clvlndr

Structurally, you're correct. But I still have to believe Mark no major roster move is made without Shapiro's OK...

^Thanks for the excellent photos, Mr.Clifton. You're lucky you got some inside-the-Horeshoe shots. When I pulled out my digital camera last weekend, 2 cops scowled the 'don't even think about photos' look at me, and I quickly put the camera away.

Even though called a "Rapid Transit" the HL is much more bus than (rail) rapid transit. If the rail line had actually been built, parallel-running buses would probably have been run to supplement the gaps between train stops -- similar to how the C bus supplements the Broad Street Subway in Philadelphia.

Although in retrospect, bringing more high-density transit (like the Blue/Green lines) into University Circle makes a lot of sense today because of UC's growth and ever-present need for massive parking garages. Each of those huge decks costs 10s of millions of dollars. How many aren't needed if UC was more accessible by rail (or even BRT!) from more directions? My biggest problem with the HealthLine is that it was routed east of UC via Euclid to parallel an underperforming rail line to a dying city. If it was to be routed east of UC, it should have been sent up the hill to either Cleveland Heights (Severance Center?) or to Shaker Square. And its never too late to do that! Good point. I sure wish that the old CTS had been able to connect a route up Cedar Hill/Euclid Hts to Coventry, and beyond. Both Cedar-Fairmount and (especially Coventry, are great high-density walking districts that would have been naturals for rail. Right now, I think the best we can hope for in the immediate future is the continued health of both the Red Line and the HL and that they work in tandem. The UC Uptown project and it's continuing spin-off growth can really be a shot in the arm for the Red Line, esp if somehow we can see the huge Intesa TOD project built... Then, if somehow the Red Line can be extended to Euclid ... well, this last one is more pie-in-the-sky; Cleveland's track record doesn't suggest it'll see the light of day even though it makes so much sense (you can't bet RTA is going to push BRT to the hilt)... But a guy can always dream.

^From your lips to the (Ohio voters') ears, NEOBuckeye... we can only hope! Sadly, a center piece of Kasich's platform was elimination of 3C's, and we foolish voters voted him in anyway (I use "we" in the collective sense only, of course) and, of course, he instantly made good on his promise, killing thousands of potential jobs (in a recessionary economy) and defeating a chance to develop regional passenger rail in this somewhat backwards state ... That fact, alone, gives me pause.

^Yeah, I always thought inclusion of the Blue/Green Lines was a bad idea. I really don't think the number of commuters from the Shaker/Hts/Beachwood area going to the Clinic or University Circle institution justified the tremendous cost -- and the out-of-the-way Dual Hub routing. Again, I tend to think our transit ideas sometiems fail because we get distracted from the main purpose of the project to begin with: connecting downtown to Univ. Circle by rail, not connecting Shaker Heights to Univ Circle... It was Dual Hub, not Triple Hub.

KJP, I hear your concerns about financing… These proposals are really a fantasy thing with me, really. Realistically, I don’t see it happening, -- not with the general anti-rail mentality of current transportation officials, both locally and in the State, generally (headed by John “3Cs Killer” Kasich). That said, I always hold out the dream that a miracle could occur. Rail transit expansion, being as expensive as it is, usually happens when communities are, in one way or another, feeling good about themselves and are in a solutions-oriented mode: like Cleveland was in the 1990s when Dual Hub was seriously proposed and the Waterfront Line was actually built (the latter being a minor miracle in my book). Officials were so determined to build the WFL as a Bicentennial Legacy project, that they went to the State (headed then by ex-Cleveland Mayor Voinovich), and got money for an accelerated construction schedule… I know there are often as many financial, legal or governmental hurdles was one can imagine, but as the old saying goes: if there’s a will, there’s a way. If officials want something bad enough and (for a change) are willing to work TOGETHER, they can make big projects like rail happen. Right now, I’m pretty content with the rail transit system Cleveland has; it’s not perfect, but it works on many levels and has grown, exponentially, in popularity in recent years, esp as an off-peak solution as core areas like Downtown and Ohio City have developed as major entertainment and resource neighborhoods… Flats East Bank and University Circle Uptown, hold the promise of greater rail usage/popularity—both of these projects are TOD’s with strong high-density growth potential. Downtown Cleveland currently is well served by the rail system as it exists. Perhaps as a result of the single core rail hub station, most of the high-density residential and retail development are closely packed in near the Tower City hub thus negating, for the moment, a need for subway or surface tram distribution… But as you constantly note quite well, mass transit is tool for planning future, smart growth. Los Angeles, a town for the bulk of my 40-plus years, was deemed the transit-less, car capital of the world is being transformed before our eyes into a series of conveniently connected, walk-able, high-density TOD neighborhoods grouped around transit stations of its rapidly growing rail network. Somewhere along the line the light bulb went off, the anti-transit mentaility disappeared, and the City of Angles now can't build rail lines fast enough. I wish this bug would infect Cleveland and Ohio... Unfortunately, here in this rather conservative city and state, we are not patient or sophisticated enough to plan for future growth of this type. We look at development of rail solely for transporting populations as they exist and not as they could exist in neighborhoods and communities built much better. The aforementioned Amtrak 3C’s debacle certainly proved that.

Jerry/JetDog, The promo for the Rib Cookoff seems really nice. Glad RTA is doing it; great the Waterfront Line's hours have been extended to match the cookoff's... 1 question: will the WFL service be the usual (terrible) every 1/2 hour or every 15 minutes, using both Blue and Green Line trains onto the WFL? RTA news May 4, 2012 Ride RTA Rapid Free to Settler's Landing for Cook-Off/Aquarium Events CLEVELAND – It’s easy to attend both the 21st Annual Marc’s Great American Rib Cook-Off & Music Festival, and the new Greater Cleveland Aquarium, via RTA during Memorial Day weekend, Friday-Monday, May 25-28, 2012. Both attractions are located on the West Bank of the Flats. Free shuttle buses will take patrons from RTA’s Settler’s Landing Rapid Station on the Waterfront Line on the East Bank of the Flats directly to the entrances of the Cook-off and Aquarium. These free shuttles, provided by Live Nation and the Aquarium, will also pick up patrons from parking areas near Settler's Landing. The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA) is providing free Rapid rides throughout the weekend for those attending the Cook-Off and/or Aquarium, when customers exit at Settler's Landing only. Follow RTA personnel to the Waterfront Line, if you need to transfer. http://www.riderta.com/newsroom/releases/?listingid=1725

Guess I didn't pay close attn to the earlier maps. The last 2 make little sense. Why would the line dip to Huron, using the existing tunnels, the swing north under a block of buildings (and not the street) just to get to E. 9th & Euclid, when an easier (engineering-wise) stop at E. 9th would serve the purpose? Also why, at U. Circle, would trains dip south to serve an out-of-the-way connection south of Cedar Glen just so trains could serve the Blue-Green Lines (which wasn't part of the original plan, anyway) -- a straight-line connection at Euclid- E. 120 would make more sense.... It doesn't seem the final plan wasn't well thought out.

Yes it does. It's quite spacious and, yet, the eating area is on the mezzanine level. There's also an office at the front. It feels allot like the one on W. 9th, just with higher ceilings and longer/narrower, to conform to the Uptown space.

... don't know them all, but I know St. Louis has made extensive expansions to its rail system in the last decade. Pittsburgh, of course, just opened its massive ($600+M) North Shore connector, which includes subway, elevated and an uber expensive tunnel under the Allegheny River... Both those cities, like Cleveland, have lost lots of population, both in their central cities, but also in their close-in metro areas too. As an earlier post noted, re the HL, that we didn't expand rail because we were denied Fed funds but, instead, we didn't expand because local officials couldn't agree (the usual city vs. suburbs tension) so RTA didn't even APPLY for the Federal funds. Unfortunately, this lack of cooperation/agreement has been the pattern of Cleveland (and Detroit and the other Ohio Cs) outside of the small expansions of the Airport (1968) and Waterfront Line (1996 -- state, not federal, grant) ... both of which, btw, were built during eras of steep Cleveland population losses.

forget about the tunnels, you want more capacity on the healthline your need STREETCARS.... why because they can hold a lot more people my personal project. Health line BRT Width 2.6 meters Height 3.3 meters 130inches 10 10 Length 18.54 meters 60 feet Step height 14 inches Seats 47 Max capacity 100 Weight 20 tonnes Turning radius 13.4m Fleet size 23 Length of route 6.8 miles Potential replacement fleet Bombardier flexity 2 freedom 5 module Standard gauge Width 2.4m -2.54 Length 30.8m 101 Height 1110 3.6m Floor height 14-12.8in Weight (empty) ? Max weight 48 metric tonnes Wheel diameter .65m Seats 64-70 Seat + standees 132 crush capacity 181 Top speed 70-80kmh ~50mph Max acceleration 1.2 m/s Voltage 600-750 volt http://lrv.ttc.ca/Meet_Your_New_Ride.aspx Toronto is buying 205 of these vehicles. they use the same voltage as our rail system. Biker, streetcars would have been stuck in traffic and not moving just like every vehicle on Prospect and Euclid last weekend -- and we ONLY had the casino (3-4,000 people) and and Indians game (25,000)... Suppose there was even another, bigger event. I know you love trams, but they need to be in tunnels in the center of major cities, like Cleveland, to maximize the surface space to allow for pedestrian movement. And the thing is, as I and others have outlined, between the Det-Superior subway deck, the unused Shaker platforms under Tower City, and the Van Sweringen tunnel turn-outs under Huron Rd pointing toward Prospect/E. 9th, PHS, WE HAVE the facilities to extend subways surface service throught downtown... why would you want to throw that away? It would allow downtown to grow in a healthier manner.

I despise the Dolans except for one smart thing: Mark Shapiro continues to run the club... He's not perfect and has blown some picks, trades, but overall, he's a sharp baseball man and, more importantly, he's built (2007), is building (today) a contender on a shoestring budget... We've now won a series against Texas and swept powerful/expensive Detroit... I'm slowly starting to believe in these guys. Maybe if...

Sorry to sound like a pimp for Jake's lately, but they are open 24 hours now. They are on Public Square, across Ontario Street from the casino. Can't get much more convenient than that. Cool. Jakes has a kinda junky, New York feel about it that I find appealing... It was jammed for the Horeshoe's 1st weekend last week. Glad at least one business cash in on spin-off from the casino's 24-hour presence (hint, hint, RTA, others...)

I agree with the suggestions for converting the current Health Line to light rail. I was just thinking about the problems for the HL if downtown continues to develop as it is doing... I noted, with all the excess traffic generated by the casino and other events, like last week's Indians' games, that Euclid and Prospect were gridlocked, with many people forced to leak in/use the HL's dedicated lane. I saw at least one HL bus held up by cars, including a cop car, in the HL lane… Also, I feel the current raised median along Euclid accommodating the HL is greatly restricting this street’s existing heavy traffic as well as its traffic’s future growth. Keep in mind, downtown, though developing nicely, is FAR from the growth we want it to be, and yet, the HL is already at/near capacity -- buses are often (usually) packed to capacity and they are being slowed by crowding a various downtown stations. My God, what's the HL going to be like once the Schofield/Kimpton Hotel project is done? The condo/apt. tower is built atop 515? the Ameritrust Tower/rotunda are brought back to life (-- to name just a few projects geared toward regenerating the dead stretch of Euclid from 668 to Playhouse Sq.? The HL will need to be converted into Light Rail and the downtown portion MUST be dropped into a SUBWAY. Again, Euclid and Prospect were parallel parking lots Friday night. And we're only talking spinoff from a new casino (capacity held to 3,000) and a baseball game (around 30,000). With more development and other activity in downtown, these crowds could seem small.... This means the streetcar/transit mall idea through the core of town won't fly; a subway surface type operation (Boston, Philly, SF ... the planned Red Line in Baltimore) will be needed. We have the facilities to undertake this ( the Van Sweringen-built, grade-separated Huron tunnels feed the current Tower City complex as well as the unused ex-Shaker Rapid platforms adjacent to the existing platforms currently in use (given the high volume of a Euclid Ave Light Rail, segregation from the Red/Green/Blue/Waterfront platforms would be most feasible and, yet, because of the physical rail connection, there would be the ability to share maintenance facilities and move equipment from one system to another -- transfers btw the 2 systems, though not as easy as the current set up, would still be nearby and in an indoor, climate controlled environment… and once again, a light rail line could use the existing, already-built HL stations (although several should be eliminated to increase the overall speed and reliability of the LRT. Also consider that the fine UO presentation of past subway proposals noted that a prime rationale for the subway was to remove buses from the core of downtown, particularly in the Public Square area. RTA already has build the Stephanie Tubbs-Jones transit center and the proposal for a WHD, west downtown bus terminal would match the STJ center. Bus transferees could access the LRT/subway to complete their trips into/through downtown, thus opening up downtown to more pedestrians while, still, not losing transit access (increasing it, in fact). Only 1 subway station would need to be built: at or near E. 9th/Prospect/Playhouse Sq…. It may make more sense, following this station, to route the LRT along east along Prospect , with trains surfacing around E. 14th with a surface station at the STJ bus terminal. Cars could then hook over to Euclid via one of the cross streets (ie E. 22) which, of course, would be closed to auto traffic for the block btw Euclid and Prospect.

My understanding is that it's operating cost concern, although many citizens see $523.4 million going to build the North Shore Connector while their bus routes are being cut and believe that some of that capital funding should have been used as operating funding to keep their bus routes running. We had the same concerns expressed here in Cleveland as RTA spent $200 million in capital dollars for the HealthLine while other bus routes were cut. Many do not know or care that the transit authority cannot use the federal/state/local capital dollars for local operating costs of existing bus routes. Only state and federal legislators can change the spending laws under which transit authorities must operate. Btw, I drove thru Pittsburgh a month ago -- briefly drove be the new North Shore connector and stopped at the Rivers casino (and actually won some $$ -- btw, the parking gates were up in the parking garage and parking was totally free w/o even minimum gambling times)... It sure looks like the T LRT does a terrible job of connecting to the casino... passengers must walk a couple blocks through surface parking lots and across a busy street from the rail station to reach the casino. In between, there's a cheaply built bus terminal ostensibly to connect with the T and (I guess) remove buses from the Golden Triangle by feeding them into the rail terminal. To me the ONLY way the N-S Connector makes sense is for an extension to the Pitts Airport... ... Imagine, our Waterfront Line was built for only $60-70M and will, in the end, have just as much, if not more TOD impact than the N-S connector. If RTA had spent that kind of money for rail, Cleveland folks would have tarred, feathered (and arrested) RTA officials.

Actually, I like the last one very much, and think RTA could do this relatively cheaply. I would extend a short .6 or .7 mile Red Line extension from West Blvd/Cudell along the NS tracks to W. 117. RTA should build just 2 inexpensive stations on this short extension, an interim stop at W. 110th and then the terminal (for now) at W. 117. This would be a totally surface route (easy to do since the Red Line is powered by catenary rather than 3rd rails (thus no danger to kids/public) and street crossings would be guarded by the standard electronic gates + cross bucks... Why do this short extension which would terminate less than 1 mile from an existing Red Line station (W. 117/Madison)?... Because this short, relatively cheap extension would place rail directly within easy walking distance of Edgewater/Lakewood Gold Coast: a huge, densly populated area (you're welcome, KJP)... Such an extension could spur a number of positive, spin-off developments including: 1) Giving a push to the West Shore Commuter rail line (which, I know, will never get off the ground --er, get ON the ground w/o dedicated transit funding by lazy Lorain County). Such a station would be a great Rapid-to-Commuter train transfer station allowing commuter trains to dogleg over to NS' Lakeshore route for a junction allowing direct access to a future North Coast Transportation Center -- at the door of the soon-to-open Medical Mart Conv Center and the planned improved N. Coast Harbor area around E. 9th and the R&RHOF. 2) encourage fed funds for an grade-separated, RR/Rapid overpass which, in turn, would allow Rapid passenger access from the west side of W. 117, which would put the transit terminal within close walking distance to the greatest mass of residents: notably, the Lakewood Gold Coast + residents along Clifton Ave. NOTE: you could much more easily build an RR/Rapid overpass on W. 117 because it's mainly commercial at this point, as opposed to the neighborhood side streets in either Edgewater or Lakewood, where the complaint would be that officials would be cutting neighbhoods in half with an "ugly" elevated RR. 3) encourage closing off streets at the grade-level rail crossings btw W. 110 and W.117... 4) encourage significant TOD growth at the Rapid terminal where there is currently empty lots and or spotty, suburban-like strip development. 5) help meld the north/south (of the tracks) sections of Edgewater and Lakewood with transit/TOD development (not unlike what is planned for the future Mayfield Red Line stop at Li'l Italy and U. Circle Uptown.) To me, when you consider the relatively cheap cost of such a spur added to the signifcant potential benefits of it, ... it's a NO BRAINER.

There's always exceptions out there. But all the research I've seen is that people strong prefer rail -- it is the transit mode of choice for those who have a choice in how they travel. And for transit to be more politically and economically relevant, it needs to be more relevant to those who have a choice in how to travel. Otherwise transit will always be playing the survival game. Agreed.

Many of the nice new Red Line rail stations are large enough to house retail, esp coffee/donut shops on site. I believe the Lynnfield Rapid stop houses a beauty shop.

You must have been a few steps ahead or behind us. Yeah, Lola and a lot of places close on Sunday and it kinda bugs me; makes us seem Podunk-ish. Zocalo's told us they were out of stuff, as well -- they weren't anticipating the rush and the girl serving us attributed it to the casino... Obviously, it was a lot slower than Fri or Sat night, but for a Sunday, we were impressed. Let's face it, Sundays are the absolute deadest days/nights in downtown Cleveland (and elsewhere in our urbanized areas, save Coventry, Lil Italy and a few others)... That there was more than a pulse Sunday night, says something...

I think it will persist. Not because of repeat casino visitors -- which there will be some -- but because people are creating a buzz; that downtown is a fun place to be and they will continue to come... Unlike MTS, I'm not going to get bent out of shape because of one or two chains, like Potbelly, which I welcome because it's springing to life a dead corner (E. 6th/Euclid) and extending the restaurant activity east along lower Euclid.... For every Potbelly, TK or even Cadillac Ranch, we've got a Lola's, Greenhouse, Flannery's and Hodges -- all different but all unique to Cleveland. Our downtown's got to crawl before it can walk... and of late, it is running in some respects. Let's fix lower Euclid one at a time, creating an activity belt from PS to PHS. Yes, I'd like to mix in a little retail, too, but I'm not ready to bitch about the chain aspect of certain restaurants when we have plenty of unique, local-based places that is already giving Cleveland a strong regional foodie rep. (and Micahel Symon's TV/national exposure sure doesn't hurt either).

^I don't think RTA people are evil, either.

^I think you guys miss the point. The issue isn't whether the bus is as "safe" as the Rapid, the issue is whether the existing all night bus services are adequate in serving late-night downtown visitors during a time when (esp on weekends) our downtown is drawing lots of people and creating parking/driving hassles? The answer is: No. For example, Shaker Square, the densest populated neighborhood in Cleveland has no late night bus service; so the Blue/Green Line Rapids stop running at midnight, there are ZERO alternatives. The nearest all night bus service is the #14 Kinsman, which is over 1 mile away from Shaker Sq., ... and through some very rough neighborhoods... What about the car-less, poor and non-poor (even professional) Shaker Sq. residents who want to enjoy downtown late in the evening? These folks are up you-know-what's creek w/o a paddle. (forget the casino, Shaker Sq. needs some kind of 24/7 RTA service, bus or otherwise... but that's another issue). ... and yes, obviously the Rapid is much quicker than a bus and only stops at limited stops in rough neighborhoods. At night, for example, Blue/Green trains can make it to Shaker Sq. from Tower City in as little as 10 mins, if the driver isn't lollygagging (which they often do) or the wacko train-auto signal system is going wild -- which it often does, slowing most trips these days. Bottom line is, once again, RTA has the opportunity to really shine here and serve its riding public. All trains go right to the door of our shiny new casino which is drawing tons of visitors, creating lots of downtown excitement … and, btw, is open all night, every night. Let’s hope RTA does the right thing.

I'm not a fan of Crocker Park and probably would have preferred AG to stay close to urbanized Cleveland. But I don't have a problem with this move. While I don't recall the details, there were a no. of problems with the Brooklyn building that the suburb aparently (IIRC) wasn't (allegedly) assisting AG in abating. Even through Brooklyn is an enclave-type suburb surrounded on 3-sides by Cleveland, it is still a suburb and not Cleveland. Westlake is still in the county and AG had the option of leaving the region entirely but, instead, opted to stay, which I'm glad about.... Eaton, on the other hand, bolted downtown Cleveland for Chagrin Highlands when it could have either opted-in to the Flats East Bank project, currently rising, or expanded their current downtown HQ on E. 12. I too am glad Eaton stayed withing the county/metro area, but Eaton voluntarily bolted (and injured) downtown, so I'm somewhat p.o.'d at them while I'm not at all at AG.

I stopped in TK, briefly for a beer. Yeah, it's a form of Hooters, but after the initial eye candy, it really is just a crowded sports bar. Like the proliferation of flat screens everywhere -- including little ones over the urnials in the men's room... Really, though, the most interesting thing to me was sitting at the table looking out over the Prospect-Ontario intersection watching the flood of gamblers/Horseshoe visitors pouring across the intersection of what, just over a week ago, was a dead corner of downtown.