Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Don't neglect the "hidden" tax of traffic congestion and pollution - a tax on our quality of life. A well-planned transit system could relieve this burden. I don't see yet that the plans are complete in that regard. For instance, I don't see in the plan a provision for some sort of shuttle routes that would connect the main BRT stations to key destinations such as the Shops at Greenridge, big employers like GE, etc. Who in their right mind will point their car to Woodruff Road these days, during high-traffic times?
Yes there is bus service in Greenville right now, but it is far from a good bus service. For instance have spoken to people who ride the bus quite often and they complain that:
Bus is often late and does not follow the schedule.
The bus stops are hard to recognize and they need to install bus shelters.
Destinations where the bus goes are very limited.
Bus service stops early.
If they would spend some money to improve the bus service it would generate money for the city and create jobs at the same time.
Yes there is bus service in Greenville right now, but it is far from a good bus service. For instance have spoken to people who ride the bus quite often and they complain that:
Bus is often late and does not follow the schedule.
The bus stops are hard to recognize and they need to install bus shelters.
Destinations where the bus goes are very limited.
Bus service stops early.
If they would spend some money to improve the bus service it would generate money for the city and create jobs at the same time.
You must have spoken to those people several years ago, because you seem unaware of several key occurrences in the recent past:
-The city of Greenville is now in charge of the bus service.
-It is now called GreenLink.
-New bus shelters have been installed over the last year or so, and are continuing to be installed.
-New buses are being purchased to improve the fleet.
-More frequent stops are being scheduled.
-New routes are being planned for new areas of town.
-The main transfer center downtown is being renovated and improved.
-Plans are in place for bus rapid transit (BRT), and a federal grant has been applied for to help fund this.
So either the city is doing an amazing job to accomplish all of this without spending any money, or you are incorrect to assume that no money is being spent on public transit in Greenville.
I lived in Greenville until mid-August. I relied heavily on GreenLink when I chose to give up my car to pay for COBRA, since I have Lupus and thought I'd be very stupid not to have health insurance. I can attest to the CURRENT truth of what NewYorkBorn is reporting. NOTHING written was a lie.
Few of the examples you gave have anything to do with the actual quality of the service for the rider. A new bus can be just as late as an old one, and a change of ownership and name has nothing to do with the fact that hardly any of the routes have shelters, or even benches (I rode many routes just to observe). GreenLink can say what they plan to do all they want. Until they actually do it, it doesn't count.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Greenville
You must have spoken to those people several years ago, because you seem unaware of several key occurrences in the recent past:
-The city of Greenville is now in charge of the bus service.
-It is now called GreenLink.
-New bus shelters have been installed over the last year or so, and are continuing to be installed.
-New buses are being purchased to improve the fleet.
-More frequent stops are being scheduled.
-New routes are being planned for new areas of town.
-The main transfer center downtown is being renovated and improved.
-Plans are in place for bus rapid transit (BRT), and a federal grant has been applied for to help fund this.
So either the city is doing an amazing job to accomplish all of this without spending any money, or you are incorrect to assume that no money is being spent on public transit in Greenville.
I lived in Greenville until mid-August. I relied heavily on GreenLink when I chose to give up my car to pay for COBRA, since I have Lupus and thought I'd be very stupid not to have health insurance. I can attest to the CURRENT truth of what NewYorkBorn is reporting. NOTHING written was a lie.
Few of the examples you gave have anything to do with the actual quality of the service for the rider. A new bus can be just as late as an old one, and a change of ownership and name has nothing to do with the fact that hardly any of the routes have shelters, or even benches (I rode many routes just to observe). GreenLink can say what they plan to do all they want. Until they actually do it, it doesn't count.
Thank you. The people that I spoke with regarding Greenlink were just spoken with this past summer 2009 before I moved from Greenville. Because I still own a home there I am back and forth from NYC to Greenville, was there recently and the same bus stops along South Pleasantburg drive that had no bus shelters or benches before I moved are the same bus stops that still do not have a bus shelter or bench. Like you I do not place a lot of faith in the things that human beings put on paper.....when I see action, progress and other improvements with my own eyes then I believe it!
I lived in Greenville until mid-August. I relied heavily on GreenLink when I chose to give up my car to pay for COBRA, since I have Lupus and thought I'd be very stupid not to have health insurance. I can attest to the CURRENT truth of what NewYorkBorn is reporting. NOTHING written was a lie.
Few of the examples you gave have anything to do with the actual quality of the service for the rider. A new bus can be just as late as an old one, and a change of ownership and name has nothing to do with the fact that hardly any of the routes have shelters, or even benches (I rode many routes just to observe). GreenLink can say what they plan to do all they want. Until they actually do it, it doesn't count.
My post was in response to NewYorkBorn's comment suggesting that no money is being spent to improve the bus service:
"If they would spend some money to improve the bus service it would generate money for the city and create jobs at the same time." -NewYorkBorn
The implication in her post was that the city does not care about the bus service, and has not spent any money on improving it. My post, which also did not include a lie, shows that more money has been spent on it with plans to spend even more. That's progress. Just because it has not been the kind of progress which directly benefits you (yet) doesn't mean it isn't progress.
Your post did include some lies, but on the part of GreenLink. GreenLink only has 11 routes. I've ridden 8 of them. I've ridden the White Horse Rd. routes, Jackson Townhomes, Wade Hampton, Overbrook, Augusta Rd., Parker-Woodside, and Laurens Rd. routes. The only routes I hadn't gotten around to riding before I moved were Dunean, Anderson Rd., and Poinsett (Hwy). The very few shelters that may have been on any of these routes were few and far between, old, and in disrepair. There are probably some decent shelters at the hospitals, and maybe closer into the now trendy Main Street area, but that's it. Where are these new bus shelters? They must be in an alternate dimension that only certain people can see into.
Whatever money has been spent, has been spent on making GreenLink look good on a superficial level. But, the powers that be in GreenLink have done absolutely nothing to make the rider's experience more tolerable. The bottom line is that GreenLink doesn't care about the majority of its ridership, because they are poor. They will be thrown under the bus (pun intended) and ignored in favor of the new, monied, transplants.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Greenville
My post, which also did not include a lie, shows that more money has been spent on it with plans to spend even more. That's progress. Just because it has not been the kind of progress which directly benefits you (yet) doesn't mean it isn't progress.
What kind of logic is this? There has been no progress. Progress means moving forward. GreenLink hasn't moved forward. It's been replacing and repairing what's already in service. GreenLink has spent money to MAINTAIN.
There will be progress when every stop will have a sign and, at least, a bench. There will be progress when the buses start running 7 days a week, go back to running until 8:30PM like they used to, and then expand to at least midnight (like it did back in the 70s/early 80s, I've been told by elders). There will be progress when all the routes that were shortened are returned to their original lengths, andthen expanded into the areas that didn't exist 10 years ago, but where a whole new city, within a city, popped up. There will be progress when disabled passes are issued - right now, to get the disabled fare, you have to pull out a letter from your doctor and show it to the bus driver. That's demoralizing and utterly ridiculous!
When things like this start happening, I will cut GreenLink some slack. But, until then, GreenLink is full of stuff I can't say on here, LOL.
The point is, people, that Greenlink is improving. Perfect? No, far from it. But, they're heading in the right direction. Plain and simple.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
