Roads
The Day is running an interesting series this week about how difficult it will be to finish Route 11. Today’s story is about those people who would lose their homes to the highway (and contains this nifty interactive map).
The conclusion of the paper, unsurprisingly, is that Route 11 still needs to be finished. Which it does. But will I live to see it? Who knows?
Rails
The Courant ran some interesting pieces about the effect expanded and improved rail systems have had in New Jersey and Washington D.C.. The point is that rail systems can spur the kind of development that leads to urban (and suburban) renewal, and not to sprawl.
A lot of people say that rail won’t work in Connecticut. But I think the idea of being able to take a relatively cheap and convenient train from Enfield to, say, downtown Hartford or to a connection to Bradley Airport, would be a draw. In the most densely populated parts of the state, more and expanded highways are not a great option, while rail-based mass transit is.
Connecticut Local Politics 
Transporters.
Stargate in West Hartford Center.
Certainly more comfortable than a floo network. Less messy too.
Portkeys have some potential though.
I’m still waiting for my jet pack and flying car. Problem solved!
I was promised flying cars!
That ad would be a lot more awesome if it wasn’t for Lotus, the Chevette of business software.
[quote comment=”19272″]That ad would be a lot more awesome if it wasn’t for Lotus, the Chevette of business software.[/quote]
Avery Brooks is ALWAYS awesome.
>>(and contains this nifty interactive map).
That is really well done isn’t it?
[quote comment=”19274″]>>(and contains this nifty interactive map).
That is really well done isn’t it?[/quote]
It’s built on Google Maps/Google Earth, and I absolutely love what they’ve done with it. The audio segments and pictures of the houses are great.
Worm-Hole would be a greener technology.
i personally think the lack of trains between new haven and hartford is rather embarassing for our state
>>i personally think the lack of trains between new haven and Hartford
Who’d ride them?
The stations aren’t near anything to speak of; taxi’s cost a fortune (when there’s any around at all) , the people that should ride (lower income) out smoke the upper middle class by more than 6 to 1 yet smoking is banned on trains. (One smoking car would ruin their budget?)
When an industry fails (in this case TOTALLY) to address the needs of the consumer, that industry collapses and darn well should.
Give up, it’s a losing proposition.
Hey I’d love it if everyone else rode the train – but that’s how it really is; we’d all love it if everyone ELSE did it but none of us are going to put ourselves through that amount of trouble to save little or no money and have to go through some drill to do it.
[quote comment=”19286″]>>i personally think the lack of trains between new haven and Hartford
Who’d ride them?
[/quote]
I would. A functioning commuter rail from New Haven to Hartford would be amazing. Right now the only train available is amtrak, which is expensive and has a terrible schedule.
I’d ride it too. I don’t commute to Hartford, but I’d take the train down for hockey games (Union Station is right near the Civic Center, and parking is expensive), other events and just to go into the city.
I wouldn’t ride it to Springfield, if only because it would be nearly impossible for me to actually get from the train to work on Springfield’s bus system (PVTA) in a reasonable amount of time. That may change in the future, though.
I think it’ll find riders.
I would ride it! The only problem with it for me is the parking situation at the NH station…
>> functioning commuter rail
Key word there is “functioning” and with how many unions involved? It’s more of a lost cause than you realize without insane subsidies.
Better that we start fresh and build trains that carry commuters in their cars like ferry boats do – people could actually use a service like that.
>>The only problem with it for me is the parking situation at the NH station…
And making it from your car to the station and back without getting shot; it is after all New Haven.
>>I wouldn’t ride it to Springfield, if only because it would be nearly impossible for me to actually get from the train to work on Springfield’s bus system (PVTA) in a reasonable amount of time
Exactly.
So we have one “I’d ride it” and two supporters (no-less) that include a caveat.
Forget it – from a cost standpoint it’s not even a starter without a complete overhaul which would have to include new business entities so as to kill existing labor contracts. (in some cases a few hundred miles = one full day; it’s not at all uncommon for rail workers to make 2 or 3 days pay per actual work day)
Existing stations are not located in areas that would lend themselves to 2 or 3 thousand feet of car’s queuing up to drive on and off sideways either; so mass automobile transit won’t work without new terminals.
People are not inclined to use any mass transit without massive ground level support (ie: NYC where lots of taxis and subways already exist) .
An increasing number of fellow sales people I know have taken to driving up to 1000 miles so as to avoid the hassles at airports; yet people continue to think were collectively going to put up with that nonsense for short hauls?
Not a chance.
Connecticut needs to start reducing commercial truck traffic, by increasing railroad capacity and the use of barges. Truck traffic vastly increased after 1974, when the Poughkeepsie Railroad Bridge burned and cut off a railroad line that was used to bring freight into Connecticut and New England. The lack of capacity for freight railroad traffic is one big reason I-95 has gotten so congested. Highway traffic in the state will continue to climb unless alternatives are explored. Building more parking spaces for trucks is far easier, but it will not solve the root of the problem.
Don’t count on much happening with Mike Riley of the truck lobby running the legislature as if he were the speaker – and with the reuirement that the Rell administration work with a private enterprsie (the RR) and other states to get the rail freight system moving again.
[quote post=”972″]but I’d take the train down for hockey games [/quote]
We need train service to hockey games???? Come on Genghis????
Um, what’s wrong with taking a train to entertainment destinations downtown (like hockey, restaurants, bars, UCONN basketball and so on)? That’s good for the city.
and the state budget has no limits…how about some prioritization to solve the worst problems first….????
Transportation = big problem. Commuter rail in the CT valley should be a priority. Towns want it, it’ll take cars off the roads, and it’ll be good for Hartford.
OK — but not because you want to go to a hockey game!!!!
The SE CT COG and SeCTer have proposed to CONNDOT that, as a temporary measure prior to expansion of Shore Line East, the State of CT subsidize the AMTRAC fares from New London to New York so they are the equivalent of the same Shore Line East Fare per track mile. An even better solution would be to make the fare the equivalent of a Metro North fare per track mile. This would be a win-win. AMTRAC would get some funds, the folks in Eastern CT would get some affordable mass transit fares, traffice would be removed from I95, and the State would be able to see if it really was viable to expand Metro North to New London or even, Westerly , RI. Sounds like a great idea to me.
>>Towns want it, it’ll take cars off the roads, and it’ll be good for Hartford.
Towns “want” it?
I can’t recall ever hearing anyone use it as part of a suburban campaign.
How many cars will be off the street?
Besides, zipping into Hartford aside from rush hour (and even then it’s not too bad) is a breeze and there’s parking all over the place.
[quote comment=”19319″]>>Towns want it, it’ll take cars off the roads, and it’ll be good for Hartford.
Towns “want” it?
I can’t recall ever hearing anyone use it as part of a suburban campaign.
How many cars will be off the street?
Besides, zipping into Hartford aside from rush hour (and even then it’s not too bad) is a breeze and there’s parking all over the place.[/quote]
OK ACR, Enfield wants it. And it has been a part of numerous campaigns here in town in the 2CD. Simmons got us 2.9 million federal for a train station. And it makes sense. Just about every major employer in Hartford is within walking distance from Union Station and it would be widely used. Enfield, Suffield, Somers, Windsor Locks, Windsor & Western Mass towns would without a doubt use it regularly.
>>Just about every major employer in Hartford is within walking distance from Union Station
We’ve had state cent fund raisers nearby and I got soaked just running for the car – I can’t imagine walking to downtown in the winter from there and good luck grabbing a cab.
Mass transit has little to do with moving people; and everything to do with controlling them. Once a large enough group is using something other than their own transportation it will be up to some state employee (The Leftist Business Revenue Enhancement Dept. sounds likely) to decide where and when things stop and thus where the riders shop. (Heaven help the politically conservative business owner.)
It’s never made the radar screen in Southington, I can tell you that. The ride-share vans seem to work out fine and there’s been no outcry for bigger better (read: more expensive) transit though I do know one fellow that would love to catch something (anything) to New York City every morning and there’s nothing here, forcing him to head into New Haven in the pre-dawn hours.
Hey ACR –
Funny that we talked about this yesterday…
http://www.courant.com/news/local/nc/hc-enfcouncil0918.artsep18,0,3325353.story
>>Funny that we talked about this yesterday…
A timely response.
(so who do you know at the paper anyway?)