"You clearly have to stop at the airport," he told the Wisconsin State Journal editorial board. "You’ve got to be there."
Why? What makes this imperative?
This statement contradicts another one he made earlier:
"You have to stop where the people are," Doyle said.
And this is where the people are?
The people aren't out in the boonies by the airport, an area which local maps label HIC SVNT DRACONES.
Convenience, Mr. Doyle. Convenience, convenience, convenience! The people have spoken:
The survey showed Americans would be most excited by the possibility of more convenient travel (71 percent), less expensive fares (69 percent) and faster trains (55 percent) with the introduction of high-speed rail in their region.
Dropping passengers off on the outskirts of town like contestants on Survivor is not convenient. Generally speaking, folks in Milwaukee favor a stop as close to downtown as possible – see this piece at Urban Milwaukee:
Why does this matter to Milwaukee? The station’s location significantly affects the mobility of travelers from Milwaukee and Chicago upon arrival in Madison. A more central location affords flexibility for spouses to work in different cities, greatly increasing the number of available jobs. It allows students to more reliably get from one city to the other. A downtown-to-downtown connection also greatly increases the ability for businesses to collaborate and grow in both cities.
…and this one at the Journal-Sentinel:
If traveling to Madison, what possible reason would I want to be dropped off at the Dane County Regional Airport, miles from downtown?" Danielsen wrote in a recent e-mail to state and federal officials. "If I snail transportation to get from the airport / have to take local bus to where I wanted to be in the first place downtown, you just put me back in my car again, time-wise and convenience-wise.
Note that Danielsen listed convenience and travel time, both of which are listed above in the survey results.
While not all travelers have the same destination, I find it difficult to believe that a majority of riders wouldn't be headed downtown or to campus. The Capitol & other apparatuses of state government, sports arenas, the Convention Center, the UW, the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, museums, the hotels some visitors to these places would probably stay at, etc. are in and around downtown. Events that attract folks from out of town such as the Ironman competition and the Great Taste of the Midwest either happen downtown or are easily accessible from downtown. Amtrak's Hiawatha line, of which Madison is to be a stop, is in many ways a commuter line and commuter rail is about getting to the center of a city, not its periphery. Ideally, the train stop would be right downtown, such as at Monona Terrace. This ain't gonna happen so we've got to locate it as close to The Square as possible because Badger Bus and the state employee car pool are going to run rings around the train in terms of convenience.
In addition, the train will, at some point, need Internet access and other amenities to try and lure commuters away from buses and cars since they are more convenient.
On the other side, a location closer to downtown will be much more convenient for many Madisonians heading east as it is better served by bus and closer to where most of Madison lives. Plus a station at the airport can lead to only little or no development at all around it whereas a station on East Washington is more likely to spur growth.
I am seriously flummoxed as to why Doyle wants to put the station out at the airport.
Why, it must be so people can fly into our airport and take trains to cities with airports that would've been cheaper and more convenient for them to fly directly to in the first place.
ReplyDeleteA downtown location would also tie better into Madison's existing bus system. Due to the dimensions of the isthmus, there are a whole lot of buses going right through downtown. There's one bus that goes to the airport, and you have to transfer to get downtown.
ReplyDeleteWill people take the train to Madison if it comes here? Yes. Will they still come if it only stops at the airport? Yes. But how many fewer will do so if they need to take two different buses to get from there to downtown?
Joe - that must be it. Doyle is in cahoots with Delta!
ReplyDeleteHerr Donnelly - I fully expect that Metro will modify their service in response to a train stop. However, I still think most potential commuters will be dissatisfied with an airport stop as they will find it more convenient to either drive or take Badger Bus.
You're right, they probably will add more service. But how much and how convenient?
ReplyDeleteGiven Metro service patterns, the additional routes are likely to also go through the North Transfer Point.
If the train went to East Wash, you could get on pretty much any bus that went by and make it downtown. Infrequent public transit users could still handle it.
If it goes to the airport and people have to transfer, it becomes not only more time consuming but also more confusing and stressful. If someone isn't familiar and comfortable with public transit in general, they might not be up for it.
I have no idea what Metro would do to accommodate the station. Whatever it is, I would sincerely hope there would be an express route that goes to downtown and campus.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think that putting the station outside of downtown is going to discourage many commuters.