urbanSTL

only if Metro had one of these.....

A matter of priorities. Like burying Metrolink in Clayton so the station was in th middle of it instead of burying it to placate NIMBy's between Forsyth and Big Bend.

nextSTL.com @nextSTL

The $ = priorities tally: @BarnesJewish $4.9M, @WUSTL $4.9M, @MoDOT $16M for I-64 interchange. $0 for MetroLink Station.

I think the interchange work has in plans for years before the station came about...

Yes, a reflection of priorities.

Was there a need for a station there 5 years ago?

I like the urban feeling of the Clayton stop, but I will agree, getting on and off trains there is not very pleasant.

Resurrecting the Northside-Southside MetroLink expansion

The Northside-Southside Study spanned two years and involved input from city and transit officials, engineers, neighborhood and community leaders, and area residents. The Northside-Southside expansion was the most highly favored corridor in the Moving Transit Forward public meetings held throughout the region. It is also the only MetroLink likely to be eligible for federal funding.

The research has been done, a plan has been approved and it’s now time to move forward. Several business executives have joined an ad hoc committee, Friends for the Northside-Southside MetroLink Expansion, with the immediate goal of taking the expansion study to the next level, which includes engineering and construction.


link: http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/ma ... d34b2.html

There is a thread for that
http://urbanstl.com/forum/viewtopic.php ... &start=360

And another
http://urbanstl.com/forum/viewtopic.php ... &start=255

Can we combine these?

^ I just thought this was an interesting new angle on the N-S story

I been working with people to help start a group to build and unite public support and to push our leaders for a N/S metro-link expansion. https://www.facebook.com/MoreSTLMero

^ so are you part of the business community pushing for this line? How far along in the process are you? This should be our regions #1 transportation priority.

goat314 wrote:^ so are you part of the business community pushing for this line? How far along in the process are you? This should be our regions #1 transportation priority.

No I am not directly in it but I am already in touch with people in the business community and local leaders. We are planning to have a meeting together.

"For people that are asking about the Organization our goal is to find and untie people that want to see metro-link expanded in the city and region. In to one common voice that can work with CTM and other organizations. To help untie and build public support. With community feed back."

I appreciate your working toward this very important goal but that page badly needs some proofreading!

A few other of us have had a few meetings called Urban Transit for STL, looks like your group has a lot more momentum, I'll tell the others about More Metro. Grass roots is the way to go, really.

lol, I saw that the status I referenced got edited, but it's still an absolute mess. Just copy and paste this if you want:

"For people that are asking about the organization, our goal is to find and unite people that want to see Metrolink expanded in the city and region into one common voice that can work with CTM and other organizations. To help unite and build public support with community feedback."

Could be better still but that at least takes all the errors out.

wustl_eng wrote:lol, I saw that the status I referenced got edited, but it's still an absolute mess. Just copy and paste this if you want:

"For people that are asking about the organization, our goal is to find and unite people that want to see Metrolink expanded in the city and region into one common voice that can work with CTM and other organizations. To help unite and build public support with community feedback."

Could be better still but that at least takes all the errors out.

CTM or CMT? Im guessing CMT.

CTM? Don't you mean CMT?

I was just going off what was written but didn't pick up on that, you guys are right.

One more time. not going to happen in the next 20 years. There is no federal funds free until at least 2023ish. And that same program may go away if GOP takes the senate.

^ I highly doubt we will stop building light rail systems. In fact, I see a future where transportation policies drastically change. Also, just because it may take 20 years before we get this thing completed does not mean we shouldn't work towards it. I see this as a positive development, especially if the business community gets behind it.

Meaningless bet, but I bet we break ground on N-S Metro (or a reasonable equivalent) within 10 years. I don't see this 20 years or later thing being a reality. St. Louis is creeping up on a sense of urgency. At some point here soon, we're going to start getting the important things done.

One more time. not going to happen in the next 20 years. There is no federal funds free until at least 2023ish. And that same program may go away if GOP takes the senate.

Thanks Debbie. Then clearly we need to look for another source of funds. Not passively wait for the feds.

^ you seem to be upset about our FF match up

no debbie here, just being realistic...that op-ed didn't even mention the $2 billion elephant in the room.

Other funding options-

Raise the sales tax again- but Prop A was suppose to fund N/S so people wont vote for it again
Fed funds- there isn't any
State Funds- the rural legislative members will not commit state funds for a urban light rail.

Ha. Yeah, I cried myself to sleep last night about it.

Clearly, its not going to be an easy task. But, I don't see why you can't use a collections of taxes to accomplish the same goal.

People have clearly voiced a desire for expanded Metrolink, especially in the city. I think people are willing to pay for it and understand that they have to in order to get it done. I think the problem is the "establishment's" approach. Putting all their eggs into one basket. Banking all on federal funding, or state funding, or a sales tax. I think a combination of a cigerettes/alcohol tax, a hotel/tourism tax, and a TDD would be something the city could stomach. Diversify.

First, use cigarettes/alcohol and hotel/tourism taxes as capital funds for expanding transit in the city. Have a percentage go strictly to transit, a percentage go to education, and a percentage go to capital for tourism development (CVC, stadiums, and the like). Second, use a TDD tax along the proposed routes to fund operations and maintenance. Any excess funds from the TDD would go back into the capital budget.

Now I don't know the exact amount of funds you'd be able to get from that. I've been trying to get statistics on hotel stays in the city, but I am having a tough time getting good numbers.

But when I looked at those taxes structured that way as a citizen, I don't get turned off if I'm voting. I pay and tourists pay. We develop transit while also helping education and fostering more tourism. We curb our appetite for cigarettes and booze, making us healthier. And people that use the new system the most, pay to maintain it.