Sigh.
It's finally
happening. By the end of the week, light rail cars will soon be rolling
through a Twin Cities neighborhood hell and gone from where you live.
Or where I live. And, technically speaking, it's not that far away from
where I live. About five miles or so. I'd just have to drive to the
station, and in the process hop over a freeway to get to the closest
one. Now, the idea of light rail here in the Twin Cities doesn't bother
me. At all. I think mass transportation is a good idea, and I
particularly like the idea of trains. I love Chicago, and one of my
reasons for loving it is the El. Life is easier when you can pop on a
train that runs 24/7 and you can get around faster than you could if
you were on the freeway. Mass transport is supposed to simplify your
life. Take the bus. Have a cup of joe and read the paper while we whisk you to work.
Except that doesn't happen with the buses for the most part. Your life
isn't made more convenient. It's made into a living hell unless there's
a bus stop right outside your door. And it's a main line, too. They're
inconvenient. They cost a great deal to ride, particularly during rush
hour when it's $1.75 a pop. They don't go to the suburbs more than a
few times a day if they service them at all. They take longer, etc. I
could go on. I live on a bus route: it's convenient for me to hop a bus
to the mall or to downtown or Uptown. But if I want to go someplace
else, well, expect it to take more than an hour and you're forced to
stick to the most circuitous route possible with at least one transfer.
If they advertise that bussing it to work is supposed to be convenient,
well, it should be convenient. The Met Council, which is the intra-city
organization which takes care of the transit problems here in the
Cities, decided almost ten years ago to start up with light rail, to
make mass transport more convenient. Huh? Aren't the buses supposed to be convenient?
Apparently they came to the same conclusion that everyone who rides the
buses came to: it's not convenient. So the issue of light rail was
raised, and it took off for a few reasons, the main ones being the Mall
of Gomorrah (pardon moi, the Mall of America) and the airport which are
near to each other in Bloomington. By running it from MOA to downtown
with a stop at the airport, they could get mucho federal funding. And
Congressman Sabo came through for the Met Council on this one. Big, big
bucks. Added up with state funds, the grand total came close to $70
million dollars. How long is the line? you ask.
11.5 miles.
Light Rail---Hiawatha Line (click for obnoxiously large size)
Then take a look at the Cities' geography.
Then do the math.
So, not only is this thing a big ass waste of money, it's also nowhere
near the majority of the residents of the Twin Cities. Sure it goes
from Bloomington all the way downtown, but most people don't live in
Minneapolis proper. Why? Because it's too bloomin' expensive. The taxes
are outrageous. The schools suck. The house prices are through the
roof. It's expensive to live in Minneapolis. But if you move to the
outer burbs, you can afford a house. You can afford two cars, which is
a good thing because you're going to need them because you're going to
be driving all hours of the day and night to get places. The Hiawatha
Line isn't all that controversial because it's going into a
neighborhood of people who want mass transit, and moreover who can
afford to foot the bill for it. People who think it's neat
and that it will add to the cache of the Twin Cities. The Hiawatha line
isn't going to help the struggling families in the outer burbs who
would love to be able to take a train or a bus to work because it would
cut down on their commute time and they'd be able to spend more time
with their families. This isn't going to help low-income single parents
because, for the most part, they've been forced out to the suburbs,
too. Mass transportation is supposed to be a cheap way to get
around---it's supposed to be designed to serve the masses and I
just don't see how a line from Bloomington to downtown Minneapolis,
which is already serviced by three freeways and many buses (MOA is a
bus hub), is going to achieve what needs to be achieved in terms of
reducing congestion. It's mainly for the tourists. Not the people who
live here. Now, I'm not against light rail, per se. Like I wrote above,
I think trains would be a great idea here in the Cities. I just think
those transportation dollars could have been better spent servicing the
people in the suburbs, where there is little to no mass transportation
and where all the freeway congestion is. This line does nothing to
allieviate the woes it was supposed to. Sure it's a big leap forward as
far as thinking differently, but they weren't smart about it. And now
the idea of light rail to any of the other burbs hinges on its
success, as you can tell from the article above. If this doesn't work,
well, they're not going to spend any more money on trains. They've set
themselves up for failure by picking this location. Sure, it was the
easiest way to get the federal government to pick up the tab, but
they've hamstrung themselves when it comes to future issues because
they chose the path of least resistance for the trial run.
The waste involved is sickening.