 |
| Arts & Humanities and Entertainment Literature, Movies, Humor, Music Business & Economy Finance,Jobs, Computers & Internet . Education College and University, K-12... Government Elections, Military, Law, Taxes Health Medicine, Diseases, Drugs, Fitness... News & Media Newspapers, TV Science Social Science and Society Archaeology, Economics, Languages, Environment, Religion... |
| Topics |
| More cars are coming... How will we deal with increased congestion? (especially between 7:30-to-9:30 am and 4-to-6 p.m.) More public transit (that's the answer in Europe) Better traffic management (more likely for success in USA) More people want to go more places more quickly. What are the limits to growth for airports? (not largely discussed ... Should we build more airports or expand airports or extend runways, or should we invest in technology to help airplanes land in shorter distances? VTOL, Vertical Take Off Landing). =============================== Notes from the discussion 1. Is there a difference between the culture of the north and the culture of the Sunbelt (or specifically South Florida?)? Observation by Bruce Willson (who moved here from Madison, Wisconsin) In Atlanta, the word got out that the HOV (high occupant vehicle) lane was not being enforced. The local newspaper (Atlanta Constitution) wrote an editorial that basically asked, "How can we allow this to happen? We need police to enforce this rule." The next day, police officers from local cities and highway patrol were in view. Can you imagine this happening in South Florida? Madison is a progressive town. The population came to a consensus that the downtown needed fewer cars. The town raised parking rates and it was considered the civic duty to ride the bus. Professionals and people who wear suits take the bus. "Doctors could ride their cars to the hospital to perform an operation in an emergency, but the rest of the time the doctors, like the rest of us, chose to take mass transit." Can you imagine even 10% of the population of South Florida choosing to take the bus in the spirit of "what's good for the city"? Buses tend to be considered (in South Florida) for the use of people who can't afford to have cars. People who won't take the bus to or from the airport in Fort Lauderdale take the bus or subway (without complaint) from Washington National and other northern airports that are served by bus or rail. Consensus of the meeting: IN SOUTH FLORIDA... We seem to have very low expectations of our neighbors. There appears to be virtually no peer pressure to "do the right thing." "We don't band together very often." There appears to be no sense of "civic duty." Will teenagers in this culture respond to a public education campaign to "use the bus"? 2. There are more opportunities for moving NORTH-SOUTH than for moving EAST-WEST. CSX and FEC railways vs. the single I-595 corridor... What are the costs involved in moving TRI-RAIL to the FEC railway? How difficult would it be to raise the track (elevated like some commuter trains in New York and Chicago)? Would nearby residents complain? "I moved away from the L in Chicago!" 3. MORE HIGH RISES WILL MAKE MASS TRANSIT EFFECTIVE. The "UP ZONING" (increase in density) in the center of cities will make it easier for mass transit to work effectively. Land use planning in France restricts most development to city centers and planned suburbs. The ex-urbs are truly rural and remain agricultural thanks to subsidies to keep farmers farming (not selling their land to home builders). IN SHORT, MORE HIGH RISES IN SELECTED LOCATIONS ARE NEEDED TO MAKE BUS ROUTES MORE EFFECTIVE. TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT APPEARS TO BE THE MOST REALISTIC NEAR-TERM WAY TO REDUCE CONGESTION. Other observations a) BUSES FOR TEEN MOVIE-GOERS -- If buses were operated between neighborhoods with lots of teenagers and the Sawgrass movie complex on weekends, the buses would be full. Maybe if they learned to use the bus, then they might continue to use the bus for commuting. b) BUSES FOR WORKERS There are a lot of buses running on Bayview Drive. Why? The owners and occupants of the houses aren't using the bus. Most of the riders are employees (workers in the houses). c) HELP CARS GET THROUGH INTERSECTIONS -- Instead of an increased (expensive? futile?) focus on putting more people on buses (converting drivers into passengers), how about investing in more sophisticated and responsive software to synchronize traffic flow? Why not put police officers on intersections to keep traffic flowing during peak times... For example, at intersections like Davie and Andrws Avenue, since most traffic is flowing into the city from the west in the early morning. ALSO: Several bridges do not open during rush hour (Andrews and 3rd Avenue Bridges ove rthe New River, for example). Is is possible to keep all bridges in down between 8 and 9 am and between 4 and 6 pm? (especially the Davie Bridge and the 17th Street Causeway). d) REMEMBER THE CONNECTIONS -- It appears that we need to focus on the connections between modes of transporation. Bicycles on buses is growing in popularity. A focus on one particular "magic bullet" is missing the point. "All we need is high speed rail" or "We need ot move the commuter train to the FEC coastal rail" is missing the importance of e) MORE EFFORT BY ADMINISTRATORS IS NEEDED -- There appears to be an unwillingness among some political leaders and public administrators to make an effort for the best long-term land-use decisions ... some prefer the "road of least resistance." "A city manager recently chose a more expensive alternative (involving a single land owner) because he didn't have to deal with a multitude of land owners." f) What other modes of transportation are available? Golf carts in Tamarac? Mopeds, motorscooters, rollerblades, skateboards, bicycles, g) Loft Designs, similar to the "work at home" loft design by Andres Duany, could make work-at-home more practical... More internet use could lead to more work at home.... Does the city need to offer incentives to deflect commuters to come to work before 7:30 and after 9:30? h) Overheard.... "We need to do something about the traffic problem in downtown Fort Lauderdale." Said at 10:30 a.m. When we looked out the window, we could see one car on the road.... (What people mean when they talk about the "traffic problem" is "during rush hour"). |
| SUMMARY This is obviously the first of many discussions. We intend to keep them going, raising questions and pushing for new answers. |
| Many cities are fighting rush-hour congestion with more public transit and campaigns to persuade drivers to carpool and leave their cars at home. Perhaps there will be a new association of drivers that supports the recommendations of this meeting... for improved traffic flow during rush hour 1. Priority to main arteries of travel 2. Synchornized traffic lights 3. No open bridges during rush hour Possible names for the proposed association? Drivers Against Delays Drivers For Fast Commuting ANY OTHER SUGGESTIONS? |