October 12, 201311 yr After such a long, long wait I am just glad to see some real physical progess being made on the streetcar construction in the form of actual tracks going down and the maintenance building being built. Makes you think it might actually make it afterall.
October 12, 201311 yr I think Landsman's approach is exactly what is needed. Whether you agree with it or not, it's getting built. So let's get people in there who are committed to making it successful and as well-run as possible.
October 12, 201311 yr Agreed. Landsman gets my vote. A lot of people on here we're criticizing Seelbach a few months ago (pre-Deatrick) because he was being critical of the streetcar in the media. I think Landsman is trying to do the same thing. Support but push and be critical of mistakes. Plus, so long as some sort of sponsorship money, even a fairly small amount, is in the operating budget and uptown consortium throws and maybe even only $1-2 million, Greg can turn around and say see, I made sure there was private funding.
October 12, 201311 yr John Cranley's proposal to stop the streetcar 'might be the worst idea ever floated by a mayoral candidate' according to this DC blog article http://dc.streetsblog.org/2013/10/11/cincy-mayor-candidate-john-cranley-stop-streetcar-now-in-case-im-elected/
October 12, 201311 yr Apparently some people are questioning whether Landsman is, in fact, a supporter of the project. He is not saying that he'd cancel it -- in fact, he says it should be extended to Uptown -- but he told the Enquirer that he would have voted against the recent $17m. Here is an editorial he wrote for UrbanCincy on the topic: http://www.urbancincy.com/2013/08/greg-landsman-riding-the-cincinnati-streetcar-to-success/ So, read what he wrote and decide for yourself whether or not he's a supporter. I'd still rather have Landsman than Sittenfeld on council when it comes to this issue. Sittenfeld is pretty much a shoe in at this point. It would take a major major upset for him not to be re-elected. He's got the most money and name recognition in the city council race. He played both sides perfectly. Conservatives and dems will vote for him
October 12, 201311 yr Agreed. Landsman gets my vote. A lot of people on here we're criticizing Seelbach a few months ago (pre-Deatrick) because he was being critical of the streetcar in the media. I think Landsman is trying to do the same thing. Support but push and be critical of mistakes. Did it occur to you streetcar supporters may be doing the same thing with the candidates? If constituents don't make it known that support for the streetcar is of the utmost importance, candidates could and would flake. Even with all the strong showings at meetings and many, many election wins for the streetcar and supporting candidates, a majority of council candidates support canceling the project with rails in the ground. I'm not totally convinced Landsman is not another Sittenfeld, but he seems to be one of the most supportive 9 council candidates. Coming in 9th place, as far as I can tell. Reason being: showing a willingness to cancel the project at the 17m vote would have been ridiculous. And if it's just campaign rhetoric, then his honesty leaves something to be desired. You can say "that's politics," but I do not accept that. I'd bet that's what some Cranley supporters think about his "cancel the streetcar" rhetoric Fortunately I don't have to make the decision, but I would consider voting for just 8 candidates, if I were a Cincinnati voter. Because I'd rather more supportive candidates win over a potential flake.
October 12, 201311 yr Life is so tough sometimes: http://cincinnati.com/blogs/arts/2013/10/11/attention-concert-goers-elm-street-closures-hamper-access-to-music-hall/
October 12, 201311 yr My point is more about balancing candidates that have a great chance to get elected versus their supportiveness of the streetcar. Another poster listed the streetcar supporters by likelihood of winning and Landsman is the only one in the 'top tier' of challengers who is supportive. That's why I find this particular conversation interesting. I supported Flynn in 2011 and obviously won't be doing that this time. The biggest difference between 2011 and 2013 is the number of viable streetcar-supportive challengers.
October 12, 201311 yr Life is so tough sometimes: http://cincinnati.com/blogs/arts/2013/10/11/attention-concert-goers-elm-street-closures-hamper-access-to-music-hall/ Like ObammaCare this thing is a train mess. Probably the worst thing since the liberals caused 9/11...
October 13, 201311 yr Life is so tough sometimes: http://cincinnati.com/blogs/arts/2013/10/11/attention-concert-goers-elm-street-closures-hamper-access-to-music-hall/ Like ObammaCare this thing is a train mess. Probably the worst thing since the liberals caused 9/11... Coast is right. The streetcar is worse than 9/11
October 13, 201311 yr Sittenfeld is pretty much a shoe in at this point. It would take a major major upset for him not to be re-elected. He's got the most money and name recognition in the city council race. He played both sides perfectly. Conservatives and dems will vote for him i wont.
October 13, 201311 yr John Schneider said this a while back in this thread (I don't know if it survived the UO crash a while back, but it bears repeating): "By the way, a well-connected Cincinnatian said this to me today about our upcoming mayoral election: We have a 39 year-old who thinks like a 60 year-old running against a 60 year-old who thinks like a 39 year-old. I think that's a perfect description of Cranley v. Qualls. Make it viral."
October 13, 201311 yr David Mann went after the streetcar today in the Enquirer It will be interesting to see what the Enquirer says on the matter Do they oppose it but state the evidence that it should not be stopped due to the monetary ramifications or do they play for page clicks & string out the controversy for revenue By the way, they are projecting voter turnout to be one of the worst ever for this election. EVERY vote is crucial. An anemic turnout means a John Cranley victory and a John Cranley victory most likely means an all anti-streetcar/anti-city council
October 13, 201311 yr David Mann went after the streetcar today in the Enquirer It will be interesting to see what the Enquirer says on the matter Do they oppose it but state the evidence that it should not be stopped due to the monetary ramifications or do they play for page clicks & string out the controversy for revenue By the way, they are projecting voter turnout to be one of the worst ever for this election. EVERY vote is crucial. An anemic turnout means a John Cranley victory and a John Cranley victory most likely means an all anti-streetcar/anti-city council I am hoping that the zoo and library levies will bring out some progressive voters that may not be very excited about the mayoral or council races.
October 13, 201311 yr This is probably buried in here somewhere, but, what's the solution for ice on the power lines?
October 13, 201311 yr Really? Whats the solution on the power lines we have now? Nothing has to be done. The wires are black, so heat up enough in the daytime sun to melt and break the ice away. The catenary wires for the streetcar are so thin, that its unlikely any ice would form on them. Any that did would come off from wind or from the streetcar itself.
October 13, 201311 yr Sellers are erroneously advertising properties on the Vine St. hill as "on the proposed streetcar line": http://www.trulia.com/property/3133917085-2302-Vine-St-Cincinnati-OH-45219#photo-1 Problem is no stops are planned anywhere near this location, even though the line will travel within feet of the building.
October 13, 201311 yr This is probably buried in here somewhere, but, what's the solution for ice on the power lines? Ice can definitely be an issue, both on the wires and in the switches. They will probably run the cars continously, even in the middle of the night, to keep ice from forming on the wires. Most modern light rail and streetcar systems have switch-warmers thes days.
October 13, 201311 yr Wellington, OH railroad grade separation, funded in part by the $50 million Kasich took away from the Cincinnati Streetcar in April 2011, is speculated to be delayed for five years: http://www.morningjournal.com/general-news/20120119/odot-delays-wellington-underpass-other-projects
October 13, 201311 yr thanks, an old time Cincinnatian said this about the old streetcar system "Freezing Rain was the biggest problem. When we got into cold weather, they put ice scrapers in front of pole contacts." Of course, tnere's a rumor that technology has advanced since then.
October 13, 201311 yr This is probably buried in here somewhere, but, what's the solution for ice on the power lines? Ice can definitely be an issue, both on the wires and in the switches. They will probably run the cars continously, even in the middle of the night, to keep ice from forming on the wires. Most modern light rail and streetcar systems have switch-warmers thes days. Thanks for this explanation. Why do we still have people who get so defensive every time someone asks about a potential issue? It's like it's some personal attack to ask questions. (Obviously not referring to quimbob or John). That makes sense that for parts of the winter they may still run streetcars after hours to prevent icing. John (or others), how many lights are being adjusted to give preference to Streetcars. Is the driver going to be able to hold a light for an extra 30 seconds, etc?
October 13, 201311 yr ^ Not sure how this finally played out, but I recall there were going to be two early-release intersections where the streetcar would get something like a 10-15 second head-start on parallel traffic to enable it to change lanes without interference. The traffic engineers killed the "hold-green" idea, but we may get it back over time if people want to improve speeds
October 13, 201311 yr This is probably buried in here somewhere, but, what's the solution for ice on the power lines? Ice can definitely be an issue, both on the wires and in the switches. They will probably run the cars continously, even in the middle of the night, to keep ice from forming on the wires. Most modern light rail and streetcar systems have switch-warmers thes days. Thanks for this explanation. Why do we still have people who get so defensive every time someone asks about a potential issue? It's like it's some personal attack to ask questions. (Obviously not referring to quimbob or John). Is just a byproduct of dealing with opponents unfortunately. Opponents have used the concern troll approach at times. Frustration of 5+ years of obstruction can take its toll understandably
October 13, 201311 yr Streetcars run all winter long in cities around the world (Canada, Russia, etc.). Even the ancient New Orleans streetcars appear to be doing fine in the snow:
October 14, 201311 yr This is probably buried in here somewhere, but, what's the solution for ice on the power lines? Ice can definitely be an issue, both on the wires and in the switches. They will probably run the cars continously, even in the middle of the night, to keep ice from forming on the wires. Most modern light rail and streetcar systems have switch-warmers thes days. Thanks for this explanation. Why do we still have people who get so defensive every time someone asks about a potential issue? It's like it's some personal attack to ask questions. (Obviously not referring to quimbob or John). Sorry - I did not mean to sound defensive. I honestly thought it was a silly question that didn't really need a response, but I stand corrected.
October 14, 201311 yr Wellington, OH railroad grade separation, funded in part by the $50 million Kasich took away from the Cincinnati Streetcar in April 2011, is speculated to be delayed for five years: http://www.morningjournal.com/general-news/20120119/odot-delays-wellington-underpass-other-projects Because it doesn't provide any chance for more sprawl and more VMTs which are sought to keep gas tax revenues from going into a sharper free fall. And that makes it harder to keep highway contractors well fed (ie: the main purpose of ODOT). "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 14, 201311 yr Don't forget, John Deatrick will be on Cincinnati.com live chat answering questions from noon to 1 p.m today. You can also email questions to Carl Weiser [email protected]. Get your streetcar questions answered "It's just fate, as usual, keeping its bargain and screwing us in the fine print..." - John Crichton
October 14, 201311 yr DC wires, specifically the running wire for things like streetcars, tend to be thicker than their AC equivalents. I want to say they're about 1/2" in diameter or possibly more, though they can be more of a squashed oval shape with grooves to hold supports and such. Anyway, they have to be thicker because of the simple fact that there's more resistance to DC current than AC. So with there being more resistance, should that make the wires warmer, and thus less likely to ice over? I know they still can ice up, but maybe less so than the rest of the grid? With a pantograph that puts a fair bit of pressure on the wire (more than a trolley pole I think), it should do a decent job of breaking ice off the wire ahead of it just from flexing of the wire itself. If not, the pickup bar at the top of the pantograph is a decent scraper by itself too.
October 14, 201311 yr Don't forget, John Deatrick will be on Cincinnati.com live chat answering questions from noon to 1 p.m today. You can also email questions to Carl Weiser [email protected]. Get your streetcar questions answered You can also get a personal tour of the streetcar construction guided by John Deatrick on Oct. 26 (and get a nice breakfast and lunch, plus hear about the streetcar project's long history from UO's own John Schneider, and learn about Cincinnati Amtrak service/expansion progress)...... http://allaboardohio.org/2013/09/26/fall-meeting-streetcar-stroll-oct-26/ "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 14, 201311 yr and learn about Cincinnati Amtrak service/expansion progress)...... Huh? What'd I miss?
October 14, 201311 yr Don't forget, John Deatrick will be on Cincinnati.com live chat answering questions from noon to 1 p.m today. You can also email questions to Carl Weiser [email protected]. Get your streetcar questions answered I hope there is a good moderator because I'm hearing COASTers are trying to troll the entire q and a
October 14, 201311 yr and learn about Cincinnati Amtrak service/expansion progress)...... Huh? What'd I miss? If you join us Oct. 26, you won't miss a thing! "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 14, 201311 yr Jeff ruby came out publicly against the streetcar. Called it 'a streetcar named disaster' and then blamed the 'socialist media' via Twitter for it
October 14, 201311 yr This is just getting ridiculous. Jeff-the-Racist-Ruby now chiming in about the streetcar? I'm awaiting UDF's response... "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
October 14, 201311 yr Jeff Ruby needs to get out of his car more. Jeff Ruby is perpetually stuck in the 80s, so that ain't gonna happen. It's when he started his most recent cocaine binge, which by now is his only anchor in this world. It's a wonder he had the presence of mind not to call the media Soviet.
October 14, 201311 yr Don't forget, John Deatrick will be on Cincinnati.com live chat answering questions from noon to 1 p.m today. You can also email questions to Carl Weiser [email protected]. Get your streetcar questions answered I hope there is a good moderator because I'm hearing COASTers are trying to troll the entire q and a It's Carl Weiser and he's generally a good moderator. I don't think it matters much because Deatrick is a smart guy and will make any troll attempts look silly.
October 14, 201311 yr started at noon - it's already getting weird with Jeff Cappell asking how to silence out of town detractors...
October 14, 201311 yr All Aboard Ohio @AllAboardOhio 2m 76% of the people online voting right now on http://Cincinnati.com would consider leaving #Cincinnati if #CincyStreetcar were cancelled! "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 14, 201311 yr >Jeff Ruby needs to get out of his car more He's got six of them, including a $200,000 Ferrari F40, according to his recent photo spread in The Enquirer.
October 14, 201311 yr All Aboard Ohio @AllAboardOhio 2m 76% of the people online voting right now on http://Cincinnati.com would consider leaving #Cincinnati if #CincyStreetcar were cancelled! That link just goes to the front page. I'd love to vote in that poll, but I can't find it.
October 14, 201311 yr Is this the most misinformed Enquirer letter-writer ever? http://cincinnati.com/blogs/letters/2013/10/14/unsure-about-streetcars-ability-to-tackle-our-hills/
October 14, 201311 yr Is this the most misinformed Enquirer letter-writer ever? http://cincinnati.com/blogs/letters/2013/10/14/unsure-about-streetcars-ability-to-tackle-our-hills/ http://cincinnati.com/blogs/letters/2011/05/09/streetcar-is-a-communist-idea/
October 14, 201311 yr I fed the troll but... "Streetcars went up and down Vine Street, West Clifton Avenue, Liberty Hill, Milton, and McMillan, and that was over a century ago. Those streets all have slopes in the 6-8% range."
October 14, 201311 yr Even though Phase 1 is relatively flat, the streetcars are being built with large motors that can make it up the Vine Street Hill once that extension is built.
October 14, 201311 yr http://cincinnati.com/blogs/letters/2011/05/09/streetcar-is-a-communist-idea/ Are they really that desperate for letters that they will print "anything"!?!?! For the record: Private-sector streetcars were destroyed by public-sector paved roads. How popular were cars without government-funded paved roads? Not as popular as streetcars and interurbans were. When the public-private playing field was level, the rails ruled the roads..... The sign on this Columbus, Newark & Zanesville Electric Railway Co. interurban reads "Are the highways paid for by those who use them?" "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 14, 201311 yr I thought John Deatrick was great, but following his web-chat, the usual torrent of misinformation appeared via email. So I sent Carl Weiser a note, which he published, here: http://cincinnati.com/blogs/politics/2013/10/14/replay-streetcar-chat-with-john-deatrick/
October 14, 201311 yr Cincy4Progress @Cincy4Progress 6s "Mayor Mark Mallory announces first streetcar rail will be installed tomorrow on Elm between 12th and 14th streets." http://fb.me/1OVar38xo "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
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