Imagine the possibilities! From SmartPlanet.com:           The future of high-speed rail in the U.S. remains anything but certain, but in the meantime one person has taken it upon himself to show us what it should look like. Activist and artist Alfred Twu began working on the map in 2009, in response to President Obama’s plan for high-speed rail. The map has gone viral on Facebook, and a petition Twu created to ask the White House to fund a system like the one he proposed has already received 52,389 signatures. In designing the map’s routes, Twu relied on studies Continue reading →

Here’s a great blog post last week from Mark Lefkowitz with Green City Blue Lake about State of Ohio legislature wrangling the biennial transportation budget. A large coalition of groups, Ohioans for Transportation Choices, is advocating for an amendment to set aside a modest $75 mil fund dedicated towards bike, ped, transit projects. http://www.gcbl.org/blog/2013/02/tired-of-short-shrift-for-transit-complete-streets-ohioans-ask-for-fair-funding  

by Brent Warren, TC Blogger How about taxing parking lots to pay for transit? That’s an idea that is being proposed in Massachusetts, and one that anyone who has ever been to downtown Columbus might ponder as a way to fund future transit improvements here. Downtown has, of course, made great strides in recent years, with projects like Neighborhood Launch on Gay Street and the Annex at River South on Front Street filling former parking lots with great-looking residential buildings. However, there are still enough parking lots downtown to significantly affect the walkability and vibrancy of the area. This map Continue reading →

By Eric Davies, Board Chair A look back at 2012 shows public transit’s role in transportation and community development continues to gain ground around the US, and here in central Ohio the turn in this direction is occurring as well—just a bit more slowly. Nationally Hurricane Sandy became one of the landmark, and obviously tragic, events of the year. The storm for a time crippled all modes of transportation, and yet buses were running within a few days, most regional and intercity trains were back on schedule within a week or less, and even the subway system—partly flooded by salt Continue reading →

By Brent Warren, TC Blogger Charlotte’s light rail system recently celebrated its five-year anniversary. Now serving over 14,000 passengers a day, the Lynx Blue Line has surpassed ridership expectations and won over former critics. As Charlotte looks to add a streetcar line and gets ready to start construction on a nine-mile extension of their light rail, it’s worth taking a moment to look at how this once car-centric and sprawling city managed to transform itself into a transit-friendly city of sidewalks. Charlotte and its suburbs grew a tremendous amount in a short period of time. A UNC Charlotte study found Continue reading →

by Brent Warren, TC Blogger Great article about how a vibrant and walkable downtown can keep visitors shopping, eating and exploring while they are in town.  Transit is a key ingredient in that formula, and plays an important role in how people experience a city, whether they are there as a tourist, for a conference or just to visit friends.  How could transit in Columbus be improved to enhance the visitor experience? For more reading: 8 Amazing Facts About Downtowns