John Schneider

Interesting views on the departure of Tom Callinan from The Enquirer: http://gannettblog.blogspot.com/2010/11/cincy-want-to-be-newspapers-executive.html

I'm sure, at some level, he regrets ever having waded into the streetcar issue. Since he, Jeffre and Patton have been so persistently strident about it, bringing up all kinds of red herrings that are easily dismissed, it seems that the Beacon has dwindled to nothing. To me, they sound like the suburban commenters on Cincinnati.com. The Beacon's once-robust audience appears to have moved on.

^ Rick Gustafson, who runs Portland's streetcar, once said, sort of off-hand, that the slower the streetcar goes, the more riders they seem to attract. Brad was there when he said it, and maybe he remembers exactly how he put it. But it was counter-intuitive. I do know that the Portland Streetcar now carries more people per mile than Portland's MAX light rail does. So speed isn't everything.

^ I agree. I wouldn't necessarily assume our issue will get better treatment from a new editor. The problem isn't with the editor or the reporters.

3CDC wrote a letter to the Feds in support of Cincinnati's Tiger II grant for the streetcar project.

And he co-chaired the 2002 campaign against light rail.

^ No.

Hey, let's look at the bright side of today's events: * In selecting the acronym "CASS," the latest retread of Miller, Lurker Luken & Co. finally had to acknowledge the word "streetcar" in their name. * They had to resort to naming a nonresident of the city, Dusty Rhodes, to be their chairman. * The Enquirer didn't even cover their "news conference." We've had worse days.

^ They are trying to get rid of the weaves. They better.

^ Dunno. It just always does.

^ These things come up in just about every city I've known of that has built rail. And they get resolved. I wouldn't wory about it too much.

The Fort Worth Transportation Authority and two other agencies spent a combined $25,000 to ship a streetcar from Portland, Ore to downtown Fort Worth, where the car will be displayed while city officials debate whether to commit millions of future tax dollars to electrified rail. Click here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/11/17/2640816/model-streetcar-goes-on-display.html

Thats what people from everywhere say whom have visited somewhere that LR/Streetcar exists I've never heard anyone from Seattle, Tacoma, SF, LA, San Diego, Sacremento, Phoenix, Denver, Salt Lake City, Dallas, Houston, New Orleans, Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto, Minneapolis, Kenosha, Cleveland, Buffalo, Boston, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Little Rock, Charlotte, Memphis, Tampa or Baltimore -- which all have streetcars and/or light rail -- say their cities seem a lot like Cincinnati. Pittsburgh, Montreal maybe. Portland certainly.

^ Many people from Portland say the same thing. It's why we take Cincinnatians to Portland all the time.

Well that ought to clear it up for everyone.

Had a nice lunch at McCormick and Schmick while all this was going on and decided to take a trip through the streetcar after the "news conference" had ended. Who did I find there? Tom Luken, browbeating the poor people from United Streetcar. I mean, he was like the thing who wouldn't leave. Memo to self: can't we find a job for him somewhere? The execs here from Oregon said 90% of the people coming through were positive. The biggest question was what the fare is going to be. They wished they had kept count of the visitors, but said it's in the thousands for sure.

^ If you go down there for the COAST thing, I'd keep your distance and not engage them. We know the Enquirer will be happy to exploit any kind of pushing and shoving -- anything to make streetcar supporters look bad. Let the COAST guys make fools of themselves. They're off to a good start already. Way to go, Mark!

^ Enquirer or no Enquirer -- doesn't seem to have kept people away. I've dropped by several times, and there have always been 5-20 people in or around the streetcar. I'm guessing it will be swamped during the pre-game stuff on Fountain Square tonight. Only met one hostile couple. They wouldn't say where they lived or even if they lived in the city. They wanted a jail instead.

Is that a new convention of theirs? I seem to remember an all-red one and one that was green with an orange nose/tail. They have always been this way. Because you can only see one side at a time, they appear the way you've described.

^ Tuesday late afternoon would be good for me. Thinking Rock Bottom.

Mostly to put the faces with the screen names.

Anyone interested in meeting up as a group near where the streetcar is sometime in the next few days?

^ This is the typical scheme for Portland's streetcars - one end and a side are one color, the other end and a side are another color. Every car is unique, and everyone seems to have a favorite car. I'm partial to the lime/yellow streetcar. Here they are: http://www.pro-transit.com/PICS/

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Dear Streetcar Supporter, At 1:00p. on Friday, Mayor Mallory will introduce Cincinnatians to the modern streetcar. This first modern streetcar made in American since the 1930's will be positioned at the corner of Fifth and Walnut, near Graeter's. You'll be able to inspect it up close and personal, walk inside, and representatives of its manufacturer, United Streetcar of Clackamas, Oregon, will be on hand to answer your questions. This is a perfect opportunity to pierce the veil of misunderstanding about what our city is trying to do with this project. And so I'm asking you, as one of our most loyal streetcar supporters, to do two things: * First and foremost, come to the Mayor's 1:00p news conference at Fifth and Walnut tomorrow. The forecast is for a 30% chance of rain with temperatures in the forties. A huge turnout in iffy weather will be a terrific sign of support. Bring a friend, bring a skeptic, bring a raincoat. * The streetcar will be in Cincinnati through Wednesday afternoon. Over the next five days, arrange to meet people you know on Fountain Square and show them what we've been talking about all these years. There is nothing like seeing the real thing. This particular vehicle will soon be placed in service as part of the Portland Streetcar fleet. People have gone to a lot of trouble to get it here. It's a one-time opportunity for Cincinnati and nearby cities with similar ambitions. Let's make the most of it. See you there, John Schneider