MVVA’s Winning Concept To Finish Destroying Riverfront Street Grid Pt1

Overall I’m fine with MVVA’s winning proposal for connecting to the Arch but one idea is horrible — the removal of Washington Ave along the south edge of the Eads Bridge.  On page 12 of the MVVA narrative they wrote:

“By removing the existing Memorial garage and the terminus of Washington Avenue, which is used almost exclusively by garage patrons, our proposal allows the openings in the Eads Bridge to serve as portals between Laclede’s Landing and a dynamic civic landscape. Accessible pathways stitch together a mix of neighborhood programs and event space, including a large playground, comfortable shaded seating, an earthen amphitheater, and the Gateway Urban Ecology Center, which offers afterschool programs and summer camps for St. Louis and East St. Louis students.”

Yes, the north parking garage is a hideous barrier between Laclede’s Landing and the Arch Grounds, but Washington Ave is not a problem.  Streets connect. Narrow the street to the width of those in Laclede’s Landing but leave it so circulation in the area isn’t cut off more.  Allow pedicabs, carriages and vehicles to slowly navigate the area.  But cutting off more of the grid will create more problems than it solves.

– Steve Patterson

Readers Think St. Clair County Transit Needs Bike Racks On Buses

Response to this poll was low but the results are clear, those who voted think St. Clair County Transit needs to add bike racks to their buses.

Q: St. Clair County (IL) Transit District doesn’t have bike racks on their buses, they 1) damage buses 2) damage wash brushes 3) take extra labor. Your thoughts?

1. Madison County Transit finds a way, so should St. Clair County Transit. 36 [37.5%]
2. So what if it takes more labor to wash the buses, they need to find a way to pay for it and get racks on their buses 29 [30.21%]
3. No bus in the region should have bike racks 15 [15.63%]
4. Other answer… 7 [7.29%]
5. Unsure/no opinion 6 [6.25%]
6. If it takes more labor saving money is more important than providing bike racks 3 [3.13%]

I thought #6 above would be the primary against answer so the 15 votes that “No bus in the region should have bike racks” was shocking.

The seven other answers were:

1. SCCT should get over themselves and get with the program!
2. Its up to the residents of st. clair county to want bike racks
3. Why do the buses need to be washed, and how much money was spent on that?
4. modify the bus wash to work with racks, like other transit systems do!
5. Lame excuses
6. there needs to be a balance between cost/benefit to the region of the bike racks
7. If MCT, Metro and tons of other transit authorities can, St. Clair should too.

I’m going to stay on this issue until the day you can bike-n-ride in St. Clair County.

– Steve Patterson

Will Fifth Third Bank At Loughborough Commons Connect To Sidewalk?

Has it really been nearly two full years since I’ve written about Loughborough Commons? It was December 2008 when I wrote about the new Burger King’s lack of pedestrian access despite the nearby sidewalk.

“Burger King has very generous provisions for the motorist but zip for the pedestrian. What pedestrians you might ask. Well, people do walk to Loughborough Commons. People also arrive by bus and bike. Yes, most use a car but we shouldn’t overlook those not driving private autos. Everyone spending money at Loughborough Commons is paying an extra tax to the Community Improvement district. Shouldn’t pedestrians expect some accommodation in return?”

Of course, nothing was done to correct the lack of pedestrian access.  Now construction has started on the Fifth Third Bank for the parcel between the main entrance and the Burger King.  Here is what the site looked like in late 2008:

The bank building faces Loughborough but will be reached internally. The drive through lanes, not the front door is what is visible from the main drive.

My assumption is the existing sidewalk will not be continued across the edge of the parcel and not up to the front door, a clear violation of the ADA.

I was only at Loughborough Commons for a few minutes but I spotted pedestrians leaving as I was leaving. Walkability is not that difficult but it is obviously out of the mindset of civil engineers and the developers who hire them.

– Steve Patterson

What Took Me So Long To Become A Regular Transit Rider?

I’ve always supported public mass transit, at least in theory. Sure, I’d ridden both rail & rubber tire transit from time to time in St. Louis during the last 20 years.  Getting to & from the airport was probably the most frequent reason for using transit, but even though I lived a block from the #70 Grand  bus line I’d get a friend to drop me off or pick me up from the MetroLink station on Grand.

I do recall one trip in 2007 where I walked to the bus stop, then a few blocks, to catch the bus to MetroLink so I could reach the airport. I may have done it twice but I know it wasn’t three times. From my last home in South St. Louis I’d bike over to catch the #40 Broadway bus to go downtown.  Again, this was only a handful of times.

After my stroke, in February 2008, I used the MetroLink light rail to get out of downtown a few times, especially before I started driving in July 2008 — dropping transit at that point. But two years later, in June 2010, I decided to see how difficult it would be to become a regular transit rider so I purchased a monthly pass for July 2010.

One thing I knew I’d have to let go of way my idea that I wouldn’t like the wheelchair lift on the buses because many destinations were only reachable by bus. Others were reachable by bus or light rail, but the bus was closer on both ends.

Short clip of lift in operation:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cw0w1ASPKUw

So what did I find out over the last three months?

• Having a smart phone (iPhone 3GS in my case) with Google Maps was very helpful for determining routes and times.  Additionally, I can access PDF files of route maps I’ve saved on Dropbox.
• Not having to pay each time I boarded made me more open to taking transit throughout the month.
• The quality of bus and train operators varies widely, none were bad but some are better than others.
• Using transit takes longer than driving my car but the convenience is worth the extra time.
• The restoration of lines that came recently make a huge difference.
• The level of ridership has been good on the many lines I’ve ridden, at different times of day & night.
• Riders
• The quality of the bus service is much higher than I had expected.
• Initially it would have been cheaper to buy individual tickets rather than the monthly pass.  As my ridership has increased I’m probably at a break even point.

I feel like a regular now that I ride the bus and/or train 3-4 times per week.  I plan to keep buying a monthly pass so I don’t have to drive my car much.

For the last five months I drove my car just 1,000 miles locally (excludes road trips out of town), that extrapolates to 2,400 miles per year.  Not bad, I think.  I’d love to not have the expense of a car but due to the modifications I need I can’t just rent one as needed.

I’m fortunate that I have two bus lines each just a block away (#97 & #10) and three MetroLink stations nearby (Union Station, 8th & Pine, Convention Center).  My address got a “good transit” rating of 69/100 but is a “walker’s paradise” with a score of 94/100 on Walkscore.com.

I realize that had I been riding transit for the last 20 years I probably wouldn’t have gained so much weight, my blood pressure wouldn’t have been off the charts and I wouldn’t have had a stroke.  It took 20 years but I’m finally a regular transit rider.

– Steve Patterson

Poll: Help Me Determine The Message To Leave On Some Cars

For the poll this week I’m asking what should be printed on the cards I’m going to get to leave on cars parked like this:

I see things like this often and I want to do something about it but 1) the police are too busy, 2) parking violations is closed, 3) I can’t wait for the person to come back, 4) and if I had paper & pen I can’t write legibly.

Here is one example of what I was thinking:

To harsh or not enough?  I have listed several ideas in the poll, all have come to mind.  The poll is at the top of the right sidebar.

– Steve Patterson