by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
If you live or work Downtown or in the surrounding historic neighborhoods, there might be a new mode of mass transportation in your future.
The Jacksonville Transportation Authority has revived a plan to consider streetcar lines from the urban core to Springfield, Brooklyn, LaVilla, Riverside, Southbank and San Marco.
Those areas are the focus of a study, published in September 2008, which is the working document for the current conversation. They were served by streetcars in the early 20th century.
“We have looked at the national situation and what other cities are doing,” said JTA Regional Transportation Planner James Boyle.
The study states that as Jacksonville becomes more urban, congestion will increase, enhancing the value of mass transit to consumers. As more people use public transportation, the Bus Rapid Transit system, for example, they will travel from outlying areas to the Regional Transportation Center near the Osborn Center. However, the study states, once riders reach the transit center or their last stop, there is a need to complete “the last mile of the trip.”
Another motivation for more mass transit options making short trips in and out of Downtown has been the success of the Riverside Trolley. More than three years ago, it began carrying passengers between Downtown and 5 Points during the workweek lunch hour. The service was recently expanded to include a longer route and Saturday service to accommodate riders to the Riverside Arts Market.
Boyle said the Riverside Trolley has helped spark interest in streetcars.
“It has proven there is a market for short trips,” said Boyle.
The question first on the list when a discussion of expanding mass transit begins is, “How are you going to pay for it?”
Boyle said several funding sources have been used by other cities to establish streetcar lines and the payoff can be substantial.
He used Brooklyn, the neighborhood along Riverside Avenue between Downtown and I-95 at the Fuller Warren Bridge, as an example. The study ranks that route as the best in which to establish streetcar service. Boyle compared its potential to a streetcar project in Portland, Ore.
“LaVilla and Brooklyn are all vacant land waiting to be developed,” said Boyle. “Portland invested $73 million, which has led to $2.4 billion in private investment within three blocks of the streetcar line.”
The cost per track mile to install electric streetcar service, according to the study, is $15 million to $17.5 million. Boyle said a track from Downtown to 5 Points could be installed for about $30 million.
Boyle said the Portland project was financed using several funding sources and he thinks Jacksonville could use it as a model. He said possibilities include parking bonds or funds, tax increment financing and federal grants.
“Dallas got $30 million in ARRA (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) funds for their streetcars,” said Boyle.
Another reason the possibility of streetcar lines through Downtown has been revived is the cost factor. Boyle said streetcars are less expensive to operate than trolleys and buses, have a longer service life and carry more passengers, as many as 200, in a single trip.
It will probably be quite some time before streetcars are traveling along Riverside Avenue, but Boyle is ready to talk about them.
“They’re part of our vision and we want to get the conversation started,” said Boyle.
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