All Articles Tagged "public transit"
Going My Way? How To Flirt On Public Transit
Taking public transportation for the most part is a downer: it’s smelly, crowded, takes too long and you have to deal with all sorts of characters. But, what makes any situation a little more pleasant? Flirting! And it’s not off limits on a bus/train/subway/trolley you name it. You just have to know how to do it so you don’t creep anybody out, or ruin the ride.
Atlanta’s Transit Future?
(AJC) — Metro Atlantans want wider, safer roads. They want better sidewalks and more bike paths. But most of all, they want mass transit. At least, their local leaders think so, if dollars are any guide. Local governments have asked for a massive, expensive mass transit expansion from a regional sales tax that voters will consider next year. For the first time, there’s a wish list that reflects metro Atlanta thinking as a region when it comes to transportation. Local governments had until March 30 to submit their wish lists. The Atlanta Regional Commission put them together in one batch of 436 projects, and handed the list over to the state transportation planning director for his review. In summer, a regional group will choose the final projects. The pool of projects submitted Friday is far from final. It likely includes ineligible projects and overlapping requests. It still must endure state scrutiny and debate on the regional level before it is cut to an affordable size and goes to voters, who will decide whether the projects are worth a 1-cent sales tax for a decade. That tax could raise $8 billion.
D.C.’s Nightlife Businesses Fighting Reduced Metro Hours
(Washington Examiner) — Businesses that thrive on the city’s nightlife are fighting a potential move to cut back Metro’s hours, saying a midnight closing on the weekends would overburden their late-night employees and cause financial hardship and reduced hours for workers. The Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington is leading the charge against the cutback, which was floated last week at a Metro board meeting as a means of reducing the agency’s $72.5 million budget deficit and freeing up more time for track maintenance.
The Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington is leading the charge against the cutback, which was floated last week at a Metro board meeting as a means of reducing the agency’s $72.5 million budget deficit and freeing up more time for track maintenance. According to Metro, closing three hours earlier on Friday and Saturday nights would save $5 million annually and create an extra day each week for maintenance.
Metro CEO: Random Bag Searches Here to Stay
(Washington Examiner) — Metro riders should get used to the possibility of having their bags scanned for explosives when they enter the transit system, according to the agency’s new chief executive officer. Richard Sarles said Tuesday that the agency’s random bag-searching policy is here to stay. He defended the searches that he used when running NJ Transit, arguing that they help to disrupt terrorists’ plans. ”It’s not as much about detection as it’s about deterrence,” he said in an interview on WTOP radio.
Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://washingtonexaminer.com/local/dc/2011/02/metro-ceo-random-bag-searches-here-stay#ixzz1CoM5uAxs
Metro Eliminating Bus Stops to Streamline Service
(Washington Examiner) — Some Metrobus riders may be wondering what happened to their bus stops. The transit agency quietly eliminated 67 stops from four bus lines when it rolled out new “service enhancements” amid fanfare from public officials late last month. But Metro spokesman Reggie Woodruff said the agency received 20 complaints from riders in the first 15 days after the service changes — during the holiday season when the agency typically has lighter traffic. More stops will disappear in the future, as the Dec. 19 rollout was the first phase of new guidelines calling for fewer stops per mile.
Higher Fares, Tolls Kick In
(Wall Street Journal) — Toll and fare increases take effect across the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s system Thursday, but they won’t solve the agency’s deep fiscal problems. The agency is aiming to up the revenue it receives from fares and tolls by 7.5%. To do that, it is implementing a set of increases that vary in magnitude. MTA officials said they tried to limit the increase for their lowest-income customers. So 30-day MetroCard users, who tend to be wealthier commuters with stable jobs, will get a fare increase that’s almost 10 percentage points higher than the one going to those who use a pay-per-ride card.
