Progress, finally
I wrote about the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement eight months ago. Yesterday, our mayor, spurred on by the impending election, no doubt, took up the recommendation of our city council and signed on to the agreement. The day is looking up already.
Gone already?
And the award for shortest blog ever goes to Pittsburgh City Councilman Jim Motznik, whose foray into online slander lasted two whole inglorious posts. Thankfully someone had the foresight to resurrect the site for posterity’s sake. I guess when the mayor speaks, you listen, even if he is fifteen or so years your junior. (Oh, and also, just so you know, he started a new blog to tell everyone he is no longer blogging.)
There are over nine months to go before the special mayoral election and there’s already been some snide comments between the two camps. I can’t say I’m surprised, but I can say that I am disappointed. This election has the promise to be the most progressive one the city has seen in years — probably ever — and the possibility for fresh ideas is very exciting. I would hate to see the race degenerate into the mud-slinging party that all too often substitutes for political discourse in this country.
The transit problem
Pittsburgh’s transit agency, the Port Authority, recently announced a major service reduction plan (details) aimed at eliminating the staggering $80 million deficit faced by the agency next fiscal year. Over half the routes — many of suburban in nature — are on the cutting block; overall service hours will be reduced by about 25%.
Needless to say, this has created quite a stir. I’ve been thinking about the issue for some time and finally sat down to write a letter to the Port Authority tonight. My take on the situation? The Port Authority’s is squeezed in several directions: a lack of a dedicated source of funding, relatively high management and labor costs, increased operating expenses, and an expectation to cover a nebulous service area.
The biggest losers in this round of cuts are the suburban commuters. As evidenced in this comparison of the current and proposed route maps (large, small), the fat that is being trimmed comes largely from the outlying routes. Instead of a fairly uniform dense web of coverage, the cuts leave in place a skeleton of routes running along major corridors.
Is this bad? Obviously something had to give, and based on the comprehensive route scoring performed last fall, it was determined that the suburban routes were the least cost-effective (I take issue with the elimination of the airport bus service, and question the scoring logic on these types of routes, however). As an opponent of the wasteful suburban commute, it pains me to see the retreat of bus service from these areas, but the numbers don’t lie: some of these routes aren’t worth the effort. And when you are required by law to operate in the black — well, desperate times call for desperate measures.
I feel that it is ultimately up to the government — from the city to the country — to pull their heads out of their collective ass and get serious about funding transit systems. They may never be profitable on their own, but they serve a common good that provides a more sensible alternative than the auto-heavy lifestyle that we live now. If corn ethanol is seen as a “way out” of our predicament (hint: it’s not), then certainly mass transit — the movement of large numbers of people by means other than their own private vehicles — qualifies as a winner.
Go where the money is
Lucky us. We seem to have moved into the nexus of the grocery store universe. The forthcoming opening of a Trader Joe’s brings the number of grocery stores to which we can easily walk or bike to four. Baked goods, a deli, produce (organic and conventional), a coffee bar, and even free Wi-Fi. We’re surrounded by choices.
Meanwhile, one of the city’s neighborhoods most in need of help is reduced to looking forward to a sorry excuse for a real store or relying on the promises of a gambling operation looking to brown-nose their way into the city and take over land from the same disadvantaged population.
Some choice.
A polite rejection
To: Trib P.M. Circulation Department
Re: Your paper
Dear Trib P.M. -
I request that you stop delivery of your free evening “newspaper” to my residence at 517 Summerlea Street. Continued printing and delivery of the paper is a terrible waste of resources, for I do not own a bird and have no need for cage liner. Also, you’re probably in violation of the city code, section 601.11(a), but I’m not a lawyer, so we’ll let that slide for now.
Additionally, I do not believe the garages across the street from me are interested in receiving it either. The only thing I have ever seen them open is their doors.
Jeb in ‘08!
Jake Krohn
Pittsburgh
Update: Victory, I think.
To: Jake Krohn
From: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Customer ServiceI do apologize for any inconvenience we may have caused. I have given your address to the correct person and have requested that the delivery at your residence cease.
I may also just end up with a broken window. We’ll see.
All is well in Steel City
After following the Steelers through their incredible 15-1 season and watching today’s nail-biter with my stomach tied in knots, I can say that I fully understand the frenzy that takes hold of Pittsburgh every fall.
And the best part of this is that I’m not the only one. Arielle, who once proudly boasted of never watching a complete football game, is now as much into the team as I am. We jumped around the living room like a couple of monkeys when the Jets chumped their field goal attempts and yelled our heads off when the Steelers finally delivered the goods.
The turning point, I think, came about on December 12th. We were given tickets to a game (against the Jets, no less) and invited to take part in some pre-game tailgating. Experiencing the bedlam firsthand was far more enjoyable than we expected and it showed us what a unifying force the team is in this town.
Because, as the team goes, so goes the city. I now think I understand what the Steelers of the 1970’s meant to the town, whose economy was quickly drying up, leaving the prospect of a very bleak future. Although things aren’t so dire this time around, with every Steelers win there’s an increased feeling of hope running throughout this desperate city.
Our newfound appreciation for the Steelers falls into line with the general sense of contentment we are beginning to feel about Pittsburgh as a whole. This city is a tough nut to crack. It’s old, broke, and blighted. Things aren’t as easy here as they were in Minneapolis. But we’re really starting to figure things out. We moved to a new apartment in September, which proved to be the single best decision we’ve made in a long time. Arielle started school, finally, which renewed our sense of purpose and reminded us why we made the trip in the first place. And recently, I took a new job with Carnegie Mellon University after spending a year with some really great guys.
Leaving a place is never easy, but many rewards await those who make the trip.
To Whom It May Concern
Dear Pittsburgh,
I know we haven’t always been friends. We got off to a rough start. Coming to you after being with that other city was hard. You didn’t keep yourself up like I thought you should, and your ethnic cuisine was less than inviting. You just didn’t do it for me musically, and your ugly brown winters left me dreaming of that other place. Then, as a sort of kick in the teeth, there was that time you sent the crack junkies over to liberate my much-loved CD collection. “Street welfare,” you called it. The policewoman you sent was nice, and I appreciated the detective and the fingerprints he took, but you never called back and talked about what happened between us. What gives?
But after the move, I thought we had turned a corner. I found a part of you that I liked, Pittsburgh, and I really wanted things to work out. We were finally getting along, and I felt I could let my guard down.
You gave me a great place with amenities within walking distance and enough bus routes to make the car nearly unnecessary. In fact, the bus service you provided was so fine that I felt like I could leave my car unattended for days at a time. You never bothered it, Pittsburgh. We were friends now and nothing was coming between us.
But today you did something I didn’t expect. For the first time in months, you picked your money-strapped (but lovable) self up off the pavement and cleaned yourself. You sent forth legions of street sweepers boldly proclaiming in large stenciled letters, “Mayor Tom Murphy’s Pittsburgh Is Picking Up!” The leaves and garbage that had piled in the gutter after months of neglect disappeared under your swirling brushes.
I’m happy for you Pittsburgh, I really am. You look better and I’m sure you feel better too. But next time, would you please give me some sort of sign that you’re going to do such a thing? Sure, the ticket is only $15, and what’s $15 between friends? But really Pittsburgh, did you have to do it like this?
I know, I saw the “Street Cleaning, Thursdays, No Parking” sign out in front of the house when I moved in. Thank you for putting it there. But I honestly thought you had forgotten about it. I thought you had liquidated your sweeper army in an effort to avoid a total fiscal meltdown. What was I to think after you hadn’t come by in months? Every other Thursday had come and gone with nary a word from you. Until now.
You pick the strangest times to show up at my door asking for money. I’ll give it to you, because I know you need the help. But just try to be more considerate in the future. And next time you need some money, why don’t you go and try to hit up the businesses and suburban commuters who use you and then leave you like you’re some cheap floozy, like you’re Toledo, or Cleveland?
Begrudgingly yours,
Jake
Nothing good can come of this
The Pittsburgh Port Authority is making noises, and they aren’t happy ones. Faced with a $30 million deficit, they are proposing massive price increases and service reductions if things don’t improve. Calling this their “Doomsday Plan,” the Port Authority officials paint a bleak picture for the future of mass transit in Pittsburgh.
Among the “highlights”
- A 75ยข raise in the standard fare, which is a 43% increase over the current fare of $1.75;
- Elimination of weekend service;
- Elimination of all routes after 9:00 PM on weekdays, and;
- Elimination of “an untold number” of weekday routes
Estimates place the daily ridership of the city buses at 235,000. A quarter of a million people, and then some. If Pittsburgh thinks they have traffic problems now, just imagine if even 10% (a conservative estimate) of those people, 23,500, were forced by the cuts to change their commute to one by private automobile. It’s madness.
And what of those who can’t make the easy switch to an automobile? Don’t they deserve fair access to transportation? Some people simply can’t afford a car, while others realize that their money could be better spent elsewhere. Is it acceptable to let these people slip through the cracks?
If the state legislature fails to make additional tax revenue available to public transportation, I will feel let down and more so, disgusted. For too long public transportation has gotten the short end of the stick while money has flowed freely to road-building projects that have only been successful in causing more congestion, not less. Government has a responsibility to make wise use of the taxes collected from citizens; investment in a solid transit infrastructure is among one of the most rewarding investments a city can make.
Pittsburgh by morning
Having taken Arielle to work at 5:30 this morning, I returned home and felt very little desire to go back to bed. Instead, I set out for an early morning Saturday run, which are the very best kind.
Instead of my usual morning route that goes along the Allegheny River, by the stadiums, and back home by way of the park, I chose to further explore the neighborhoods and hills to the north.
Early morning dog walkers, empty buses, and singing birds were about the only things I saw while I was out. I ran on old brick streets, up steep grades, through wooded trails that were new to me, and past houses that, in their time, would have been a sight to see.
It’s sad to realize that Pittsburgh has lost nearly half of its residents since 1950. The city’s population has gone from about 676,000 people to somewhere around 339,000. And it shows. My run brought me through some neighborhoods that just looked gutted. Shops were closed up or nonexistent and community gathering spaces were few.
But it’s not to say that these are hopeless places. Far from it, as a matter of fact. They hold within them the potential for greatness. Densely built, these neighborhoods could easily support a wide mix of activities.
I see the main problem being one of convenience. Few shops, such as grocery stores, drug stores, and restaurants, exist in these neighborhoods anymore. It’s frustrating to live in a city yet be dependent on an automobile and the suburbs to complete even the most basic of tasks.
It is such a chicken-and-egg scenario: people won’t move in until the shops are there, and the shops won’t open up until there’s the people there to support them. It was my hope that this gas price fiasco would continue indefinitely, thus forcing some individuals to reconsider their basic method of living, but it looks like that hope may remain unfulfilled for the time being.
The city should step in, but it has its own share of problems that need to be dealt with. I guess what I’m looking for is a reappraisal of “the American Dream,” but I realize I shouldn’t hold my breath.
But if only I could bring everyone out on a run with me. They’d see that there is a lot of good to be had.
Reading between the lines
Today’s Post-Gazette had a lot (seven, by my count) of interesting articles about roads, transit, gas prices, and bicycling. Reading them all is an instructive lesson in the general mindset of our car-centered society.
The story that got me most worked up was the one about the long-time-coming expressway that is supposed to connect Pittsburgh to points south. It’s a multi-billion dollar debacle that, when it is completed, will only hasten the demise of the city of Pittsburgh as well as the countryside surrounding it.
It’s a ridiculous notion, spending a couple of billion dollars for 70 miles of roads just so some poor schmuck who lives in a town far removed from the city can turn his thankless three-hours per day commute into just a little over two.
Cities have houses in them for a reason. Back in the day before subsidized road construction and government-supported exodus to the suburbs, people used to live in the cities they worked in, or at least within a reasonable distance. Huge highways were unnecessary because people had other alternatives when faced with the question of how to best get to jobs, stores, and entertainment. Now, however, we are so single-mindedly obsessed with making the automobile the de facto standard that little opportunity exists for any other type of mobility.
Building this road won’t do a whit of good. It’s a proven fact that traffic grows to occupy whatever space it is given. So tear through the hills and cut down the trees. Pave the world over. And bask in this gloriously ugly landscape of concrete, smog, and cheap architecture. Just know that when all is said and done, the roads will be just as filled as before, the city will be even emptier, our air will be dirtier, our pocketbooks lighter, and we as a society will be none the richer for it.
