tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-891432348410990389.post6476209262503026130..comments2023-12-31T04:53:51.771-08:00Comments on A Downtown ontheRange: Greetings from Tram-sterdamNRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11590061590788951151noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-891432348410990389.post-54151223324271879942011-03-20T11:09:06.031-07:002011-03-20T11:09:06.031-07:00A few points in response, to ponder..
Mark--I'...A few points in response, to ponder..<br /><br />Mark--I'm not sure what the 923 people per sq mi is including, but I am sure you must realize OKC's density numbers aren't going to tell a whole lot. Most of OKC's 600+ sq mi's are virtually undeveloped. But I wasn't making the argument that OKC and Amsterdam are similar cities. If you wish to read any kind of comparison into the post, someone who truly understands transit and planning might be led to suggest that OKC could become more like Amsterdam if the infrastructure in place was similar. For instance, rail-based transit is rarely a debate of whether it is needed now, because that's a chicken-egg scenario that decent infrastructure investments will always lose no matter what mode. Many cities in the U.S. are adding streetcar and light rail because they have the likelihood of bringing up the density around the lines, which would make the transit modes well-supported. That is the transit oriented development, which the entire city of Amsterdam could practically qualify as.<br /><br />Furthermore, I'm not sure what you are talking about in the last part of your post when you make definitive statements about what will happen with rail transit in OKC. Are you aware that the voters already passed modern streetcar? 6 miles of it. And that we are going to apply for federal matching funds which could potentially make available even more funds? Thirdly, there is also a regional transit plan (the Fixed Guideway Study) that outlines how the region's transit planning will evolve.<br /><br />So I'm not sure what you mean by not seeing OKC expanding its transit system in the next couple of decades. It's already a done deal. It is going to happen. I believe we're now in the process of studying pertinent examples of case study cities, and in the case of Amsterdam, the sky is the limit--OKC once had the nation's largest streetcar network actually.<br /><br />OKC will need to look at what works in other cities for reforming its current system, including the introduction of fixed guideway transit and the current bus system, because as it is there is nothing worth keeping in the current OKC transit strategy. There is nothing that works well in OKC's approach to transportation because the city has sunk so incredibly low in the folly of pursuing the absolute lowest peak-time freeway congestion patterns, a strategy that has failed so miserably that now there is even peak-time freeway congestion. Imagine that, a system designed with only one good thing in mind doesn't even have that anymore.<br /><br />A lot of my post was actually about streetscape improvements, in particular, integrating a usable bicycle network with other modes of transit. I'm not sure what that in particular has to do with density or Okies and their hatred of government services, which I presume must include infrastructure. <br /><br />P.S. When you talk about residential density levels, the southern half of the inner south side (ie., from 44th to I-240) is actually the densest area of OKC. Interestingly enough..NRhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11590061590788951151noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-891432348410990389.post-76072166468859961512011-03-18T22:58:13.805-07:002011-03-18T22:58:13.805-07:00A lesson that can be learned from their model is t...A lesson that can be learned from their model is the simplicity. Notice how logical and simple that system is, despite how massive it is.<br /><br />Compare that to our bus routes.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09853460697779872933noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-891432348410990389.post-46830605014003005602011-03-17T19:00:15.294-07:002011-03-17T19:00:15.294-07:00I have to agree with Mark. To create the current ...I have to agree with Mark. To create the current Dutch Transit Utopia, they started in the 70s and they wanted to do this. Not simply have a secondary system but a primary one. Sorry of I sound a bit negative but if OKC builds alternate transportation infrastructure I will ise it!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-891432348410990389.post-51943331163502238562011-03-17T14:05:39.492-07:002011-03-17T14:05:39.492-07:00According to Wikipedia, Amesterdam has a populatio...According to Wikipedia, Amesterdam has a population density of 9,080.5 per sq mi while OKC's is 923.1/sq mi. I'm not knocking the value of public transit, I'd love to see more of it, but it's really an apples to oranges comparison in my book. If you're in the area bounded by I-40/I-44/I-235, and maybe in I-40/I-35/I-240/I-44 area as well at least the northern part of it, then densities are enough that mass transit costs might be reasonable. But outside of those areas you're not going to get mass transit unless people are willing to do some pretty good subsidies. Given how reluctant everyone seems to be to pay for even the most basic of services (fire, sanitation, etc.) I can't see us expanding our transport system in the next couple of decades. :(Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10789817882295434993noreply@blogger.com