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For the record... DFW is upgrading and expanding it's roads and it's rails. The public and government opinion of rail and bus transit in this area is definitely more open and progressive than in Georgia and the Metro ATL burbs.
Daily rail ridership says otherwise, and Atlanta recently voted for an additional 1/2 cent MARTA tax to build out the Crosstown & BeltLine Streetcar network.
Dallas - DART Light Rail, Denton County A-Train & TRE Commuter Rail - 104,300 daily
Atlanta - Atlanta Streetcar & MARTA Heavy Rail - 223,700 daily
Or you can invest more in transit. Atlanta's commute shares should double in the next couple decades if you do it right, particularly as infill takes hold.
Investing in both roads and rail isn't mutually exclusive. As far as roads go, at this point Atlanta can only do but so much. There are just too many property owners who will be affected if new secondary roads are proposed in the areas that need them most. This should have been done years ago.
For the record... DFW is upgrading and expanding it's roads and it's rails. The public and government opinion of rail and bus transit in this area is definitely more open and progressive than in Georgia and the Metro ATL burbs.
It should only expand rail, not highways. It's counterproductive to do both. The goal is to reduce car dependency.
I remember reading a while back that Dallas has a pretty aggressive expansion plan for its light rail system. Is that still happening? What are some of the approved / under construction lines as of April 2018?
Atlanta right now has a sizable heavy rail mass transit system that they can easily grow into if development was guided accordingly. It's really two heavy rail lines with branches at each end, but that's still a good lot to work with compared to most US cities.
I remember reading a while back that Dallas has a pretty aggressive expansion plan for its light rail system. Is that still happening? What are some of the approved / under construction lines as of April 2018?
Atlanta right now has a sizable heavy rail mass transit system that they can easily grow into if development was guided accordingly. It's really two heavy rail lines with branches at each end, but that's still a good lot to work with compared to most US cities.
Yes. two extensions opened in 2016.. (The blue line) Now construction of the (Purple line) is underway and will connect west Plano where the new toyota headquarters is along with a multitude of other companies to DFW international through the towns of Carrollton and Lewisville. I think opening is 2022.
You're not going to reduce car dependency as long as it's cheap and easy to drive and park.
Yes you can by voting in the right people. If you can't impact the metro, you can certainly impact the city. And any Dallas city council member that does not vote for the removal of I-345, will be voted out. I don't care if they tunnel it or turn it into an urban blvd. But it can no longer remain in its current state. I'm confident though that it won't remain as is. Whether or not it will be buried or turned into a blvd is up in the air at this point. Also, the city is instrumental in determining our public transit policies. We now have more power on the DART board than the suburbs, so we can easily redirect more towards the benefit of the city over the suburbs. #Winning
Yes you can by voting in the right people. If you can't impact the metro, you can certainly impact the city. And any Dallas city council member that does not vote for the removal of I-345, will be voted out. I don't care if they tunnel it or turn it into an urban blvd. But it can no longer remain in its current state. I'm confident though that it won't remain as is. Whether or not it will be buried or turned into a blvd is up in the air at this point. Also, the city is instrumental in determining our public transit policies. We now have more power on the DART board than the suburbs, so we can easily redirect more towards the benefit of the city over the suburbs. #Winning
It has nothing to do with "voting in the right people," but everything to do with implementing the right policies. It has been proven that the convenience of driving and especially parking is what prevents reduction in car dependence.
As shown by many studies, minimum parking requirements lead to excess parking supply, make driving cheap and convenient, and thus encourage a shift toward more car use. Implementation of maximum parking allowances is an important recent policy development to discourage car use.
Researchers gathered data on parking rates and fines in 107 different public jurisdictions and cross-referenced it with local transit ridership. They found that in large cities — defined as cities with a population density of 6,200 people per square mile or higher — there was a strong relationship. Among these cities, places with high parking costs — defined through a combination of rates, fines, and fees — were associated with a 2.3-fold increase in public transit passenger miles per person, when adjusted for local economic factors like poverty rates and gas prices.
So you can already see the challenge of increasing transit usage in low-density sprawling metropolitan areas where land is plentiful and relatively cheap. Adding more rail lines or removing a freeway mean nothing if it's still convenient to drive and park; if that's the case, most people will choose to drive. Point blank, period.
It has nothing to do with "voting in the right people," but everything to do with implementing the right policies. It has been proven that the convenience of driving and especially parking is what prevents reduction in car dependence.
As shown by many studies, minimum parking requirements lead to excess parking supply, make driving cheap and convenient, and thus encourage a shift toward more car use. Implementation of maximum parking allowances is an important recent policy development to discourage car use.
Researchers gathered data on parking rates and fines in 107 different public jurisdictions and cross-referenced it with local transit ridership. They found that in large cities — defined as cities with a population density of 6,200 people per square mile or higher — there was a strong relationship. Among these cities, places with high parking costs — defined through a combination of rates, fines, and fees — were associated with a 2.3-fold increase in public transit passenger miles per person, when adjusted for local economic factors like poverty rates and gas prices.
So you can already see the challenge of increasing transit usage in low-density sprawling metropolitan areas where land is plentiful and relatively cheap. Adding more rail lines means nothing if it's convenient to drive and park; if that's the case, most people will choose to drive. Point blank, period.
You guys seem like you're saying roughly equivalent things, but yet you sound like you're arguing. It's nice!
You guys seem like you're saying roughly equivalent things, but yet you sound like you're arguing. It's nice!
Actually we're not. He hasn't touched land use policies or parking regulations and that's the linchpin in terms of reducing car dependence. Adding more lines of light rail and eliminating a freeway are nice, but if driving is still convenient, cheap, and easy, that is the mode of transportation that most will use.
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