In Search of a City: All Aboard for Light Rail
How committed is this community to downtown? Its response to light rail will answer that question. In sprawling, auto-oriented cities across the United States—Dallas, Denver, Salt Lake City, Minneapolis, Charlotte, and Sacramento, to name a few—light rail has focused development on downtown. It has spurred new retail development, increased office occupancy rates and rents, linked regions to their center cities, and slowed sprawl.
Recent news stories have ballyhooed $200 million of available Federal money for light rail in central Ohio. Federal money, however, has never been the problem for central Ohio. As recently as the mid 2000s, Columbus could have tapped $375 million of Federal and State funding to build a north corridor rail line. The challenge is securing a local match.
With one, confusing exception in 1999, the leadership in this community has never allowed a sales tax to be placed on the ballot for light rail. Yet, the residents of Franklin County have indicated support in survey after survey since 1994. How long will this community be forced to wait to get things moving?
January 20th, 2009 at 12:39 pm
I’d support light rail as long as the first phase isn’t the street car between OSU and Downtown. The reasons are numerous and, in my humble opinion, make a ton of sense. See why I think so at
January 20th, 2009 at 12:40 pm
http://sevell.com/blog/?p=3
January 20th, 2009 at 3:10 pm
Columbus is the largest city in the country w/o passenger rail. Light rail may be the best public investment the city and this region could make now to position itself to compete in the 21st century. Let’s do this!
January 20th, 2009 at 11:12 pm
If the Streetcar funding proposal controversy is any indication… a sales tax probably won’t fly with the locals. When I spoke with Lhota two weeks ago he made it sound like other methods of securing funds (potentially on a state-level) are being explored.
Who knows though. I was inches away from starting a “buy your passes in advance” grassroots campaign for the Streetcar last year to raise money online. Obama seemed to have a lot of success with raising large amounts of money in the form of small donations from large groups of people. Perhaps something similar is in order for Rail Funding?
January 21st, 2009 at 10:45 pm
Walker, I think you may have something going there. Sometimes I feel that is the only way we are going to get things done.
January 26th, 2009 at 8:58 am
What I want to know is why are we having to pass a sales tax to fund a light rail system when we’re getting a $1,600,000,000 highway project forced on us with no local money? Couldn’t we use the money for the highways for light rail? If we reduce the number of cars on the freeways then we don’t need to add a whole bunch of lanes.
January 26th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
When the 70/71 split was first constructed, engineers had no idea that the rate of growth over the past 20 years would have been as high as it has. The split has one of the highest recorded accidents rates in the state. It has to be addressed from a safety factor because it was never built to handle the amount of people that travel on it now. ODOT will probably consider the split and the light rail system as mutually exclusive when considering the purpose and need of the two projects.
What I wish would happen with the 70/71 split project (and I don’t think is) is ensuring the design incorporates alternative modes of transport such as HOV lanes and bus lanes. Also incredibily important: 1) Pedestrian, bike and neighborhood connectivity on the overpasses and urban collector/distributor roads and 2) constructing the overpasses to handle future streetcar development.
January 26th, 2009 at 4:06 pm
I don’t think you can look at the two as separate. If we don’t begin addressing the congestion issues now with real alternatives, like rail, we’ll have another 1.6 million split fix project in another 30 years.
I would love to see BRT lines run through the split and on the freeways. COTA has already been experimenting with express lines on the freeways and marked shoulders. Chicago’s rail system has boarding stations along the freeways for their rail lines. You access them from pedestrian walkways that run over the freeway. I wonder if that might be model for the split?
February 24th, 2009 at 11:35 am
I agree with Sevell. I too would definitely support a light rail system or a subway system, etc. However, the proposed OSU-Courthouse streetcar is a joke. Moreover, the benefits of mass transit is only realized when it connects where the people live to where the people want or need to go, ie work, recreational venues, shopping, etc. I am still having a hard time understanding who would really benefit from the OSU-Courthouse streetcar, except those getting arrested in the University District and needing a ride back from the courthouse. It is high time Columbus officials start coming up with real plans for real projects that will enhance the standard of living for us all. My opinion is, go big or go home.