Hey Yupette,
What a difference a year makes. Projected cost of the Pike $treetcar $ystem has increased from $310 million to $358 million. Arlington's 'contribution' will be $287 million. Another $227 million would be squandered on a Crystal City $treetcar $ystem funded from local revenue sources, meaning the County Manager raids the General Fund and transit funding sources. So, what will the projected cost be next year?
We've seen this before, a decade ago, when the Chamber of Commerce boosters (who are major proponents of an Arlington $treetcar $ystem) pushed for a major league baseball stadium in Arlington. Was only supposed to cost a couple hundred million. Turned out costing DC taxpayers more than $650 million.
Enough of this. Stop any more spending on what's going to be a Pike parking lot. Same County Board majority that wants everyone on a car-free diet voted to construct or re-purpose between 13,000 and 14,000 parking spaces since January 2012.
Pike Rider
25 comments:
Car free diet? Fisette, Hynes, and Tejada proposed a consent agenda item (#14) to install two big weekend open air markets in Clarendon with no traffic or parking impact analysis whatsoever.
Someone pulled the consent agenda item and they got cold feet and had the applicant withdraw the proposal.
Car Free Diet? County Board (with the exception of John Vihstadt) voted to give key non-resident decision makers Barbara Donnellan, Steve MacIssac, and Hope Halleck cost-of-living raises to cover the increased cost of driving to work in Arlington.
Car Free Diet? Do you really expect me to ride a bicycle on the crumbling streets and broken sidewalks in my Ballston neighborhood?
Ask Dennis Leach how many new parking spaces he is going to allow the REITs to install on the Pike Canyon over teh next decade.
How many parking spaces were constructed at 'affordable' Arlington Mill?
Car free diet? County transportation staff drive from where they live in PW County to preach a car free diet to the sheeple at events like farmer's markets.
How many residential neighborhoods will traffic and parking from Taste of Arlington impact?
When does my street get repaved?
If there is a move toward a referendum on the streetcar why is there total media censorship regarding streetcar-like buses aka bus rapid transit?
Why spend $227 million out of local funds for a Crystal City streetcar system when for 10% of that we can get bus rapid transit that seamlessly connects to Alexandria's bus rapid transit?
I resent the complete media censorship of alternatives to streetcars on the Pike and in Crystal City.
Ten streetcars for $358 million? For $35.8 million we can get 10 fuel-cell powered vehicles that are custom designed by a top transportation designer to look totally cool and that almost everyone will want to ride.
DC area media can't print photos of totally cool BRT's. No one would want to spend $585 million for streetcars if they did.
WHY are our tax dollars being squandered on 19th Century technology when we can get so much more for way little cost with 21st Century BRT technology?
'Cause Smart Growth America VP Chris Zimmerman told Fisette, Hynes, and Tejada to do it. that's why.
Car Free Diet? People, Fisette, Hynes, and Tejada were all ready to impose two new massive weekend open air markets on Clarendon via Item 14 on the CB Consent Agenda last Saturday with no traffic impact or parking impact studies whatsoever.
Form a search committee to see what state of the art BRT vehicles are currently being manufactured.
Who from County Government are lobbying US Department of Transportation for streetcars??
How about - a BRT manufacturer or manufacturers drive a demo BRT to Arlington and run it up and down the Pike?
I agree. Streetcars would be DOA if the local media didn't completely censor information about state-of-the-art BRT.
Smart Growth Sucks. Here's why. New Urbanists and their corporate cronies triple the density in your formerly suburban neighborhood (aka 'redevelopment opportunity') and then re-purpose streets, sidewalks, playgrounds, everything to provide 'open space' for the yupsters who took over after the middle class was gentrified out. Working class was already gentrified out 50 miles, where farms are being bulldozed into suburbs, and drive to/from Arlington, usually one per vehicle.
Where does that get us in 10 years if a streetcar system is installed on the Pike? No brainer. Pike is a parking lot and streetcars are stuck in traffic.
Streetcars are nothing but a gimmick, like the 2-track Metrorail system, to promote massive in-fill redevelopment in rail corridors to benefit the real estate trusts and other corporate interests.
"New Urbanism" is a lose-lose-lose - for residents of suburban communities, for the environment, and for the working class who cater the wants of the New Urbanists.
BRT would soon be running on the Pike and in Crystal City if it weren't for PlutoCrats who want to make big $$$ with their in-fill redevelopment tied to streetcars.
There is a 20% contingency for the project. 20$ of $358 million is $71.6 million. So the total cost could be $429.6 million, as of today.
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