Transit News in Raleigh

A skeptical audience voiced their critique of the Hillsborough and Morgan St. roundabout designs at the public hearing on August 15th. If the concerns raised were any indicator of the public’s view as a whole, then the designers will need to re-evaluate their concepts if they want their plan to meet the approval of the citizens… much less be approved by city council.

While some positive comments were made there were many criticisms of the designs. Before showing the feedback, I am first listing the goals and design elements of the initial plans as presented by the project engineer and consultant project manager.

Animation of the traffic design below the fold

There will be a public hearing Wednesday, August 15th at 5:00 p.m. to review the preliminary roundabout design for the intersection of Morgan and Hillsborough St.

The roundabout is part of a greater project that will convert Morgan Street to a two-way street.

More on the hearing…

Hi all,

I went to a great Sierra Club event last night with ~70 people plus some elected officials. The purpose of the meeting was for fun (free beer!) and to encourage Raleigh to join Cool Cities, which is a way for cities to reduce greenhouse gases despite the feds’ refusal to address the issue. This would put us in line with the Kyoto Protocol despite the country never signing it. Here’s more info about Cool Cities: http://www.coolcities.us/

Nine NC cities have signed so far, but not Raleigh or any others in Wake Co. Please go to the Sierra Club website and send an email to the Raleigh City Council and ask
them to sign! Go to http://ncsierra.sierraclubaction.org/alertlist.asp and click
on “Help Make Raleigh a Cool City”. The City Council is discussing this issue next Tuesday, August 7 at their 1:00 pm meeting, so any message you can send before then (or you could show up at the meeting!) will encourage them to sign.

As supporters of bike and pedestrian issues, I think it’s obvious that a signed agreement to reduce carbon dioxide would probably result in increased funding to alternative transportation facilities – i.e., bike paths, bike lanes, public transit, sidewalks and crosswalks. So please check it out! And send this on to others in Raleigh or Wake Co. who may be interested. Perhaps Cary and other cities will follow suit.

Thanks!
Julie Woosley

The fever around our public transit is heating up.  Last weeks City Council meeting addressed the sad state of affairs regarding busing.  While Brier Creek and Towne North malls have reopened to buses, there are many other issues regarding busing and public transit.  Anyone who has traveled to larger urban areas has experience with organized public transportation.  As Raleigh increases its density, solid public transit that is convenient and comfortable is important to maintaining a high quality of life.

During the city council meeting there was discussion about researching the lack of shelters and trash cans at most bus stops. This is a problem, particularly where bus use is at its heaviest on Capital Blvd., Wake Forest and Mill brook.  Council members also discussed the location of bus stops as shopping centers and big box stores often sit far away from their closest stops.  The balance lies between how close buses can come without slowing their route down.  Mayor Meeker did push for the consideration of where bus stops lie within shopping centers and the acknowledging accessibility laws in a possible ordinance that would regulate the location of these stops.

This Tuesday the Special Transit Advisory Commission will meet. They are providing a lot of public information about the issues they are considering. Their mission is to “Provide the technical basis for a regional Transit Blueprint that describes future transit corridors and planned or potential transit infastructure investments in the corridor.“ The triangle has complicated issues regarding transit, lets hope that central Raleigh and the broader area get the attention they need, weather that means cyclists, automobiles or public transportation.

Exciting news for our growing downtown as the city considers a Grand Central station.  The station would house the city/TTA bus station, the Greyhound Station, and the Amtrak station.  While the more affluent members of our audience may not have experienced public transit here in Raleigh, rest assured, there is much improvement needed.  The centralization of these three stations would make transfers easier and give guests a much easier time in deciphering our transit system. HDR Architecture, Inc. will

deliver a feasibility study, drawings and a development strategy for property in the area.  The plan will be delivered early next summer.

More below the fold