The Mayor's Red Line Summit is on Saturday. This will be another opportunity for political leaders and government workers to trick citizens in to thinking that light rail or bus rapid transit are the best options for the proposed Red line. These are actually horrible options.
Let me introduce you to a group of very smart people that you probably have never heard of before. The Transit Riders Action Council of Metropolitan Baltimore (TRAC) is a group of knowledgeable local transit riders who live and breathe mass transit. TRAC is lead by the genius and Mount Vernon legend Edward Cohen. Ed and his people have studied the potential Red Line and come up with an economically logical plan that proves the Red Line should be heavy rail (what you and I would refer to as a subway like the one that already goes from Owings Mills to Hopkins). MTA representatives like to downplay the TRAC plan but read it for yourself and see how it makes the most sense. You can sign the TRAC petition here.
If you are a mass transit enthusiast or just a responsible citizen who wants to the best for the Baltimore metro area then be sure to check out the TRAC website.
Comments
What TRAC is proposing is a great idea, but it's a transit line almost entirely separate from the current Red Line. The Red Line, as proposed by the MTA, is meant to serve downtown, Fells Point, and Canton. This will help ease traffic along a heavily traveled corridor.
In truth, TRAC's idea needs to be built as well. Baltimore, for some reason that is entirely beyond comprehension, refuses to plan more than 1 step ahead. If Baltimore is to become a metropolitan city, three rail lines (Metro Subway, Lightrail and Redline) are not enough. Baltimore needs to be connected to the counties north and south to capture the commerce and commuters who will move to the area because of BRAC.
With all the increase in mass-transit-related violence, does the city have plans to increase policing around the stops? You couldn't pay me to ride on the bus or light rail at this point.
Don't forget to check out some of Gerald Neily's ideas on his blog:
http://baltimoreinnerspace.blogspot.com/
I personally agree with the TRAC plan, so far as there is a multi-line connection at Charles Center. The question to me, though, is not necessarily Heavy Rail vs. Light Rail, it's whether the line will be grade separated in the most condensed neighborhoods. From my understanding, it's actually more cost effective to run AC catenary than it is to do DC third rail.
If you're not familiar with Philadelphia's SEPTA trolley line, you should go up and have a visit. It runs grade separated with the Market-Frankford El, as well as on surface streets outside of Center City. Best of both worlds, and with it unlikely that FTA is going to want to spring for a full fledged subway in Baltimore ala DC, then some sort of hybrid with separated traffic in Downtown, might be the solution.
Many people are becoming more skeptical about riding mass transit after the violent incidents in this past year. One way we could curtail this in Baltimore City is to have regular school buses for students like surrounding counties have. Violence and rowdy behavior by teenagers is nothing new. My husband said that he would never ride public buses around Robert Poole Middle School fifty years ago when he was a teenager
I ride the bus just about every morning and afternoon, and I have to say, it's pretty safe. It's not mass transit that's the danger, it's the city. There most definately needs to be an increase in patrolling in and around mass-transit, because that is where people congregrate and therefore, that is where violence is most likely to occur.
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