THE COUNTY “Metropolitan Planning Commission” sent me a post card (for which the taxpayers paid) asking what transportation options I would like to see in 2045.
Most of the questions had suggested answers relating to cars and trucks, although pedestrians and bus riders were not forgotten.
But there was one thing missing.
LOCAL MINI-BUSES (10 to 14 passenger vehicles) that circulate in the neighborhoods and connect to the “main line” buses, trains, and the airport.
The county is off to a fair start; there is a shuttle – free, too – between the train depot and the airport, and there is an also free local shuttle that goes to major stops, but there is nothing between the shuttle and regular bus stops and the communities on the routes.
I thought about this long before I needed it. Now that I really need it – I no longer can walk from my house to a bus or shuttle stop, especially dragging a suitcase behind me, a la Winnie the Pooh behind Christopher Robin. Those days are history.
Harrisburg PA intended to have a transportation hub at the local airport. I know because I wrote about it for the Patriot-News. I moved on before the idea got off the drawing board, so I don’t know if the airport, buses, and rail line connected as hoped.
That still doesn’t solve the transportation problem for
- (a) the folks who need public transportation and
(b) travelers who want to leave the flivver at home when traveling out of town by plane, train, or inter-city bus.
Most counties have communities off the main line.
Some counties, to their credit, have created “Park-n-Ride” options to reduce congestion in downtown or other high traffic areas, letting people park their cars and step on a bus or train. My local train depot has free parking during the hours the commuter trains come through town.
Dade County has a “Park-n-Ride” option at a major choke point where several major roads converge.
Once near downtown Miami, there is a shuttle-for-a-fee service.
There now are two rail options between West Palm Beach and Miami: Tri-Rail and the newcomer, Brightline. Tri-Rail is government; Brightline is private and is intended to eventually extend to Orlando. (Amtrak also stops in my town, albeit not at the depot most convenient to my house.)
I live in a subdivision about ¼ mile from the Tri-Rail/airport shuttle.
My problem is getting to (and from) the shuttle stop.
The subdivision is off a road that runs between two major thoroughfares. On that road are four, soon to be five, subdivisions.
Because we have been “spoiled” by having decent roads, (relatively) inexpensive cars and, compared to most other countries, “cheap” fuel prices, we don’t give a lot of thought to public transportation options: primarily buses and trains.
Until we have to beg a ride to someplace.
Such as the airport or train depot.
Miami International (MIA) is the “big” airport in the area.
I used to
- 1. Drive down to the airport, fighting traffic.
2. Pay for parking (once I found a spot)
3. Drive back to the house, paying tolls and fighting congestion.
When the government, in its “wisdom" (?) eliminated toll booths and made everything electronic, I had a choice:
- Buy a pass (that I rarely would use)
- Find a longer alternate route
- Travel by Tri-Rail right to the airport – and for less money than driving, tolls, and parking would cost
No brainer.
The train is comfortable – some cars are nicer than others – it has air conditioning and heat – yes, even in Florida we sometimes turn on the heat – and Wi-Fi if I want it. It does NOT have traffic jams (unless some fool tries to beat the train at a crossing – the fools always lose), I have zero parking fees and zero tolls. Wear and tear on my flivver is $0. The fare is $3.75 ($7.50 round trip). On top of that, the ticket sellers at my depot are kind and helpful. At MIA, tickets are dispensed from a machine; that’s “OK” (barely) but I buy all my tickets at “my” depot. (If I rode the rails frequently, my fare would be $1.90 ($3.80 round trip).
TODAY, I can get a free shuttle to within a quarter mile of my abode. I wouldn’t mind paying a small fare to ride from the shuttle stop to my house, or at least to the entrance of the subdivision. I can drag my suitcase from the gate to the common parking area, and then drive the several blocks to the house.
Usually I can arrange a ride to/from the depot with a neighbor – usually.
If there was a mini-bus running up and down the avenue passing in front of my subdivision, I certainly would use it. If that mini bus continued on to the next main bus route, even better – from there I could catch a bus to more stores or to my doctor.
Interestingly, most buses run east-west; few travel north-south, so getting to the local hospital can be difficult sans a car.
If the county officials ask me – and they did – what I think we need by 2045, it is local mini buses with a 10 to 14 passenger capacity; something to get people to the main bus routes. Free would be nice, but there could be small fare.
That’s what I told the country planners.
Will they listen?
By 2045, will I care?
PLAGIARISM is the act of appropriating the literary composition of another, or parts or passages of his writings, or the ideas or language of the same, and passing them off as the product of one’s own mind.
BCPLANNER: Comments on Mini Buses
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