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Old 06-06-2011, 07:36 PM
 
5,894 posts, read 6,840,863 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BrianTH View Post
The trains they use have a reasonable cruising speed for a local transit service. The problem is really the large number of stops.
I was just thinking in terms of more actual subway type trains which you're correct these are not.... being the relative short distance that is traveled in total, speed increases probably wouldnt make all that much of a difference in all likelihood. So yes, it is definately the amount of stops more than anything.
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Old 06-06-2011, 07:55 PM
 
20,273 posts, read 32,871,363 times
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Yeah, they can actually go up to 96 kph, which is almost 60 mph:

:: CAF - Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, we create railway solutions ::

That's not fast enough for true commuter rail (and not fast enough for an express service to the airport, in my view), but it would be fast enough to beat congested commutes in its current corridor if not for all the stops.
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Old 06-07-2011, 06:49 AM
 
4,994 posts, read 1,972,336 times
Reputation: 2865
Thumbs down Pittsburgh already had OUTRAGEOUS parking rates

Quote:
Originally Posted by Lobick View Post
First and foremost, the "no nightlife, dead after 6pm" line of thinking is a tired one. Certainly it can be an area by area deal, some nights are better than others, and there's room to further expand its current offerings, but the difference between they level of activity after dark downtown now and when I got here in '95 is striking.

Additionally, I think this line or argument is largely a red herring. The thought experiment suggests that, as a suburbanite, I'm going to travel from my home to downtown, presumably with a destination or event in mind that I want to put the effort in to going to, endure the "hassle" of traffic and finding parking, the consumption of gas, etc. and be ultimately deterred by a buck or two more I have to throw in a meter? If you don't want to fight the meter, pay $5 to put it in the garage. If $5 is your economic breaking point for not coming downtown, chances are you weren't dropping any money down there anyway and downtown businesses don't lose that much.

Finally, under your line of argument, with all of the additional user fees or "taxes" as you tagged them driving down suburban travel into the city, downtown would be less vibrant than ever, right? That's simply not the case.
This is not about "a buck or two". If an event last three hours you are talking about $9 in a meter. But it is not about the $9 in a meter or $5 in a garage. It is about how that $9 or $5 adds up over time. The fact is this just makes the city even more expensive compared to outside the city. Adding that to $4 gas and higher prices for other things and it makes a difference. Pittsburgh already had OUTRAGEOUS parking rates. That is not the way to encourage people to come into the city. $9 once a week adds up to nearly $500 per year while $5 once a week adds up to $250+ per year. That IS significant!

You also forget some people actually work in the evenings in these areas. These are usually LOW PAYING JOBS. $100+ per month will hurt these people.
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Old 06-07-2011, 07:00 AM
 
4,994 posts, read 1,972,336 times
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Thumbs down The city gets NOTHING!

The bottom line:

I can spend $100 in a restaurant in the city several times a year and park for free or I can spend that same $100 at a restaurant outside the city and park for free. If I have to "feed the meter" or pay to park in a garage in the city, I am going to go to the restaurant outside the city and the city gets NOTHING!
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Old 06-07-2011, 07:15 AM
 
6,596 posts, read 8,914,401 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Enough_Already View Post
The bottom line:

I can spend $100 in a restaurant in the city several times a year and park for free or I can spend that same $100 at a restaurant outside the city and park for free. If I have to "feed the meter" or pay to park in a garage in the city, I am going to go to the restaurant outside the city and the city gets NOTHING!
That's why certain businesses aren't as well suited for Downtown. An Applebees won't do too well downtown unless they can garner a huge lunch crowd, likewise some department stores can't compete with the suburbs, which we saw with the Lord and Taylor that opened and closed withing a few years. I'm surprised that Macy's does well enough to stay in business, it must be pretty busy during the day.

On the other hand, things like theaters and high end restaurants do better in prestigioius, historic, and centrally located areas. It's easy for a strip mall to succeed in the suburbs, but it would be quite surprising to see something like the cultural district survive as a planned development in a suburb.

Your argument about how parking expenses can add up is true, but people often ignore how gas prices can add up, too.

All in all, the reality of it is that as long as people are using the spots downtown, they are likely injecting money into the economy. Whether it's your $100 at a restaurant, or someone elses at a play doesn't matter to me. If parking gets priced to the point that the spots aren't getting used, then it makes sense to lower the rates or make it free.
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Old 06-07-2011, 08:19 AM
 
1,020 posts, read 1,704,528 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ferrarisnowday View Post
What was the T commute time vs driving commute time during rush hour?
When I drove into downtown, I went only down Banksville Road, the Parkway is/was normally a nightmare at rush hour. There were some times that I made it in half and hour, others, 45 minutes, which was the average. My house is 12 miles from downtown. The T, with it's 188 stops in Beechview, would take, no matter the time of day, 45 minutes to the Gateway Center Station. That is, unless there was a problem with the train, which happened at least 6-8 times a year.
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Old 06-07-2011, 08:19 AM
gg
 
Location: Pittsburgh
26,137 posts, read 25,777,749 times
Reputation: 17378
Bottom line is, downtown is dead already and now they are going to enforce meter parking until 10PM. Does that make sense? I think a 5th grader could answer that. They are trying to fund something and it will hurt a sector of Pittsburgh. Like the drink tax that hurt a certain industry. All this to fund things that are broken. Promises made that cannot be paid for.
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Old 06-07-2011, 08:40 AM
 
20,273 posts, read 32,871,363 times
Reputation: 2910
Quote:
Originally Posted by ferrarisnowday View Post
If parking gets priced to the point that the spots aren't getting used, then it makes sense to lower the rates or make it free.
That's really the bottom line. The right price is the price at which most of the spots are full but a few are available, because that sets the optimal balance between price and convenience. And in fact around that price is the best price for local businesses too.

And comparisons to places where land is cheap and parking can be abundant and free just aren't helpful.
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Old 06-07-2011, 05:00 PM
 
4,994 posts, read 1,972,336 times
Reputation: 2865
Thumbs down Politicians mismanaged the finances of the city

Quote:
Originally Posted by BrianTH View Post
That's really the bottom line. The right price is the price at which most of the spots are full but a few are available, because that sets the optimal balance between price and convenience. And in fact around that price is the best price for local businesses too.

And comparisons to places where land is cheap and parking can be abundant and free just aren't helpful.
That is not what this is about. This situation is about how the politicians mismanaged the finances of the city and is now looking for a way out of the mess it created. Pittsburgh parking rates are outrageous by any standard. This situation will hurt businesses, workers, and other people who will spend money in other communities causing an economic loss to the city.
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Old 06-07-2011, 05:16 PM
gg
 
Location: Pittsburgh
26,137 posts, read 25,777,749 times
Reputation: 17378
Quote:
Originally Posted by Enough_Already View Post
That is not what this is about. This situation is about how the politicians mismanaged the finances of the city and is now looking for a way out of the mess it created. Pittsburgh parking rates are outrageous by any standard. This situation will hurt businesses, workers, and other people who will spend money in other communities causing an economic loss to the city.
Well spoken by someone that realizes that this is just a way of trying to fund more mismanagement. Lets cost shift something and make people trying to make a living in the evening hours in the city pay. It gets old fast, but saps keep falling for it. Things NEED to pay for themselves. The pensions were promises that couldn't be met. There is another shortage. We need to make it up. Lets kick the city's pathetic nightlife down even more!
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