NEW ORLEANS | Project/Development Thread

[ericlrush1]

Originally Posted by NOLAslimm

once the people get to Union station, they should utilize the street cars, that will get you to most main places including the foot of canal

as for the airport, they should just shore the old tunnel under the runway up properly and use that area, will get you across the airfield quick

What would really help with connectivity downtown is adding streetcar tracks to Julia (between Loyola & the river) & Elysian Fields (between St Claude & the river) to create a downtown loop. Streetcars could go both clockwise & counter clockwise.

Once the train is operational from Baton Rouge/MSY, it would allow people to transfer to the streetcar from Union Terminal & get to pretty much any destination in the CBD, Warehouse District, French Quarter or Frenchman area.

All streetcar lines also need to be in dedicated lanes that aren't mixed with vehicle traffic but that's a different discussion.

[broadmoor]

Originally Posted by ericlrush1

What would really help with connectivity downtown is adding streetcar tracks to Julia (between Loyola & the river) & Elysian Fields (between St Claude & the river) to create a downtown loop. Streetcars could go both clockwise & counter clockwise.

Once the train is operational from Baton Rouge/MSY, it would allow people to transfer to the streetcar from Union Terminal & get to pretty much any destination in the CBD, Warehouse District, French Quarter or Frenchman area.

All streetcar lines also need to be in dedicated lanes that aren't mixed with vehicle traffic but that's a different discussion.

Good idea about a loop! And I agree a major problem with the streetcar system is how they manage its interaction with vehicles, and also how frequently they place stops. If they had just slightly fewer stops, dedicated rights of way across the board, and fewer vehicle crossings, I think the whole thing would run a lot more efficiently.

I'm surprised they haven't at least tried reducing stops though because it would be so cheap and easy to do. In some places, there's a stop every other block, and it gets ridiculous if there's someone using each one. They could even invest in shelters at some stops to encourage people to use those more frequently than others, and then they wouldn't even have to eliminate any.

[ericlrush1]

Originally Posted by broadmoor

Good idea about a loop! And I agree a major problem with the streetcar system is how they manage its interaction with vehicles, and also how frequently they place stops. If they had just slightly fewer stops, dedicated rights of way across the board, and fewer vehicle crossings, I think the whole thing would run a lot more efficiently.

I'm surprised they haven't at least tried reducing stops though because it would be so cheap and easy to do. In some places, there's a stop every other block, and it gets ridiculous if there's someone using each one. They could even invest in shelters at some stops to encourage people to use those more frequently than others, and then they wouldn't even have to eliminate any.

They definitely need to reduce the number of stops. The RTA tried to do a 6 month pilot in 2019 to reduce stops & car crossings on the Canal line but they put it off because of push back.

https://rideneworleans.org/speed-up-...et-streetcars/