UNLV Transit Hub Study Part 1

There’s no question that a lot of people live and work around UNLV. Looking at the numbers of the RTC’s study, without a doubt this is a busy core. And it’s not just people driving around, it’s also people walking around, biking around, and getting off in front of the university.

Students commuting to UNLV tend to live to the southeast stretching out to the 215 South. It’s a wonder then why there hasn’t been more development transportation wise in this direction. There is 200 space Park & Ride lot just south of the airport, but that’s already within five miles of the university. And we all know how long it takes the buses to travel five miles (link).

Those are all interesting facts, but the success of the proposed Transit Hub, wherever it shall fall, is the implementation of the Maryland Parkway BRT plus other Park & Ride facilities in the southeast. In another study, the Mission Group proposed this layout for the BRT and Park & Ride facilities (from the Fixed-Guideway Transit for the Las Vegas Region Presentation) :

ACE BRT plan

(Interestingly, this study recommended a light rail system but the RTC went with bus rapid transit instead because of price concerns. For an awesome analysis of BRT versus Light Rail, see Yuri Popov’s, physics professor at University of Michigan, post.)

And of course, the success of both the Transit Hub and BRT line depend upon a revitalization of the corridor – i.e. Midtown UNLV. But with the dissolution of the Clark County Redevelopment Agency, everything is very much up in the air.

The next stop is the Maryland Parkway BRT study. Please forgive the delays, but you see, I am but one person reading through thousands of pages.

A lot of hullabaloo is being made about a light rail system that would go down the Virginia Street corridor from Meadowood Mall to the university. The Reno-Gazette Journal reported this at the end of April along with another article detailing more bus route cuts, and I hope you take a look at my own homage to past bus routes lost. Also, a fellow J-school student created this map of bus route ridership and neighborhood economic background:

View Larger Map

RTC Washoe is looking at Portland, Ore. as a model because they built a 2.4 mile long stretch of streetcar tracks. Portland is a good model for all the reasons stated in the article (increased ridership, residential and commercial developments along the line) but Portland proper has half a million residents, while Reno has barely 300,000 in its metropolitan area.
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I don’t know the rules on this, but check out the comments on these stories on the proposed light rail system, the $1 billion price tag for toll roads and $85 million bonds sale that would fund Union Park.

I get it, Nevada is a tax haven and everyone wants to keep their SUV. Politicians lit torches and shook pitchforks at a proposed $836 million tax hike by splattering TV screens with anti-so-and-so-legislator ads. Should they approve the “largest ever tax hike in Nevada history,” they will be pinned with a scarlet letter “L” for liberal-tax-thirsty-cannibal.

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PBS has a good documentary on how one city, Charlotte, North Carolina,  will be using the stimulus money on adding another track to its rail system.

Mayor Pat McCrory of Charlotte  took a lot of heat from other politicians about his proposed rail system that would bring people back to downtown and away from suburbia. Ultimately, the citizens of Charlotte favored the idea.

It makes me wonder what would happen in Vegas if such a system existed. Charlotte and Vegas are comparable in size and population, with Vegas being a hundred square miles smaller. Both of their problems are similar: lackluster downtown (and we’re talking the REAL downtown, not the tourist’s downtown) and endless suburban sprawl.

Charlotte looks amazing. The rail system looks modern and sleek; it reminds of the light rail in Bordeaux. The platforms to get on are inviting and safe. Mayor McCrory emphasized the diversity of people riding – not just the homeless or geriatric, but professionals, students, families, and tourists.

If Vegas’ Mayor Oscar Goodman truly wants to create a downtown lifestyle, he’s got to get rid of the neonopolis and build a rail system for the entire Vegas valley. ACE rapid transit is heading the right direction, but buses to ACE are slow and erratic.

How should Vegas connect its citizens to downtown?

Just finished reading The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell and am wondering – how can we “infect” people to start riding the bus in Vegas?

EcoLocalizer has a post up about the BeltLine in Atlanta:

Part of the 22 mile loop around the city included Norfolk Southern’s abandonment in the Northeast Rail Corridor, so that area could be transformed into part of the BeltLine. Now, AMTRAK and the GDOT want to halt that abandonment. The two agencies say that they want the land for heavy rail development.

Does anyone even take the train anymore? One of my biggest bugaboos about trans-American travel is the lack of a reliable train system. But bumping down a system to make interurban traffic more manageable and ecological for a system that industries only use is a serious slap in the face to residents of Atlanta.

With billions of dollars coming Vegas’s way for highway construction and mass transit, the focus is on bigger hubs and better buses. A light rail system would be more of an imposition on the current architecture of the city, but how about more buses and better routes? How about smaller routes for those who thought enough to live close to work?

The denizens of Atlanta are all for the BeltLine, but how did they do that and how could we achieve that? How can we change the attitudes of drivers?

For those living in the ATL, this info is for you:

Get Involved
Atlanta residents’ enthusiasm has been huge in keeping this BeltLine project on track, and we need to get involved now more than ever! Shirley Franklin let Rep. Lewis know how she feels, and we should follow her example. You can write to him at:

The Honorable John Lewis
U.S. House of Representatives
343 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515-1005

If you’re looking to volunteer, there are a number of ways to help out, from giving out information at local festivals to speaking and working on development programs. Folks can also show their support by attending BeltLine events. What else can local Atlantans do to rally for the BeltLine?