I'm Smaller than Jax and I have Rail: Charlotte

[Metro Jacksonville]

I'm Smaller than Jax and I have Rail: Charlotte



Despite being more spread out, sprawled, and less dense than Jacksonville, Charlotte is already reaping the benefits of constructing its first light rail line, after a successful ten years of operating a downtown streetcar service.  

Full Article
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/content/view/564

[vicupstate]

The 'true' Bold New City of the South indeed shows the way. 

I have visited Charlotte 4-5 times in the last year after no visits for the previous 2-3 years.  There has absolutely been a sea change in the development patterns of the city.  Every area that this line will service has seen a very substantial increase in development, and of a MUCH, MUCH denser nature that what already existed. 

The Northern corridor has likewise seen explosive growth and that corridor will not even start construction for a few years yet. 

A DT which just a few years ago was a ghost town after 5:00 pm is teaming with life now, and it's population is growing rapidly.  It is not even open yet, and it is a textbook example of how a transit system SHOULD and COULD transform a city. 
     

[copperfiend]

I have been to Charlotte a lot the past few years. It is impressive what they have done and are doing. Makes our city look pretty bad.

[thelakelander]

Considering we have several elements that contribute to the making of an unique urban atmopshere that Charlotte will never be able to recreate, just only goes to show whats possible here, if we can get our act together. 

[hightowerlover]

Are you going to find every city in America that is smaller than Jax and has rail?

Personally I don't give a crap about trains, or public transit for that matter.  I'm really getting bored with this site and it's rail obsession lately.

[vicupstate]

Are you going to find every city in America that is smaller than Jax and has rail?

Personally I don't give a crap about trains, or public transit for that matter.  I'm really getting bored with this site and it's rail obsession lately.

A good public transit system, particularly rail, leads to more of those high towers you love so much.  If you look at the various 'skylines' of Atlanta, they all grew up around a transit station.   

[midnightblackrx]

Are you going to find every city in America that is smaller than Jax and has rail?

Personally I don't give a crap about trains, or public transit for that matter.  I'm really getting bored with this site and it's rail obsession lately.

As far as local issues go, the transit system questions are among the highest on the list. In terms of the future of downtown and the development of the city as a whole, public transit needs to be at the forefront of the discussion on which direction this city is moving towards. Having a BRT system that rips through Adams St or Bay St as a bus terminal is a big issue (of many) for DT and Jax residents that want to see the city brought together with mass transit, not split apart down the seams.
I think showing examples of how other cities are using the different modes of mass transit, and the successes and obstacles of these transits will go along way in educating the public and evaluating what the best options for Jacksonville should be for the City.  I too didn't think much about public trans until I looked into it further and realized that it actually is a big (and expensive) local issue that will affect most people in Jacksonville (especially taxpayers like us).

[DevilsAdvocate]

weird, was that a jogging trail next to the last picture of Charlotte at the bottom of the article? 

[thelakelander]

Yes, that image captures a jogging trail along side the trolley line in a right-of-way smaller than the S-Line's.

[thelakelander]

Are you going to find every city in America that is smaller than Jax and has rail?

Personally I don't give a crap about trains, or public transit for that matter.  I'm really getting bored with this site and it's rail obsession lately.

Too bad.  We're on a mission to educate the public and our elected officials on the benefits of mass transit, when coordinated properly with our neighborhoods.  With a billion dollar BRT plan looming, we will continue to show examples of what our peer cities and smaller ones are doing while we play with bus fumes.  Quite frankly, its more important to the community than if something like the 70 story St. James Hotel goes vertical or not.

Seriously though, if all you care about is highrises, check these forums out:

www.skyscraperpage.com

www.skyscrapercity.com

[hightowerlover]

lakelander you always have a way of coming off to me as a man with a superiority complex.  all i'm saying is that your site it not generating the types of replies it used to.  could it be the stories aren't as interesting as before??   i can respect that you all are aggresively looking to get trains into downtown for some reason.

its just not the most thrilling thing in the world to read about a bunch of towns that have a train in them.  i come on here to read about whats going on in jacksonville. not charlotte and cleveland.  a few comparisons are a wonderful place to draw (steal) ideas from.  but it shouldn't be the bulk of the metroJACKSONVILLE website. 

you've made your case that jacksonville's transportation is less than ideal.  jacksonville doesnt want or need mass transit.  everyone drives.  no one is in the streets clamouring about how they would come downtown if there was a train.  they just want a reason to go and be there.  not a way to get there.

yes i know my sn is rather limiting of what you assume i am interested in.  but i do actually come on here often to find out whats happening in JACKSONVILLE...and enjoy the reports, but all this train nonsense is just pie in the sky. 

and no this isn't an invitation for you to dissect everything i said as being feeble and unfounded.  its just an alternate perspective that you will only be able to take at face value. 

[springfieldlover]

Hightower,

I understand your opinion on the site, but without a rail system downtown will never be able to grow.

Imagine how many people would go to games and concerts downtown if we had a rail system from Mandarin and the beaches.

Or as in Atlanta, a railway going straight from the airport to downtown. Nobody wants to ride the buses anyway, people do it out of necessity. One day the south with their SUV's and gated communities will get the need for rail.

Good job Lake.....

[Lunican]

These articles are not "pie in the sky". The reality is that JTA is moving forward with a more expensive and less effective plan at this very moment. They expect to have the downtown portion of BRT running within 3 years.

Also, these rail systems are more about altering development patterns and creating a desirable place to live than peeling people from their SUV's.

This topic is more relevant to Jacksonville than any story you will see on the news tonight.

[thelakelander]

lakelander you always have a way of coming off to me as a man with a superiority complex.  all i'm saying is that your site it not generating the types of replies it used to.  could it be the stories aren't as interesting as before??   i can respect that you all are aggresively looking to get trains into downtown for some reason.

its just not the most thrilling thing in the world to read about a bunch of towns that have a train in them.  i come on here to read about whats going on in jacksonville. not charlotte and cleveland.  a few comparisons are a wonderful place to draw (steal) ideas from.  but it shouldn't be the bulk of the metroJACKSONVILLE website. 

you've made your case that jacksonville's transportation is less than ideal.  jacksonville doesnt want or need mass transit.  everyone drives.  no one is in the streets clamouring about how they would come downtown if there was a train.  they just want a reason to go and be there.  not a way to get there.

yes i know my sn is rather limiting of what you assume i am interested in.  but i do actually come on here often to find out whats happening in JACKSONVILLE...and enjoy the reports, but all this train nonsense is just pie in the sky. 

and no this isn't an invitation for you to dissect everything i said as being feeble and unfounded.  its just an alternate perspective that you will only be able to take at face value. 

Superiority complex? No not me.  Sorry about that, Hightowerlover.  I'm just someone who will push something to death if the facts are there to back it up and its beneficial to the community.  You may not agree with the concept of rail in Jax, but you have to admit its better and cheaper than what's coming our way if residents don't step up and do something about it.

As for the site, these things run in cycles.  Viewership is steadily on the rise, but replies are lower due to the split of MetJax into three separate forums.  In due time, replies will grow, but it will be up to everyone to contribute.

Btw, do check out skyscraperpage.com and skyscrapercity.com.  They are great sites and the birthplace of smaller ones like this.

[thelakelander]

Btw, rail in Jax is probably more beneficial to the neighborhoods and suburbs it would serve than what it will do for downtown.  Like a new expressway in virgin land, it redistributes growth to areas of our community that already have existing infrastructure in place, creating a viable alternative to getting around town, without being a drain on the community's resources.  As Lunican said, its also hundreds of millions cheaper than what's currently on the table.  This means some of the money earmarked for BRT in the next 20 years could then be shifted to other areas of need regionwide.