It amazes me how negatively the ridership of the WRTA buses is portrayed by many of the Vindy commentors. I can only surmise that these commentors don't ever ride the bus and are speaking from ignorance. Perhaps some enlightenment is needed.
I do ride the bus, frequently. It's my most-used means of getting to work and I've used it occasionally to get to doctor appointments and stores. I've been riding for almost 5 years. I am a professional that works Downtown. I ride by choice. Three routes are within a few minute walk of my house and they go where I need to go and when I need to go. As such, it makes no sense to garage, maintain, insure, and fuel a vehicle, let alone produce pollution, just to get to work.
I have ridden several of the WRTA routes. Sometimes they are full of people. Sometimes they only have a few. It varies with the time of day, day of the week, season, or the location of the bus within its route, it seems. Or, maybe there's no real pattern to it and it just vaires. It's wrong, though, to characterize the buses as always being empty.
The people I see riding the bus are about as varied as the community as a whole. I see people on their way to work at North Side Hospital and stores and restaurants on Belmont Avenue. I see YSU students on their way to class in the morning. I see high school kids riding and transferring to other routes to get to school in other parts of town. I see seniors and families going grocery shopping. I occasionally see other professionals and even some of my neighbors and co-workers. Many of the people that use the service do so because they have no other alternative. Some use it by choice. The former are probably least able to shoulder the burden of higher fares.
The WRTA service is an integral part of the daily life of our community, as is public transit in any municipality of size and signficance. A reduction of services is equivalent to a reduction of employment and educational opportunities for many...you can't go if you can't get there. A reduction of services also means further logistical complications for many in our community that already have very difficult daily lives. There is no real up-side to defeating this sales tax renewal. WRTA is worthy of our support. Vote YES to renew the WRTA sales tax.
Public dollars may be paying for bike trails, but they can also end up generating money for the economies of the municipalities in which they are located. Most people don't live next to a bike trail and have to travel by car to get to a trailhead. They may stop at a local store along the way for drinks or picnic supplies for their trail ride. They may stop at a local restaurant for lunch, dinner, or ice cream after the ride is done. They may have to gas up the car at a local service station for the trip home. They may even notice another attraction nearby, unrelated to bicycling, that they weren't previously aware of and come back to visit it, again offering the opportunity for local shopping or dining. If not for the draw of the bike trail, many of those folks may have no other reason to visit the area and the money would not be spent there. The urban density of the Warren leg of the trail probably makes it even more likely that economic benefits would occur, versus some of the more remote sections of the trail. The trail will also contribute to the health of the members of the community, and that's never a bad thing.
Sknirak said: "Is everybody on the trail one of the above culprits? No! Definitely not. But there are just enough brainless yo-yos out there to make using the trail an adventure."
I agree, there are a lot of rude and/or ignorant people that use the MetroParks Bikeway. Same goes for the 2 mile Shields Rd. to 224 trail in Mill Creek Park. I've had much better luck with the Little Beaver Greenway (Leetonia to Lisbon) and Stavich Bike Trail (Struthers to New Castle). The users of these two trails are either better educated about proper trail use or are just more courteous. I'm itching to try the Western Reserve trail (Champion to Ashtabula) and see what it's like.
1970mach1 said: "And the notion that it will be used as an "alternative mode of transportation" is just plain silly."
No, bike trails, bike lanes, and bike routes as alternative modes of transportation are not silly. The trend toward biking for transportation has picked up a good bit of steam in the past several years, just as recreational biking has. I commute to work and shop with my bike as often as the weather and my schedule allow. There are several others in my neighborhood that do as well, some even year-round.
I've also started experimenting with longer road trips. It doesn't take long on the road to notice how deficient our road infrastructure is for biking. Many streets are narrow, have little or no pavement outside the white line, and blind curves abound. It's common during a road trip of even moderate length to get buzzed by at least one or more drivers that either couldn't see you, don't care, or even purposely try to run you off the road. All the defensive riding techniques and safety gear in the world can't fully make up for the combination of poor road design and uneducated or ignorant drivers. Better road and trail infrastructure can.
Supporting and using WRTA makes sense, especially in these days of $4 gas. If you work at Northside Hospital, St. Elizabeth's Hospital, YSU, Downtown Youngstown, or anywhere along a WRTA route, and you work Monday through Friday between 8 AM and 5 PM, and you live within a couple block walk of a bus stop, you'll most likely save money riding the bus to work.
I started riding WRTA in January. I work Downtown, now. I live on the North Side (about a 4.5 mile round-trip). Using the new IRS mileage rates (50.5 cents per mile?) and 75 cents per day parking (the cheapest Downtown lot), it costs $3.02 per day for me to drive to work. At normal WRTA rates, it costs $2.50 to ride the bus. Buy a monthly bus pass or use the coupons in the phone book and it's cheaper still. In addition to the cost savings, I don't have to scrape windows or wait for the car to warm up in the Winter and the AC is already on when I board the bus in the Summer. I don't have to wash the bus, change its oil, buy it new tires, brakes, shocks, etc., like I do with a car. I actually went as far as to get rid of the car that used to be my work car. It feels liberating.
Plenty of people living in the suburbs and rural areas drive to jobs in Youngstown. If the WRTA levy passes, park-and-ride becomes a possibility. Other metro areas around the nation do it. So can we.
Cuts loom if Mahoning County voters reject bus levy, WRTA chief says
It amazes me how negatively the ridership of the WRTA buses is portrayed by many of the Vindy commentors. I can only surmise that these commentors don't ever ride the bus and are speaking from ignorance. Perhaps some enlightenment is needed.
I do ride the bus, frequently. It's my most-used means of getting to work and I've used it occasionally to get to doctor appointments and stores. I've been riding for almost 5 years. I am a professional that works Downtown. I ride by choice. Three routes are within a few minute walk of my house and they go where I need to go and when I need to go. As such, it makes no sense to garage, maintain, insure, and fuel a vehicle, let alone produce pollution, just to get to work.
I have ridden several of the WRTA routes. Sometimes they are full of people. Sometimes they only have a few. It varies with the time of day, day of the week, season, or the location of the bus within its route, it seems. Or, maybe there's no real pattern to it and it just vaires. It's wrong, though, to characterize the buses as always being empty.
The people I see riding the bus are about as varied as the community as a whole. I see people on their way to work at North Side Hospital and stores and restaurants on Belmont Avenue. I see YSU students on their way to class in the morning. I see high school kids riding and transferring to other routes to get to school in other parts of town. I see seniors and families going grocery shopping. I occasionally see other professionals and even some of my neighbors and co-workers. Many of the people that use the service do so because they have no other alternative. Some use it by choice. The former are probably least able to shoulder the burden of higher fares.
The WRTA service is an integral part of the daily life of our community, as is public transit in any municipality of size and signficance. A reduction of services is equivalent to a reduction of employment and educational opportunities for many...you can't go if you can't get there. A reduction of services also means further logistical complications for many in our community that already have very difficult daily lives. There is no real up-side to defeating this sales tax renewal. WRTA is worthy of our support. Vote YES to renew the WRTA sales tax.
October 15, 2012 at 2:49 a.m. permalink suggest removal
Legislation will allow Warren to get land to complete bike trail
Lee,
Public dollars may be paying for bike trails, but they can also end up generating money for the economies of the municipalities in which they are located. Most people don't live next to a bike trail and have to travel by car to get to a trailhead. They may stop at a local store along the way for drinks or picnic supplies for their trail ride. They may stop at a local restaurant for lunch, dinner, or ice cream after the ride is done. They may have to gas up the car at a local service station for the trip home. They may even notice another attraction nearby, unrelated to bicycling, that they weren't previously aware of and come back to visit it, again offering the opportunity for local shopping or dining. If not for the draw of the bike trail, many of those folks may have no other reason to visit the area and the money would not be spent there. The urban density of the Warren leg of the trail probably makes it even more likely that economic benefits would occur, versus some of the more remote sections of the trail. The trail will also contribute to the health of the members of the community, and that's never a bad thing.
April 16, 2011 at 11:31 a.m. permalink suggest removal
Bike paths and routes provide recreation and transportation
Sknirak said:
"Is everybody on the trail one of the above culprits? No! Definitely not. But there are just enough brainless yo-yos out there to make using the trail an adventure."
I agree, there are a lot of rude and/or ignorant people that use the MetroParks Bikeway. Same goes for the 2 mile Shields Rd. to 224 trail in Mill Creek Park. I've had much better luck with the Little Beaver Greenway (Leetonia to Lisbon) and Stavich Bike Trail (Struthers to New Castle). The users of these two trails are either better educated about proper trail use or are just more courteous. I'm itching to try the Western Reserve trail (Champion to Ashtabula) and see what it's like.
1970mach1 said:
"And the notion that it will be used as an "alternative mode of transportation" is just plain silly."
No, bike trails, bike lanes, and bike routes as alternative modes of transportation are not silly. The trend toward biking for transportation has picked up a good bit of steam in the past several years, just as recreational biking has. I commute to work and shop with my bike as often as the weather and my schedule allow. There are several others in my neighborhood that do as well, some even year-round.
I've also started experimenting with longer road trips. It doesn't take long on the road to notice how deficient our road infrastructure is for biking. Many streets are narrow, have little or no pavement outside the white line, and blind curves abound. It's common during a road trip of even moderate length to get buzzed by at least one or more drivers that either couldn't see you, don't care, or even purposely try to run you off the road. All the defensive riding techniques and safety gear in the world can't fully make up for the combination of poor road design and uneducated or ignorant drivers. Better road and trail infrastructure can.
July 17, 2010 at 2:15 p.m. permalink suggest removal
Passage of county sales tax levy would keep WRTA rolling
Supporting and using WRTA makes sense, especially in these days of $4 gas. If you work at Northside Hospital, St. Elizabeth's Hospital, YSU, Downtown Youngstown, or anywhere along a WRTA route, and you work Monday through Friday between 8 AM and 5 PM, and you live within a couple block walk of a bus stop, you'll most likely save money riding the bus to work.
I started riding WRTA in January. I work Downtown, now. I live on the North Side (about a 4.5 mile round-trip). Using the new IRS mileage rates (50.5 cents per mile?) and 75 cents per day parking (the cheapest Downtown lot), it costs $3.02 per day for me to drive to work. At normal WRTA rates, it costs $2.50 to ride the bus. Buy a monthly bus pass or use the coupons in the phone book and it's cheaper still. In addition to the cost savings, I don't have to scrape windows or wait for the car to warm up in the Winter and the AC is already on when I board the bus in the Summer. I don't have to wash the bus, change its oil, buy it new tires, brakes, shocks, etc., like I do with a car. I actually went as far as to get rid of the car that used to be my work car. It feels liberating.
Plenty of people living in the suburbs and rural areas drive to jobs in Youngstown. If the WRTA levy passes, park-and-ride becomes a possibility. Other metro areas around the nation do it. So can we.
July 16, 2008 at 11:08 p.m. permalink suggest removal