Also, I should say that I'm not *certain* about retail being required on the ground floor in the Euclid Corridor. I *am* certain about the new zoning requiring no setbacks and at least 3 stories.

Later this week, RTA will issue a press release in which it will report that ridership in 2005 increased by 2.9 percent over 2004. Systemwide ridership rose from 55.47 million in 2004 to 57.1 million in 2005. It's the third straight year of RTA ridership increases, which hasn't happened in 25 years.

 

Bus increased 2.4 percent, rail 5.6 percent and paratransit 24.5 percent. I know many of you are curious about the rail particulars so... Heavy-rail increased 8 percent to 5.45 million while light-rail rose 1.1 percent to 2.77 million.

 

Sorry folks, but both of those are quite sub-par for an urbanized area the size of Greater Cleveland. The 2005 heavy-rail ridership numbers work out to 14,932 riders each day while light-rail is just 7,589 per day. That's horrible. Consider St. Louis, a metro area similar in demographics to Cleveland, where their rail transit ridership is more than 45,000 per day.

 

These kinds of numbers aren't motivating RTA brass to put more effort, resources and staff into TOD. If that isn't going to do it, I don't know what will.

The old self-fulfilling prophecy, eh?

 

RTA's rail ridership numbers are way disturbing.  Geez--I think even Houston's 7 mile starter line performs better than the entire RTA system.  Houston! 

 

The most disturbing part, however, is the 24.5 increase in paratransit use.  This is usually the backbreaker for any transit agency, and is by far the most cost-ineffective mode to operate.

 

 

 

But when you see a two-car RTA Red Line train, it's very comparable to a four-car CTA El train. Granted, CTA often uses 6-, 8-, 10-car trains during rush hours on its busiest lines. But trains on its other lines, like the Ravenswood (Brown Line) or the Midway (Orange Line), often do not exceed four cars.

 

KJP

 

I'm pretty sure that 8 cars is the max length for CTA trains on all L lines

The old self-fulfilling prophecy, eh?

 

RTA's rail ridership numbers are way disturbing.  Geez--I think even Houston's 7 mile starter line performs better than the entire RTA system.  Houston! 

 

The most disturbing part, however, is the 24.5 increase in paratransit use.  This is usually the backbreaker for any transit agency, and is by far the most cost-ineffective mode to operate.

 

 

 

Dan,

 

as long as downtown continues to suck, rail ridership cannot grow significantly.  No transit can thrive where big sporting events ridership dwarf your rush hour traffic.

clvlndr, c'mon now, you can do better than that. Downtown Cleveland has the nation's eighth-largest daytime worker population of any central business district in the nation(146,000 in 2003). Spread across 255 working days each year, that's 37 million people. Last year, Cleveland's sports teams, downtown theaters and tourist attractions drew 16 million visitors. Can you tell me when is 16 million larger than 37 million?

 

The biggest reason why few people use the Rapid is because population densities within a 1,500-foot walk of most stations are quite low. They should be at least 10,000 people per square mile (see Coventry area of Cleveland Heights) and preferably twice that (see Lakewood's Gold Coast area). How many station areas look like that? Shaker Square qualifies. And, maybe just the one side of the University Circle stop? After that, it gets pretty thin.

 

A lesser reason is there's only one downtown station (yeah, I know the Waterfront Line has five stations, but they don't offer a travel time benefit over disembarking at Tower City and walking or loop bus). St. Louis, for example, has six downtown stations (four of which are in a subway--all six if you include Laclede's Landing and Busch Stadium).

 

That's not a huge albatross for Cleveland. After all, in 1960, the CTS Rapid (Red Line) and the Shaker Rapids (Blue and Green) carried more than 60,000 riders per day -- with just the one station downtown. The big difference was, people actually lived near the rail lines back then. We've even lost the population just beyond those station areas, where people rode the buses which fed traffic into the rail system. Most of that population is gone.

 

Put people's homes and workplaces within an easy walk of a Rapid station and our ridership numbers will be at least as good as St. Louis'. Maybe even as good as our rail system once was. We have to fix these shortcomings or our Rapid system is going remain a decoration, rather than be an asset for the region.

Amen.

KJP,

 

I would answer you by this, having worked daily downtown in recent years (I’m not now):  First, when we had a much greater working force downtown, esp concentrated along lower Euclid near Public Square, rail ridership was much higher (compare numbers from the early years of RTA through the mid-80s compared to now).  Secondly, (following the 1st) I don't think you can simply point to a "downtown" work force, as you do, when many of these jobs may be at the fringes of downtown -- percentage-wise, I'm sure -- far away from our main rail hub.  While central downtown is languishing employment-wise (I casually walk back ‘n forth across lower Euclid, these days, at mid day while scarcely glancing for cars – it certainly wasn’t that way 15-20 years ago), Upper Euclid, at CSU and the St. Vincent Quad appears to have grown.  Those employees out there are not likely to take rail or transit, at all – so you can’t just say “downtown” as if everybody worked right outside Tower City.  Traffic is less concentrated at these fringes, like the Quad, and surface parking -- some of it free, is more plentiful -- it's almost semi-suburban around the Quad/CCC parking/traffic-wise.  Third, in this town for some reason, more than most, people will willingly take the Rapid to special events, like Browns, Indians, Cavs, fireworks or the Youth Olympics, than they do when commuting to work downtown.  When I worked in Erieview, I used to stand at the North Coast station and watch North Point workers stream through the elevated walkway -- ironically, over the WL Rapid tracks  -- into the large garage and their cars, while I stood at a mostly empty platform.  And I know many of these people (I worked with them) worked within walking or short drive distance from one of the rail lines – riding the WL would be a snap – esp back when RTA ran trains every 15 mins.  Why is this?  But these same folks will trundle themselves and their kids downtown on weekends to one of the aforementioned "big events" … on the Rapid... again, Why?

 

Fourth -- part of why (which I think tends to negate your counter-argument) is that all 3 of our pro-sports venues are DIRECTLY AT rail stations, which was great TOD planning by us (yes, the WL went to the Browns Stadium site which was preexisting for 60+ years – but Gateway was a brilliant creation, location-wise).  Add to this the fact that pro games and big events tend to begin and end at fixed times (whereas rush-hour is staggered over several hours – esp with more modern flex-schedules -- and has moved up considerably as workaday downtown has become much more blue than white collar as later jobs have either opted for the burbs or left the region or state).  So with the highly-concentrated sports events, directly at downtown railheads and beginning/ending at fixed times, I believe that RTA moves more people in and out on rails at short headways for these events (lets say a Browns game, which is the biggest regular "special" event) than, at say, 5p on an avgs weekday out of Tower City.

 

And then, of course, with the much thinner Public Square/lower Euclid weekday population, you're going to get more people to drive because it's easier.  I think that, here in America where public transit is still viewed, generally, as a negative (and esp in this town), people are most motivated to use it out of fear -- the fear of idling in smog-filled traffic jams.  It is in those places where it is used the most.  And we all know that we've become rather infamous (famous in some quarters), nationally, for our light, light, light rush hours.

 

And even when you are on the property search -- something I do quite often -- you'll see realtors advertise properties near to the Rapid (at least hear on the East Side) as being: a) convenient for the airport, or b) convenient for Browns Stadium or the Jake...

 

... If I'm wrong, how come the main rail yard at E. 55 has a good 3rd of Shaker cars (and at least that many Red Line cars) sitting idle during rush hour, while it's empty of Shaker cars (and closer to empty of Red Line cars), during Browns games?

 

There’s no question that TOD development around stations where people would be more New York-like (using transit for more casual, non-employment trips) would greatly boost rail ridership.  I would bet you that the Red Line boost we’re currently seeing is for just that type of riding.  But the bread-and-butter of any normal rail system neighborhood/burb-to-downtown rush hour commuting.  Our downtown is practically dead business-wise, whereas downtown St. Louis, Atlanta and Baltimore (to name 3 similar-sized rail towns) is thriving.  It makes the big difference.

 

 

I have to agree that clvlndr's description of the current state of affairs seems to be accurate.

 

I can get to work in Playhouse Square by car in about twenty minutes.  Almost exactly twenty minutes, every day, rain or shine.  If I have to stay and work until 10pm, my car is there and I can go.  If my kid gets sick and I have to get home as fast as possible, it's about twenty minutes any time of day.

 

The same can't be said of the bus, and the Rapid is too far away from both my home and my work to be convenient.  As long as buses share the road with cars, it might be unreasonable to expect that they can stick to a schedule.

 

 

You can count me in as wanting to see a light rail/subway network and a nearly car-free city throughout the region.  I don't want to walk more than ten minutes, I don't want to have to make more than two transfers, and I want a schedule that works so that I don't have to wait more than five minutes for a train at any time of the day.  That's what I had when I lived in Japan, so I know it can be done.

 

And I'll gladly bring my shovel and help dig for a few hours every weekend if that would help.

I have a favor to ask those of you who ride the buses/rapid in Cleveland.  I'm working on a project evaluating the use of RTA, specifically how you pay for your rides.  Do you pay your fare into the farebox each time you ride the bus, or do you use a pass or farecard?  Do you buy your pass or farecard online, at a neighborhood location such as a bank, pharmacy, grocery store, etc., or does your employer provide them to you through the Commuter Advantage program?  Also, is there anything that RTA could do to make this aspect of riding the bus/rapid more convenient for you?  A program they've offered in the past or that you've experienced in other cities that you'd really like to see in Cleveland?

 

I don't work for RTA, but your answers will be used to help improve RTA's service. 

Bus rider here.

 

1. Farecard, usually a 5 or 10 ride express pass.

2. Purchased at either Card Express in the Old Arcade, or at Tower City Center customer service station (during lunch hour)

3. My employer does not participate in Commuter Advantage - I wish they did!

4. I don't have a problem with the system itself - though I'd be open to options.

I have a relatively short commute from Ohio City to CSU and use the bus (as opposed to my bike) primarily during the colder months.  I've been hitching rides home from school more often because it's cold and the late-night buses aren't as frequent.  As for the RTA portion, though, I'd break it down like this:

 

Bus 90%, Rapid 10% (primarily for longer trips to the Airport or University Circle)

I use the U-Pass from CSU, which costs me $25 per semester and is attached to my college ID. 

 

This seems to be, by far, the most efficient way to travel...both by price and by ease of use. 

 

I'd like to see a better way to run the rapid's payment system, though.  During the peak hours, there are usually booth operators at my stops, but off-peak, it's run like a bus, which isn't very efficient.  It takes a while to get on and off the train this way, since only one of the doors will open. 

 

Also, does anyone know how the Euclid Corridor is going to operate?  I'd hope it's more like the rapid, and this is what I understood to be one of BRT's strong points...

 

There's much more talk on this topic elsewhere on the boards, so browse around and you should find some interesting commentary!

Also, does anyone know how the Euclid Corridor is going to operate?  I'd hope it's more like the rapid, and this is what I understood to be one of BRT's strong points...

 

Will be a proof of payment system with transit officials randomly checking passes on the actual buses.  This is the future system for the rapid lines as well.  The big sticking point is the purchase of the point of sale machines at each of the stops.  Apparently this is a $30 million purchase that they are trying to put off for as long as possible.

 

With other "value engineering" on the ECP project, anything is possible, so who knows what will actually be implemented.

 

***

I ride about 50/50 bus/rail.  My biggest complaint is the difficult payment system, especially blue/green lines where you pay getting on going east and pay getting off going west.  i understand the reasoning for it somewhat (basically, during rush hours there is demand getting on in the eastern suburbs - so everyone can just get on the train without using a pass.  The biggest stop is Tower City, with lots of turnstiles, so the crowd can quickly exit and swipe their farecard. Going in reverse, everyone pays to get on (big stop being Tower City again), and can get off without having to swipe again.

 

It really just shows how few stops generate significant ride activity. 

 

As for fares, I use 10-ride cards and all day passes.

"...a proof of payment system with transit officials randomly checking passes on the actual buses." 

 

I was in Germany for 3 weeks over the holidays and the transit officials randomly checking passes is how they operate. It's a little unusual at first, just hoping on and off trains and buses with no one checking my ticket. You feel like you're doing something wrong and being a stupid American. Then, you realize just how quick things seem to move along this way. Wait times are minimal and, at least on buses and trams, they have ticket vending machines on the vehicles. I always got the tickets and followed the rules  :-D but in the 100 or so (I'm guessing) transit rides I took, I only got checked by a transit official once in Hamburg. I suppose I could have skated by for all those weeks not buying tickets, which would be the natural temptation for this kind of system, but the fines were severe for those riding without a pass (65 Euro or something).

 

I like the system and think it will make the BRT a more attractive transit option. If only it were on rail, then I'd really be thrilled. Ah, well...

I ride the rapid more than the bus system.  I have a few colaints about the rail system here (other than it not being expansive enough!)  Not all employees announce stops (or they can't be understood) which would be horrible for out of towners, would be nice to have timers on the platform for ETA's, stops should be timed so employees don't sit and BS with other employees on the platform while I wait to go!, payment system sucks!!!  When the booths are manned it is okay, but there needs to be a system like NYC or Chicago with payment machines in the station NOT on the train.....have turnstiles that go from floor to ceiling to stop gate jumpers for the stations that have no booth.  Having to wait at each stop while people pay on the train is the dumbest thing I have seen.....and even dumber was one time I took the train to the Browns game, and they asked for my ticket when I got OFF the train!!!  What kind of backward@ss system it that!?!?!  If they can pay people to check when you get off the train.....try moving those people to the areas where you pay to get ON the train....

I LOVE rail systems in other cities...I would LOVE a more expansive rail system in THIS city/region, as well as many other people I would suspect!  Let's get together and figure out a way to have OUR voices heard!!!!

I use the rail system occasionally (once a week or so) and the busses never.  When I do use the rail, I always get the day pass.

 

I have to second JDD941's comments.  The system could be alot better.  Especially knowing when the trains are coming and some consistency in how one pays to ride.  Having to figure it out (and often getting it wrong) everytime makes for a frustrating and unpleasant experience. 

I take the train. 

 

The payment system dates back to the old shaker rapid. 

 

People travelling WESTbound always paid based on where they "exited".  For instance, if you boarded at Lee road and exited the train at Drexmore, you paid the "local" fare.  if you exited AFTER Shaker Square.  you paid the "express" fare.

 

People traveling EASTbound paid upon boarding since most boarded Downtown or Shaker Square going east, therefore the SRS collected the higher "express" fare.

 

The shaker lines were supposed to have TVM along with audio announcements at every station when it was rebuilt.  Having these upgrades  would speed the system up significantly at locations like green, warrensville, lee, shaker square.

 

back in the day, prior to RTA inception, the Red line stations all had token booth clerks as we on the Shaker Lines were upset that we didn't have "real stations"

 

 

brtshrcegr,

Ditto what Mister Good Day said. I'm also a CSU student, also live in Ohio City, and use the same proportion of buses to trains. I pay my fare via U-Pass. So for me, paying is very convenient; I just flash a card.

Will be a proof of payment system with transit officials randomly checking passes on the actual buses.  This is the future system for the rapid lines as well.  The big sticking point is the purchase of the point of sale machines at each of the stops.  Apparently this is a $30 million purchase that they are trying to put off for as long as possible.

 

Part of the delay in getting this proof of payment system operational is to have enough RTA police on hand. The hiring of some 50 (if I remember the figure right) additional officers takes time.

 

Let's get together and figure out a way to have OUR voices heard!!!!

 

One of the reasons why RTA does some of the things it does is because there's no transit rider coalition, riders union or some other association representing riders. Officially, RTA contends that no such association is needed, as RTA has the citizens advisory board. But the only reason why RTA has an advisory board is because federal law says so -- with members approved by the RTA board. Since the RTA board and staff seldom seeks input from the advisory board, or that the advisory board seldom comes up with innovative ideas and even more rarely confronts RTA on many issues, this is largely a worthless relationship. It's not even dysfunctional.

 

Yet some staff at RTA like the idea of an association of RTA riders and other stakeholders. They wished it would exist to challenge RTA and hold their feet to the fire on the things they are doing or not doing.

 

Here's my suggestion:  Hold a scoping/strategy meeting of RTA riders in the near future whether there is a need for such an organized constituency, why there is a need and, if so, how best to structure it. Should it be an informal organization? A nonprofit corporation? Or should be a "subsidiary" of an existing nonprofit organization, such as EcoCity Cleveland, All Aboard Ohio, etc.

 

Take a moment to look at what other formal transit coalitions are doing:

 

In St. Louis, check out Citizens for Modern Transit. This is one of the premier TCs in the nation, with an annual budget of about $1 million. They have developed successful relationships with foundations and corporate funders, and led the campaign 15 years ago to build the first light-rail in the city, a system whose expansion is continuing -- http://www.cmt-stl.org

 

In the Greater Milwaukee area, check out Southeastern Wisconsin Coalition for Transit NOW (or, simply, Transit NOW). This organization has been around almost as long as CMT, but is more diverse in what it is seeking -- the Milwaukee Connector transit line (bus or LRT), Chicago commuter rail extension from Kenosha to Milwaukee, Milwaukee-Madison high-speed rail extension, and oversight of a couple of freeway reconstruction projects -- http://www.transitnow.org/

 

Consider meeting in the near future to discuss these options. Having gone through advocacy organization start-ups before, with brainstorming, strategizing and implementation, I'd be happy to help out whatever way I can.

Thanks for the great responses, everybody!   I've already passed them along.  But let's keep this thread going, I think the idea of creating an RTA rider's organizaton could make a meaningful difference in the attitude towards mass transportation in this town.  RTA, Calabrese, et. al, aren't gonna get the ball rolling on TOD's, smart and creative use of trolleys, etc., so let's create a groundswell that they can't ignore!

 

Best

  Ok..I'm in...I have no idea about how to start this (a citizens ridership panel), to gather people, money needed, logostics, etc.  If anybody is truly interested I would be more than willing to do whatever it took to get this going.  I know many of you are more knowledgable about the subject, but will a little research and guidance, I would love to be brought up to speed.  In the meantime, I can offer my hard work and offer a meeting place.  I live near Edgewater Park in a building that has a wonderful meeting room with a lot of space.  If anyone is seriously interested, let me know and lets get the ball rolling!  Thanks!

I meant to throw my name in the hat during the most recent round of additions to the Citizen's Advisory Board, but I missed my window.  I would be very interested in participating in a citizen's ridership group, but I unfortunately don't have a great deal of time to dedicate to it at present.  I think the creation of a group like this would be another strong example of how well this forum performs as a source of ideas and creative thinking for urban ohioans!  Keep me posted!

Here's what we need if we want to get going in short order:

 

> Hold a scoping a meeting to identify key organizers of a new group;

> Hold a strategy meeting(s) to identify the organization's name, mission, goals and regular activities (newsletter? website? quarterly/annual meetings? fundraisers?);

> Hold organizational meetings to develop a charter/bylaws, funding structure (ie: will there be dues or newsletter subscriptions?), and the founding members of the officers and board;

> File nonprofit incorporation documents with the Ohio Secretary of State and apply to the IRS for 501©(3) tax-exempt status (that's a must to get foundation grants and corporate donations);

> If the group wants to get going on fundraising, get an existing, nonprofit 501©(3) tax-exempt educational organization to serve as your fiscal agent while your IRS application is pending (it can many months if not years to get IRS action);

 

That's it in a nutshell. All of that can easily take six months or more, depending on the amount of time the initial organizers can devote to starting up an organization.

This is not really relevant to brtshrcegr's research or the formation of a transit rider's group (though my screen name certainly fits right in) but:

 

I generally ride the rapid from the airport to Shaker Square whenever I come to town and emerging from the trench onto the viaduct over the Cuyahoga is one of my very favorite Cleveland moments.  The view is awesome and completely unexpected for those who have never made the ride (I love bringing visitors home this way).  I once brought a girlfriend to town this way just as fireworks started at the Jake and it that much more amazing.

 

It is a working city version of the Boston Red Line's crossing of the Charles in Boston: instead of little sail boats and college campus domes it's iron ore ships, piles of aggregate and the wonderful mix of industrial and residential/commerical, new and old, that make the flats so cool to look down upon from above the valley.  You can see the lake to the north (I think) and downtown looms ahead.  It must have been an awesome sight for incoming intercity train passengers as well, much better than pulling into the lakefront Amshack at 4am!

 

I no longer work downtown, daily, but when I do use RTA, I take the Rapid.  Very rarely the bus.  I take the Rapid, mainly, from Shaker Sq into Tower City, mostly, for retail, social meetings, sports, etc.  I also connect to the airport frequently.  When it's warm, I use it to connect to the Red Line for Ohio City (I love O. City on a warm Saturday morning/afternoon during the summer, esp with the weekly "Open air Market fairs).  I'm also one of those rare birds who actually uses the Waterfront Line occasionally for other than sports Browns trips.  I'll use it for Flat's west bank trips, occasionally (Settlers Landing, across the Center St. Bridge to the Powerhouse or Scene Mag stage concerts).  Sometimes to various N. Coast Harbor locations (even meeting a friend at Erieview/Galleria area where I used to work).

 

Since I don't ride every day, I no longer get my weekly pass.  I get $3.00 all day passes all the time.  Very cheap and convenient.  But as I've said many times-- echoing others -- the Red Line off peak/on board fare paying system positively stinks, is slow.  I'm embarrassed as a Clevelander hearing the (justified) derisive comments of air visitors to/from Hopkins upon witnessing that Podunk-ish crap.  It seems RTA could do some limited off-peak proof of payment scheme by hiring half the amount of cops KPJ speaks of.  They already use those vending machines at a lot of stations.

 

Even w/o proof of payment, they also use some automatic card-reader turnstiles anyway.  Having them at Tower City has greatly reduced the amount of personnel needed there, even during heavy periods.  Why not invest in some more of those at outer stations w/, say, some restrictive features for off peak.  They could hire a small cadre of security cops to float thru the system patrolling stations and checking fares (at times).  They could also trouble shoot the equipment, at times.  At the newer stations that have such readers -- I think West Blvd/98th is one, the RTA "fare collector" usually just sits behind his bulletproof glass reading the paper while passengers self-serve their way into the system anyway.  So what's the big whoop?  I don't think RTA's seriously exploring the possibilities.  It's got to be better than this...

 

... at least, as of late, I've noticed RTA's gotten a tad better: they are sometimes opening all doors on 2 car Red Line trains during off peak.  They simply wait for all the boarding passengers to line up to pay then open all doors to let out departing passengers after a few seconds... As I said, a tad better.  But not enough.

 

Btw, I think the idea of a riders’ coalition (to address such issues as fare payment), is a good one.

 

January ridership up 4.6 percent

 

CLEVELAND – Ridership on trains and buses was up 4.6 percent in January, say officials of the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA).

 

The figure compares January 2006 with January 2005, and represents an increase of 207,000 rides. It marks the highest January ridership in five years. Ridership on buses grew 4.9 percent, or 191,000 rides – the highest January for bus since 1998. Total Rapid Transit ridership was up 2.7 percent, or 16,800 rides. And, thanks to the warm weather, more than 1,200 bikers used RTA buses and trains for part of their trip.

 

 

Our friend Joe C. was on WCPN this morning talking about transit.  I only caught half of it, but it is now posted on the website:

 

http://www.wcpn.org/news/2006/01_03/0216rta.html

 

A few summary points:

1) Joe C quoted a figure of 100 millon a mile to expand rail.  WTF?

2) New electronic signage coming to stations, still only showing next 3 scheduled trains though and not real time arrival information.  I'd still rather have a small sign that has nothing else on it except for "Next Train: 4 minutes". 

3) A lot of callers were interested in attractive more "choice riders", but no real program to do this discussed.

1.  That figure should be for subway construction.  At-grade light rail would cost far less. 

2.  It's a start.

3.  See No. 1

I don't mind that they only show the  next three scheduled trains. RTA's trains are very punctual.

 

Did anyone talk about pursuing more TOD?  I heard the first few seconds of the show, but I had to go to work. 

 

$100 for a mile? Is he talking about subways, ripping out neighborhoods to put in additional rail?  That number seems awfully high.  The WFL only cost $40 million or so.

When the topic of TOD came up, Calabrese started talking about routing buses to suburban malls. He also talked about how Cleveland is losing density and therefore is becoming more difficult to serve effectively via public transit. However, he made no mention of RTA's potential for helping restore or create density -- at least at strategic transit points.

 

He also made reference to the fact that he lives in Westlake. Gee, and he's not interested in density! Go figure!

Oh, wait, TOD is being discussed now, thanks to a question posed by a certain member of this board! Calabrese: You don't see TOD because it's cheaper to build out in Lorain than on a brownfield. "I plead with [politicians], what can we do to encourage people to build where we already are?" Yet he cited TOD initiatives at W. 25th and W. 117th, and (in an uncharacteristic moment of optimism) said there is a growing consciousness at least in NEO about how it's beneficial to be near downtown.

 

Wi-Fi on the Euclid Corridor: They are working with OneCleveland.

 

BTW, damn... I'm so sick of hearing people like Calabrese citing Census projections of static population over the next 30 years as if that's our sealed fate!

I don't buy it.  We see plenty of TOD in the Washington area simply because we have a good, comprehensive rail transit system.  Trust me--it's not just about the value of the real estate.  It's far more expensive to build in downtown DC than just about anywhere in the Cleveland area, yet that's where some of the most rapid changes are occurring.  What are the three "L"s of real estate?

 

Maybe if RTA decided to sell off some excess property for development, like say the enormous Triskett parking lot.  Why does RTA always act reactively instead of proactively? 

 

Joe Calabrese is a boob. 

^a boob? stop coddling joe c. ugh.

 

i'll just add this comment: projected static population as his excuse? err, hey joey nyc has been 8m mas o menos for eons.

It irritates me to no end when past trends are use to forecast future planning needs. If that were true for people planning their own futures, then I better go out and buy some pants with a 48" waist, I should no longer have shampoo in my grocery budget and I will need to practice using a white cane.

 

The Cleveland-Cuyahoga Cuyahoga Port Authority uses its $3 million in annual taxpayer support to leverage nearly $1 billion in development. So how is it that RTA, with its $160 million in annual taxpayer support, pleads impotence in being able to influence more transit-friendly development patterns? This is a constraint of imagination and will, rather than of structural, financial and legal capacity.

Right on KJP! You nailed a basic problem with GCRTA and just about every other transit authority in Ohio.

Just looking around today and saw they overhauled the RTA website.

 

http://www.gcrta.org/index.asp

 

It looks a little cleaner and better laid out than its predecessor. It does has a dedicated trip planner. The Chicago MTA has one I've used several times and found to be really helpful. As of yet, however, the RTA one doesn't seem to be working.

 

I also like the popular destinations page. For those in the suburbs not used to using public transit, I think elements like this will make getting on a train or bus a little less intimidating by highlighting specific locations as opposed to lists of numbered bus routes. Anything to encourage novice transit users.

 

It doesn't feel 100% perfect, but it is a definite improvement.

RTA board considers fare increase

Fuel costs get blame for possible boost

Tuesday, February 21, 2006

James Ewinger

Plain Dealer Reporter

 

Rising fuel costs may drive up RTA fares this year, but don't expect an increase before summer.

 

RTA trustees will begin to weigh a fare increase today. The increase could be from 25 to 50 cents, said General Manager Joe Calabrese.

 

The transit authority has not increased base fares since 1993, he said, but projected operating deficits in each of the next two years may make one necessary.

 

....

 

 

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:

 

[email protected], 216-999-3905

 

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/1140514484251530.xml&coll=2

Does James Ewinger know that RTA is funded primarily by a 1-percent countywide sales tax? He mentioned everything else but that. I hope that was just an oversight.

^He mentions "federal and state subsidies".  I took the latter to incl the sales tax.

 

As for the fare increase, it's about time.  RTA is pretty under-priced.  I'm concerned that it might lead to a drop in ridership, but my guess is that for most who take it today, it's not really an economic decision: they either don't have an alternative (i.e. they don't own a car) or they choose to ride RTA b/c they just prefer using transit.  In the end, transit demand is likely (maybe someone's studied this somewhere?) price inelastic  so that they'll end up with more $ in the end.  Hopefully this will help them make some improvements to the service/infrastructure.

 

On a related note, after listening to RTA chief Joe C's interview on WCPN, I understand why so many on this board dislike the job he's done.  He seems much more focused on pinching pennies in the current operation(admittedly, with some seeming successes) than on anything related to a vision of how it might work differently and help in the development of the city/region.

To my knowledge, RTA gets no federal operating support (it does get quite a bit in federal capital funding but that has little bearing on the operating funding problem that the fare increase is intended to address). RTA receives very little state subsidies, which are only $16 million for the entire state this year. The county sales tax RTA receives brings it more than $160 million.

 

Ridership can be price elastic. From 1980 to 1982, RTA increased fares three times, from 35 cents to 80 cents for a local ride and to $1 for an express ride. Ridership plummeted from 121 million riders in 1980 to 83 million in 1983. Ridership eroded more slowly to 72 million in 1990, and then to 64 million in 1992, just before the last fare increase was enacted. Ridership slipped to 60 million in 1993, and has hovered in the mid- to upper-50s ever since.

 

RTA will probably see a ridership decrease, but it will probably be more like the decrease in the early 1990s, than what it saw in the early 1980s. Part of the reason is that Cleveland's economy went into the tank in the early 1980s (you thought you've seen factory closings lately, you should have been around in the early 80s!). And, in the mid-1990s, RTA was able to fall back on the opening of Gateway and the ridership it generated, which likely offset losses from the fare hike.

 

 

But like many Ohio transit systems, GCRTA needs to start showing an agressive vision of the future.  That shows the public they are thinking ahead, but it also gives the public some immediate hope that fare increases will amount to a better transit system.

 

Unfortunately, we are not seeing that vision from any of Ohio's transit systems.  Part of that is the function of such miserable support from both state (ODOT) and federal (USDOT) for public transit.  It's better than it used to be, but that's not saying much.  But if they continually wait for someone at the Statehouse or Washington to take the lead, we will see nothing much in the way of substantial and positive change.  Even the Ohio Public Transit Association, who should actively and loudly be agitating for better funding for transit, is beyond lame.  Their lobbying activity is so far behind the scenes as to be invisible.  Non-existant is an even more accurate description. 

 

We see more activism for transit from some (not all.... like NOACA) of the MPO's around the state, and a few advocacy organizations like All Aboard Ohio, the Sierra Club and others.  But transit systems are going to have to start making some noise of their own if they want a larger share of the transportation $$$-pie.

Here is what RTA is missing though: functionality like NextBus offers.  CASE is the only "transit" system in Ohio using it, but it tells you when the next 4 buses are coming, lets you easily pick stops, direction, view the route and stops on a google map as well as the exact location of the bus.  Good stuff.  I know that RTA has something like this internally, but they should make it publicly available as well.

 

Overall Route - Choose "Ohio" and "Case":

http://www.nextbus.com/predictor/stopSelector.jsp

 

Real Time Location of the CircleLink:

http://www.nextbus.com/predictor/publicMap.shtml?a=case-western&r=circlelink

I just listened to an interview done on WCPN last week with RTA's Joe Calabrese and Art Guzzetti, Director of Policy and Advocacy, American Public Transportation Association on the RTA website

 

http://www.gcrta.org/nu_newsroom_releases.asp?listingid=850

 

About five minutes into part 4 of the interview, Joe Calabrese mentions the real-time displays they have (and are currently updating) at rapid stops, which he says are soon to be expanded to some fifty additional transit centers in the RTA system. He goes onto mention how this real-time system monitoring will be available to download into your phone or PDA for live bus or train updates-although he mentioned something like a 24 month time frame for that kind of integration.

 

I know that RTA has something like this internally, but they should make it publicly available as well.

 

It would be nice to see those live updates on the web. If the information is currently used internally, it shouldn't be that difficult to put it one the web for public consumption.

 

I had never heard of the NextBus system. That has to be so handy for people who use the system.

BTW I checked back and the RTA Trip Planner on their website is up and running again. :-D

 

real-time displays they have (and are currently updating) at rapid stops, which he says are soon to be expanded to some fifty additional transit centers in the RTA system.

 

what i don't like about the existing displays and the new ones that i have seen, is that they don't show true 'real time', but only show the next 3 scheduled trains.  Now, this is nice, and as others have commented may be adequate, but when all the trains and buses have GPS, true real time should not be difficult to get up and running. 

RTA foresees deficits, weighs fare increases

Boosts would be agency's first in 13 years

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

James Ewinger

Plain Dealer Reporter

 

RTA is considering fare increases that could include 25- to 50-cent boosts for cash fares, and increases of up to 50 percent for ticket packages, passes and paratransit service.

 

.....

 

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:

 

[email protected], 216-999-3905

 

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/114302063483700.xml&coll=2

As usual, a very short, surface-y PD article on a very serious issue.  It would be nice if this newspaper had reporters that would bust ass researching and reporting such a critical matter, so the reader/rider can be armed with all the facts.

That may be all the room the reporter was allowed to have for the article. I wrote something longer on the same subject, but had to chop it to fit the allotted space between the ads  :| ...

 

http://www.cleveland.com/sun/westsidesunnews/index.ssf?/base/news-0/114132148155690.xml&coll=3

 

RTA officials make case for increase

Thursday, March 02, 2006

By Ken Prendergast

West Side Sun News

 

While the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority's board hasn't made a decision about a proposed fare increase, administrators are making the case for one. They note that, without a fare increase, the countywide operator of buses and trains will likely see a $10 million deficit by 2008. That assumes fuel prices remain about where they are now.

 

If the board agrees with RTA General Manager Joe Calabrese and his staff, riders will not see a fare increase before July, Calabrese said. The current basic fare is $1.25, while the express fare for longer trips by bus and most by rail is $1.50.

 

.....

OK, I suspected this was going to come sooner or later to transit systems, especially those with fixed facilities/routes. Here comes "naming rights" -- a revenue opportunity for transit systems as they face higher energy costs. Hell, I just wish they would have ads inside their buses and trains -- not just those non-revenue safety/courtesy ads.

 

Here's a PowerPoint presentation saved as a PDF, which was presented to an RTA board committee today....

 

http://members.cox.net/kenatsun/RTAnamingrights04-04-2006.pdf

The PDF didn't explain much in the way of how (if at all) naming rights would affect my daily experience. Any insight?

Not yet. I will follow up with RTA PR guy Jerry Masek. I wanted to let folks here be aware that such a policy was being considered.