BIKE: Commuter Rails with Trails

[alan_drake]

> >As you said, the only attraction to building a hotel next to the
> >Deerfield TriRail station is, well, the TriRail station. 
> >That, IMO, makes it TOD.
> >  
> Uh, no, the hotel was built there because the land was available and 
> because it's near I-95. This portion of South Florida is basically 
> built-out with wall-to-wall suburban sprawl, hemmed in only by the 
> Everglades. Even tracts with what would normally be considered poor 
>  freeway access are getting snapped up, because the supply of 
> buildable empty land is basically gone.
> 
> I guarantee that, apart from riders there for a transit conference, 
> there aren't many Tri-Rail riders originating from this hotel.

I noticed a couple of others coming from or going to the hotel with me. 
Add those who used TriRail at other times and it is not enough to fill up
the hotel, but enough to make the margin between profit & loss.

> > It is an inexpensive and convenient "jumping off " point via 
> TriRail to much of South Florida.
> >  
> Yes, as long as you don't mind spending three times as long getting 
> where you're going than if you used your rental car.

I doubt that the travel times are much longer *IF* you time your train
properly.  I did rent a car for two days because of the lack of a north
train after 7:30 PM and it saved, late at night when traffic was lighter
but still heavy, about 10 or 15 minutes from Miami.  The TriRail schedule
from Deerfield to MetroRail is 59 minutes.  I seriously doubt if you can
drive that in 1/3 the time, that is in under 20 minutes. (for others on
the list, this is 35 to 40 miles (my guess)).

> > The operating limits imposed by sharing a single track with a 
> major freight line & Amtrak did hurt ridership significantly.  When 
> double tracking is finished next year and they speed up, go to 20
minute
> >headways, offer later northbound service, etc. ridership will 
> definitely improve.  The question is how much.
> >
> >Given the growing population & congestion in South Florida and 
> higher gas prices, the ridership should increase with time as well. 
One can 
> spend $5 today just on gas in stop & start freeway driving from Ft. 
> Lauderdale to Miami.
> >
> A system that relies on shuttle-bus distribution to drop off passengers

> at their destinations will not achieve great gains in ridership when 
> traffic congestion goes up. The same congestion slowing down the car 
> will also slow down the shuttle bus - even worse in many cases due 
> to the shuttle bus' performance characteristics.
> 
> Tri-Rail is not attracting any choice commuters _today_, even with 
> the stop-and-go freeway driving. I don't know why you would view this
as 
> anything other than a huge problem.

There were a few suits & more than a few laptops & briefcases at the
Miami Metrorail (a Subway in the Sky) and TriRail transfer station.  I
struck up a conversation at the station with a CPA who lives in Ft.
Lauderdale and typically bills much of his commute time on TriRail.

What Ft. Lauderdale needs is a streetcar or light rail connection to
TriRail.  The CPA Parks & Rides.  The shuttle bus is an issue.

Unfortunately, not much of this will be applicable to the proposed Red
Line.

Alan

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