Sunday, August 31, 2014

Scrap the Streetcar - Use the State's $65 Million for ART Bus Service Everywhere in the County


Hey Yupette,

I just received the County's 'Car Free Diet' brochure in the mail. Produced by DES Staff who don't live in the County and commute to 2100 one-per-vehicle from their bicycle-free outer suburbs.

Like tens of thousands of Arlington residents I am never going to ride a bicycle again. For one thing, the streets and even the sidewalks in my neighborhood (Ballston) are too dangerous. Who wants to ride a bicycle in the Winter?

The Pike streetcar is a complete waste of meney, and the tracks would be dangerous to several thousand who would ride bicycles on the Pike.

Instead of spending any more for the stupid Pike streetcar, I want the $65 million the State would provide for a dozen Pike streetcars spent to extend ART Bus service everywhere in the County.

I'm sick and tired of having to cater to the wants of a bunch of Elitist Democrats and their wealthy corporate and non-profit cronies, aided and abetted by a bloated bureaucracy most of whom wouldn't live in Arlington if you gave them a million dollar home or condo here.

Thanks for your blog.

Mark, Ballston

21 comments:

Anonymous said...

Second the Motion, Mark.

Anonymous said...

How many Arlington residents who own bicycles even ride them in the rain?

How did we reach the point where bicycles and streetcars became key components of Arlington's transportation system?

Anonymous said...

There should be a seamless local transit system inside the Virginia Beltway...ART, DASH, Fairfax County CONNECTOR.

Anonymous said...

Eminently sensible idea. ART is an all-weather transit system that everyone can use. Could save thousands more SOV trips daily if service were extended across the County and links up with other local government bus service.

Anonymous said...

ART Service for Everyone + Medicare for Everyone = Great Ideas...defeated by greedy health insurance companies and greedy REITs...

Anonymous said...

If new ART routes were intelligently planned they could take thousands of SOV trips off the Pike and other arterials.

Anonymous said...

Another reason I will never vote for another Democrat for County Board.

Anonymous said...

Any reason high school students couldn't take ART buses to school if ART bus service were expanded to every neighborhood rather than school buses?

Anonymous said...

Why it can't happen --- it's the God-given right of every Arlington parent to drive his / her kid or kids to school.

Anonymous said...

Chris Zimmerman, Jay Fisette, and the New Urbanists want everyone to ride bicycles 24/7/365, that's why.

Anonymous said...

Can't have Third Generation Yupsters riding to school in a dirty old school bus or dirty old ART bus, when they can zoom to school in Mom's Lexus SUV.

Anonymous said...

The Pro-Streetcar gang doesn't want to reduce the number of transit riders on the Pike through new ART routes. They want to continue to claim that only streetcars can accommodate the number of Pike riders.

Anonymous said...

VIPs employed by County Government (only a few live in Arlington) cater to special interest groups like the bicyclists who inflict their belief systems (abbreviated BS) on us. Bicycles have become another icon which the Bicycle Cult worships, just as Harleys are worshiped by the Motorcycle Cult.

So we have this insane situation where transportation needs are ignored and transportation wants are promoted.

I also won't vote for any more Democratic candidates for County Board. And I'm a Democrat.

Anonymous said...

I also am sick and tired of elitist Democrats micromanaging my life from their upscale neighborhoods and their upscale second homes in elitist enclaves far from the 'Smart Growth' they inflict on us.

Why do these people still call themselves 'Democrats'? They're a bunch of Counrty Club Republicans without the country club.

Anonymous said...

Dump the Pike streetcar...ART for Everyone.

Anonymous said...

Does anyone have a problem with 9-12 grade students taking an ART bus to and from school? Seems sensible to me. I took a city bus to and from school 20 years ago, trip took 10 minutes vs. 30 minutes on a school bus.

Anonymous said...

ACDC VIPs micromanage everything? Bet you a bottle of Tobasco sauce ACDC VIPs 'win' today's ACDC chili cook off.

Anonymous said...

Why does every parent have to drive their kid or kids to school?

APS is supposed to be discouraging parents driving their kids to school. Not what I saw at my neighborhood elementary school today.

Cops were controlling traffic so the dropping off proceeded smoothly.

Yes, I want ART bus service in my neighborhood. Dump the stupid streetcar.

Anonymous said...

APS is stretching out start times and dismissal times so parents can drive their kids to school.

Anonymous said...

Yes, ACDC Committee members 'won' the chili cook off.

Anonymous said...

Absolutely no problem for 9th thru 12th grade students taking ART and Metro buses to and from school.

So scrap the streetcar and use the money for a comprehensive ART bus route expansion instead.

Please do not tell my kid to ride a bicycle to school over the broken streets in my neighborhood.

BTW, when will S. Dinwiddie Street near Wakefield HS finally be paved?