example) would suffice. That is walking distance for almost anyone in South Tampa.

Think more of an Atlanta setup rather than a NYC setup.
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Old 01-27-2013, 10:28 AM
 
420 posts, read 860,791 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SeaSpur View Post
Just 1 line (of an entire system) running down in the South Tampa area (along Dale Mabry, for example) would suffice. That is walking distance for almost anyone in South Tampa.
I don't think Dale Mabry could support a rail line, however, there is a rail line that runs from Port Tampa City goes diagonal across South Tampa going parallel to the Crosstown for a bit, then goes around University of Tampa, right into downtown, and then south of Ybor while it goes east. Look on Google Maps for this rail line. I don't know why the city doesn't put a passenger car on this.
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Old 01-27-2013, 10:42 AM
 
99 posts, read 145,844 times
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^^^ CSX owns the ROW for that whole line. Meaning the City would have to buy the ROW in order to do anything with it in terms of mass transit the problem is CSX would charge them hundreds of millions for the line besides the fact CSX doesn't want to sell it. CSX is also the one that charges the City and HART the $400,000 annual insurance fee for the TECO line to cross just one set of CSX tracks.
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Old 01-27-2013, 10:49 AM
 
420 posts, read 860,791 times
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Yea, I know that CSX owns the line, but the city should negotiate a deal that would effectively use this rail. There should be a way that both parties are satisfied.
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Old 01-27-2013, 01:40 PM
 
1,490 posts, read 1,207,771 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GoRays813 View Post
Put it in downtown Tampa connecting Ybor, downtown, and Channelside. The infrastructure supports a baseball stadium.
Agreed. Baseball is a long season with 81 games. So unlike football, you really have to maximize the convenience factor as no single game is as meaningful in & of itself. This has so little to do with people having loyalty to some other team its mind-numbing. People who are fans of the sport will go if convenient enough. And the more they go, the more likely they begin to have an affinity for their new adoptive team & will go more often.

But it starts with convenience...aka the viable ways to get to the stadium. You have to make the stadium convenient enough that leaving work at 5pm (most anywhere in the metro), picking up the kids (which an MLB franchise should see as "future customers"), grabbing dinner (or better yet, make the idea of eating at the ballpark compelling), and commute can all be done by game time & by as MANY people as possible. If you don't (which is the case today), then you have to ask the question....is St. Pete able to support a MLB franchise nearly on its own? The answer is of course not.

People aren't too cheap. And while the economy is not great, there are plenty of people with enough money to go to games. But it just isn't convenient enough....at...all. Sorry. If that makes somebody a bad baseball fan then so be it. Everybody has their priorities in life. For some, the challenge of getting to & from a baseball stadium is a wonderful experience & bonding time. For others...its just not worth the time as its not something people have as much of these days.
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Old 01-27-2013, 02:46 PM
 
Location: Pinellas Park Florida
210 posts, read 574,896 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DUNNDFRNT View Post
Miami has the population base plus their new stadium and they can't fill their stadium either, i don't know that there is a single thing you can do. If you look at it in the sense that there are several factors: Location of the Stadium, Winning Team, Stadium itself, population base. I would think you need at least 3 of those things.
Trade teams.....the Tampa area has more of a National league ambiance to it. Where I think Miami has a more american League feel. Chastise me if you like but I'm right.
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