Metro now on Google Transit

So I was planning a trip to NYC last night and I absent-mindedly asked Google Transit about a transit route to LAX. I thought nothing about it until later, but it actually worked. Metro bus and rail services are now available in Google Transit. Enjoy all.

Last of a Dying Breed

Last 17, originally uploaded by plattypus1.

This is the last westbound #17 bus, at Cottonwood and Frederick in Moreno Valley. Also posted up at the Flickr page are the last eastbound #17, as well as some shots of the 18A at Moreno Valley Mall. 18A, of course, also no longer exists.

Oh, and happy 4th everyone.

Can you say "Green Jobs"?

Infrastructurist reports that the first American-made streetcar in 60 years was unveiled today at a ceremony in Portland, OR. Apparently, not only will it ply the streets of Portland, but it was also produced there, employing "hundreds of skilled workers" in that city.

Hey, if we ever build that Magnolia Ave. streetcar, we can buy American.

Thoughts on car-freedom

Regular users know that I don't claim to be entirely car-free. I'm car-very-very-light. Well, back on Mother's Day, I was driving home from visiting my mother and in-laws, and my hood latch gave way, smashing my windshield and bending the hood in ways it was not meant to be bent. Nobody was injured, and we made it home safely, but our vehicle has beenout of commission since then. That was, as I said, on Mother's Day, May the 10th. Because I'm an impoverished college student, and even worse one who is currently not attending courses (and hence not receiving financial aid), we haven't been able to fix the car, and it's not safe to drive. I've therefore been entirely car-free for the past month and a half.

All in all? Things have been pretty good. We eat out less than we used to, which is an improvement in our finances as well. I've built the CrateBike, and made very effective use of it. We also have been using grocery delivery, which rocks. What strikes me the most is that, besides my wife complaining a bit more whenever she wants to go somewhere, and carpooling with friends for social events more often, our lives haven't really changed all that much. Of course, I'm an outlier. I was already pretty auto-independent when this event happened. (The only reason we were driving that night was because our family's in the high desert. No transit options.) Most people I know would have their entire lives thrown into chaos were they to find themselves suddenly without access to a car. They're very used to a day strung together by driving. Many don't live in a neighbourhood where car-free life be very practical. Many tract developments are miles away from the nearest grocery store, for example. I'm fortunate enough to have the Canyon Crest Towne Centre and a frequent transit line within walking distance.

So, does this mean I'm finally read to cut the car cord? Not quite. Well, I'm ready to entirely, but the wife is probably attending Cal State San Bernardino in the winter, and, beyond a very long bike ride, there simply aren't any commute alternatives for the night classes she'll have to take. Add to that student teaching, and we'll probably have to wait until after her credential is earned to go car-free. And even that depends on where she can find a job. But this summer is a good demonstration of what is possible, even here in the IE.

A Vision for Riverside

I was playing around with Wikipedia the other day, looking at demographic information. (Before the anti-Wiki crowd chimes in, Wikipedia's demographic data is entirely populated by automated download from US Census data. Wikipedia makes it easier to browse.) What I found out there surprised me. We have a conventional idea of the Inland Empire as this vast area of low-density low-population wasteland, unamenable to transit investment or mixed use development. However, this is a possibly misleading analysis. The Inland Empire, or rather, the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario Metropolitan Statistical Area, is the 14th-largest MSA in the United States. That may not sound impressive, but it puts our population above that of the Seattle, Minneapolis, St. Louis, San Diego, Sacramento or Pittsburgh areas, and only a hundred thousand short of the Bay Area. And, as far as density goes, the City of Riverside had 3,908 persons/mi^2, only slightly below that of Portland, OR (4,288 p/mi^2). As transit advocates know, Portland is home to the well-run and well-patronized Tri-Met system. San Diego is also home to population density figures in this neighbourhood, at 4,174 p/mi^2, along with the three-line San Diego Trolley system.

What the Inland Empire lacks in comparison to these other regions is a defined center, a locus of activity. The development patters of the post-war period have spread commercial and social activity thinly throughout the region, and there are few places where viable, dense, mixed-use communities exist that would generate the sort of transit demand that other cities possess.

Fortunately, there is a solution. We must create this center of activity, and I can think of no better place than downtown Riverside. Fledgling cultural attractions are already in place downtown. We must add to this mix various sorts of housing and space for independent businesses, the necessities of daily life, and a fast, frequent transit line, preferably rail. We must make the planning decisions that will enable the construction of all of these amenities in a way that protects pedestrian space and minimizes the footprint of motor vehicles. We must end setback and minimum parking requirements at the very least, as well as the segregation of uses seen in traditional zoning. We must also stop giving away our tax money, in the form of TUMF waivers and economic incentives, to big-box developers on the outskirts of the city. By all means, if you insist upon building that sort of thing, do so, but our city should not be subsidizing it, regardless of how many low-wage jobs it might bring. (I'm thinking here primarily of the Mission Grove shopping plaza, but I'm sure it's not the only one.)

If we do all of this, we can allow Riverside to rise as a charming new urban center, the sort of place that people will want to live and work in. We can position our city to take its place as the leader of the Inland Empire in the coming decades, where our society will be forced to be come increasingly local and transit-oriented.

The beauty of this plan is that it gives our city a forward-looking, leading role in future development, and therefore it should be relatively easy to convince local politicians of its benefits. It will bring in tax money and prestige for our city for years to come, at minimal expense. It is a transformative departure from our usual ways of thinking, to be sure, but it should be one that our leaders can be persuaded to follow. And, if they cannot be persuaded, we ought to find leaders who can.

Late-Night Metrolink

Because we live in an area that grew up during the peak of the automotive boom, it has come to pass that many young Riversiders like to travel in to Los Angeles for their evening and weekend revelry. This is, obviously, prohibitively difficult to accomplish on public transport. Metrolink's Riverside and 91 Lines are notoriously scanty on reverse-peak and off-peak service. The final 91 Line train of the evening leaves Los Angeles at 17:25, and the final Riverside Line train leaves at 18:35. Not exactly ideal for hitting the town. The Metrolink San Bernardino Line, however, is quickly becoming a model of exemplary commuter rail service, with frequent service not only on weekdays in both directions, but also on weekends. There's even a Saturday night train that leaves LA at 11:00 PM. Still a touch early for my tastes, but we're getting there. Problem is, that train ends up in San Bernardino, not Riverside.

A similar problem appears to exist in Pomona. There's a beautiful, well-connected transit center at the Downtown Pomona Metrolink, but that station is served by the Riverside line, not the San Bernardino line. However, these lines are linked by the 24-hour Silver Streak BRT system (from Montclair to Downtown Pomona).

Riverside has no such a connection. Even the Omnitrans 215, which does travel between the two cities, no longer stops at the Metrolink station (why?!?!), and service on that route stops too early to be useful in this particular case. Of course, RTA service stops a touch too early at the moment as well, but this night bus thing is going to take off come January, and I bet we'll see 24-hour service on at least route 1 in the near future.

Combine one last Metrolink run leaving LA at, say 1 or 2 am, an Omni or Metrolink bus waiting at San Bernardino to bring those passengers to Riverside, and late-night RTA service, and you have a recipe for a carfree night out in LA.

In fact, come to think of it, you probably won't even need new late-night RTA service for a 1 am Metrolink. The train won't get out here until 3am, and our wayward partygoers won't see Riverside for another hour after that. The usual 4am transit service will already be running to pick them up.

So, that's my proposal. Get a bus running that connects the amazing San Bernardino Metrolink line to Riverside, at all hours of the day, and you'll instantly improve connectivity for the city. And you'll make the party-going students of our local colleges very happy.

When my bus is late, I get annoyed.

Especially when it's late for no good reason. My #16 ride home today was late due to a hundred tiny bad reasons, in the form of people who didn't notice that the bus fare had gone up. Obviously they didn't notice the widely-advertised public hearings in March, the proposal brochures in April, the announcement in Rider News in May, or the glossy yellow brochures this month. Or the new Ride Guide. Or the voice and visual announcements both on board and on every Smart Stop. Or the web site and telephone messages.

So the drivers are waiting thrice as long as they ought to at stops, waiting for people to dig that extra quarter out of their bags and wallets.

Therefore, as a public service announcement:

RTA is now on a new fare structure, effective today.

Cash fares are as follows:
Local routes: $1.50 general/youth, $0.70 senior/disabled. Children $0.25.
CommuterLink routes: $3 general/youth, $2 senior/disabled. Children $2.

Day passes are as follows:
Local routes: $4 general/youth, $2 senior/disabled.
CommuterLink routes (also covers local routes): $7 general/youth, $5 senior/disabled.

7-Day passes are as follows:
Local routes: $16 for all.

31-Day passes are no longer. They have been replaced by 30-Day passes.
They are as follows:
Local routes: $50 general, $35 youth, $23 senior/disabled.
CommuterLink routes: $75 general/youth, $50 senior/disabled.

Annual and 10-Trip passes have been discontinued.

Oh, and ROUTE SCHEDULES HAVE CHANGED for the following routes:
3, 7, 8, 10, 11 (new), 12, 14, 15, 16, 17 (discontinued), 18/18A, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27,29, 30, 33, 35, 36 (discontinued), 38, 38E (discontinued), 40, 42, 52 (discontinued), 55, 57, 61, 79, 202, 208, 210, 212 (new), 217 (new).

Really, that's nearly every route in the system. You owe it to your transit-riding self to get a new Ride Guide. If you can't find one on the bus, check your local library or the RTA office.

Inform yourselves, and stop holding up my bus.