clvlndr

...and you didn't answer my question about ODOT (attack first, right?). Wasn't the Inner Belt supposed to be finished and are you cool with RTA's high number of shutdowns? I'm curious.

^No. As I posted before, why not do what other transit systems, including RTA before, just print cheap but not eyesore paper and/or card stock, and staple them to telephone poles when needed; which are easily disposable?....does the job for a hell of a lot less money.

I thought that bridge opened for traffic a week ago... Maybe it's just me, but it sure seems like it takes vry little to cause RTA to completely close rail lines here. It seems they actually plan for it. I find it absurd that a transit system spends a significant sum to buy and post temp bus replacement signs at all 50 Rapid stations; this by a system that is supposedly broke, raising fares and (drastically) cutting service. In fact I've never seen ANY system post such expensive signs. Maybe it's just me. Most people seem fine with it. ...so RTA will continue to do what it wants to do with little flack.

Does anyone know why RTA closed the entire East Side Rapid system for the weekend ... again?

From your lips... Here in Cleveland it seems just as hard to get the Rapid extended as it was for Cincy to build it's streetcar.

But I noted he said he had been under pressure, which you didn't state.

...or, perhaps, that the news enhanced the tremendous pressure he was under, which he notes, and caused him to fire up a joint.

Impressive.

Jobu needs a Refill, LLC????

Indeed... :roll: This city has obviously done a lot of great things and made a lot of progress, especially downtown and in certain key neighborhoods... But the continued indifference and cavalier attitude toward mass transit and, in many cases, walkability threatens to undermine that progress...

Within the last few months we seen plans for a dog kennel and a 1-story day-care adjacent to 2 different Red Line rapid stops. Now plans to demolish a historic-looking, classic mixed-use building in a walkable neighborhood... ... boy, Cleveland's really moving in the right direction, aren't we? :roll:

Randall O'Toole and the like always propose BRT as an alternative to rail, but oppose any BRT proposal that is not competing with a rail proposal (Nashville, Indianapolis). Well now he's got another trick -- suggesting that cities should abandon their rapid transit lines for BRT. You can't make this stuff up. Randal O’Toole Cato Institute senior fellow I love trains, and the first time I stepped into a Washington Metro station in 1977, it was like entering Stanley Kubrick’s 2001. Today, it’s like entering Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner. The problem is that rail lines are expensive to build and even more expensive to maintain, especially after they reach 30 years of age. The federal government paid most of the cost of building Metrorail and local governments pay the subsidies required to operate it, but funds to rehabilitate the lines that are over 30 years old are sorely lacking, so the system is falling apart. Rather than assist with rehabilitation, the federal government has a slush fund dedicated to new rail construction. This enticed the region to build the Silver and Purple lines, when the matching funds required to build those lines should have been spent rehabilitating Metrorail instead. One way the region can solve the problem is to kill the Purple Line and stop construction on the Silver Line and rededicate those funds to the existing system. WMATA may also have to accept the painful reality that rail was probably the wrong choice for D.C. in the first place. Rail transit is both expensive and inflexible, while Curitiba, Brazil has shown that a well-designed bus corridor can actually move more people per hour than WMATA’s eight-car trains. Rather than rehabilitate the existing lines that are falling apart, WMATA should consider replacing them with bus-rapid transit lines. Over the next ten years, shared, self-driving cars are going to replace most transit. WMATA’s cost of moving one passenger one mile by rail is more than twice as expensive as moving them by automobile today, and Uber (which recently hired 40 self-driving car engineers) has promised that its shared, self-driving cars will cost less than owning a car. This means transit won’t be able to compete with self-driving car sharing. Until this becomes a reality, WMATA and other transit agencies should focus on low-cost bus service rather than expensive and clunky rail systems. O'Toole is a real tool, alright. He's a rail hater of the 1st order. I can't believe he actually stated that D.C. would be better off with BRT over the Metro. Any fool would recognize that, although the DC Metro is obviously going through a really bad period due to deferred maintenance issues, it is still one of the ideal transit networks in the nation and world -- once the fix is made, however long and expensive it may be, people will once again realize this. Metro is the 2nd leading rapid transit network behind New York, in terms of both track miles and patronage. Then O'Toole really sounds like a fool in prognosticating that shared self-driving cars will replace most transit. really!? even in light of things like car costs vs. personal income and traffic congestion (what, is he suggesting self-driving cars will fly?) ... O'Toole must exist in some parallel, right-wing universe.

... and Pittsburgh's BRT, utilizing a RR ROW, is different (and much faster) than Cleveland's (with no tripped traffic signals) or Boston's Silver Line. Amen to that!! :wave:

West? Yes you're correct, west... The streetcar runs west of the casino which, necessarily, would mean the casino is east of the streetcar. However, now looking at a better map (than Google's) of the streetcar, I realize that part of the loop, on Main Street, has a stop .2 miles from the casino. At first I thought the closest section of the streetcar to the casino was along Walnut street, which would be considerably further (by 2 blocks or .1 miles) away -- but of course, even then, one riding southbound to the casino from, say, Findlay Market, would have to ride down the the stadium area and back up to shave off the 2 block walk... which, in reality, isn't that bad at least at most times of year weather wise. But the casino doesn't appear to be naturally served by the rail line. I find it interesting that Glaser, as a native Clevelander, feels otherwise especially since Clevelanders often find Cleveland's Rapid (the rail kind) not convenient simply because he/she has to walk an extra block or 2.

I'm glad fellow Shaker alum Susan Glaser is supporting Cincy transit with such a piece. I'm doubly glad she took a shot a Kasich for withholding $$ from the project although I'm a tad disappointed that, in her detailed history of the project, she didn't go all the way back to the subway. Oh well, I still applaud this column. ... Btw she stated she got off and had dinner at a place just "north" of the JACK casino. I wonder if she meant west of the casino, since the street car is several blocks to the east of the casino. Hmmm.

The Lehigh Valley is the 3rd most populous region in PA behind metro Philly and Pittsburgh; it's very substantial. I've been through there a number of times, both to look at Lehigh U with relatives and (once) attend the Philadelphia Eagles' summer training camp about a decade ago... While the campus is gorgeous and set on the side of a hill, Bethlehem itself showed many ill-effects from the Beth Steel closing; considerable poverty. I'm hoping the economy has picked up since then. The OP has done an excellent job in his threads capturing the fact that all Pennsylvania cities seem/feel architecturally related in terms of style and building material. Few states that I know of have this kind of continuity.

At the very least, attendees were encouraged to ride RTA to the celebration.

Where I live (Wash DC) I'd put you at the Four Seasons - cheapest room $831 a night. But in Cleveland, the Ritz is an awesome bargain - well worth what they charge. Actually I prefer the Park Hyatt in DC. Followed by the R-C DC, the Inter Continental, the the St. Regis the W and lastly the Grand Hyatt. Let hope this refresh of the R-C CLE raises the bar Have always had a soft spot for D.C.'s Grand Hyatt. While there may be more elegant hotels overall, I know of none with as lush and interesting a atrium lobby as the GH. The indoor pond with the footbridge, waterside dining and piano island/pod put it over the top... Cleveland's new Hilton approaches this kind of elegance in its lobby (sorry, now water pond though) and the fantastic Bar 32 on the 32nd floor. I'm not surprised the Hilton has jumped up to no. 2 in downtown's rental rate (or is in no. 3 behind Ritz and The 9? I forget).

I guess the large mixed-use proposal at the W. 25-Ohio City station is either dead or in limbo.

Thanks Obama!?

On paper, I have been impressed by (and, as a Clevelander, a bit envious of) all I have read about what's been happening in Detroit, development-wise - and wish the city well.. On a recent visit, however, I must admit I was surprisingly, underwhelmed by the Midtown area near the Shinola (and Filson and Will) store(s) - destinations in our trip - near where the West Elm Hotel will be located. Like totally, totally underwhelmed... (as we were by the loved Eastern Market and lauded DIA, too...) I still like much about Detroit, after many visits - but just didn't get the fuss over the above. What am I missing??? Detroit is making tremendous strides, but has come from further back than most cities. If you're used to the progress in Ohio cities like Cleveland or Cincinnati, what Detroit considers great strides may seem underwhelming. For example, inside the city of Detroit, there are hardly any walking districts with mixed use development outside of Greektown (which is downtown) and Midtown, where walking districts are in pockets. In places like Cleveland, Cincy and even Pittsburgh, such areas are taken for granted.

So the moral of the story is, despite all the blather, RTA has no real TOD program to speak of, no?

Yeah, this is a significant design flaw. Me and my friend walked across the grass returning to TC from (the amazing) Bar 32 at the new Hilton. Maybe if they installed large stepping stones as opposed to a hard sidewalk or path, it wouldn't visually harm the terrific look of the place.

This is outrageous. Wasn't there talk of a class ADA complaint? It should definitely be filed.

Ditto.