Morning Metro: Random Fireworks, Rainwater and Impersonating an Officer
Decatur Metro | September 21, 2011
- Did I hear fireworks last night?? [Emory Wheel]
- They missed the Missoni Madness, but the AsianCajuns got connections [AsianCajuns]
- Decatur Blue Sky Concert Today! [The Decatur Minute]
- Atlanta passes potable rainwater ordinance [Green Building Chronicle]
- WTH? Man Charged with Impersonating an Officer at Agnes Scott [Patch]
- Should Public Transit Strive for Profitability? [Streetsblog]
Photo courtesy of the Emory Wheel
“Should Public Transit Strive for Profitability?”
MARTA just needs to focus on getting in the black and staying there for a while. I don’t like bashing it, but the amount of the fare increase, while still cheaper overall than driving, will probably drive away some who take it by choice on a regular basis. It’s not like you’re getting anything extra or improved for the actual increase. How do people get on the board of MARTA? They seem fairly out of touch.
“Atlanta passes potable rainwater ordinance [Green Building Chronicle]”
This is great news. Any solution to sourcing water that does not require us to dip into our reservoirs is a winner in my book.
Well done, Atlanta.
Re: Transit Profitability
I haven’t done any research to confirm this but having reviewed transportation costs and revenues in detail a few years ago, it sounds reasonable so I will pass it on. A transportation engineer I interviewed about 5 years ago for a state transit report said there wasn’t a transit system in the country that broke even, let alone ran a profit – all subsidized. He said that one in San Fran (or perhaps San Diego) claimed to break even but they failed to include the federal funds that made it possible (and fed funding in transit is usually considerable). Maybe part of the reason, as the article suggests, is the need to provide ‘coverage’ but that is important. Hence the word “public.” So, although it sounds nice, and some politicians love to talk it up, I am doubtful.
(and I apologize profusely for using the word “hence”; and “profusely.”. Heck, I just plain apologize)
No apology necessary; those are great words. I got to use the word “endemic” in a work email today. Pretty cool, huh?
How’s that for thread jacking?