hey, welcome to the forum!  and thanks for reporting on your transit experience!

did anyone see the ingenuity related exhibit in the Tower City station?  Any comments on how it worked out?  Any realistic improvements or was it all art focused?

Out of curiosity, does the Red Line use 48-ft cars (a la Chicago) or 75-ft cars?  I can't remember.

June ridership numbers were announced at the Board meeting this morning.

 

Quick recap:

Rail: up 7.8% over June 2005 - up 1.6% YTD over 2005, with 4 million rides.

Bus: up 6.5% over June 2005 - up 1.3% YTD over 2005, with 24.6 million rides.

Trolleys: 45,400 total rides, or 2100 each weekday.

Bikes: 3,586 (up 36% from June 2005).  12,900 total bikes YTD.

 

Full report: http://www.riderta.com/pdf/ridership_reports/2006-06.pdf

Last Saturday, I flew back to CLE from DC and decided to take the rapid home. I have a lot of pride in Cleveland and was excited to be riding the red line for the first time in years. However, when I borded the train, I noticed that there was trash all over the car which was really disappointing to see, especially after riding the squeaky clean Metro all week. Then, the lights and air conditioning shut off in the car from about Brookpark to W. 65th. The car was filthy and I was afraid to touch anything. Once I got to Tower City, I borded a Green Line train and found it to be much more clean and free of litter. I usually only ride the Green and Blue lines, and I hope that my bad experience on the Red Line was just a one time incident, because I would have been embarrassed if someone from out of town was on that train.

I've been on the Red Line quite often during the past month, and I haven't ever been on it when it was more dirty than any other mass-transit train.

 

Maybe all the stuff going on downtown (Ingenuity/Tall Ships) meant more people riding, thus more trash?

I have not ridden all the lines enough to know for sure, but  from my experience have found the red line dirtier than the the others.  just like some bus lines are grungier and un air conditioned compared to others. And DaninDC oops edit GA LAncer- as a former DC girl, I learned long ago to give up the dream that anywhere can compare to the Metro.

Last Saturday, I flew back to CLE from DC and decided to take the rapid home. I have a lot of pride in Cleveland and was excited to be riding the red line for the first time in years. However, when I borded the train, I noticed that there was trash all over the car which was really disappointing to see, especially after riding the squeaky clean Metro all week. Then, the lights and air conditioning shut off in the car from about Brookpark to W. 65th. The car was filthy and I was afraid to touch anything. Once I got to Tower City, I borded a Green Line train and found it to be much more clean and free of litter. I usually only ride the Green and Blue lines, and I hope that my bad experience on the Red Line was just a one time incident, because I would have been embarrassed if someone from out of town was on that train.

 

I would have gotten the train number (if it was a two-car train, get both car numbers), the time of departure, and if you can see it, the train operator's number. It is up to the train operators (drivers) to walk back through the train at the end of the line to pick up trash, collect any belongings left behind for lost-and-found, and tell any sleeping bums to get off the train. Report all incidents to RTA customer service. If they don't know about it, staff can't fix it.

I would have gotten the train number (if it was a two-car train, get both car numbers), the time of departure, and if you can see it, the train operator's number. It is up to the train operators (drivers) to walk back through the train at the end of the line to pick up trash, collect any belongings left behind for lost-and-found, and tell any sleeping bums to get off the train. Report all incidents to RTA customer service. If they don't know about it, staff can't fix it.

 

Yea, I should've done that, but I was in a hurry to get home, so it didn't even cross my mind.

DaninDC wrote: "Out of curiosity, does the Red Line use 48-ft cars (a la Chicago) or 75-ft cars?  I can't remember."

 

I'm not sure how long the current fleet is, but I'm certain they're not the Chicago length of 48-ft.  The original blue colored fleet, I believe were 48-ft and were built that way because the original system was to include a subway loop (Superior-E. 13-Huron) with sharp turns in the tubes necessitating the shorter cars (just as Chi-town needs shorter cars to negotiate the tight turns on their ancient L, esp in THE Loop).  But as many of us know, our subway plan was scuttled by the infamous deceaced County Engineer, Albert S. Porter -- probably the worst public official in Cleveland history -- so the shorter cars were no longer needed.  So the ensuing famed "Airporters" as well as the current fleet are much longer.    27 feet longer, though, I do not know.

^GA-Lancer.  Yeah, there have been occasions when the trains are pig-pens, on all 3 lines, but it's not a regular occurrence.  I agree, though, you should take the time/train info and report the run/driver to RTA ... It's a shame when RTA has it's pants down like this during big events, esp on the Airport Line, which is the gateway to our city for visitors.  It demonstrates that, at times, neither RTA, nor the City, are ready for prime time; and officials claim they want people to come downtown, esp on public transit... But as an RTA user, esp during major events when we come down, I don't usually see cars as filthy as you describe (I stress "usually")-- in fairness to RTA.

here are a few photos of the evolution of redline cars...

 

from 1969:

 

 

1980:

 

 

and today (with paint removed):

 

I think the older cars were 48', but the existing fleet is longer. 

 

I'm kind of interested in the trends regarding time of day ridership. Are we seeing an increase in more people ride later in the day? Does anyone know?

^Vulpster, I would say: yes.  As downtown has increased in both after-6 nightlife and, dramatically, in terms of residents (up from a couple hundred in 1980 to about 10K, now), there are more people riding trains after traditional hours.  There has also been the resurgence of neighborhood retail entertainment districts along the Rapid, like Ohio City, too.  But this new rider growth can't offset the huge losses downtown jobs (leaving for the suburbs and the sunbelt, as well as Chicago).  That's why rush hour RTA commuting, much like rush hour driving out of downtown, is considerably lighter than during the exact same period of downtown's residential/restaurant/nightlife growth.  We're gaining some downtown jobs back (vacancy rates are down somewhat), but we've got a long ways to go -- it may never again be what it was, job-wise downtown.

 

That's my take... others may prove me wrong.

I'm kind of interested in the trends regarding time of day ridership. Are we seeing an increase in more people ride later in the day? Does anyone know?

 

I recall seeing a survey taker on a train leaving TC, I think it was back in May. It was pre-afternoon rush, around 3:45 PM or so. She was counting people as they boarded the train and then as they exited as far as I could tell. So RTA or someone is tracking this it would seem, I'd sure like to see the numbers.

you know what would make it easier and less fallible to count riders?  using turnstiles and counters on the fare boxes!  unfortunately, there are either no turnstiles or easy ways to walk around them at most stations and I really don't trust the drivers or farebox attendants to keep track like one of us would!  And how many times have you gotten on the bus when the driver just waved everyone on and didn't press a single button or take a single fare?

 

on the cleanliness thing...there are these little postcards on most trains that read "ride happy or ride free!"  I hope they're sincere in wanting to know about our riding experience, but sometimes I wonder...

I like that RTA remains vigilant in promoting my personal emotional well-being. Between "Ride Happy or Ride Free" and "Smile and Ride Free", they're obviously really concerned about me having a positive attitude ... or at least pretending to have a positive attitude. But then again, I'm a blue/green liner, so what do I have to complain about?  :-D

you know what would make it easier and less fallible to count riders?  using turnstiles and counters on the fare boxes!  unfortunately, there are either no turnstiles or easy ways to walk around them at most stations and I really don't trust the drivers or farebox attendants to keep track like one of us would!  And how many times have you gotten on the bus when the driver just waved everyone on and didn't press a single button or take a single fare?

 

on the cleanliness thing...there are these little postcards on most trains that read "ride happy or ride free!"  I hope they're sincere in wanting to know about our riding experience, but sometimes I wonder...

 

Actually, I've been in NYC, CHI, LON and DC and they have all used people on platforms counting, so this is something that I feel is industry standard, not something "antiquated" that RTA is only doing.

 

Granted i would love to see turnstyles and card machine on the Heavy Rail line.

 

I don't think turnstyles will work on the light rail lines outside of downtown, but card machines would be smart and convienient.

The turnstiles on the DC Metro count the number of people who go through the gates each way at each station.  They are able to get an exact number of riders each day from this method.

 

The counters are on the platforms monitoring the crowding conditions on each train, since the turnstiles aren't capable of telling which trains people are actually getting on, tracking transfers, and things like that.  Basically, Metro uses the information to determine the number of cars needed on the trains for each line (4 car, 6 car, 8 car) depending on the time of day, as well as for establishing train headways.

 

Now, even cooler than that, for riders who have a Smartrip card (credit-card sized farecard with an antenna in it), Metro is able to track where each rider has been, their travel patterns, whether they transfer to the bus (and which bus), and so on.

That huge Red Line train from 1980 looks sweet :)

Well..I had my letter to the editor published today in the peedee..and of course, it was edited, chopped, and made me sound like an idiot!  I hope SOME of what I wanted to convey came across!?!?!  Sorry if I didn't "rep" well for urbanohio.....

Hey.... not at all bad.  In fact, very well put. :clap: :clap: :clap:

Well..I had my letter to the editor published today in the peedee..and of course, it was edited, chopped, and made me sound like an idiot!  I hope SOME of what I wanted to convey came across!?!?!  Sorry if I didn't "rep" well for urbanohio.....

Ok I am going to look for it on line. I don't subcribe to the PD-canceled a long time ago (after too many scary conservative stories) for the NY times.  I will try and find it, but attach if you can!!

Here is Peabody99's letter to the editor that was in the Sunday P-D.

 

TRANSPORTATION

West Side rail would absorb spillover lakefront traffic

Sunday, July 23, 2006

 

Where is all the rush-hour traffic going to go if the West Shoreway is reduced to a boulevard? I love the idea of opening up the lakefront, but this traffic has to go somewhere. This is a prime opportunity for the city, the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority and the Ohio Department of Transportation to push for a West Side rail expansion for Lakewood all the way to downtown and beyond. Unfortunately, this plan was overlooked for the Euclid Corridor and replaced with an unproven, glorified bus plan.

 

With the cost of fuel, mass transit should be an easy sell to the public. Light rail has buses beat in every way: reliability, pollution and usage. Maybe the RTA should take a poll to determine which mode of transportation the public would support.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/opinion/1153557454242390.xml&coll=2

 

not me , but JDD! thanks for posting though, as I was not sure which letter he wrote  and look forward to reading it. 

I saw this LTTE this morning.  Very well said.

Shaker Square may be cut from 821 Circulator route

Monday, July 24, 2006

 

Out and about, what about?

 

The life and death and rebirth of the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority's 821 Circulator?

 

....

 

http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/115372987477640.xml&coll=2

here is the PDF of the powerpoint RTA presented regarding the 821 changes:

 

http://www.riderta.com/pdf/presentations/2006-07-11-821.pdf

I always hate to be the down on DC guy, but when I worked at National for a stint and rode the Metro back late a night...it was was usually filled with newspapers. There was trash all over the place. The stations are clean....but if you look at the underground ones...they seem to be getting mold at the base of the concrete, especially Rosslyn....I remember back in the 90's...the underground stations were not that bad. The SmartCards are OK...but God forbid you put them in your wallet or get it scuffed...they'll scramble and you have to waste $5 to get a new one. SmartCards also aren't available at all stations, so you can end up spending extra money on paper tickets. It's a good system by American standards, but when I go to Tokyo....damn, you see alot of ways all the American city transit systems could be improved.

but if you look at the underground ones...they seem to be getting mold at the base of the concrete, especially Rosslyn

 

I haven't noticed any mold.  If you're talking about the white stuff, that's efflorescence (calcium and mineral deposits) due to groundwater seepage.  From what I understand, tunnel segments built prior to 1990 or so didn't really use liners to channel water away from the porous concrete tunnels.  Call it a design flaw.

 

 

I know what you are talking about Dan. It's not that....maybe I didn't notice back in the 90's because I was doing the Rush Hour thing with everyone else....but at the corners of Rosslyn...in both the upper and lower decks out where the concrete is by the tracks..and especially in the corners there's this green stuff forming..to be fair, I don't know if it's mold...but whatever it is, it's more than those stains and the area expanded over time. I saw a bit of it at the Pentagon too. You can feel the humidity in those stations, even in the winter. Makes me wonder if it is mold or some sort of moss.

^^^^Dumb.  Dumb.  Dumb.  Typical RTA.  Let's take the 821 Circulator, of a service geared toward pedestrians, and route it, in beautiful ped-friendly Cleveland Hts., to the only car-oriented area destination of the burb:  Severance Town Center.  And while they're at it, lets just duplicate bus service already in the area (RTA's great at duplicating services, like it does w/ buses duplicating Rapid routes)....

 

I wish some genius could figure out that the main thrust for having 821, was to finally connect historic TOD Shaker Sq, w/ mega-TOD (and historic in its own right) Coventry, in a reasonable straight line.  That even transit people like me won't ride from my Shaker Sq home over the river & through the wood, all the way down through Cedar Ctr; down the hill through U. Circle then back up the Hill to Coventry (duplicating a bunch of services along the way -- hey, why not?).

 

I thought the whole point was so we could AVOID going down thru U Circle and not up, as we now have to using multiple services...but nooooo, we're talking RTA, and agency that often defies logic.

I was waiting for a bus on Monday to get to work, and after waiting for 40 minutes for a downtown bus that never arrived a woman yelled out angrily, "They're always complaining, 'Why don't people take the bus to work?' Because you won't get to work on time! I normally get a ride to work. I never take the bus."

 

Turns out she worked at RTA! She flashed her badge or whatever it was and then called the office to complain.

Which route was that?

It was the 55X.

 

I could see the woman's point to some degree. I got up extra early so I could be at work at 7:30 before everyone else came in, but I ended up arriving at 8:30, the same time as everyone else. That was a pain in the butt.

 

Of course, that sort of stuff seems to me to be the nature of the beast. There are a million different things that could happen to a bus that would screw up a route schedule, ie. mechanical problems, accidents, traffic, someone on board gets sick, etc.

But the frequencies on the 55X/F are five minutes at that time of day. You mean to tell me that eight buses failed to show up?? Where were getting on the bus? Now, if you get on the 55X on Edgewater, then I could "comprehend" the delay. That's a very infrequently serviced branch of the 55. You'd be better off just walking a couple block down to Clifton at Cove. That's where the buses stop every five minutes.

 

This is also why I don't like buses. There's a tendency of transit agencies to use each route to do too much, with all sorts of confusing offshoots depending on times of day, days of the week, etc. On a map, the routes end up looking like a "thin haze" as opposed to a rail transit line or BRT which is a "sharp linear fixture" which everyone knows where it is and pretty much where it goes.

I'm not playing whichoo, KJP! This is the 55X through Edgewater, mind you.

 

Here's how it went down. I got out of my apartment near the corner of Edgewater and Cove and walked to the bus stop. I must have missed one bus by mere seconds. As you know, they come through Edgewater every 15-20 minutes on a weekday morning. I waited 5 minutes thinking it was maybe late because that has happened before, but I soon realized I missed the bus and in my head I decided it wouldn't be worth walking to the Clifton stop because another one would be coming soon enough. So, I sat there for full the 15 minutes waiting for the next bus. This is when the other passengers came to the bus stop. Then they ended up standing there for 15 minutes with me as the NEXT bus after the one I missed never showed up. Eventually it did show up and he picked us up and then dropped us off at 117 and Clifton because that bus was broke. For me, that was about 40 minutes.

 

If I knew all of this was going to happen, I would have walked straight to the Clifton stop to save time, as you suggest. But when I leave my apartment, I'm just not inclined to walk two blocks when there's a 55X stop two inches from my door that usually works. Plus, I'm more likely to get a seat on the Edgewater 55X.

 

But like I said, I wasn't shocked or angered by all this. It's not like a bus driver blew by the stop without picking us up. Stuff happens, and I guess that bus was broken.

 

I'd much prefer a rail line in this part of town, of course. I haven't taken the bus during the winter around here, but I bet it sucks. I think winter is one of the big perks for rail transit. No traffic to contend with or crash into.

 

 

True, I could have stated it better.

 

BTW, what is "whichoo"?

RTA News

July 27, 2006

 

RTA quarterly report card shows increase in ridership

 

CLEVELAND – The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority’s (RTA) quarterly report card shows that more riders are choosing RTA for their safe and reliable services. The report card compares the first six months of 2006 with the first six months of 2005.

 

> Ridership increased by 1.3 percent over last year.

> Traffic safety – the number of preventable collisions per 100,000 vehicle miles -- also improved by 18.8 percent. The figure dropped from .96 in 2005 to .78 in 2006.

> On-time performance improved 6.5 percent. RTA buses and trains were on time 82 percent of the time in 2006, compared to 77 percent in 2005.

 

“We are delighted that more and more riders are benefiting from RTA. Everyone here at RTA is working hard to make service exceptional for our riders and our numbers show a significant success. We will continue to improve and provide an even better experience for our riders,” says Joe Calabrese, RTA CEO and General Manager.

 

The report card also shows decreases in four other areas – customer satisfaction, farebox revenue, reliability and employee attendance.

 

All quarterly report cards are posted here ... http://www.riderta.com/nu_newsroom_reportcard.asp

Here are 2 renderings I came across for the new e55 station.  It looks like it will be LEED certified.  I still don't understand why more of the platform waiting areas are not covered (like the very old stations and the stations built before the current leadership). It does rain and snow in cleveland, in case anyone is listening. 

 

 

 

www.rlba.com/portfolio/6185GCRTAE55TH.html

The report card also shows decreases in four other areas – customer satisfaction, farebox revenue, reliability and employee attendance.

 

Not good!

 

Does a decline in farebox revenue mean actual fares collected by the fareboxes or does that include monthly passes and the like that can be purchased elsewhere?

 

I will admit that my satisfaction has waned of late...but it's because of isolated incidents, not overall service.

That's a nice looking E. 55 station replacement -- the curved lines housing the platform stairwell (btw, will it have an escalator?) make it look kinda like the Triskett Station built a couple years ago.  As pleased as I am w/ such a new station, doesn't it seem a tad elaborate (read: expensive) for such a lightly used station location?  Given the immediate area is low/mod income and hemmed in by the I-490 stub and many industrial lots, I don't see ridership growing dramatically even w/ the new station... But hey, more power to RTA on this one.

I believe RTA has some station-area development in mind for that location. I don't remember the details, however. In searching the web for something about that, I did find this little tidbit about the new station...

 

From the Burton-Bell-Carr Development Corp. newsletter:

 

http://www.bbcdevelopment.org/communityconnector/fall05newsletter.pdf

 

Newly Redeveloped RTA Transit

Station East 55th Street Bridge

 

A plan that has been discussed since the late 1990s is finally in the works! The newly redeveloped RTA transit station at East 55th Street near the end of I-490 will accommodate more people and provide greater convenience and comfort for riders.

 

Construction on this $8 million dollar project, designed by Richard Bowen & Associates, is scheduled to begin in late 2006, and is expected to be completed in 2 years. The station is located between two neighborhoodsCentral and Slavic Village.

 

Plans call for an entrance to the rapid station and a small customer parking lot on the east side of the East 55th Street Bridge. The design, approximately 1,200 square feet, includes the building and bridge. It boasts a modernistic design in the warm organic tones reminiscent of some stone structures around the neighborhood. The bridge structure that leads to the platform reflects the historic Sidaway Bridge located in Garden Valley.

 

The main entrance will be on the east side of the bridge and will be handicap accessible. The present entrance will be renovated to complement the architecture of the new station.

 

This station will incorporate local public art and the design will maximize green building techniques and materials, required for LEEDs certification, which certifies that the station is environmentally friendly. One percent of the project will be dedicated to art.

 

The transit stop is one of the few where the public is able to ride either the Red heavy rail line or the Blue/Green light rail lines. It is also the station that serves as rail headquarters and the rail service yard. Every train on the RTA system passes through this station on each of its trips. RTA remains committed to this project, and incorporating it with the plans of the neighborhoods they serve.

Kim Scott

Nice find, KJP. I hope they use that $80,000 public art allocation well. I know it's unfair to bring up DC's Metro (even though everyone in here does), but I've always been very impressed with their use of public art installations to really capture the histories, cultures and retail opportunities of some of the more prominent stops.

^^^You're impressed with the art on the Metro?  We need to talk....  LOL

Haha ... Not all of it, but certainly some of the stops. Cleveland's transit-oriented art is almost nonexistent, to date; a lot of the stops are completely void of any sense of connection to the surrounding neighborhood's offerings, history, etc. Meanwhile, I couldn't think of a lot of public art in NYC's system, and both Chicago and London's visual installments seemed largely tied to commercial advertising. So while the Metro has a long way to go, I do think it's done better than some of its counterparts.

 

On an only semi-related note, I had heard some talk back in the day about opening up more opportunities for graffiti artists along the RTA line. In the same discussion, I heard that if existing graffiti/murals (not necessarily the taggers but the amazing and enormous graffiti art) were leveraged down the entire city-based corridor, it would be the longest graffiti installation in the country. Personally, I think that would be pretty cool.

hot of the presses:

 

there is going to be a press conference in mid August regarding the trolleys...expaned hours?  weekend service?  city support to keep it free? ... stay tuned...

At first I wasn't quite sure about the 55th street station design, but I do have to say it has grown on me in the past couple of days.  It seems like it'll do an effective job of increasing the visibility of the station.

 

On a somewhat related note, are there any plans to curtail stations of this magnitude once (if at all) RTA switches to proof of payment for the rail lines?  I have become pretty well acquainted with the Hiawatha Line in Minneapolis, which operates on proof of payment which has allowed them to build stations more along the lines of what is seen along the Blue and Green lines throughout Shaker.  All that the stations essentially need is a concrete platform and a few ticketing kiosks with some form of shelter, along the lines of what appears to be planned for the Euclid Corridor.  Seems as if RTA might be able to spread the station budget a bit more if they were to plan stations with the intention of moving toward proof of payment.

I to like the station, I just HOPE there will be coverage for the platform as it has to accomdate both red and green/blue line trains.

 

All cleveland platforms need coverage and space heaters for winter.

CtownD:

 

I'm not familiar with what you mean by "proof of payment".  Any chance you could elaborate for me?  Thanks.