JMasek

^ You are correct. The release mentioned buying other buses but did not elaborate. RTA plans to purchase 20 articulated 60-foot buses this year. They will be assigned to the Triskett District and serve heavily used routes on the West Side, and in the western suburbs. The 2008 budget includes a set number that RTA can spend, and the exact number of buses purchased may change if the bids come in higher than expected.

Regarding an earlier post on being left on the light-rail platform... Rail Director Michael Couse noted the RTA policy (not a direct quote).... The operator is expected to leave on time, thus showing respect to those already seated. He or she should wait if they know a connecting bus is running behind schedule. He or she should pick up all passengers on the platform. I do not know where you were standing in relationship to the rail car, and that is something you can put in the complaint that JetDog mentioned earlier. In defense of the operator...if at each stop you are held up just 1 minute, and there are 17 stops on the Green Line, that means you roll into Tower City 17 minutes late. Certainly, that is unacceptable by anyone's standard. I am truly sorry that you had a bad Monday morning, and that this incident occurred.

Eight years ago, RTA adopted a "back to the basics" business plan. * Enhance customer service * Improve image * Increase ridership * Maintain financial health Of course, you could write a book about each point, and all things are inter-related. If you enhance customer service and maintain good PR, it will improve your image. This, in turn, will spill over to increase ridership (four straight years here) and more riders mean more revenue. It also means that when times get tough, and you have to raise rates for the first time in 13 years, most people understand. We recently had someone picket the building to protest a fare hike. In eight years, and 200,000 riders a day, that is the first picket I have ever seen. That says a lot right there. To answer your first question -- do we have any specific programs to improve the image of public transit...NO, we do not, because virtually program we do affects our image. Image-building is not a separate program, it is part of every program. If you visit RTA, you will see that the office of the Media Relations Manager is right next to the office of the General Manager. That tells you the value they place on the job. Some places joke about giving the media guy a dark office in the basement, but that does not happen here. The question about being forward-thinking is harder to answer. If you have read the posts on this forum, you'll see that many people have their own agendas about what RTA could be or should be. Some say, "if I were the GM for a day, I would x and y and z...and public transit in Cleveland would be great." I am pleased that there are so many people in Cleveland who love transit. My advice to you: Human beings are great copycats, and that can be a good thing. Cleveland and Columbus are very different, and what works in one city may not work in another. I would find a city that resembles Columbus closely and has a great transit system. Invite someone from there to speak, or sit in on a conference call, or share a PowerPoint presentation. Certainly, you cannot copy every idea word for word, but it can get the creative juices flowing. Remember the first rule of brainstorming -- there are NO bad ideas. The first thing to want to do is to include every idea, and when that part is exhausted, start picking the ones that are the most doable. It may also help to have a neutral moderator whose only agenda is to keep the discussion on tap. You may also want to consider doing this WITHOUT the GM or Board members around. A frank discussion may bruise one of them, and the ideas can be shared with them later. I hope this helps. Good luck.

^ To within seconds, the posting time here is the same as RTA time. Gentlemen, adjust your clocks.

^ As a lifelong Catholic, I have never been one to disagree with the Pope. On the serious side, I am checking into it. Some random thoughts for you: * Both my PC at my desk and the clock on my cell phone are set to the RTA - GPS time. Despite that, I rarely use them, because I ride the Red Line every day. If you miss one train, another will be along shortly. * Commuter should allow some flex time in their travels. There are many legitimate reasons why trains might be running behind schedule. * I am sending this at 9:22 a.m., RTA-GPS time. Let's see what time the posting is marked.

As I have written before (I could not locate the post today), RTA purchased the property at 6611 Euclid Avenue, as part of its efforts to straighten out Euclid Avenue. (The road width was not uniform.) The building is being closed up for safety reasons, and eventually will be sold.

If you are already subscribed to the RTA e-newsletter, it will arrive about 3 a.m. Tuesday with stories on: * How service will be impacted on ongoing Euclid Corridor construction. * How many new vehicles RTA will purchase in 2008. * An update on the Commuter Advantage program. * A story on an increase in the federal limit of how much companies can pay for tax-free transit commuter benefits each month. Just a quick heads-up...

^ We have a schedule for construction, and God has a schedule for bad weather. God usually wins.... Seriously, at this point, ASAP is the only answer I can give. Thanks for asking.

^ there are aspects of BRT that can be accomplished without tearing up the street. Before you all rush to judgement, please know that everything is very preliminary, and there are no formal proposals. It would seem prudent (to me) to keep your bullets in check until you have a definite target to shoot at.

"Crews are working on it as the weather allows. Work is 100 percent weather dependent." Michael Schipper, in charge of the project for RTA

The Board is expected to discuss this issue later this year, maybe in the spring. Because of the depressed economy and tight budget, there will certainly be nothing of the scope of the $200 million Corridor Project. I think the Board is leaning toward a "lessons learned" approach, to see where the principles of BRT can be used elsewhere in the system, perhaps along Clifton Boulevard in Lakewood.

Can everyone on this list make a New Year's resolution to subscribe to RTA's GREAT twice-a-month e-newsletter? The next issues will magically appear in your e-mail inbox on Jan. 15 and Feb. 1. Go ahead, make my day. www.rideRTA.com/e-news

Can everyone on this list make a New Year's resolution to subscribe to RTA's GREAT twice-a-month e-newsletter? The next issues will magically appear in your e-mail inbox on Jan. 15 and Feb. 1. Go ahead, make my day. www.rideRTA.com/e-news

Can everyone on this list make a New Year's resolution to subscribe to RTA's GREAT twice-a-month e-newsletter? The next issues will magically appear in your e-mail inbox on Jan. 15 and Feb. 1. Go ahead, make my day. www.rideRTA.com/e-news

http://www.riderta.com/nu_newsroom_releases.asp?listingid=1127 Highlights of Tuesday's RTA Board Committee meeting are now available. The posting includes an update on the Euclid Corridor project and an overview of a proposal to hire a real estate brokerage firm. In response to an earlier question, RTA owns about 400 properties.

Do you have any "high-level" statistics readily available on just how much property RTA owns? Or how much they are intending to sell? (i.e. property not currently being used for RTA facilites). Not now, but I know that the PowerPoint presentation from the Board Committee meeting will be available on our Web site either late Tuesday or early Wednesday morning. All presentations are. If you check the on-site newsroom regularly, you will receive a wealth of information. I will link to it here when it is posted.

RTA Board Committees meet at 9 a.m. on Jan. 8 to: * Review the Euclid Corridor Project. * Review a request for proposals for real estate brokerage services. The broker would help generate revenue from RTA property through sales, joint developments and tenants. The full Board meets Jan. 22.

In response to an earlier posting about senior ID cards: 1. You can obtain your senior ID on your birthday or 30 days before. 2. You must be 65 years old. 3. You must come to 1240 West Sixth St.. with $3 and a photo Id that includes your date of birth.

New year, new budget, same problems Even with revenue from a fare change taking effect on Jan. 7, RTA’s 2008 operating budget will be a “challenge,” officials said. Expenses are rising faster than revenue. Because of a weak economy, the budget reflects limited revenue from a one percent countywide sales tax. Fuel costs are unpredictable, and health-care costs continue to rise. In addition, state funding for transit has been reduced dramatically. “Our mission remains the same: to provide effective public transportation and superior customer service while maintaining financial health. But this year, meeting that goal will be more challenging than ever,” says RTA CEO Joe Calabrese. To help balance the budget, a service reduction was implemented Dec. 16, and other reductions will be considered later this year. The budget also funds 51 fewer positions than last year. This year, RTA will take the lead in a statewide push to develop strategies to increase revenue by looking at non-traditional sources of income, including the possibility of a dedicated funding source from the State. Nearly $725,000 in additional resources is being allocated for disabled and Job Access services to keep up with increasing needs and demands. Capital improvements: • Construction will continue on the Euclid Corridor. • Construction will begin on the East 55th Street and Puritas stations, as well as design of the Brookpark and East 120th Street stations. • The Westlake Park-N-Ride expansion will be completed. • Several rail bridges will be rehabbed.

New fares effective Jan. 7 New RTA fares take effect Monday, Jan. 7. This is the second phase of fare modifications approved in May 2006. The first phase took effect July 1, 2006, after an extensive round of public hearings. After the hearings, the Board agreed to split the increase into to two parts to lessen the impact on customers. The action was RTA’s first across-the-board increase in 13 years, and can largely be attributed to the rising cost of fuel. All-Day Pass, unlimited rides Individual, $4.00 Senior/disabled/child, $1.75 Bus/Rapid Cash, $ 1.75 5-trip farecard, $8.75 7-Day Pass, $ 17.50 Monthly Pass, $63.00 Trolley/Loop/Circulator Cash $1.00 (trolleys free because of sponsorship) 5-trip farecard, $5.00 Park-N-Ride Bus Cash, $ 2.00 5-trip farecard, $10.00 7-Day Pass, $ 20.00 Monthly Pass, $70.00 Senior/disabled Cash, $ .75 5-trip farecard, $3.75 7-Day Pass, $ 7.50 Monthly Pass, $29.00 Student 5-trips farecard, $7.50 Other cash fares Paratransit $1.75 Out-of-county $3.00

This morning, I saw a woman running in the slippery, snow-covered street alongside a trolley to knock on the door and get the operator to stop. He stopped, she got on, and all is well. But what would have happened if she slip and fell? Running on a snow-covered street is never a good idea, especially when you are alongside a heavy vehicle. And when accidents occur, RTA is often (always?) portrayed as the bad guy. When there is a TV camera stuck in your face, you can never say what you really want to say. Happy New Year.

Thanks. I recently updated my daily Google news alerts to include blogs, and it is paying dividends. Before, I was only monitoring news stories. Some members of the Browns forum said they thought it was "scary" that someone in government could monitor what they say. I think it just promotes responsibility. Because of the First Amendment, you are free to say (or post) whatever you want. Now, you just know that RTA will be along, sooner or later, to respond to your comment. That what makes our nation great. There are a lot of people in foreign lands who wish they had these freedoms that we take for granted.

A blogger friend is looking for a new way to describe her lifestyle -- she owns a car but does not want to use it. So, she is not car-free, but she would just rather take public transit. It is an interesting blog...see if you can help her out. http://www.christineborne.net/cleveland_accent/ Go to the Dec. 14 entry.

Here is a summary of what is on the agenda for the Dec. 18 Board meeting. It starts at 9 a.m. Adopt a resolution of congrats for former RTA GM Ronald Tober, who is retiring after 38 years in transit. He is now in Charlotte, NC. Spend $151,000 to upgrade the paging system equipment at Tower City, and improve sound quality. Spend $180,000 to inspect and recommend changes to the Hopkins Airport rail tunnel and track bed. Approve the 2008 operating budget. Issue general obligation bonds for capital improvements and to refinance early bond issues.

<<JMasek, has there been any special concern about that particular heavily used pedestrian intersection (especially safety of the students)??>> Safety has always been a primary concern when designing the Euclid Corridor. RTA's Safety Department, which led by a professional engineer, has to approve all designs, etc. before construction can proceed. No section of the project will open to the public until safety officials sign off on it. It is interesting that the only areas you mention are those in higher education. You would think those who are more educated would be smarter than the rest of us. Your idea of building a bridge is not going to happen. Signs of a depressed economy are all around us, and very few people, public or private, or going to donate funds for a bridge that is essentially being built so college students do not have to obey the law. I know that is harsh, but it's reality. I know that I personally would loudly oppose any such use of tax dollars. If students obey the law, they will be safe.