Transit Sleuth

Zero MQ, Why Portland’s Transit Kicks Ass!

Adron — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 19:19:28 +0000

One of the things that happens over and over again. Check this out below... Click for full size image... Did you see it? Yeah, no "automobile" directions! Seriously, drivers can figure it out themselves, the country spends enough money on em' and GPS makes that brainlessly simple. However Portland loves to point out the awesome transit capabilities - the nearby Amtrak Union Station, Light Rail MAX to the Airport, etc. Either way you come, the conference looks to be pretty sweet. Check it out here: http://www.zeromq.org/event:pdxconf2012

Back in Portland…

Adron — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 18:32:40 +0000

Ok, so currently I'm staying with family in Vancouver, which provides a nightmare of a commute. I'm however determined to make it an adventure though. Today I'm heading downtown (Portland, not downtown Vancouver). The trip is a multi-transfer and long walking distance trip. Segment One The first part of the trip is about a half mile up and down hills. There is a sidewalk, which seems odd in Vancouver, as it seems nobody actually walks here. I see someone maybe every 1000ft. But then of course Vancouver has focused on car happiness and not people happiness, so it all makes sense. Segment Two I arrive at fourth plain after this walk/ride/bike up and down a 1/2 mile of hills to board the #4 to Delta Park. The #4 route is pleasant, at least so far. In the morning the bus appears to be clean with a well below half load of people. I counted 14 this morning. Strangely, there was also no traffic to cause delays crossing the great I-5 Bridge bottleneck either. So maybe it is a slow day? Segment Three Once I transferred to the Yellow Line MAX at Delta Park things immediately bumped up a notch. By the Rosa Parks Station Stop the MAX has no less than 82 people for the two car light rail train. By the next stop it had 106, which is a little low for a Monday, but sure beats the capacity a bus line could handle. The day remained gorgeous with the sun shining and even slightly warm compared to previous days. Most were silent on the way in, which isn't abnormal for the morning rush hours. The Return Trip The reverse trip was about the same thing. Easy, super quick transfer to the #4 C-Tran, and overall about 45 minutes between downtown and where I got off the bus in Vancouver. Observations 95% of the riders of the #4 C-Tran are all going to the Yellow Line. Obviously there is significant ridership demand. Considering ridership in a particular are usually goes up about a 1/3rd past equivalent bus service when light rail is put into place, the Vancouver Ridership would be that or more. Matter of fact, I'd bet a fifty on it. If the #4 was BRT, and connected with light rail in downtown Vancouver (ya know, if they actually build the bridge monstrosity across the river), that would see at least a 5-10% increase in ridership over the current bus operations. It would have to be at least 10 minute frequencies. Having this 15 minute headway during peak hours isn't going to help all that much even if reconfigured to BRT. Yes, I'd also put a 50 spot bet on this too.

I’m Moving, New Home Base: Portland, Secondary San Francisco, Seattle, and Vancouver BC

Adron — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 16:06:21 +0000

So I've done it, I've just switched my home base back to Portland from Seattle. However, I'll be in Seattle, San Francisco, and Vancouver BC about as often as I was before (ok, slightly less in Seattle). So for those out there thinking, "But Seattle is so great, why leave for Portland?!?!" here's the lowdown. I enjoyed my time in Seattle but it IS NOT Portland nor is the livability and options the same. Such as...

Portland Streetcars

Adron — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:17:52 +0000

Portland is putting the finishing touches on the Eastside Streetcar for an opening this Fall. I was checking out the Portland Streetcar Site and found some cool images that show future streetcar stop glass designs. These are pretty sweet pieces of art. With the etchings it makes the glass more resilient to tampering, etc, also. Hats off Portland Streetcar Team, good job. Lloyd District Central Eastside With that, a couple more parting shot of my own from a recent Portland Trip. Streetcar From On High at Night Streetcar, Juxtaposed Against High Gas Prices

Putting My Geek & My Transit Together

Adron — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:02:16 +0000

So on February 7th I'm speaking at the PADNUG - Portland Area .NET/Developers User Group. The location of the meeting is in the Intel Campus here: 5200 NE Elam Young Pkwy Hillsboro, OR 97124 I'll be starting my trip out to this location from downtown Portland right around this lat and long: 45.519370, -122.675155

King County Metro Bus #18

Adron — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 18:24:56 +0000

I have to admit, as my time draws to an end riding the #18 (and #17 pretty frequently) that I will miss my daily commute into and out of downtown Seattle from Ballard. However, my commute is drawing back to that of a commute I had years ago. My commute is again turning into an almost half mile walk. With streetcar, trolley bus, bus, BART, MAX, LINK, or other options as a way to get to and from. Throw on top of that a sprinkle of biking and I'm good. I'll enjoy not sitting on the bus for 20 minutes anymore. To think that Americans used to not travel but about 10-30 minutes walking to get to and from work. That we used to use almost no external energy outside of ourselves. We had stronger communities and knew our neighbors, all of them, not just two or three like in the suburbs. In the past Americans also often knew the politics of their town, and to some degree even their nation. Today, people rarely know what is going on in their own city, let alone at a state or Federal level. In various times throughout America's History people took pride in building their city, the place they live, having a library and post office, and place to congregate in a park, an overlook of the city, or even just a clear cut place for a church or other place. Today, that also rarely exists, except in a few cities. Seattle happens to be one of those places where the positive aspects of the past are not lost. ...so where am I going, what am I doing? I'll be posting real soon about that, from a Transit Sleuth's Perspective! :)

What I Posit About Cars…

Adron — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:53:32 +0000

All I summise is this: 1. Cars are vastly more expensive than most US Citizens Realize & they pay for it. 2. Cars are one of the main costs to US Society, and one of the largest expenditures by Federal, State, and Local Governments for roadways, maintenance, and related costs. 3. Cars are one of the main societal elements that incur greater distances, push neighborhoods apart, and decrease the size of neighborhoods & by action community. Our asses are leased out to China & other countries, and one of the main reasons is because of our dependence on the automobile and consumption lifestyle. If we learn to live and to experience life, grow communities closer and live healthier, we can get ourselves out of hock, otherwise Americans might as well get used to being owned by a foreign entity. Think about that everytime you get in your car. http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/08/cost-car-ownership.asp#axzz1kxVx8hDm http://www.cleveland.com/datacentral/index.ssf/2010/06/annual_spending_on_gasoline_ne.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passenger_vehicles_in_the_United_States

Nothing Like a Commute from Olympia to Seattle, Washington

Adron — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 19:24:21 +0000

I boarded the train this morning at 10:30am with a scheduled arrival of 12:00. That, overall is not a bad commute compared to the nightmare of those that currently commute in from Olympia. Currently the various bus trip, which includes a transfer to either a second bus or to the Sounder, is a very long trip. I'm also not one to encourage long commutes, I think they are inherently bad for society and for the mental health of individuals attempting to make these trips. However, if the trip must be made, which a lot of people do, the train should be a viable option. There is demand, there are tracks, and soon there will be an even shorter route that will take about an hour and 15 minutes instead of an hour and a half. The problem is that Sound Transit hasn't mustered up the strength or money to extend as far as Olympia yet, and Amtrak Cascades (which would be a perfect candidate) can't seem to organize their trains to run along this route. But if I were to dream nice things for the commuters of Olympia that come into Seattle, here's a viable (and net operationally profitable option!). Take one of the train sets, which there WILL BE SPARES soon based on the arrival of two new train sets that Oregon/Amtrak has purchased. Put this single train set on an Olympia to Bellingham route for an early morning commute. Leave Olympia at 6:50 or 7am for a 8:15 or 8:30 arrival in downtown King Street Station Seattle. Take that same train that arrives at 8:30 and add another train that goes to Bellingham - at least during the College School Year - and have it depart for Bellingham around 9:00am. Have that train turn in Bellingham for the southern trip back toward Seattle, departing at 3:30pm for Seattle, arriving and departing from Seattle at or around 5:30pm. Arrive back in Olympia at around 7:00pm. This is just one thought. With two new train sets coming online, it is absurd to keep them unused. There are routes that will garner and build ridership. Not using them is an absolutely waste of taxpayer money. They're paid for, the Cascades are easily operationally profitable (at least between Portland and Seattle) and could easily be used and become a net asset to the route. In a later entry I might dream up another route that would be a good idea. One of the most obvious I may outline is a new schedule for Portland to Seattle. There are a ton of flyers in the morning (that leave PDX at around 5:00am) that would happily take the train instead of flying. I don't want to wish Alask Airlines ill will, but environmentally, economically, and mentally it would be better to shift this short route to passenger rail travel instead of having people fly.

Nothing Like Sexy Women on Classic Transit

Adron — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:02:50 +0000

A blog I read regularly, Transit Zac, just posted a great blog entry of antique transit that's set for disposal that become the scene of a great photo shoot. I've seen a few other shoots over the years, as the old vehicles are great for that playful and coy look of a tom boy. So give Zac's post a read, and be sure to check out the other shots on Bess's Blog too as I'm sure you will. Zee Bus Happy riding.

Portland Envy by Seattle, It Keeps Going…

Adron — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 23:58:28 +0000

I was speaking with a friend about the crime on 3rd between Pine and Pike in Seattle. I've seen more violence and read about more violence on that street in the 1.8 years I've lived in Seattle than I heard the entire 6+ years I lived in Portland. I can absolutely relate with this article. The crime doers on this street are absolute scum, but the city does nothing to clean up or mitigate these issues except send in cops. If anyone has half a brain they realize that cops only stop a very small amount of actual crime. Maybe 15% or 20% is the somewhere around the official estimate. This article points out how Seattle should look into a follow the lead of places like Portland, Oregon and San Francisco, California. I quote from the article,