|
Tempe says lets subsidize stupid so we will have lots of it!!!!! Lets have a dumb ass overpriced light rail system on the Tempe Town Toilet
Tempe taking a look into trolleys One light-rail system just might not be enough for Tempe. The city is looking at a streetcar system that would run along the length of Tempe Town Lake so visitors could get to the booming area without a car. The streetcar would run roughly two miles along Rio Salado Parkway, from the Tempe Arts Center to downtown to Tempe Marketplace. The idea shows how dense development is expected along the lake. It also is the result of growing congestion in a place where the city can’t widen already-clogged roads. “People will be able to come to our city and choose whether they want to have a car or not,” said Glenn Kephart, the city’s public works manager. “They won’t be forced to have a car.” The city hasn’t studied the cost or logistical issues of a streetcar. Also, the city hasn’t researched whether the cars would have their own lane and run on rail, as the Metro lightrail system will. The City Council will take up the issue for the first time Thursday, and could approve a closer look if members like the idea. The streetcar issue is part of a larger transportation study that looks at how Tempe can get people around as more offices and housing — including 30-story condo towers — are proposed. The city is also looking to expand its Flash neighborhood circulator. Another way to get cars out of downtown involves having reserved park-andride lots along the lightrail line that would be reserved for employees of specific businesses, Arizona State University or the city. Those employees could get to work on rail, which would free street capacity and downtown parking lots for visitors. Tempe needs to boost downtown transit — but probably not with streetcars, said Rod Keeling, executive director of the Downtown Tempe Community. Keeling questioned the need to get people from the arts center, which is a small, community-oriented venue, to a suburban shopping mall at the other end. He’d prefer to see a bus of some sort that would take people to and from ASU’s Gammage Auditorium, which attracts 300,000 visitors a year. “Gammage has a huge, huge impact for us,” Keeling said. “I think that’s the connection we should look at.” Keeling sees a need to get people from downtown to Pier 202, a large development planned at Tempe Town Lake’s southeast corner. But if Tempe wants to boost transit on Rio Salado, Keeling said the city should test demand with buses because they’d be far cheaper than a streetcar. Vice Mayor Mark Mitchell said he’s open to a streetcar or bus. But Mitchell, a member of the City Council’s transportation committee, sees a need to move people along Rio Salado Parkway. “It complements our overall transit plan to get people around town easily without a car,” Mitchell said. Contact Garin Groff by email, or phone (480) 898-5938
|