Oak Cliff-Union Station Streetcar

[gshelton91]

The amount of bond money voters have approved for transportation improvements which the Dallas City Council has earmarked for the Trinity River Park Tollway would pay for an impressive Trolley system. Hasnt the tollway racked up an almost three hundred million dollar committment between the two most recent bond elections?

There is no doubt that money must be spent to make travel in/around Central Dallas easier, but it's past time the city council is made to recognize the longterm cultural, economic and quality of life benefits a pervasive trolley system secures. Another route for through-traffic does very little to encourage downtown developments. Making it easier for downtown area residents, out of town visitors and suburban commuters to conveniently navigate Central Dallas without a car does very much to encourage downtown development.

Great statement... i don't see how it helps Dallas to make it easy for people in one suburb to cut through dallas to work in another suburb... make transport in downtown so great workers want to work their.

[FoUTASportscaster]

Uhm, that's basically what DART does now. Unless you go from Plano to Richardson, or on the new line from Carrollton to Farmer's Branch or Irving to DFW Airport, then the lines basically lead to downtown, making it easier to get to, especially on a rail station. The largest bus ridership is the downtown local's not the suburban or crosstown routes. The all 5 downtown stations are in the top 10 in most ridden stations.

What an extensive trolley system will do is provide easier transportation to places like Oak Cliff's Bishop Arts District outside of downtown. The only district that is really excluded by DART in downtown is the Farmer's Market, even by bus mostly.

[CTroyMathis]

http://video.nbc5i.com/player/?id=110425

and

[FoUTASportscaster]

Why do they interview random joes of the street?

"I guess if they did it, people would it just to ride the cars."

Really?

"I really don't see people riding the streetcar."

So what were the 225,000 last year.

I hate that crap.

[Haretip]

From the Oak Cliff People:

Transit Authority Starts Down Track
Holds fundraiser to bring back streetcars
By Chuck Cox
Staff Writer



The Oak Cliff Transit Authority held its first fundraiser for what group president and co-founder Jason Roberts hopes will ultimately bring streetcars or trolley lines back to Oak Cliff for the first time since January 1956.

The initial private fundraiser, which was held June 21 at the home of Matt Holley of Sky Modern Development, introduced the project to developers, Dallas City Council members, and merchants. The authority is planning a public fundraiser for August or September.

Roberts believes streetcars would not only bring back a nostalgic, “Main Street, America” feel to Oak Cliff, but would also be beneficial to the area in combating parking issues. The proposed line would be 4.6 miles long and would link Oak Cliff to downtown Dallas.

“Several cities have brought [streetcars] back,” Roberts said. “In all of these instances, they’ve been facilitators for redevelopment in the area. Oak Cliff has already got that small-town kind of feel.

“We just need to be able to get from one place to another because we have no place to park,” he said. “We’ve outlined several things we see as being major benefits for having this. One of the major ones is parking.”

Roberts said he knows several business owners who aren’t able to acquire certificates of occupancy from the city because there is no parking available in some places on Davis Street and Jefferson Boulevard. Some of the cities that have successfully put in streetcar or trolley systems include Portland, Ore.; Tampa, Fla.; Memphis; and New Orleans.

“What they do is they’re actually a catalyst for revitalization for an area,” Roberts said of the systems. “They really turn it around and make the area a pedestrian-friendly, walkable community, which is the buzzword for new urbanists. One of the central tenants for new urbanism is to create a lot of various transit options for people.”

The authority, which was formed last year, is hoping to put together a feasibility study and begin a funding search next year. Group board member and technical adviser Harry Nicholls is the former director of the McKinney Avenue Transit Authority, which provides a trolley system within Uptown and downtown Dallas. The authority is also working with Huitt-Zollars, which designed the McKinney Avenue streetcars, on the feasibility study.

Authority vice president Luis Salcedo, who is also a civil engineer, began working on the project before he and Roberts ever teamed up.

“We’re the only engineers this side of the [Trinity] river, so we try to help as much as we can,” Salcedo said. “About a year-and-a-half ago, independent of Jason – I didn’t even know Jason was working on it – I put together alignment for the trolley, because I had heard the same thing he had – that people were interested in a trolley. I put that on my website to show the alignment could fit in today’s street pattern.”

Roberts said he sees the trolley system in Portland as a model for Oak Cliff. Portland’s system uses more contemporary cars, while the system in Memphis has the more traditional, heritage cars.

“We haven’t really hammered down which one we’re married to,” Roberts said. “At this point, we’re just trying to figure out if we can put them in place and fill the infrastructure out. You can use heritage or contemporaries. Our big goal is to have air-conditioning on them.”

As in other cities with streetcars, Roberts said the authority is hoping to have a mix of both private and public money for the project, which has set a spring 2011 target for completion of the initial phase.

Oak Cliff used to have 20 miles of streetcar track. Steam-powered streetcars began service in the area in 1887, followed by electric streetcars seven years later. Buses replaced the streetcars in 1956, and the rails were eventually paved over.

[dfwcre8tive]

Interesting how they want to focus on modern streetcars instead of the old fashioned ones. Their website has been updated with new alignments and some cool old photos.

http://www.oakcliffta.org

[RobertB]

I got their newsletter by email yesterday:

Oak Cliff Transit Authority Newsletter - July 17th, 2007

OCTA in the News

Check out the recent press from Oak Cliff People on the OCTA at newsstands in Oak Cliff or online at:

http://www.peoplenewspapers.com ( http://app.expressemailmarketing.com...newspapers.com )

Public Fundraiser Planned

Mark your calendars for Thursday, September 6th, from 6:30PM to 9:30PM. The OCTA will be holding its first public fundraiser at the Ice House Cultural Center (1004 Page Street, Dallas, TX 75208). We'll have a presentation, images of the alignments, live music, and merchandise available, as well as a silent auction. All funds raised will go to funding a proposed feasibility study by Huitt-Zollars.

Status of 501c3 Filing

OCTA's by-laws and paperwork were recently notarized and submitted to the state for approval. In the meantime, we've partnered with the Community Foundations of Texas, one of the nation's largest community foundations, to accept all donations on OCTA's behalf. This means, if you're interested in making an immediate donation, your gift will still be tax deductible. Please make checks payable to: Oak Cliff Transit Authority Funds at CFT. Checks can be mailed to 614 N. Bishop Ave. Suite 3, Dallas, TX 75208.

Private Fundraiser a Success!

Special thanks to Matt Holley, developer of Kessler Woods, for graciously hosting an initial private fundraiser where we presented our groups mission and timeline to Oak Cliff's city council people, chamber, and developers. Several large donations from area groups including the Incap Fund helped us garner the momentum we need to get the OCTA on track. For photos of the event, check out the most recent (July) issue of the CliffDweller magazine.

Streetcar Facts: It's Easy Being Green

Trolleys run on electricity, normally 600 volts of direct current (DC) drawn from overhead wire, as historic trolleys did. In some cases-such as for heritage trolleys running along light rail lines-the voltage can be somewhat higher. One heritage trolley system, Galveston, chose to use diesel power for its trolleys, but no other city has deviated from the historic norm of electric propulsion. Thus heritage trolleys are pollution free at the point of use, and are very environmentally friendly.

(C) 2007 Oak Cliff Transit Authority

I didn't realize that Galveston's trolley system is diesel-powered. I guess that eliminates the potentially troublesome catenary vs. hurricane battle. It would also mean that they could run the trolley across the causeway, though I suspect it would be a pretty slow trip.

[sogod]

Yeah thats interesting, I didn't know that about Galveston either. Hmmmm... a diesel powered trolley... isn't that just a bus? Maybe it still has to run on rails though...

[Haretip]

It's a rail vehicle. It seems pretty antithetical to one of the main reasons for reintroducing streetcars, ie: single point control of pollution emissions at the power plant instead of tailpipe emissions on every vehicle. Plus, an electric streetcar doesn't care if its electricity comes from fossil fuels, wind power or nuke plant. I wonder how much money it takes to fill the tank on the Galveston cars? I sure hope that OCTA DOESN'T even give diesel powered cars a second thought or even a first thought.



Galveston System Description on John Smatlak's Railway Preservation Resources

[FoUTASportscaster]

I wouldn't worry about it. From the sound of the newsletter RB posted, they were extolling the no point-of-use pollution. Looks like they just threw that in there to be accurate.

[RobertB]

To be fair, it's a diesel generator powering the electric motors, so it's still got a lot of similarities to the "traditional" trolley. It seems like you could have the best of both worlds by combining a pantograph with a backup generator -- that might be just the ticket for a startup system like the OCTA, especially if they encounter difficulties hanging trolley wires along the viaduct over the Trinity or in downtown.

Plus, you can solve the emissions by simply using biodiesel. That would be especially appealing for MATA, I would think -- the trolley would smell like french fries and entice riders to step off and eat at the restaurants.

I know it seems like a slippery slope -- replace the wires with diesel, and while you're at it, do something about those troublesome metal wheels, maybe replace them with rubber tires. But a diesel-electric trolley will still be rail-based, giving businesses the advantages of rail's more permanent nature. If the numbers come out in favor of electricity via generator instead of via overhead catenary, I wouldn't be too quick to reject the technology.

[Haretip]

I reject your attempts to put a good spin on the Galveston stink-buggys. Tailpipe exhaust and engine noise is tailpipe exhaust and engine noise. Nice cars otherwise.

[AeroD]

Cliff Dweller has this article regarding bringing back the trolley to the OC:

http://www.cliffdwellermagazine.com/articles/cover-story/taking-oc-back-to-the-futu0807/

[RayM]

Cliff Dweller has this article regarding bringing back the trolley to the OC:

http://www.cliffdwellermagazine.com/articles/cover-story/taking-oc-back-to-the-futu0807/

Fixed link: here

[dfwcre8tive]

"Back to the Future" Fundraiser

Mark your calendars for Thursday, September 6th, from 6:30PM to 9:30PM. The OCTA will be holding its first public fundraiser at the Ice House Cultural Center (1004 Page Street, Dallas, TX 75208). We’ll have a presentation, along with INCAP, images of the proposed alignments, live music, a silent auction, and food from well known oak cliff restaurants. $15 Admission fee. All money raised will go to funding a proposed trolley feasibility study by Huitt-Zollars.

The InCap group, and Sky Modern, are preparing a 3D rendering of a proposed streetcar station, and its link to one of the planned mixed-use development projects in Oak Cliff. For anyone unfamiliar with the venue, the Ice House Banquet Hall is home of the original Southland Ice Company. Southland, which began in 1927, would gain wider attention many years later, when an enterprising employee would combine convenience items with the shops ice making business. The success of this model would completely change the stores operations, and they'd later change identity to what we all know today as 7-Eleven.

http://www.oakcliffta.org/

[dfwcre8tive]

Why Guy: Bishop Arts District's streetcar desire
August 29th, 2007

Say you're walking around the Bishop Arts District in Oak Cliff, do you desire something? The Why Guy found out that some people feel they do, and they're trying to do something about it.

http://www.wfaa.com/video/index.html?nvid=170629&shu=1

[Haretip]

Trolley proposal gets rolling in Oak Cliff

Neighborhood groups exploring idea of bringing back streetcars

12:00 AM CDT on Monday, September 3, 2007

By FRANK TREJO / The Dallas Morning News
ftrejo@dallasnews.com

The dream to have streetcars once again rumbling through Oak Cliff has picked up steam, pressed forward by the economic engines of major residential and retail development in the area.

While the streetcars still are at least three years – and millions of dollars – from reality, supporters back the idea for both nostalgic and practical reasons, such as easing environmental and parking concerns.

"Personally, I think it would be an awesome idea," said Darren Humphrey, an Oak Cliff resident and co-owner of the Nodding Dog Coffee Company in the Bishop Arts District. "I think it's very exciting because a lot of people are talking about it now. It would definitely bring a different flow to the area."

At least two neighborhood organizations – the Oak Cliff Transit Authority and the Fort Worth Avenue Development Group – are exploring the return of streetcars.

[Haretip]

Possible style of "new" Oak Cliff streetcars:



It's the style and scheme of car MATA wishes it had

[RobertB]

"Back to the Future" Fundraiser

Mark your calendars for Thursday, September 6th, from 6:30PM to 9:30PM. The OCTA will be holding its first public fundraiser at the Ice House Cultural Center (1004 Page Street, Dallas, TX 75208). We’ll have a presentation, along with INCAP, images of the proposed alignments, live music, a silent auction, and food from well known oak cliff restaurants. $15 Admission fee. All money raised will go to funding a proposed trolley feasibility study by Huitt-Zollars.

The InCap group, and Sky Modern, are preparing a 3D rendering of a proposed streetcar station, and its link to one of the planned mixed-use development projects in Oak Cliff. For anyone unfamiliar with the venue, the Ice House Banquet Hall is home of the original Southland Ice Company. Southland, which began in 1927, would gain wider attention many years later, when an enterprising employee would combine convenience items with the shops ice making business. The success of this model would completely change the stores operations, and they'd later change identity to what we all know today as 7-Eleven.

http://www.oakcliffta.org/

That sounds great. That's also First Thursday at Bishop Arts, so it'll make a great Oak Cliff trip. I'll try to be there -- my daughter and mom love Hunky's, and the soda shop catty-corner from Hunky's carries delicious herbal tea that my daughter uses to relax.

[Bferris]

Some of the proposed routes are a little funky and cover ground not originally part of the old DR&T footprint.

Much of Oak Cliff was designed around streetcar access and the streets can be easily converted back to use. There are actually still a few street car poles still standing in Oak Cliff if you know where to look. For sure, I know that much of the track on Jefferson was torn up around Sunset.

I actually rode a Dallas streetcar in Boston on the Highland Branch line. (PCC type)

[Haretip]

"Back to the Future" Fundraiser

Mark your calendars for Thursday, September 6th, from 6:30PM to 9:30PM. The OCTA will be holding its first public fundraiser at the Ice House Cultural Center (1004 Page Street, Dallas, TX 75208). We’ll have a presentation, along with INCAP, images of the proposed alignments, live music, a silent auction, and food from well known oak cliff restaurants. $15 Admission fee. All money raised will go to funding a proposed trolley feasibility study by Huitt-Zollars.

The InCap group, and Sky Modern, are preparing a 3D rendering of a proposed streetcar station, and its link to one of the planned mixed-use development projects in Oak Cliff. For anyone unfamiliar with the venue, the Ice House Banquet Hall is home of the original Southland Ice Company. Southland, which began in 1927, would gain wider attention many years later, when an enterprising employee would combine convenience items with the shops ice making business. The success of this model would completely change the stores operations, and they'd later change identity to what we all know today as 7-Eleven.

http://www.oakcliffta.org/

This is tonight. Anybody here going to this?

[rheye3]

So. . . . how did it go last night?

[Haretip]

I thought it went well. They had moderately good attendance of a varied group of attendees. The auction items did pretty good as I recall. I wish I would have had enough money to land the package of tickets for the Arlington Cowboys and the Dallas Stars. They went pretty high though, since they included parking passes!

There was a video of the streetcar running down one of the proposed routes that looked pretty cool, although they were showing a heritage streetcar instead of a modern car. I asked Jason Roberts if the video would be posted to their website, and he said that it probably would be at some point. The video was prepared for OCTA by another organization (Incap Encap?) and he would have to get their permission before putting it on the website.

I also heard confirmation of the previous rumor that they are pursing 6 ex-Boston ex-Dallas PCCs. They would probably be rebuilt to like-new condition with new mechanicals, electric systems and AIR CONDITIONING similar to the cars rebuilt for Philadelphia on the Girard Line:



except they would be painted in one of the traditional Dallas PCC color scheme like the original scheme shown above or the later scheme shown here:



It looks like these guys are serious and off to a good start.

[dallasbrink]

Cool. I was hoping for a modern line but this seems like it would look good, especially with the routs that go over the trinity. could provide for some cool photos

[RobertB]

I like the green color, personally. The white and red scheme looks like... a bus. The streetcars should be distinctive, clearly different from the usual way of getting around.

Pretty awesome, though, to be debating what color the streetcars should be, and just taking as a given that the line will come to pass.

[dallasbrink]

I like the green color, personally. The white and red scheme looks like... a bus. The streetcars should be distinctive, clearly different from the usual way of getting around.

Pretty awesome, though, to be debating what color the streetcars should be, and just taking as a given that the line will come to pass.

I agree, it should be green.

[Haretip]

I don't think they were taking a vote

Or, to be more diplomatic, the historic color scheme of the Dallas PCCs was chosen decades ago. You are a little late with your nomination of the color green. The one shown in the picture is the historic Philadelphia color scheme.

You could do what Kenosha and San Francisco have done and paint one in every color scheme of every city that ever ran PCC cars.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/PCC_streetcar

[dallasbrink]

Its gonna end up yellow, i can feel it!!!!!
hahaha

[RobertB]

A cautionary tale for any new trolley startup:

Sept. 18, 2007, 11:37PM
Seattle trolley develops unfortunate nickname: SLUT
Associated Press
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/...e/5147006.html

SEATTLE — Officially, it's the South Lake Union Streetcar. But in the neighborhood where the new line runs, it's called the South Lake Union Trolley — or, the SLUT.

At Kapow! Coffee, a shop in the old Cascade neighborhood, 100 T-shirts bearing the words "Ride the SLUT" sold out in days, and another 100 are on order.

"We're welcoming the SLUT into the neighborhood," said Jerry Johnson, 29, a part-time barista.

Some claim — incorrectly, according to representatives of Vulcan Inc., the company that is developing the area — that South Lake Union Trolley was the original name and that it was changed when officials belatedly realized the acronym.

The $50.5 million project should be completed with streetcars running in December. Underlying the lighthearted opposition, however, is resentment over changes in the old working-class neighborhood.

"There was a meeting with representatives from the city several years ago," Johnson recalled.

"They asked us, 'What we could do for you?' Most people raised their hands and said, 'Affordable housing,'" he said. "Then the people from the city huddled together — 'whisper, whisper, whisper,' — and they said, 'How about a trolley?'"

Since then, Cascade has been ignored in Vulcan brochures that lump the neighborhood together with Denny Park and Denny Triangle under the term South Lake Union. With the streetcar, said Don Clifton, a Cascade resident, "We learned how fun it is to change the name of things."

Just another reason to name the proposed line the Oak Cliff Línea Eléctrica - the "¡OLE!" line, instead of some random jumble of letters that people will tend to creatively "reassign"!

[Haretip]

What's a Linea Electrica? And why are you dissing the cliff? Shouldn't it be OCLE? If you want to speak spanish, shouldn't it be a tramvia? That would be Oak Cliff Tramvia Authority or OCTA. I think OCTA is fine and they are not trying to be too cute by half. If someone is going to slur your name, it's going to happen regardless of what you pick. Even when you pick a good, all-american name, somone will think of a slur. Like when Gomez Addams named his son Pubert.

[RobertB]

I think OCTA is fine and they are not trying to be too cute by half.

Too cute by half? I'm trying for the whole enchilada, amigo!

[Haretip]

I like to smell the aroma of my food before I eat it, too.

I just breezed back by the OCTA website and it had a lot more content and some updating on it. Looking good.

[RobertB]

Just got an email newsletter from the OCTA:

The Oak Cliff Transit Authority - Sept. 2007 Newsletter

"Back to the Future" Fundraiser Update
Many thanks to all who attended. We had a great turnout, and raised over $6,000. We also rolled out a 3D rendering of part of the proposed trolley line in Oak Cliff. Visit the homepage of our website at www.oakcliffta.org to view.

In other exciting news, we've tracked down six former Dallas PCC streetcars, which were retired in 1956 and relocated to Boston, where they ran until the late 1980's. We are currently in negotiations to reacquire these beautiful streamlined-art deco cars, in hopes to return them to the streets of Oak Cliff. San Francisco has successfully reactivated several PCC styled streetcars (seen at left), which can be seen on their successful F-Line, that runs along the Market Street area. If all goes as planned, the cars will first be shipped to Philadelphia, where they will undergo a complete reworking with new mechanics, air-conditioning, and ADA compliant equipment, and finally brought back home to Dallas.

Endorsements by the Oak Cliff Chamber of Commerce and Texas State Representative Rafael Anchia

After recent presentation to the Oak Cliff Chamber of Commerce's Economic Development Board, a motion was carried to endorse the Oak Cliff Transit Authority. We are excited to have their support and look forward to working with them extensively in the future.

Also, a meeting was held with Texas State Representative, Rafael Anchia, where he lent his support and endorsement to the project.

Oak Cliff, the "Streetcar Suburb"

Oak Cliff was developed as a "streetcar suburb" from its inception. For the first 70 years of its existence, streetcars were an integral part of the landscape. This is obvious when commuting around the Jefferson Boulevard and Davis Street area buildings and theaters which, to this day, have limited vehicle parking. For this reason, merchants are unable to acquire Certificates of Occupancies to allow revitalization of many of the historic spaces, with most falling into disrepair.

OCTA hopes to not only help in the redevelopment of the area, but to allow for a more pedestrian friendly city. Many large cities are following a similar trend of promoting people over cars, noting that building a dense community around pedestrians and bicycles increases the quality of life, which, in turn, ignites economic redevelopment. In other words, developers want to build, where many people gather. A streetcar allows for transit oriented developments, similar to Dallas' West Village and the Mockingbird Station, to grow and thrive. Also, streetcars run on electricity, which translates to fewer ozone emissions.

Also, they have a simple, yet distinctive logo:

Get it? It's an OCTAgon. Now who's too cute by half?

And as Haretip noted, the site is quite robust now. I like this FAQ entry:

Why use technology from the 1800's? Why not go with something futuristic?

You're right, streetcars have been in existence in some way, shape, or form since the 1800s; however, streetcars have also evolved over that time as well. So with a modern streetcar system, you have something that operates on the same principles as they did in the 1800s, but with modern technology. For instance, streetcars built today feature solid state electronics, and heating and air conditioning. Most systems have provisions to help access for persons with disabilities. Streetcar stations can and do have wireless internet for tracking streetcars. The result is a proven concept that can incorporate new technologies and modern amenities. Concepts such as personal rapid transit (PRT), maglev, monorails, etc, are either pie-in-the-sky ideas, unproven, prohibitively expensive, or inadequate for required capacity.

[Haretip]

Well, I recommended Octa, the Transit Octopus for their logo, but looks like they wouldn't listen to me. I had a sketch of an octopus riding a streetcar that looked too cute by half.

[Haretip]

OK, the 3d video rendering is on Youtube now!

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=u-qQ8gnEN0U

Is it possible to do an imbed for this video?

[Hannibal Lecter]

OK, the 3d video rendering is on Youtube now!

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=u-qQ8gnEN0U

Is it possible to do an imbed for this video?

Are the trolleys self-powered, or did they "accidentally" forget to include all the ugly overhead powerlines and supports in the video?

[CTroyMathis]

OK, the 3d video rendering is on Youtube now!

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=u-qQ8gnEN0U

Is it possible to do an imbed for this video?

I edited it into your post by using this:

[youtube]u-qQ8gnEN0U[/youtube] 

[Haretip]

Thanks CTroy. I'll try to remember that for next time.

Here's a link to the Oak Cliff Transit Authority News Archive. They got an endorsement from State Rep Anchia on October 9th.

Hopefully they will be coming up with some plans on the proposed vehicles before too long.

[incrediculous]

Old trolleys are so slow. Why bother?

[dfwcre8tive]

Old trolleys are so slow. Why bother?

The PCC car was developed to have quick acceleration and braking along with a smoother ride and comfort (all improvements over earlier streetcars). Speed wasn't really a concern, although the PCC cars have a top speed of 50mph.

I don't think they would need to go more than 50mph through the neighborhoods of Oak Cliff.

[incrediculous]

The PCC car was developed to have quick acceleration and braking along with a smoother ride and comfort (all improvements over earlier streetcars). Speed wasn't really a concern, although the PCC cars have a top speed of 50mph.

I don't think they would need to go more than 50mph through the neighborhoods of Oak Cliff.

Is there a reason the trolley goes so slow in uptown? I used to outwalk that thing regularly. It's fun to party on, but I couldn't imagine commuting on it.

[Haretip]

No, that speed in Uptown was set low to help boost your ego.

[mannytmoto]

I'm heading up OCTA with a great team, and just ran across the blog! I'll try to post updates as I get them. We've got a recent endorsement from the Oak Cliff Chamber of Commerce, which I've added to the site. Right now, we're awaiting our 501c3 paperwork, which was submitted last month. Once that is approved, the ball will really start rolling.

To answer a few questions I ran across here:

- no color scheme has been approved yet. we're not to that stage yet, but I can assure everyone that it will look good. We're using the design firm Fusion Advertising for all of our identity (logo, color scheme, etc.). So they will probably head up that process.

- on the recent entry related to "they go so slow, why bother?". Trolley's are a pedestrian facilitator...by that, I mean, they encourage transit oriented development (ie. West Village) surrounding the track (just like you see with DART's light rail).The end result, hopefully, is that developers are creating mixed-use work/live/play environments, that embrace the transit. They are also helping relieve traffic, by pulling cars off the street. Last year alone, MATA's ridership was over a quarter of a million people. That adds up to 700 cars off the road a day...AND the number goes up each year. Now that uptown is becoming very dense, it's very hard to get around in a car (try driving and finding parking around the Crescent Hotel area on a weekday). This is where a streetcar is at a major advantage. you don't have to pay for parking, gas, there's no emissions being blown out the tailpipe from sitting idle at the dozen stoplights you run across, and they run regularly. It's still much faster than walking. to prove my point, start walking from Cityplace to the Dallas Art Museum at the same time a trolley leaves. I guarantee, a trolley passenger would arrive faster, and more relaxed from not dodging traffic, plus they could get work/reading/etc. done on the commute.

Thanks everyone for your support so far! I've learned so much from the process. I started this a year ago on kind of a whim, but have since become more and more passionate about it as I studied other cities, and seen their turnarounds. In the end, it's more than just a trolley project...it's a way of changing the way your city is built. This has been an amazing project, and I hope to have our blog up soon to show more of the progress. I've also got more youtube vids to follow shortly. Don't hesitate to email me for updates. I tend to get bogged down, and forget to publish the latest findings...i'll try to get better at that in the coming months.

Jason Roberts
jason@oakcliffta.org

[RobertB]

Thanks for the info, and welcome to the forum! You'll find that we go after information like a scrapyard guard dog goes after a steak -- so don't be put off if things get a bit messy from time to time. We're an opinionated bunch, so feel free to take anything too strident with a grain of salt.

Except for my comments, of course... they're nuggets of gold, I tell ya, GOLD!

[tamtagon]

To answer a few questions I ran across here

It seems to me that OCTA trolleys will be brought online primarily as a transportation alternative contrasted to MATA which was a hook for tourism. Due to stonger mobility focus from OCTA, will municipal zoning regulations be amended to give parking space credit for businesses with a front door facing the trolley route?

A few questions rooted in the potential of broad acceptance and rapid implimentation and expansion of OCTA.... Will OCTA have a stop inside the Trinity River Park? Does OCTA eventually plan to interface with MATA in the Central Business District? How many Light Rail & bus multimodal transfer stations will be linked to OCTA trolleys? Is it at all reasonable to consider these possibilities so early in the game?

[RobertB]

Will OCTA have a stop inside the Trinity River Park?

No, because there's no way to cross the toll road. :afire:

[FoUTASportscaster]

Jason, I recommend taking the OCCoC's recommendation with a grain of salt. They also endorse the Trinity Tollway.

As for zoning, likely no. Dallas, unlike suburbs like Plano or Carrollton, has no TOD guidelines. Mockingbird Station still has suburban parking requirements of 3.7 spaces per 1,000 square feet. Unless the city changes the zoning code, there is nothing that can be done.

As for integrating with MATA, that is likely not to happen. The connections that will happen will be with DART. DART is considering modern streetcar for downtown.

It is funny that this is history repeating itself. In the 1870's and 1880's, there were a number of private streetcar companies, each opearting one line. One was on mainstreet, one was on SanJacinto and Lamar, one was on Commerce and Ervay and the last was a "belt line" anround the present day CBD. Each did its own thing and made transfer neccasary. Once regulations came down from city hall that there needed to be more connections and that one rail owned by one company could be used by another company, ridership shot up. Hopefully, oneday we will see that happen, where the stretcars can become seamless.

[Mballar]

It seems to me that OCTA trolleys will be brought online primarily as a transportation alternative contrasted to MATA which was a hook for tourism. Due to stonger mobility focus from OCTA, will municipal zoning regulations be amended to give parking space credit for businesses with a front door facing the trolley route?

A few questions rooted in the potential of broad acceptance and rapid implimentation and expansion of OCTA.... Will OCTA have a stop inside the Trinity River Park? Does OCTA eventually plan to interface with MATA in the Central Business District? How many Light Rail & bus multimodal transfer stations will be linked to OCTA trolleys? Is it at all reasonable to consider these possibilities so early in the game?

Great questions. I think it is definitely appropriate to start considering the answers at this time. I wonder if the O.C. Chamber will lead the charge. Haretip, do you have any insight to offer here?

[Haretip]

Lead what charge? I think they will endorse it and support it. From what I've seen, Jason is building a capable organization that can push this project through. He's got MATA's original General Manager. Who better would know about what it takes to put a line in?

Now we've got to work on getting Jason to use the word Streetcar instead of Trolley. Trolley sounds less serious and more touristy.

[RobertB]

Jason, I recommend taking the OCCoC's recommendation with a grain of salt. They also endorse the Trinity Tollway.

Although paving the river is all the rage these days, I don't think we can hold it against any organization like the OCCoC if they're too scared to buck the system. It's not like Dallas has a long tradition of system-bucking successes -- even Laura Miller eventually drank the Kool-Aid.

Backing the Leppert Tollway doesn't have a downside if you're a neighborhood CoC. If voters approve the tollway and it turns into the inevitable mess we all forsee, they can say "but everyone agreed there were WMDs in... I mean, that the Corps would approve the tollway". If voters kill the tollway, they can sit in Tom Leppert's lap and mew sweetly, and he'll keep petting them. Purrr.

All they would get from fighting the tollway -- even though it's the right thing to do -- would be a ticket to join Angela Hunt on the outside looking in.