Hi, Guys I have been reading the post of this subject. What is going on with the bus situation is not only affect the ones who use dial-a-ride. I was talking to my son who rely on the bus for transportation for getting to work and other things. Yes I do live in Gibbs Oakridge Village I have been very blessed in not having to use the dial-a-ride for a while but I can understand where some of you are coming from. But in a conversation with my some who work in the mall on the weekends some times he has to take a taxi to his home if it is late at night and some times he had to go back home to check on his son and had to get a taxi back to work. Any way he told me that the system is cutting of people from going to the station downtown. A lot of the politics I don't understand but I really don't like what is going on because it is not making it convenient for my fellow man. Victoria ----- Original Message ----- From: blindwilly To: tabi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Saturday, September 19, 2009 3:14 PM Subject: [tabi] Re: Nova 2010 Plan Laurie, Thanks so much for your level head and your cool response. There has been a lot of shouting the last few days and it is good to be reminded that we have a Para service better than we are mandated to. thanks again to you and your husband and have a great day. William ----- Original Message ----- From: Laurie Davis To: tabi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Saturday, September 19, 2009 12:31 PM Subject: [tabi] Re: Nova 2010 Plan Hi all, As some of you may know, my husband, Kevin, is on the Transportation Advisory Committee for the Mayor. This committee advises the City Commission on transportation issues with Star Metro. Mr. Sheib is on the Committee, as well as some other people in the community. I forwarded the questions that Sila posted yesterday. He posted some of the questions to the Committee. One had to do with making the street crossings at the transfer points safer. The other had to do with making textual maps of the routes, similar to those books that Taltran had. He thought they should have carefully-worded descriptions of the routes and the stops, including landmarks, such as office buildings and shopping centers. From what he can find out so far, Dial-A-Ride will not be changed at all, since they already do a lot more than the federal requirements for paratransit service. I hope this helps. Laurie ----- Original Message ----- From: Sila Miller To: tabi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Friday, September 18, 2009 8:35 PM Subject: [tabi] Re: Nova 2010 Plan Lynn, This is absolutely excellent and I truly appreciate your time, effort and spokesmenship! The below info came from a sighted but non-driving friend who takes the bus DAILY to the R.A. Gray building, and for virtually all her errands. She saw these weaknesses with the map as published on the website. Have a look and use what you need. I too liked Robert's suggestion of feeder routes (smaller buses.) Thank you again! Sila 1. No bus access on Ocala Road between Tharpe and Tennessee 2. No bus access to schools on Miccosukee Road (Leon High, Trinity Catholic, Cobb Middle and Kate Sullivan) 3. No bus going into either Tallahassee Mall or Governor's Square Mall 4. No bus to Griffin Middle School or Ruediger Elementary 5. No bus on South Bronough Street between Pensacola Street and Gaines - access to R.A. Gray Building 6. No bus on West College Avenue 7. No bus on Governor's Square Boulevard 8. No bus access to Lincoln High, Apalachee Elementary or Adult Education 9. No bus to Trousdell Gymnastics Center and pool ----- Original Message ----- From: Lynn Evans To: tabi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Friday, September 18, 2009 3:54 PM Subject: [tabi] Re: Nova 2010 Plan Ok how does this sound. I will definitely begoing to one of the meetings at the senior center and maybe more on the 21st and 28. I have made a folder and I will funnel your concerns about the Nova 2010 Plan into this folder and print the items out to take to the meeting. I am starting with Robert's message. I will remove the names to protect the innocent. Now if someone thinks this is a bad idea or just wants to sound off and not have it printed out then I want do it. ----- Original Message ----- From: Easy Talk To: tabi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Friday, September 18, 2009 9:15 AM Subject: [tabi] Re: Nova 2010 Plan This new system will pretty much make most of us home bound since federal law says Pari Transit only has to go 3 quarters of a mile out of the fixed route system and from what I can tell and is clearly stated in the plan busses will no longer go in to neighbor hoods. You can run buses up and down major roads in Tallahassee all you want but it looks like they will be empty since people can't get to them. If it rains, the city might as well shut down the buses. Not many people are going to walk a mile or 2 to catch the bus and dial a ride will no longer be required to pick you up. Robert ----- Original Message ----- From: Chip Orange To: tabi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Thursday, September 17, 2009 5:53 PM Subject: [tabi] Re: Nova 2010 Plan Hi William and all, thank you for the posting. I'd like you to know I've been speaking with another blind individual, who is neither associated with TABI or TCB, so most of us are unlikely to know what he knows and vice versa. He in turn has been speaking with Sam, and has mentioned to him that the new routes as planned, do not go directly up to the malls (such as Governor's Square), but only approach a near-by street corner (I believe he said the Parkway and Park Avenue for instance). This would mean quite a walk for someone going to Gov Square, and even worse, part of it would have to be across the parking lot without any landmarks. He has also mentioned that several routes would require transferring by walking across a difficult to cross street such as ThomasVille Road or Capitol Circle, in order to achieve certain routings. In general, he believes Star Metro has made these decisions without considering the difficulty a blind pedestrian would face in following the plan. I don't know if his understanding is correct, and even if the current plan is still this way, but I thought I'd point it out for those who are interested as an item I would judge to be of importance. hth, Chip ------------------------------ Chip Orange Database Administrator Florida Public Service Commission Chip.Orange@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (850) 413-6314 (Any opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Florida Public Service Commission.) ------------------------------------------------------------------ From: tabi-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:tabi-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of blindwilly Sent: Thursday, September 17, 2009 5:40 PM To: tabi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [tabi] Nova 2010 Plan Greetings, The following is an on going discussion I have been having with Sam Scheiv of Star Metro. In fact here is his first message, back to me. Dear Mr. Benjamin: It was nice speaking to you yesterday. Please find attached the document describing the Nova 2010 project. Below I have written descriptions of each route as they are now. I have not included every turn or small street, but enough to understand the general direction. These routes are still in flux. In fact I just made a change this morning. So this is not final. We are taking suggestions from the public and incorporating them into the plan. That means we need to know what people DO like as much as what people don't like. I hope you find this interesting and I appreciate you calling. Sincerely, Samuel L. Scheib Senior Planner Nova 2010 Overview For many years transit concentrated in downtown Tallahassee where shoppers, moviegoers, employees, and diners invariably traveled. Over the ensuing decades, the downtown share of the city's employment decreased as shopping centers, restaurants, movie theaters, and even government jobs relocated to the periphery (Tax World, Koger Center, CCOC, etc.). The practice of transit is changing, and a growing number of agencies have found serving multiple destinations has been tremendously successful, starting with West Coast transit properties in Portland, Oregon, and San Diego, California and then spreading to places like Colorado Springs and Madison, Wisconsin, a state capital with a large university presence like our own. In Florida, Pinellas and Broward Counties have similarly restructured their systems. Concurrent with the 2005 StarMetro Renaissance Plan, the 2005 Transit Development Plan, the November 2008 City Commission Target Issue Meeting and the City Manager's 2009 Resolutions, StarMetro has taken preliminary steps to create a decentralized route structure plan for the City of Tallahassee. Once implemented, the plan, known as Nova 2010, would distribute transit services mostly along major roadways in Tallahassee; several routes will not serve downtown at all. By not sending every route to C.K. Steele Plaza, passengers would experience greater frequency of service and a system that more closely resembles contemporary vehicular travel patterns. In developing the draft plan, there were several assumptions about conditions in Tallahassee. First, the system would, like the present one, serve the city of Tallahassee with the few exceptions currently in place, such as Bradfordville on the 80x. Second, we would work to use, to the best extent possible, existing facilities. We have Steele Plaza and approximately 105 bus shelters, and have adapted a draft plan to use these resources as a starting point on implementation day. Expanding with additional facilities would be added as the plan gains popularity, as needed and as fiscally feasible. Lastly, we assumed two lanes on Tennessee Street between Monroe and Ocala would be converted to transit-only use, as is currently recommended in a study by Genesis Group. Beyond that, our goal was to use similar existing resources-the number of buses and drivers, the funding level-all would remain as close as possible to current levels. The above is based on our cursory draft plan. This draft plan is subject to changes based minimally on a full system analysis, review of alternatives, considerable public involvement, a thorough origin and destination study and Commission approval. We focused our analysis on employment density, as the planning literature consistently points to employment density being better at generating transit trips than population density; although having high densities of both is best. Since employment densities are highest on major roadways, we assigned routes to these roads while trying to approximate a grid network as seen on the attached map. Nova 2010 is intended to accomplish several things: q Reduce Downtown Trips: The most common customer complaint is that all the buses go downtown. At a recent listening session, a customer lamented the only way to get from one section of Orange Avenue to another was to first go to Steele Plaza at the corner of Tennessee and Adams Streets. In order to mimic contemporary travel patters (i.e. to go to jobs on the periphery) passengers often must make the V-shaped trip of going downtown first and then back out again to the customers final destination. q Reduce Redundancy: The current hub and spoke system requires all buses to meet at the same time at the central hub. Since C.K. Steele Plaza is located along a major arterial (W. Tennessee Street, near the intersection with Monroe Street), every bus must travel along this corridor at the same time in order for passengers to make their transfers. This results in two or more buses arriving and leaving from the plaza in tandem to travel along the same corridor for a significant distance, passing the same stops. With the concept Nova 2010 plan, the importance of C.K. Steele Plaza is downplayed as buses operate independent of each other. This allows for one bus to cover an entire corridor, instead of five buses covering the same corridor, as is the case of W. Tennessee Street. q Increase On-Time Performance: Another complaint staff receives is buses run behind schedule. This is primarily due to two reasons - buses traveling at lower speeds in neighborhoods, and routes being dependent on each other for transfers (i.e. if one arrives late, the other buses are held for transferring patrons). Under Nova 2010, buses will remain on the major roads allowing for higher travel speeds as applicable. In addition, the routes operate independent of each other. This means if one arrives late, it does not affect the operation of the other routes. Patrons are would be accommodated better with Nova 2010 with higher service frequency leading to shorter wait times (10 to 30 minutes during peak hours verses up to an hour with the current system). q Increased Ridership/Decreased Carbon Footprint: StarMetro expects Nova 2010 to make transit significantly more attractive to a much broader part of the community, and each single-occupancy-vehicle driver that shifts to transit represents reduced carbon emissions, cleaner air, reduced congestion, less road maintenance, etc. q Reduce travel time for patrons using transit: Instead of going in and out of neighborhoods, the Nova 2010 plan would have more direct service to major employment and shopping/recreation centers. q Increase frequency: Buses will arrive more often giving our customers more options for using transit service with greater convenience. q Increased Opportunities for Regional Travel: With few exceptions (80X, Route 17, and Route 21), there are no opportunities for regional travel in the current system. By decentralizing the system, independent cross-town routes along major corridors create the opportunities for regional expansion. While there are many distinct advantages in addition to the aforementioned ones of the Nova 2010 concept plan, there are a few perceived disadvantages, which have proven to be advantages across the country: q Routes would no longer circulate within neighborhoods. This will, however, allow StarMetro to serve a larger population by providing higher frequency and better service to the most popular destinations. q Related to the above, walking distances to StarStops are anticipated to increase. On the other hand, this will lead to fewer stops, increased mobility, a more pleasurable riding experience and a healthier community. The benefits, however, would far outweigh the few discrete disadvantages, which are better communicated in a longer visual presentation. StarMetro would have a more dependable system going where our patrons want to go doing so in a timely, efficient fashion. After I got this message, as per Sila requested, I asked for a discription of the routes for the eleven bus routes, and they are as follows.. US 90 (1), 20 minutes: Fallschase, W US 90, S Appleyard, W Pensacola, N Blountstown, E US 90 US 90 (2), 20 minutes: Fallschase, W US 90, N Capital Circle, loop through Commonwealth, S Capital Circle, E US 90 Orange, 15 minutes: Loop through Paul Dirac, W Roberts, S Eisenhower, E Lake Jackson/Orange Ave, S Capital Circle, loop through Capital Circle Office Center East, 15 minutes. Village Square, Capital Circle, Southwood/Capital Circle Office Center Southside, 15 minutes: Ross Road, N Shelfer, N Crawfordville, Gaile Ave, N Monroe Street, Steele Plaza Frenchtown/Bond, 15 minutes: Orange, Saxon, Wahnish/Macomb/Old Bainbridge, Volusia, Alabama to Preston Loop, and back. Pensalachee, 20 minutes: Pensacola, Gaines, Lafayette, Apalachee Parkway Hospitals, 30 minutes: Woodland, Tuscan, Sunnyside, N. Ridge, E Springsax, E Bragg, E Paul Dirac, N Jim Lee, N Magnolia, E Miccosukee, Capital Medical, Bufford, NE Centerville, SE Fleischmann, W Misscosukee West Loop, 30 minutes (both directions): N Monroe, SW Fred George, S Mission, S Appleyard, E Jackson Bluff, N Woodward, E St. Augustine, through downtown to Monroe NE to Innovation: N Pottsdamer, E Iamonia, N Lake Jackson, E Gaines, Gadsden, Thomasville North Mover, 30 minutes: Commonwealth, Hartsfield, Pullen, Allen, Henderson, Meridian, Bradford/Betton CommonWalmart, 30 minutes: Commonwealth, Tharpe, MLK/Duval/Bronough, Park, Gov. Square Blvd, Park Conner Blvd, Walmart. It has been that discriptions brings up more questions than answere, so here it is to work with.\ William benjamin William Benjamin, Piano Tuner Extraordinaire. The tuner alone preserves the tone. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 8.5.409 / Virus Database: 270.13.105/2380 - Release Date: 09/18/09 07:49:00 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 8.5.409 / Virus Database: 270.13.107/2382 - Release Date: 09/19/09 06:03:00