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Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Wed Aug 09, 2023 8:09 pm
by langosta
So Missouri authorized the Kansas City metro counties to enact county-level public transit taxes and we have just been sitting on it? I don't totally understand why KCATA or KCRTA or UrbanLabs have never started a petition to put this on the ballot.

https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection. ... 5&bid=3336


REGIONAL INVESTMENT DISTRICT COMPACT
I. AGREEMENT AND PLEDGE
The participants in this Compact agree to and pledge, each to the other, faithful cooperation in the support of regional programs and initiatives to benefit and serve the Kansas City metropolitan area, holding in high trust for the benefit of the people and of the nation, the special blessings and natural advantages thereof.
II. POLICY AND PURPOSE
The purpose of this Compact is to provide support for regional programs and initiatives that will produce significant benefit to the Kansas City metropolitan area, with the goal of making more efficient use of resources through inter-jurisdictional cooperation on strategic regional programs and initiatives involving public transit.


D. The ballot for the proposition in each county shall be in substantially the following form:
­
Shall a sales tax ______ (insert amount, not to exceed one-half cent) be levied and collected in ______ County for the support of a Regional Program that will produce significant benefit within the Regional Investment District, with such tax to extend no longer than ______ (insert years not to exceed fifteen) years following the first receipt by the county treasurer of revenue from such tax?
☐ YES ☐ NO

70.545. Counties and commission may operate under compact if not authorized by Kansas, when. — If the state of Kansas has not enacted the compact by August 28, 2007, then the district described in section 70.515 shall nonetheless be created, and the district, any Missouri county in the district, the commission, and an oversight committee shall have all the powers and duties and may operate as set forth in sections 70.515 to 70.545, provided that:
  (1) The regional investment district created in section 70.515 shall be known as the "Missouri Regional Investment District", shall be a political subdivision solely of the state of Missouri, and shall consist only of those Missouri counties that are within the Mid-America regional planning area and Buchanan County. All references to a "regional investment district" or "district" in section 70.515 shall be deemed to refer exclusively to the "Missouri regional investment district".

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Wed Aug 09, 2023 8:37 pm
by Chris Stritzel
^Regarding UrbanLab, I get the vibe that they’re an advocacy group that would like to remain apolitical and focus on bettering the city in other ways.

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Wed Aug 09, 2023 10:02 pm
by DaveKCMO
langosta wrote: Wed Aug 09, 2023 8:09 pm So Missouri authorized the Kansas City metro counties to enact county-level public transit taxes and we have just been sitting on it? I don't totally understand why KCATA or KCRTA or UrbanLabs have never started a petition to put this on the ballot.
This option is one of several in a white paper KCRTA authored years ago. That white paper became the basis for KCATA's One RideKC project that did additional analysis and engagement to determine what a half-cent sales tax could fund. The Chamber and MARC put the kibosh on that, so now KCRTA is working directly with elected officials in several counties to advance whatever plan they're comfortable with, as long as it expands access to jobs.

No one's more frustrated than me that we can't seem to figure out this issue even though it's pretty simple: Give the people something to vote on.

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Thu Aug 10, 2023 11:05 am
by langosta
DaveKCMO wrote: Wed Aug 09, 2023 10:02 pm
langosta wrote: Wed Aug 09, 2023 8:09 pm So Missouri authorized the Kansas City metro counties to enact county-level public transit taxes and we have just been sitting on it? I don't totally understand why KCATA or KCRTA or UrbanLabs have never started a petition to put this on the ballot.
This option is one of several in a white paper KCRTA authored years ago. That white paper became the basis for KCATA's One RideKC project that did additional analysis and engagement to determine what a half-cent sales tax could fund. The Chamber and MARC put the kibosh on that, so now KCRTA is working directly with elected officials in several counties to advance whatever plan they're comfortable with, as long as it expands access to jobs.

No one's more frustrated than me that we can't seem to figure out this issue even though it's pretty simple: Give the people something to vote on.
Appreciate the response. Thank you

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2023 3:34 pm
by GRID
Trams become trains when they are hooked together. Took a couple of pics while in town and it's cool when the have two streetcars next to each other.

Is there any scenario where coupling streetcars could be a thing in the future? Has it been discussed at all or is that totally out of the question now due to the curb running sections and short platforms?

Image

Image

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2023 3:45 pm
by langosta
GRID wrote: Mon Sep 04, 2023 3:34 pm Trams become trains when they are hooked together. Took a couple of pics while in town and it's cool when the have two streetcars next to each other.

Is there any scenario where coupling streetcars could be a thing in the future? Has it been discussed at all or is that totally out of the question now due to the curb running sections and short platforms?

Image

Image
Train Cars: The vehicles we bought do not support linked operations outside of emergency use.

Stations: Many of the largest transit networks (NYC, London, etc) have trains longer then the platforms they serve. Announcements are made before the stop to make your way to the right doors.

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2023 3:55 pm
by GRID
^

That's actually very rare, mostly in smaller suburban stations etc and it's not possible in this situation since you can't change which car you are in once inside a car.

It may actually be possible to build a second platform for coupled cars without a lot of problems since the curb platforms are relatively small, but I didn't know those cars are not able to function coupled outside of emergencies. Obviously this is a very long term thing. Having 5 minute frequencies would be better, but if the stadium goes downtown, then having the capacity of coupled cars might be something to consider.

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2023 6:17 pm
by langosta
GRID wrote: Mon Sep 04, 2023 3:55 pm ^

That's actually very rare, mostly in smaller suburban stations etc and it's not possible in this situation since you can't change which car you are in once inside a car.

It may actually be possible to build a second platform for coupled cars without a lot of problems since the curb platforms are relatively small, but I didn't know those cars are not able to function coupled outside of emergencies. Obviously this is a very long term thing. Having 5 minute frequencies would be better, but if the stadium goes downtown, then having the capacity of coupled cars might be something to consider.
What I dreamt up was a transition on main to the 5 segment CAF vehicles. Send the existing 3 segment vehicles to the non-core routes (NKC, LInwood, Waldo) but build their platforms dedicated ROW or center running in a LRT size and fashion in case of future demand warranting it or event operations.

Back to main street... today, only the middle sections of the platforms are level to the cars so as long as their is a sidewalk to step down into I dont really think it needs a full blown platform

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2023 6:24 pm
by GRID
langosta wrote: Mon Sep 04, 2023 6:17 pm
GRID wrote: Mon Sep 04, 2023 3:55 pm ^

That's actually very rare, mostly in smaller suburban stations etc and it's not possible in this situation since you can't change which car you are in once inside a car.

It may actually be possible to build a second platform for coupled cars without a lot of problems since the curb platforms are relatively small, but I didn't know those cars are not able to function coupled outside of emergencies. Obviously this is a very long term thing. Having 5 minute frequencies would be better, but if the stadium goes downtown, then having the capacity of coupled cars might be something to consider.
What I dreamt up was a transition on main to the 5 segment CAF vehicles. Send the existing 3 segment vehicles to the non-core routes (NKC, LInwood, Waldo) but build their platforms dedicated ROW or center running in a LRT size and fashion.

Back to main street... today, only the middle sections of the platforms are level to the cars so as long as their is a sidewalk to step down into I dont really think it needs a full blown platform
interesting, yeah that would be a great option.

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Tue Sep 05, 2023 7:50 pm
by DaveKCMO
None of the platforms are long enough. Just run more service.

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Tue Sep 05, 2023 8:45 pm
by langosta
DaveKCMO wrote: Tue Sep 05, 2023 7:50 pm None of the platforms are long enough. Just run more service.
Back to our point, why can’t they be adjusted

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2023 2:28 pm
by alejandro46
https://youtu.be/_gKrW_aj75I?si=sr28YCNLDS4vuIro

Interesting short video from RM Transit. Not sure if completely applicable to KC as our transit network is very limited and population much below cities mentioned in video (Denver, Miami, Portland, Seattle) but in essence he argues that (in a vacuum) the city’s population shouldn’t be the determinate of what transit mode should be built but instead the kind of service that is needed to be delivered and he argues that that service could have instead be delivered via a bus versus at light rail with at grade crossings / long headways.

For example middle size cities in Europe many time have a wide variety of transit choices tailored to the type of service. A smaller city like Guadalajara has a population of 1.3m, but boasts a 29mi light rail, 48 stations with 12 mi extension under construction. Headways are down to 4 min during peak to meet the est. 200k daily ridership.

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2023 4:47 pm
by DaveKCMO
langosta wrote: Tue Sep 05, 2023 8:45 pm
DaveKCMO wrote: Tue Sep 05, 2023 7:50 pm None of the platforms are long enough. Just run more service.
Back to our point, why can’t they be adjusted
The ridership would not justify the cost or the hassle IMO. You would get just as much ridership gain from increasing frequency, which we have seen first hand.

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Sun Dec 10, 2023 9:08 pm
by langosta
Image

Interesting that Northland Rapid Transit and NKC Streetcar may not all happen on the same corridor within NKC

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Mon Dec 11, 2023 11:03 am
by DaveKCMO
Note the use of the word rapid. If you want to go far and fast you don't make a bunch of turns along the way.

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Mon Dec 11, 2023 11:41 am
by Chris Stritzel
Whoever made that map needed to look for spelling errors. Meetcalf Avenue...

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Mon Dec 11, 2023 12:25 pm
by alejandro46
Who made that map?

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Mon Dec 11, 2023 1:26 pm
by langosta
alejandro46 wrote: Mon Dec 11, 2023 12:25 pm Who made that map?
Kcata

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2024 12:24 pm
by langosta
Time to think about dedicated row transit into and around downtown?

Re: Phase Three Streetcar Expansion

Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2024 12:45 pm
by rxlexi
langosta wrote: Fri Feb 16, 2024 12:24 pm Time to think about dedicated row transit into and around downtown?
Worth discussing. I worry for the streetcar if/when Royals and 670 park happen downtown.