Quote:
Originally Posted by maccoinnich
15,000 riders a day aren't people?
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I'm not saying it doesn't get used. I'm saying they've been prioritizing developer dollars over the needs of existing neighborhoods. The streetcar prioritizes future neighborhoods over existing ones.
- The Pearl, before it was a neighborhood.
- South Waterfront.
- Lloyd, but they skipped the biggest destination in the Lloyd. WTF?
- South Waterfront.
- Industrial SE. Not residential SE. Nope. Just the part of inner SE with the most potential for developers.
I've always minded the idea that the system prioritized future residents over current residents, but that was easier to overlook because the streetcar was also so cheap to ride. But as the price doubled from $100 to $200 and then doubled again to $400... I find myself asking questions that I don't like the answers to. Questions I should have been asking from the start. Why does the system prioritize neighborhoods that don't exist over neighborhoods that do? Let's not kid ourself about the Pearl. If you've been in Portland long enough, you know what the Pearl District was before the 2000s.
The answer to the question of prioritizing future neighborhoods over existing ones is: the streetcar was designed to be a tool for development. And that's not a bad thing. I strongly believe the streetcar sped up development of the Pearl, SOWA, Lloyd and inner SE. And that's fantastic. I'm surprised it didn't speed up development of the Conway blocks (and who knows. Maybe it did). But it does feel somewhat discriminatory to design a mass transit system that prioritizes glistening new towers and swanky highrises over congested neighborhoods that already had more pressing needs for improved mass transit. And I know the word "discriminatory" is a heavy word, but I believe it fits here. Why don't residents of Hawthorn and Belmont matter (for example)? Well, they have busses. But busses aren't good enough for SOWA?
I'm glad the streetcar goes to SOWA. I'm glad it's going to lead to massive amounts of development all along inner SE and Lloyd. That's fantastic! But why are future homes for future residents more important than existing ones? I'll be the first to admit, I overlooked these things because the system was so cheap, and for that, shame on me. But the price has quadrupled in a relatively short period of time. I think it's time to shift the priority toward serving more deserving neighborhoods. I say "more deserving" because it seems only fair to meet the transportation needs of existing neighborhoods before prioritizing new ones.
Sorry your mass transit is sketchy, but in 20 years, this other neighborhood where almost nobody currently lives is gonna be a big deal, so it gets the streetcar now. Wait. What?
I guess the price increase was just the spark that made me stop and really think about it. The price to ride the streetcar quadrupled in just a few years, but the focus of the system is still on developers rather than on Portland's mass transit needs. The only part of SE and NE where the streetcar currently goes is the part where almost nobody lives yet - and that's by design. The streetcar is there to encourage development. That's great, but what about the people who live in neighborhoods that already existed? Are they less important because their neighborhood isn't new?
I realize it's not popular to say these things, especially on a forum that's all about development. And I am not badmouthing development. Yes, I worry about the escalating costs of housing, but I love that so much housing is being built, and I love that even more is on the way. LOVE it! I love that our urban growth boundary isn't expanding, which means more infill instead of sprawl. LOVE IT! But I'm bothered by the fact that the streetcar is asking more and more of riders while focusing more and more on developers. It's time for somebody to realize the vast majority of the city lies east of where the streetcar goes.