The Expert Observer
A new light rail line opened in San Diego creating a long awaited connection between Downtown and a large university/employment center. Like many light rail lines on the west coast, it has good points and bad points. I have not ridden the line yet, but I will in time. My writing is based on my knowledge of the area.
I am not a transportation planner although I am truly interested in the subject. I believe that urban mobility is the number one most important aspect of the built environment. You can build and develop all day, but if you cannot reach the location, what’s the point. In my mind, when I perform a cursory review of a new development (i.e. looking at the glamorous architectural renderings) within distance of a transit connection, I look for potential to support light rail transit. If the initial idea does not incorporate a “lane” for future service, then in my opinion, the proposal is garbage.
To be clear, I am not an industry insider or involved in these projects in any way. I am just a guy looking at the picture thinking “this would be a great place for a centralized light rail station.”
I clearly understand that my ideas are elementary when it comes to the nuances and intricacies of public transportation planning. There is so much that goes into the land development and financing a huge project like rail. When I consider my concepts I try to encapsulate the realities of finance so I can get to the point A to B basics. I do not disregard the financial aspects, but I set them aside. I try to look upon the project from the perspective of a ultra wealthy individual like a Vanderbilt or a Musk. I enjoy the thought of commanding: “We’re going to build it; whatever it takes!”
An unobtainable dream that I have would be to self-finance a private light rail line, construct it at a fraction of the cost and lease it back to the city for 100 years. In return, I get a fair cut of the revenue to recoup the loans in addition to various land rights surrounding the station and throughout the city which my company will develop. This is the way that they do it in Japan and Hong Kong. In that method, the value is not in the transit, but rather the surrounding mixed use properties. In Japan long ago, a company would build the line just so they could provide the housing and commercial spaces. I am surprised that this does not occur in the states. I presume the rail infrastructure is too large of a pie to give to a single entity. It always gets ugly when everyone cannot have a slice. That’s one of the reasons why our nationwide rail infrastructure is not any good.
It is like the chicken and egg argument - what comes first, the ridership or the rail line. I have heard the “build it and they will come” insults. “This ain’t no field of dreams kid!”
In San Diego, the problem is not the ridership. The problem is that the lines do not really take you where you want to go. Forget the notion of the transfer between lines or modes, like car and bus. I want to get on the train and go somewhere directly. I want to possibly make one transfer at one station. Forget the idea of “the last mile.” If the transit is close enough, people will figure that out.
The problem is our cities are not built for what I like to call “the adventure of urban mobility.” Moving through the drab mix of suburban and low scale urban is horrible. There is nothing to look at. There are no shop windows to peer into. There is no urbanism to surround yourself within. There are no stops along the way or healthy distractions. In the suburban world where the car is king, being distracted means potential death. It was dangerous before smart phones, now it is simply madness.
Who do you blame for this? No one. We can all look in the mirror and accept that we are all collectively not to be blamed. We are an industrious nation, we build stuff, lots of stuff. We build cars and we love to drive and be in control. I love to drive. My last vehicle was a six speed shift and I love the command. I also love the city and I love moving within it. I love weaving my personal patterns into the city. It’s freedom, a freedom that many Americans have forgotten or never experienced.
There was a time prior to the auto industry where the rail was king. The rail is luxurious and based on service and time. It is all based on an image. And with all notions of “image,” it can be molded and formed and fabricated or changed.
The biggest issue with rail travel in San Diego is the brand. The brand sucks. Hate me all you want, but it is the truth. I will jump on the mic and tell it to everyone directly. Everything about the brand of transit in this beautiful city is horrible, absolutely abhorrent.
There is a new transit line opening but there are still portable toilets placed directly next to bus benches. It is crazy. I heard the community has asked numerous times for it to be moved but to no avail. That is the mark of a shitty brand: a shitter next to a bus bench. What is even crazier, this situation is located at a major bus intersection servicing three routes. In my world there would be a water misted, sun shaded oasis temple built there. That fantasy is dissolved the moment you wait for the bus on the littered, dusty dirt. That is the brand though. Fix that and you will begin to repair the brand. That location should have a large bus shelter (and not the current steel versions that do not even block the southerly sun when you sit on the bench) and a private restroom reserved for drivers. This should have been integrated into the new library but maybe that level of coordination is too much.
Instead of building a new line, focus on making small adjustments. Focus on the problem of driver rest locations and proving real rider comfort. Could it be that planners are a little too fixated on the data and not really getting out there? Are the planners seeing what’s happening out there on the streets? Are they too timid to speak up and say “I think we need to fix this because it is not supporting a level of high quality.”
Fix the portable toilet issue and you can say that your brand is climbing out of the shits. I chuckle when I see that award sticker slapped on the side of the trolley. They should put a picture of the crapper with that sticker on it: “best transit in America!”
I realized that the award could have been given from an organization ranking the best of the crap systems out there. I could be wrong but I never recall an NYC MTA train with any awards. I’ve heard plenty of complaints. I’ve seen the rats and the water damaged stations and the cracked concrete, but that system sure does get you around. Again, I could be wrong about the award but it’s just my own thought.
I want this all to work out. Long ago I was a young kid, angry and afraid, stuck riding the bus around. Like most American high schoolers, I wanted a car; I wanted a life. I didn’t see the value of public transit. At that time, I didn’t see the great adventure it was. It took many years and travels around the world to realize how wonderful it really was. I always believe that San Diego can have a better system. It is challenging and getting there but it can improve a great deal.
I think about urban mobility a lot and wondered what my position is within everything. I guess I could be deemed the under informed lightning rod spouting out my thoughts. When I was at that community planning group and the nice lady brought up the portable toilet issue I realized that I was not the only one thinking about the present and the future of that microcosm.
I realized that I am an expert when it comes to transit in San Diego. I am not an expert with the industry credibility lost but rather an expert from the vantage point of the traveler. I guess you could say that I am an expert transit customer.
As I get more involved with development I see the economics behind it all. I see rising fuel costs, inflation, energy costs, maintenance, land acquisitions, and labor to name a few items. Rail infrastructure is the most complicated endeavor when it comes to cities and the built environment. Ports and airports are site specific. Transit, rail transit specifically, is totally integral with every aspect and challenge is city building, new and existing. Vehicular infrastructure is too easy and that is why it is the convenient choice to crown it the champion that will cure our ills. “Build another lane!” It is so crazy to think that we say these things knowing the results yet still move forward. Well, I guess I can totally relate to it.
Highways (I refuse to call them Freeways) are like cigarette smoke and chewing tobacco. It is so damaging but we are already addicted. I hate the idea that we feel like one mobility option needs to “win.” Look at cities with the great metro systems, they still have congestion. Vehicular congestion never goes away, it is forever the part of a city. That is an unfortunate part of the problem and a difficulty in creating a brand vision. When rail infrastructure is built, the public wants to see results, but they will never see the results they want. Therefore, an auto centric culture will never subscribe to the brand of transit. The thought is “great, a new rail line is built and hopefully everyone will ride it so I can have better traffic during my commute.”
It is not about the system, it is about the brand. Repair the brand, build the system. Mend the little things because in the riders eyes, those little things is the difference between riding and driving. We used to say embrace the road! Now, embrace the adventure!