757 Hampton Roads: A Greater Region. A Greater Life. » Light Rail

Light Rail vs. Cars … Again

757HR — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 03:31:09 +0000

Sunday’s Virginian Pilot had 2 definitively anti-light rail letters to the editor. The first, entitled “Hard Questions on Light Rail,” assumes that light rail is meant to replace the vehicles currently used by commuters actually commuting. The author, Arthur S. Poole, then goes on to suggest that the tax-subsidized nature of light rail means that, even with a complete system, the transit mode is not worth the time, money, or effort. He claims that the outcome of the light rail expansion study is ‘preordained,’ meaning that no matter what, the study will claim positive net effects. Mr. Poole claims that this is similar to the studies that came before projects such as ” Nauticus, the soccer stadium, the TPC golf course, and Waterside,” insinuating that the positive effects never came to fruition. While I have nothing against Mr. Poole personally, I would like to point out a few flaws in his argument.

I will start at the end and work back. While the soccer stadium and the TPC course might not have brought their positive effects to fruition for Virginia Beach, Norfolk’s Nauticus and Waterside have, overall, been successful. Over the past two years, for example, did you know that according to the city, Nauticus has operated at a slight profit. Its certainly not a windfall but black ink is black ink. The more important effects of Nauticus include the 300,000+ visitors it receives annually. Those people do not fall out of the sky, visit Nauticus, and the get sucked back to some heavenly origins. They spend time Downtown. They pay for parking. They purchase meals at Downtown eateries. The patronize MacArthur Center. Even if they only spend one day Downtown, they certainly spend more than the $12 admission fee. Now for Waterside. It is true that Waterside is currently a drain on the city. It is true that the city is spending a fortune to keep it operational right now. It is also true, however, that the construction of Waterside was a monumental achievement for the City of Norfolk and it can successfully be argued that without Waterside, Downtown would not be what it is today. I will agree that it needs major renovations for a turn-around. It was not, however, a failure in any sense of the word.

Next, lets look at the subsidies. Yes, public transit in the United States, in general, depends on public subsidies to operate. But wait. Does the entire highway system not depend on the same heavy subsidies? Yes, you pay a gas tax. But does anyone really believe that this tax single-handedly pays for our roads? Of course not. Millions more are tagged for road-related projects from city, state, and federal budgets. Currently, the Tide will cost $45.7 million per mile. Some notable highway projects: Southeastern Parkway – $100 – 121 million/mile, 3rd Crossing – $131 million/mile. Our fuel tax in Virginia is $0.175/gallon. Even if you only got 10 MGP, you would only pay $0.35 for each trip on a road such as the Southeastern Parkway. Each transit trip in Hampton Roads costs $1.50 per passenger. Seems to me that the transit riders pay more out of pocket than the car drivers.

Finally, the part about replacing cars. Light rail (or any new transit system, for that matter), is not created to take current cars off the road. They are built to take future cars off the road. Nobody in Hampton Roads would argue that are population is never going to increase from what it is now. The goal of having a usable mass transit system such as light rail is to guide the construction of high-density, urban centers. The residents of these centers would be the most likely riders of fixed-guideway transit like light rail. 10,000 Downtown employees could move to Town Center. Without light rail, they would all take I-264. 10,000 more cars. With light rail, however, they would not increase traffic for those who live to far away to use light rail. The second letter to the editor (“Rail Stop,” by Dick Jones) fits this place as well .

In this age of huge deficits and debt, the government (both state and federal) cannot afford to continue pouring money into a wasteful roadway system. A road is not free once it is built. It takes continuous maintenance. A road without maintenance will turn into a gravel road. I am sure that you have heard the argument for using transit money to buy the people that use transit their very own cars. This would be great if we had a place to put them. HRT averaged 50,857 passengers per weekday in May 2010. Can you imagine if Hampton Roads suddenly had 50,000 more cars on our roads. The increased load would also wear our roads out faster. If this method were followed nationwide, the hundred of millions of additional cars would choke highways and increase demand for fuel (even hybrids use fuel), leading to higher prices. More cars also means more accidents which means higher insurance for everyone.

What I want everyone to get out of this is that the visible day-to-day cost may look higher for transit, but that is only because you can actually quantify the cost. The cost to support individual car commutes is much higher. Even if you do not ride or plan to ride transit, don’t complain about or try to destroy those that do. As time progresses, fuel will only get more expensive. Land will get more expensive. Public transportation, like it or not, is the future.

No Light Rail Referendum… so far

757HR — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 04:29:45 +0000

The Virginian-Pilot reported the other day that Wally Erb, the man behind the the most recent drive for a light rail referendum, was able to gather only 1,083 signatures. Unfortunately for Mr. Erb, he needed 25,000 signatures. 25,000 signatures represent less than six percent of Virginia Beach’s population. 1,083 signatures represent less than .25% of the city’s total population. Sound like a mandate to me. If the city polled residents on any other project and only got support from a quarter of a percent of the population, there would be an outcry if they went through with the project. As I have said in the past, Virginia Beach does not need a referendum. A city elects leaders to lead. If they do not lead or lead in the wrong direction, they get voted out. In the last election, the voters elected light rail supporters. It should not be a surprise that they now want to support light rail.

Despite the negative comments on PilotOnline, light rail will be a benefit to Virginia Beach. However, it will not reduce the number of cars currently on the road. That is not the point of the light rail. The congestion reduction aspect comes into play when Virginia Beach’s “Strategic Growth Areas” begin to expand. Six of VB’s eight SGAs center around the proposed light rail stops. The most important one so far is the Pembroke SGA, which includes Town Center. The residents of Town Center did not move there because they wanted to continue a highway-oriented, suburbanite lifestyle. They moved there for the urban feel. With light rail, that urban feel will grow around each station. Urban residents don’t mind public transit. That is why they are urban residents. Even reformed suburbanites re-evaluate their position on public transit once it becomes convenient for them. People, regardless of where they live, chose what their mode of transportation based on what is cheapest and most convenient. In a mostly suburban area like HR, cars fit this description. While public transportation is definitely cheaper than car use, the convenience of the car far out weighs the cost-effectiveness of the transit. As transit in HR gets more reliable, efficient, and convenient, ridership will increase.

Chesapeake Light Rail Corridors

757HR — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:30:41 +0000

I have had more than a few conversations and questions about light rail in Chesapeake. Back in July 1999, the area undertook a study for potential corridors for both Chesapeake and Portsmouth. I have uploaded the file from the study available here. I have also converted the Chesapeake routes into a Google earth file for you viewing pleasure. A note about these corridors: they were created in 1999. The station locations were proposed in 1999 and are approximate. A lot has changed in the past decade. Mainly, Chesapeake’s population has moved south. I think that a combination of these routes with new stations would be best. Going strictly from the 1999 study, I do not think that any of the corridors would fit the needs of Chesapeake residents. Enjoy!

Tide’s Final Cost = $338,284,251

757HR — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 11:45:00 +0000

Tide LRT Vehicles Being Delivered

HRT has released their final “cost-to-completion” for the Tide light rail system currently under construction in Norfolk. The new final cost is $338,284,251. This is, of course, much higher than the $232 million that was originally promised. Despite claims that HRT’s new President and CEO Philip Shucet is responsible for the firming up of the new number, the consultant was actually hired for the job by Townes, who knew about the cost overruns but failed to live up to City Council’s standards. It actually would make sense to me that the numbers Townes was feeding council were the preliminary numbers from his consultant. The difference between Townes’s and Shucet’s communication is that Townes should have done what Shucet did: tell council to hold on for a couple weeks while the consultant finishes the estimate.

Regardless, I hope that the project can stick to these numbers until completion. Personally, if Shucet does a good job with costs, I think we should demote him to a position to simply control LRT construction. That way we can hire a President and CEO that actually knows how to operate a transit system.

http://www.ridethetide.com/about_the_tide/cost-to-complete.shtml

CTB To Vote On HSR Today

757HR — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 11:30:10 +0000

The Commonwealth Transportation Board will vote today on the proposed High Speed rail line from Richmond to Norfolk. Hopefully, we can get the funding we need from the government and our region can finally start moving forward. Well, most of our region. Norfolk will move forward with its planned expansion of light rail. The Peninsula wants their very own light rail so that they can move forward. Portsmouth wants to move forward and join Norfolk’s light rail. I think for the most part, Chesapeake wants to move forward but at the same time, they wonder why nobody ever pays them any attention when it comes to transportation (think drawbridges). Virginia Beach does not really want to move forward. They want somebody else to move forward for them, so that they can continue to work backwards and build new highways.

HRT to Ask VB for Money

757HR — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 11:30:29 +0000

Th Pilot reported that the new temporary leader for Hampton Roads Transit, Philip Shucet, will ask Virginia Beach to share 20% of the VB Light Rail Extension Study’s cost. Coming in at approximately $245,000, it is the latest in a long series of problems, real or perceived, at HRT. The money is to cover the 20% match required to receive a $1.2 million grant that HRT received from a federal source. Virginia Beach councilwoman Rosemary Wilson told the Pilot, “”It was always funded by HRT, we weren’t paying for it.” … I’m not sure that the councilwoman knows how HRT operates. It doesn’t have its own money. All of its money comes from grants from the federal, state, and local governments. Virginia Beach, however indirectly, has contributed money toward the study. I do understand that they were apparently told by former President Townes that all cost had been covered. Regardless, that is not my problem. My problem is that there was a cost estimate of $4.3 million that has risen to $6.6 million for a consultant contract. HRT’s Senior VP of Development told the Virginian Pilot that the price was just for the contract and did not include other costs. What other costs could not be included in a consultant’s contract? You hire a consultant to examine a possible extension of light rail into Virginia Beach. The price should include all costs of completing that mission. If the board made former President Townes leave, why can we not get rid of other executives that would even sign a contract that in not all-inclusive. I don’t even get work done on my car without a quote. If something new is discovered during the course of the service, they call and we discuss it. But studying a light rail extension is not the same as doing work on a car. These consultants were hired (hopefully) because they have experience in studying proposed transit systems. Perhaps they know that HRT seems to sign-then-read when they sign contracts. Regardless, a contract should include all costs to complete the task. Then, the consultant needs to be held to the price. No exceptions unless there is an actual emergency.

“Public Transit Is The Future of Transportation

757HR — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 05:07:32 +0000

A side note from the High Speed Rail meeting that I wanted everyone to know. When Thelma Drake (who is now the new Director of the Department of Rail and Public Transportation) arrived to the meeting, she apologized for being late due to a State Senate Appropriations meeting. She said that “when the appropriations committee wants to meet with you, you don’t miss it.” She also, more importantly, made the comment that the committee had told her that “public transit is the future of transportation” and that we simply “cannot afford to build more roads.”

I want to emphasize the fact that the committee in charge of handing our money stated that “public transit is the future of transportation.” This is a huge leap forward for state policy on transportation. I can only hope and pray that they follow through with some HSR money and maybe some more LRT money.

Light Rail Oops

757HR — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:00:35 +0000

Apparently someone made a mistake. The Virginian-Pilot is reporting that a section of the embedded light rail tracks must be reconstructed due to a failure during a routine inspection. The problem only applies to the concrete surrounding the tracks and in no way requires the rebuilding of the tracks themselves. While this is unfortunate, it give us a couple of things to think about. First, it shows us that the line is being inspected properly. Not that the concrete plays much of a role in the light rail itself (the tracks are built as regular railroad tracks, them surrounded by concrete), but you would not want the concrete breaking up from traffic. The second thing to keep in mind is that HRT is not responsible. Instead, the contractor must cover the cost of the repairs, as it is their mistake.

Workers remove concrete after it failed a compression test.

If only they would have thought about this earlier. Other situations such as the extra pilings they found early last year, should have been dealt with the same way. If you pay a consultant to count the pilings, you expect a thorough job. I could have gone down and counted from shore for the thousands that were paid out. I would have done it for half. I don’t have to say that I am definitely a proponent for light rail in HR, but come on. Hold contract holders responsible all of the time.

View

Concrete Removal in a larger map

HRT’s Missing Money: Board’s Fault, Not Townes’s

757HR — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 11:15:55 +0000

There has been much talk recently about the performance of HRT President & CEO Michael Townes. While I do think that he should share responsibility for the Tide-related cost overruns, I do not believe that he should be held responsible for not informing the board about the $80,000 allegedly stolen from the fare boxes over a six-month period in 2009. The missing money was uncovered during an independent audit of HRT. This audit was paid for and authorized by the board. In other words, the auditors worked for the board, not for Mr. Townes. If the auditors failed to inform the board of the missing money during their presentation, it is the fault of the auditor for failing to make a complete report and it is the failure of the board to make sure that the auditor gave a complete report. Mr. Townes does not fit into that equation. After Mr. Townes was made aware and an investigation was complete, the responsible employees were terminated. No charges were filed because the HRT lawyer did not think that there was sufficient evidence. No civil suit was filed because the associated costs outweighed the benefits. This means that HRT, after learning of the issue, fixed the problem and decided not to waste more money than they would have recovered (i.e. responsibility).

I believe that no matter what, you should always give credit where credit is due. The cities of Hampton Roads should change their board representation if they have failed to properly oversee HRT. They want to fire Mr. Townes because he failed to give timely notification of cost overruns. Now, fire the board for failing to take responsibility for their share of the problems. The board is not just there for sh*ts and giggles. They have a purpose. They have a duty to the residents of their respective cities to make sure that money is spent wisely.

HRT Mismanagement – A Day Late, A Dollar Short

757HR — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 10:30:46 +0000

I didn’t actually think that I would be writing an article such as this. While I assumed that HRT was just as mismanaged as every other government-run organization in the region, state, or country, I also assumed that HRT would at least step up their game for this project. The HRT President and CEO, Michael Townes is a nice guy with good ideas. Unfortunately, whether his direct fault or not, he is the President and CEO, therefore making him ultimately responsible for the inner workings of HRT. This problem is deeper than Mr. Townes. If we ever want to have a strong, regional transit company, we need to get to the root of the problem. In my opinion, the root of this particular issue stems from poor project management. That is not Mr. Townes’s direct responsibility. The Tide has a project manager and a third-party consultant whose stated job is project management. All of this management should be held immediately accountable. First off, the consulting company is over budget. How in the world can we allow a company tasked with keeping costs under control to go over budget? I consider that a failure. According to a story by WVEC, “Factors cited by HRT include unexpected conditions in the field, requests for design changes, underground utility relocation, consultant issues, and management problems.” I will go with the first three. Sh*t happens. but the final two are unacceptable. If HRT themselves can point out that consultant issues and management problems are the cause for part of our problems, why are these people still employed. It is my personal belief that when a person is hired for a job, they are to do that job. If they fail to do that job, they should be terminated. This applies to head executives as well as 7-Eleven employees. You are paid to do a job. Your employment agreement is a contract between you and your employer. A breach of contract should result in termination unless some rare circumstance exists. Fire the consultants and sue for the money back. As far as I am concerned, if your job is to keep an eye on the money and you instead rob us blind, you should be held accountable. Additionally, there are others that should be docked pay at a minimum. Take the Senior Vice President for Development, Jayne Whitney. Her HRT bio states that she is “currently responsible for the planning, engineering, design and construction and funding of major capital projects in the organization, including New Starts projects such as the Norfolk Light Rail project.” (By the way, Ms. Whitney, if you ever read this, could you please remind your webmaster that stating that you “began [your] professional career with VDOT and performed highway planning and public transportation planning,” just screams inept to this part of the state?) Or look at Jim Price, Vice President of Rail Operations. What does he do right now? There are no “rail operations.” This means that either he sits on his hind parts all day (and we should lay him off) or he is actively involved in the management of this project (and should be held accountable).

Hampton Roads needs this to succeed. We cannot continue to allow waste and incompetence to drive our regional organizations. Bone fide mistakes do happen. I understand that.Especially when you work Downtown, you never know what is lurking underground. When you work in an office, however, and are tasked to not drop the ball, you should either do it or get out. SPSA, HRT, VDOT, each individual city council, the CTB, the General Assembly, etc. all seem to just maintain the status quo. In Hampton Roads this appears to be, “screw the taxpayers.” Light rail can and will work here. So will HRT. As citizens, however, we need to strongly voice our opinion that we want competent staff members before we want expensive ones with lofty resumes.