Category: Transportation

Bike Lane Wars in NYC

New York Magazine printed an article that has cast a light on the inflamed passions of bike lanes in NYC. I can only imagine this issue a hundred years ago when it was the horseless carriages being introduced into the horse lanes. But will gasoline heading to near $4/gallon, and taxi drivers saying they can’t afford to be taxis, change is inevitable. The Middle East is churning in country after country, and that can only mean that oil prices will remain volatile. Transportation issues are long term issues. The generations that invested and built the bridges, rails and subways seem so alien to us today that we think in terms of inches of solutions instead of what we might need 50 years from now.

The cities that get it, are the ones that foresee the walkable city where residents don’t need to rely on transportation to get to core necessities like food and health care. The baby boom generation is entering retirement age. All that means is that in 10 years or so, the population of people who will find driving to get everywhere they need to, will be at a critical mass. Not so long ago, I was thinking along the lines that it was going to be a critical mass of people who were less able to physically drive. Now I think that it will be that, and a whole slew of people who won’t be able to afford to drive.

 

CT Commuter Council Seeks New Members

from a press release:

CT RAIL COMMUTER COUNCIL SEEKS NEW MEMBERS

(Stamford CT  -  October 25, 2010): Everybody seems to complain about the trains.  Now, there’s a chance to actually do something to improve service.

The Connecticut Metro-North Rail Commuter Council is seeking three new members to represent the interests of their fellow riders.  The only criteria for legislative appointment are that you must live in Connecticut and be a regular rider of Metro-North.  In all there are 15 members of the Council.

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Here’s Why CT Senate Race Hinges On Transportation

As amusing as it is to have a candidate for Senate (Linda McMahon) entertain us audiences with her loose interpretation of what fair labor laws are, the real issue in this race is identifying the top priority we want out of a Connecticut Senator. Naturally I think it is is transportation infrastrucutre, since everything else can’t be solved, improved or otherwise even discussed rtionally without addressing the number one reason jobs, the economy, the quality of life and financial support for all sorts of things can’t happen as long as Connecticut has worse transportation options than a third world country.

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75 Miles in 25 Minutes

Today’s column by Tom Friedman in the NYT irritated me. Often his columns irritate me for a variety of reasons, but this one because of this graf;

For the U.S. visitor, the comparisons start from the moment one departs Beijing’s South Station, a giant space-age building, and boards the bullet train to Tianjin. It takes just 25 minutes to make the 75-mile trip.

By car, 75 miles is a little farther than Norwalk to New York City. It’s 62.7 miles to Newark airport, according to Google, and they project it will take 1 hour and 21 minutes. It’s 68 miles to Hartford, not that there’s important economic reasons to go there, and it’s 1 hour and 26 minutes to get there according to Google. Danbury is 23.4 miles and 35 minutes. Bridgeport 13.4 miles and 19 minutes. Stamford 9.2 miles and 16 minutes.

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“It’s Too Hard,” Isn’t An Excuse

One of the things that I’ve always wondered about since moving to Connecticut is why the state highways never took advantage of adding rails or trails along side. Now, according to a nice report in the Advocate the reasons behind the inaction have been identified.

“For two decades, we couldn’t apply for grants toward planning the trail because DOT wouldn’t agree to consider that use for the right of way,” Hoza said.

Now, advocates for bicyclists and multimodal transportation said they hope they are on track as theConnecticut Department of Transportation is awaiting word on a $1 million grant application from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Scenic Byways Program to conduct a feasibility study on the proposed path from Greenwich to Stratford.

That process could take two years if the grant is approved, Connecticut DOT spokesman Kevin Nursick said.

DOT engineers gave the Merritt trail low priority over the years because of the challenges routing the path around the parkway’s ornate bridges and appeasing adjacent residents and preservation groups concerned about changing the roadway’s parklike atmosphere, Nursick said.

“Admittedly, in the past, the department has been hesitant and viewed this as a very difficult endeavor to move forward with,” Nursick said.”In the past few years, we’ve been moving forward to a more multimodal approach, and now we’re coming into this with any preconceived notions.”

One preservationist’s park like atmosphere is my weed filled dead zone. Somehow New York State has managed to preserve more historic stuff while modernizing roads and adding trails. Apparently the CT DOT is just getting around to this kind of thinking.

ConnDOT and Connecticut Adrift Again

November is such a long way off. Yet the far reaching effects of anti-proactivity, one could say toxic reactivity continues in the capitol. Today Governor Rell announced that ConnDOT  Commission Joeseph Marie resigned. The presser:

Governor Rell Appoints Jeffrey Parker As New DOT Commissioner

Commissioner Joseph Marie Resigns

Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced that state Department of Transportation Commissioner Joseph F. Marie has submitted his letter of resignation in order to pursue long-term employment opportunities and spend more time with his family. The Governor has appointed Deputy Commissioner Jeffrey Parker to be commissioner.

“I thank Joe Marie for his service to the state of Connecticut and wish him well as he pursues other opportunities. Joe made a significant contribution to DOT over the last two years and his leadership will be missed,” Governor Rell said. “I have full confidence that Jeff Parker will continue moving the DOT in the dynamic new direction that I have set.”

Under Governor Rell’s leadership, Connecticut is adding 300 new, state-of-the art rail cars to the New Haven Line, expanding Shoreline East service and upgrading dozens of commuter stations. Bradley Airport has added airlines and is undergoing major improvements.  The state has used more than $150 million to replace 77 transit buses and 28 commuter coaches, many of which feature clean-burning hybrid fuel. The safety of the state’s roads and bridges are a top priority for the Governor and the state’s “Fix-it-First” maintenance campaign is improving hundreds of miles of roadway and bridges.

“Deputy Commissioner Parker brings a wealth of experience in mass transit and commuter rail to which we are committed. I fully expect a seamless transition at DOT as we move forward with our goals,” Governor Rell said.

Parker, a Newington native, joined DOT in 2008 after a successful tenure as Senior Director of Transportation Operations at the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA). A graduate of Northeastern University of Boston, Parker also worked for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) where he oversaw project management, safety and operations control.

Routefriend Launches iPhone App

from a press release:

ROUTEFRIEND’S NEW IPHONE APP HELPS TRAVELERS PLAN TRIPS ON BUSES AND TRAINS

NORWALK, CT, May 18, 2010 – Routefriend, the online technology platform that helps travelers plan, schedule and book train and bus trips across America, announced today that it is available as an iPhone app.

iPhone users can download the application from the App Store at http://j.mp/rf-app or try it out on the Routefriend website at http://routefriend.com.

Each year, Americans make half a billion train journeys and city-to-city bus trips. Routefriend automatically figures out the different ways to make a trip then checks operator websites for schedules and fares. Routefriend can find connections between different providers and use the iPhone’s GPS to guide a traveler from their current location.

“It should be as easy to book a bus or a train trip as it is to book a flight”, said Routefriend founder and CEO, David Marcus. “The problem is, there are too many different services out there and they don’t work together. Routefriend fixes that.”

The Connecticut-based travel technology company provides a one-stop-shop for planning trips on buses and trains, bringing together major systems like Amtrak and Greyhound, smaller operators like BoltBus, Megabus and Fung Wah, and commuter rail services.

“We have 20 providers in our network so far and we’re adding more all the time,” said Marcus. “Right now, we can get people from almost anywhere in the country to anywhere else. We’re excited that as we keep adding more providers, we’re going to give people even more travel options. Hopefully more travelers will see the convenience, comfort and savings of traveling on eco-friendly buses and trains.”

EZ Pass New Jersey Proves Kafka Underestimated Bureaucracy

A long time ago in a galaxy far away there was a short story I read in the dark ages (1970s) of computers taking over the world. The plot, roughly, followed the increasingly bad computer generated responses to an attempt to correct an accounting error. It’s too bad that I can’t remember the title, nor the author, because clearly they were ahead of their time.

Today I wasted a couple of hours of my life attempting to update a credit card on my ez-pass NJ account. I had been periodically attempting to do this for several months now, since my credit card number got switched because of some unnamed breach of security. The brianiacs over in ez-pass land have a web site that gets stuck in an endless loop if your balance goes negative, which results in them rejecting payments and prohibiting new credit cards from being added to the account. Which can happen if you happen to drive through a toll on the day that your account balance is just below the amount of the toll.

After a few attempts at trying to make a one-time payment to the account with a new credit card, I gave up. My nest step was to email ez-pass NJ with the problem I was having on the web site. They emailed back a reply that they would call me. They called, left a message that I should go to the website and make a payment. I opted to call them since the web site was not processing the payment. We played phone tag for a week or so, and because I was traveling out of the country, I finally left a message with the customer service agent and my credit card number.

Needless to say that they did nothing. And so today, when it occurred to me to update my license plate info today, I logged in to find that my account got placed into collections, several new fees added, and it was closed. EZ pass NJ sent no email, no letter, nothing to indicate any of this of course. The peeps at the state collection agency informed me of this, since “Elvis” the supervisor at EZ pass NJ couldn’t do anything. It didn’t matter that I had emails and dates of how long I have attempted to resolve the issue, that their responses to update on the web site wasn’t working, and that I was more interested in alerting them to the bug in their system rather than just fix my dilemma. “Elvis” was really not in the building.

After a quick Google search to see how many frustrated people were out there, I discovered that many had experienced the fine zero service of ez-pass NJ. Some with exactly the same scenario, others with more convoluted issues involving perpetual low balances, adding coins to get through tolls and getting fined for not paying. My situation is now resolved. I paid a $25 fine for the privilege of being in collections, $7.06 in tolls and $40 for still having my ez-pass transponders when they closed my account. Supposedly I will get a check back when I send in my transponders. I somehow suspect that this won’t be the end of the story.

Guest View: Boucher On Mass Transit

Senator Boucher Joins Effort To Move Mass Transit Improvements Forward

Senator Toni Boucher (R-26) met with Governor M. Jodi Rell, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, state Transportation Commissioner Joseph Marie, and members of Connecticut’s congressional delegation to discuss high speed rail in the northeast and promote proposed improvements to commuter rail service New Haven, Hartford and Springfield, Massachusetts, along with other state rail and bus projects.

“A regional approach to our mass transit needs will help keep Connecticut at the top of the federal priorities list as our state’s rail infrastructure is widely utilized but outmoded,” said Senator Boucher.

Senator Boucher commended Governor Rell and DOT Commissioner Marie for their support and leadership regarding mass transit improvement.

“Connecticut is fortunate to have the right person for the right job at the right time. DOT Commissioner Joseph Marie, along with Governor Rell, has a clear mass transit vision for Connecticut. No question, our transportation infrastructure helps drive economic growth. Finally, our state has all parties on board to advance these important regional mass transit intermodal projects. If successful in gaining federal support, Connecticut residents can look forward to a day when residents will be able to take a train from Fairfield County to New Haven, Bradley Airport and Springfield, Massachusetts,” said Senator Boucher.

East Rocks Road Work, Plan For Detour

State Senator Bob Duff wants you to know that East Rocks Rd. has bridgework being done.

from a press release:

Plan for Detours: Portion of East Rocks Road to beClosed
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The Connecticut Department of Transportationrecently announced that East Rocks Road between Granite Drive and Ox Yoke Lane in Norwalk will be closed to thru traffic beginning on March22,2010.
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Detour signThru traffic will be rerouted via Allen Road, Toilsome Avenue, Grumman Avenue and Bayne Street. Detour signs will be in place to assist motorists, and local traffic will have access on either side of the bridge closure. The detour will be in effect until the end of May2011.
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The detour is part of ongoing work on a $4.7million project to replace certain portions and rehabilitate other portions of the bridge. The contractor, New England Road, Inc. of Clinton, is preparing for the demolition phase of theproject.