Damn. Looks like I'll have to stop lighting up on empty rapid cars.

preliminary numbers for SEP 2006 ridership:

 

overall, DOWN 5% when compared to SEP 2005.

 

year to date, there is a .4% increase over 2005.

 

there were more that 44000 rides on the trolley (i'd like to see a time of day breakdown, as the service also expanded until 11pm in Sept as well).

 

 

I was at Crocker Park this evening (I was in the neighborhood, whaddya gonna do ;) and I saw the RTA bus shelters are much nice/well-designed there. It sort of ticked me off that downtown gets stuck with those hideous brown things. Why can't we get the nice shelters along all the routes? At least make the shelters nice in high visibility areas.

i've been trying to get something like this as well.  there is no need for public square, the new bus zone on superior, and other high volume stops to be treated poorly.

 

i suggest emailing the following with your concerns.  it seems that things in cleveland only move when there is a substantial concern, otherwise the status quo is OK. 

 

RTA

[email protected]

 

Mayor's Action Center

[email protected]

 

Ward 13, Joe Cimperman

[email protected]

 

Downtown Cleveland Partnership - here is a treat, since it is NOT on their website...

[email protected]

Well, that last one's a little old, so I don't know if he's still checking it.  But true that...speak your mind!  Unfortunately, even when they agree with you face-to-face, that doesn't mean there's anything imminent they can do about it.  I spoke on this very subject with Calabrese in the springtime and he "gets it."  What's taking RTA et al so long to make these changes is beyond me, though.  I can't get a straight answer from anyone.

I was lucky enough to be picked for jury duty downtown this week.  I was wondering what the best and cheapest way, other than driving, would be to get down there during rush hour traffic.  I live on the west side by Biddolph and Fulton.  Any help or ideas would be appreciated. 

According to the RTA Trip Planner, you can catch the #79 at Biddolph and Fulton and arrive at Superior and W. 3rd in 25 minutes, and it would be a one seat ride, but I have no personal experience with the buses in that area.

I wonder if that trip planner is based on the old schedule, before the Fulton Road bridge was closed for replacement. The new timetable shows five minutes was added to the #79 trip, which will detour from Fulton via Memphis, Pearl and Denison. The #79 is a decent service, running every 15-20 minutes during rush hours and 30 minutes off peak. It makes a counterclockwise loop downtown on Superior, East 6th, Lakeside and Ontario. So you can catch it right out in front of the Justice Center, on Ontario.

 

Print out this schedule/map and take it with you...

http://www.riderta.com/pdf/79A-B.pdf

 

Another alternative is to catch the 51X at Biddulph and Pearl. It gets on I-71 at Pearl for downtown, making it a little faster (unless I-71/I-90 is a mess), and runs every 15 minutes during the rush hours. Unfortunately, it runs only every 45 minutes off peak. But, when you're leaving downtown, you can choose between the 79 or the 51X. If you miss the 79, or want to improve your chances of catching of either the 79 or 51X, walk south on Ontario to Public Square. You'll see on the 51X map (see link below) that the 51X crosses the 79's route at Rockwell and Ontario. But the 51X's map seems unreliable since its route is being affected by the Euclid Corridor construction (it normally runs on Euclid rather than Superior).

 

Print this out and keep it with you, too...

http://www.riderta.com/pdf/51X.pdf

 

Try different routes and experiment. Some routes and schedules work better for different people.

 

 

Sounds like KJP has the best answer.  I tried to enter Biddulph @ Pearl in the trip planner and it said "unable to find location".  It found Biddulph @ Fulton, though.  I wouldn't be surprised if the info is old.  I have discovered a couple other omissions and errors in the Trip Planner. 

 

You would think RTA would want the info in the trip planner to be as up to date as possible.  Accurate, up-to-date info leads to happy riders-- and more riders. 

 

By the way Jar3232, I was on jury duty back in May and three years ago the week before Labor Day.  This Friday is Veteran's Day, so not only should you have only a 4-day commitment there, the judges may begin clearing their dockets on Thursday afternoon so they don't get held up right before the long weekend. 

 

This is what happened when I was on that week before Labor Day three years ago.  We were all dismissed on Thursday afternoon.  Only a few who were already on trials that would run over into the following week had to come back the following Monday. 

 

I hope the weather is decent for you this week.  Lunches are 90 minutes long, so you'll have ample time to wander around downtown.  I walked all over downtown during my jury duty lunches this past May and rode the trolley buses.  I checked out a different area each day. 

 

 

But the 51X's map seems unreliable since its route is being affected by the Euclid Corridor construction (it normally runs on Euclid rather than Superior).

 

FYI, KJP et al, even when Euclid is reopened, the only buses that will be running along the downtown piece will be the #6 and the E-Line trolley... the other reroutings that took bus traffic off of Euclid Avenue will remain in effect...

Media Advisory

 

RTA Board of Trustees meet Nov. 21

 

CLEVELAND -- The Board of Trustees of the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA) will meet at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 21, at RTA's Main Office, 1240 W. Sixth St.

 

After the regularly schedule meeting, the Board’s Finance Committee will meet to review the 2007 proposed service plan. The review is part of the Board’s on-going review of the proposed 2007 operating budget.

During the regular meeting, the Board will consider resolutions to:

 

• Honor Leonard Ronis on his retirement. Ronis, RTA’s first General Manager, has gained a national reputation in his 60 years in transit.

• Approve a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Cleveland Foundation to accept $250,000 for a study of the University Circle station. A separate resolution would approve the purchase a new chair lift for the station.

• Purchase two acres to expand the North Olmsted Park-N-Ride lot.

• Buy eight 45-foot commuter coaches, to serve the Park-n-Ride lots, with an option to purchase up to 18 coaches a year for five years.

• Purchase diesel fuel at a $1.3 million savings for a fixed price in 2007.

• Lease two more radio towers.

• Approve a proposed fare modification for passes purchased by owners at “The Lofts at Avalon Station.”

• Purchase rock salt from the City of Cleveland for $95,000.

• For the Euclid Corridor Project: Pay CSU $348,000 for a federally required ”before and after study”; approve a $221,000 change order to a construction contracts and approve a real estate transaction of $54,900.

 

###

 

• Honor Leonard Ronis on his retirement. Ronis, RTA’s first General Manager, has gained a national reputation in his 60 years in transit.

 

Holy Crap! Impressive!

so there is some good news.

 

in the 2007 budget, there is funding to buy 20 new 60' foot buses.  they will allow increases of capacity on some of the busier routes, without increasing labor costs. 

 

they also picked Shen Shen Shang to do some of the public art at the new e55 street station. 

http://www.riderta.com/pdf/presentations/2006-12-05-E55_Public_Art.pdf

" .....A separate resolution would approve the purchase a new chair lift for the station."

 

while i've always wanted to ride a chair lift up cedar hill, what's a chair lift as it applies to transit?

 

 

Not very well worded, it's true. The lift is for wheelchairs.

E. 55 should be very nice; artsy; I'm impressed.  RTA seems pretty ambitious about this station... what's the exact timetable?  Also, there is a lot of industrial uses on the lot where they apparently want to build the headhouse (at street level).  Are there brownfield issues?  Someone mentioned TOD desires here, also.  What's the status on that?

I've heard that the new Mayfield/120 station very well could be a green building.

so there is some good news.

 

in the 2007 budget, there is funding to buy 20 new 60' foot buses.  they will allow increases of capacity on some of the busier routes, without increasing labor costs. 

 

 

Just so there's no misunderstanding, these 60' vehicles are the Euclid Corridor articulated buses... this isn't really anything new, as these were known to be coming. This just formally introduces them into the budget.

The design looks good, but does anyone know about any progress for TOD  at the E. 55th station?  It seems it could be a real catalyst for the neighborhood.

 

I recall the Hyacinth Lofts project being mentioned in regards to TOD in this area.  I've attached a picture so you can see the proximity of Hyacinth to the station.  In addition to the NY times article, REALNEO published an interesting read with great pics including some of the planned additions to Hyacinth.

http://realneo.us/David-Perkowski

 

 

 

" I've heard that the new Mayfield/120 station very well could be a green building."

 

RTA apparently learned a lot about reducing contruction and maintenance costs when they built the EcoVillage station.  Hence, elements of green building will be present in all future station projects whether they mention it or not.  This approach is comparable to Cleveland State's as all new construction there will be high performance/green because CSU saves $$ on both construction and maintenance/upkeep/energy over the lifecycle of the building

" I've heard that the new Mayfield/120 station very well could be a green building."

 

RTA apparently learned a lot about reducing contruction and maintenance costs when they built the EcoVillage station.  Hence, elements of green building will be present in all future station projects whether they mention it or not.  This approach is comparable to Cleveland State's as all new construction there will be high performance/green because CSU saves $$ on both construction and maintenance/upkeep/energy over the lifecycle of the building

 

Finally, we're seeing our public officials get smart about some things.  This is very good to hear.  Cleveland can only improve with this kind of thinking.

RTA issues E.120 station (replacement) study/design RFP

 

At last RTA is really serious, and moving, to finally replace this dump and seriously enhance rail travel to U.Circle.  Great to see. 

 

http://www.gcrta.org/pdf/presentations/2006-12-05-E120_Station.pdf

What?  Who knew the Project for Public Spaces was doing transit and land use studies???

 

This will likely be done in conjunction with the adjacent UARD, so I'm surprised that the study area doesn't stretch to the other side of the tracks. 

 

It'll also be interesting to see what happens with the Hemisphere site, which now appears to be up for sale...

I thought you might be interested in the following job posting....

 

http://www.riderta.com/bc_employment_list.asp?listingid=630

 

Note that this position is housed in RTA's marketing area.

There has been some talk of the style of bus stop structures RTA is using. I visited Cuyahaga Falls today, and saw that the stops on State Road, one of the main drags through town, had solar-powered shelters for the Akron Metro buses. Pretty nice. I think the city paid for them along with streetscape improvements.

 

http://www.spratley.com/munilink/communities/cuyahoga-falls/images/6.jpg

 

Maybe we should try to get support from cities/the Cleveland Downtown Alliance to install good structures on RTA stops?

^^^Bus stop structures?  Most RTA bus stops seem to be a sign on a post that says simply "RTA".  Where are these structure things of which you speak?

RTA has quite a few bus shelters on its routes, especially on high-traffic routes.

 

You can see them on Public Square. Or near the Plain Dealer. There's one on the corner of Cove and Edgewater in Lakewood across from my apartment. There's one on Clifton and W. 117 in Cleveland. There's a couple near the W.117 Rapid stop. There are shelters at Crocker Park, although they are nice looking, so I am assuming Stark purchased those.

 

They currently use the ugly rectangular, plexiglass shelters. They're all over the place.

Yes, they're hideous and not one of them (correct me if I'm wrong) has so much as a map or schedule in them.  I spoke briefly with Calabrese about this and he said that they were working on plans to upgrade all of these shelter stops first (something like 500+, IIRC), but that providing information at basic "sign & post" stops would not likely happen. 

 

He actually reacted like I was crazy to think that could happen and didn't believe me when I said that ALL NYC stops have little information signs with relevant bus route and schedule information.  Glad to see they're doing their research!

BTW, JamieC, you are so right that we should be pushing for these more advanced bus shelters...maybe with some lights and a little solar power...making them more attractive and marketing them to advertisers could help these pay for themselves!

I was half-joking, of course.  I know there are bus stop shelters, although they seem to be a rare commodity.

 

I suppose this is an opportune time for me to relate my experiences on RTA in the past week.  As most of you reading this know, I'm a regular (read:  transit-dependent) rider of a certain larger transit system in our nation's capital.  I've been in town since Wednesday, and staying with my brother who lives near W110 and Detroit. 

 

I bought my $15 weekly bus pass at the Airport rapid station.  Not a bad deal.  I think I got my money's worth within two days.  I do like the farecard system--boarding seems to go a LOT quicker than I remember when more people were paying cash.  I like that the Rapid (well, the Red Line anyway) got its act together and requires pre-payment before reaching the platform.

 

The Lakewood Circulator is a godsend.  I think the concept is good--have smaller buses circulate through neighborhoods, and connect to longer line-haul routes, making the system accessible to more people.  The downside of this is that some of the Circulator routes (like the 808 and 822) are way too long, and travel down some sparsely populated corridors.  All in all, a good idea, and I think it could successfully be applied in other systems to boost bus and overall transit ridership.

 

Segueing from my thought above, it's obvious that the rail system is not extensive enough.  It should not take 1.5 hours to go from Cudell to a major shopping area within the same county (Crocker Park).  If the 326 Detroit-Superior were a light-rail line, it could shave lots of time off its run, improving its efficiency and boosting its ridership.

 

Signage is largely terrible.  In areas of higher transit ridership, the route number is posted on the stop sign.  For the most part, though, this seems to be an exception.  I've seen countless bus stops where the route number isn't even posted.  And schedules???  Would it be so difficult to post a schedule and a route map at stops, especially since some of the buses have long (40 min) headways?

 

The last thing I'll hit upon is the much-maligned lack of TOD.  This should be a no-brainer for RTA, so I really don't understand it.  There is a lot of new development along Detroit in Lakewood, and the Chicle apartments near the West Blvd station should be a sign that the area around the Rapid station is ripe for development.  So why the parking lot???  Rather than make FREE parking accommodations for perhaps a couple hundred riders a day, wouldn't it make more sense to sell or lease the parking lot to a developer, who could build residences, offices, and retail on the site, generating ridership and improving the neighborhood?  This could be an additional revenue source for RTA, but I suppose it's too easy of a concept to grasp.  sigh.

 

I've had a generally good experience on RTA this past week.  The system could use a little work, but it seems to work well in densely-populated neighborhoods.  I just wish the honchos downtown were a little more progressive and realized that with just a little more effort, their system could be even better, and help revitalize the city more than any stadium or big box mall ever could.

RTA, union local target of dissident candidate's complaint

 

The State Employment Relations Board expects to settle claims of unfair labor practices by Amalgamated Transit Union Local 268 and the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, at a hearing likely to occur in February.

 

After an 11-month investigation, the board voted unanimously in November to issue a complaint against the union and regional transit system because of “significant irregularities” that likely occurred during a Dec. 20, 2005, election for Local 268 president.

 

The local represents about 2,300 bus and train operators, station attendants, mechanics, maintenance employees and some supervisory and administrative staff who work for RTA.

 

William Nix, a Local 268 member who led a preliminary election for the president’s office, claims his union and the regional transit system colluded to keep incumbent president Gary Johnson in office during the run-off election. Nix lost that election by 14 votes.

 

###

the biggest problem, as i understand it, with putting signage, schedules, maps, etc. in more shelters is labor.  period. 

 

rta seems to have cut staff back to a minimum and are not in a growth mode - which is where TOD and systemwide improvements to things that make it easier for a non-transit dependent rider to CHOOSE transit.  if you have to use transit, then you wait for the bus, whenever it comes.  in order to get more choice-ridership (which the system needs outside of traditional rush hours), you need to start providing more inviting shelters, schedule info, etc. 

 

there are monthly meetings of the citizens advisory board and the board of trustees.  i realize that many of them occur during the workday, but there is rarely anyone present besides the members.  i suggest that more people that care about transit try and come to express support and interest in changing the direction. 

^^wow, Dan, are you actually getting a little soft on RTA?  Sounds like you had a pretty good exp -- save the lack of Crocker Park hookup... Obviously, brother lives in a very transit-friendly nabe by Cleveland standards.

^^wow, Dan, are you actually getting a little soft on RTA?  Sounds like you had a pretty good exp -- save the lack of Crocker Park hookup... Obviously, brother lives in a very transit-friendly nabe by Cleveland standards.

 

As a regular reader of the DC-area's commuterpage.com newsletter, I'd say it's more a matter of DC's transit system sucking so badly by comparison (and their letting Tangherlini go just continued their litany of missteps).

 

Speaking for myself, as a former Buffalonian (the second 18 years of my life) born and raised in NYC (the first 18 years of my life), I've seen the good, the bad, and the ugly, and while RTA ain't perfect, it's head & shoulders above the vast majority of the competition (insert relevant reference to "in a room full of blind men, the one-eyed man is king", or "don't criticize how badly the bear dances, but be amazed that it dances at all").

 

With a little poking & prodding from the more vocal among us (heed urbanlife's call to attend a Board meeting some day), maybe it can become world-class yet.

The next meeting I would hope many of you will attend is the 9 a.m. Jan. 16 full board committee meeting where RTA's board will decide if it will support efforts to improvement transit in the West Shore Corridor (commuter rail, express bus, transit-oriented development around stations, etc.). This was put on the board's agenda by GM Joe Calabrese so that RTA's representative to NOACA's board will know how to vote when a request to NOACA for funding of an alternatives analysis comes up.

 

I encourage anyone with an interest to attend and speak up. This could be a great opportunity!

Note the item about the new fare collection system - $20+ million - Wow!

___________________

 

Posted at rideRTA.com

 

Media Advisory

 

RTA Board Committees meet Jan. 9

 

CLEVELAND -- The Board of Trustees of the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA) will meet in Committee at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 9, at RTA's Main Office, 1240 W. Sixth St.

 

Planning & Development Committee

 

Euclid Corridor Transportation Project: Update on project design, construction, utility and real estate activities.

 

Loop Replacements: Discuss a Request for Proposals (RFP) to replace two separate bus loops – Rocky River and East 118th Street/Wade Park.

 

Operations Committee

 

Interagency Agreement: Discuss an interagency agreement with officials at the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), to participate in their Emergency Response and Preparedness Program.

 

Rapid Recovery: Discuss a contract with ParkWorks to clean the area near the Rapid tracks.

 

Finance Committee

 

Fare Collection System: General overview of a proposed fare collection system, which includes new fareboxes and passenger station ticket vending machines, gates and turnstiles. Estimated cost: $20 million+.

 

The regular Board meeting will be held Jan. 16.

 

# # #

Note the item about the new fare collection system - $20+ million - Wow!

___________________

...

Fare Collection System: General overview of a proposed fare collection system, which includes new fareboxes and passenger station ticket vending machines, gates and turnstiles. Estimated cost: $20 million+.

...

 

Considering the massive scope of this project (retrofitting every vehicle, station, and facility with all new equipment, as well as training of all involved staff), and that it will result in RTA's using a combination of magstripe and stored-value proximity-read (i.e., probably RFID) farecards, this actually seems like a bargain. Sure, it's a big chunk of change, but it's a chunk that should result in a more efficient system in the long run.

 

If you want to examine the scope of the project (a likely cure for insomnia), you can probably get copies of the relevant RFP documents from RTA. I'd imagine they're publicly accessible (no doubt there will be reproduction fees involved if the documents are large).

Nah, that's OK. I get my insomnia cured just by reading my own articles...

 

I don't doubt the cost. I just didn't realize the scope of what was sought. The last I'd heard, RTA was considering a proof-of-payment system for rail and BRT.

I thought KJP reported RTA was supposed to be moving toward a Proof of Payment fare system for the Rapid.  Wouldn't this $20M fare collection projected contract -- esp the faregates and turnstilles -- tend to deep-6 POP?  POP sounded like a very logical system for RTA given our generally light volume which is very uneven at the various stations on heavy and light rail, alike.

clvlndr:  this was discussed a few months ago on page 8 of this thread:

 

http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php?topic=4504.msg117619#msg117619

 

I posted the following in the above message:

I talked to someone at RTA about this.  The implementation of proof of payment is getting bogged down in bureacratic discussion.  For example, lthere is concern about people who have no address how, so how do you follow up with a fine if they are caught without a ticket?    I don't recall the other nonsense that this person mentioned is going on in the internal discussions.  

 

The discussion I had was in late January/Early February of last year.

^I know it was discussed, but no adequate answer was advanced.

 

I find it incredible that RTA would potentially waste millions -- given what a Euro-style POP system (like that used in Baltimore's LRT) would save -- simply because of the paltry few who could be caught ticketless having no verifyable home addresses (what would that net in an average year?  conservatively, $500 in lost fares?  with the assumption being it would continually decrease after startup and public awareness of the POP system sinks in)... Maybe I'm missing something, but for one who claims to be fiscally tightfisted as JoeC constantly claims to be with rail (and we know this is a farce/cover to damage rail patronage so as to favor Joe's vaunted buses, esp BRT), this makes no sense... It should seriously be investigated, not only as a tremendous waste in taxpayer money, but also at the expense of slower/poorer operational quality of the Rapid overall.

^that said, I do like the current all-day pass, no transfer policy currently.  It has slightly speed-ed up fare payment on the Red line, but let's face it, is still way too slow.  If RTA is still worried about gate jumpers, they could implement automated, attendant-less Red Line stops where passengers could phone into RTA HQ if gate problems arise (a la Philly's PATCO hi-speed line)... I know this has been discussed before, but a mere extension of the current system, with it's slow, podunk-like pay the driver (of a stopped train) on board, -- to the tune of $20M+, is unacceptable.

Why don't they just go to a Chicago-style stored value system.  Ride all you want for 2 hours (any, even cross-modal transfers included), fare just deducted from the card.  You would need someone at each station, but once you get past the turnstile, there's no paying the driver at all.  On buses, there's a standard farebox that accepts the same card.  Maybe it's cost prohibitive, but that system has always made more sense to me than any other.  It's simple and efficient.

Here's a link to the overview presentation on the new fare collection system given at Tuesday's meeting:

 

http://www.riderta.com/pdf/presentations/2007-01-09-FareCollection.pdf

 

As you can see, it will incorporate a POP element and, eventually, stored-value smartcards...

There should be faregates at every redline station! Why no TVM or faregates at 79 St, 93, 116, shaker square, both Lee Rd, both warrensville Rd or Green Rd. Those are high passenger, busy transfer stations.  Again, us LR users get shafted!!  Its been 25 years and were still getting the short end of the stick from RTA!

 

Starting with the Shaker Square station, going west this system should operate just like the Red Line. Historically, the SS westbound portion of the blue (van aken)/green (shaker) lines has always been known as "express" and the SS eastbound segments have always been "local".  up until recently they had two sets of fares, if you entered or exited the system at any station west of shaker square you paid the "express" fare, if you entered/exited east of the shaker square you paid the "local" fare.

 

This is good thing, but half ass implemented.

any word on the final 2006 ridership numbers?

OK, this new system has POP elements, which is good.  Obviously there are kinks that need to be worked out of the planning.  For example, on the Red Line, I can't see why there'd only be fare gates/turnstiles and TVMs at Tower City, when several stations have the kind of volume that would justify such (ie, Puritas, U.Circle and Superior).  And, if I'm not mistaken, both the Airport and Windermere have station agents throughout the day and evening and not just during rush hour, like most stations. 

 

As for the Blue/Green lines, only West 3rd is mentioned for such services (besides TC, of course), when fare gates and TVGs should also be at North Coast/E.9th which has substantial headhouse off street facilities.  I also can't see why TVMs can't be maintained at most, or all, the Blue and Green line surface stops, esp busy ones, like Shaker Square and the ends of the lines.

^^^In other words, a *consistent* fare collection procedure!

EVERYTHING I SAID BELOW!

^^^In other words, a *consistent* fare collection procedure!

BINGO!  As well as a better way to count passengers and revenue!

 

 

like I said BEFORE, the Green/Blue lines have gotten the short end of the stick since the overhaul!

 

We were promised but never got:

- Heated covered shelters that blend into the neighborhood

- Time tables & maps at every statioin

- Public and station announcements system

- Extentions to Richmond & 271

 

This is the chance for use to make the system much more user friendly and a true rail station, like in every other big city!

 

Bad execution and implementation!

THANKS RTA!  :x

 

For example, on the Red Line, I can't see why there'd only be fare gates/turnstiles and TVMs at Tower City, when several stations have the kind of volume that would justify such (ie, Puritas, U.Circle and Superior).  And, if I'm not mistaken, both the Airport and Windermere have station agents throughout the day and evening and not just during rush hour, like most stations. 

 

in the presentation, p.11, there is a matrix with the different options.  from that, it appears that all silver line and all red line stations will have TVMs and be completely POP. 

 

i agree that they need to simplify.  at least have the rail (and silver line) with a consistent POP and the buses all the same, so that there is consistency.