nittany4 wrote:
...by 2010, and only street clogging buses to take them anywhere
isn't it time to demand some federal money for capital projects and start BUILDING some new rail lines
boy, that's a crazy thought huh...
We have a similar situation in Chicago. The population downtown is skyrocketing (several 100K by 2010) and whole new residential neighborhoods (including schools, groceries, movie theaters, etc.) are going up all around downtown. The biggest problem is transportation. With some exceptions on the Near West side, there are no nearby L lines and the streets are generally narrow with no room to widen them without condemning some of the properties now being (re)developed! This is a case where quick, reliable public transportation will be playing catch-up for quite some time. Of course, a new 1200+ ft Trump tower (high-end residential and commercial mix) presently going up across the Chicago River from the Loop and a planned 2000 ft commerical/residential tower near Lake Michigan will just add to the transportation mess. The people moving into those buildings most likely won't use trains or buses on a consistent basis, but they will add extra cars to the already crowded streets.
There has been talk of a Circle Line which would add new or expanded L sevice to some of the up-and-coming neighborhoods, but talk is all it is.
I've travelled to Philly several times in 2005 and expect to visit several more times in '06. I did see something of a revitalization going on downtown where it all doesn't close down at 6PM like it did in the late '80s and early '90s. I hope the people in power wake up to the city's transportation needs.
"Welcome aboard Orange Line run 711. Travel time to downtown is 25 minutes. Next stop will be Pulaski."
