“A transit hub may or may not be what comes out of the community conversation, but I think it needs to be discussed,” said Mary Ebeling, a transportation policy analyst with the State Smart Transportation Initiative."Also:
'Locating the hub by the train and bus stations “would truly capture available multi-modal opportunities,” the study found. A transit corridor connecting Rodney Square, the central business district and other destinations would offer a chance to improve bicycle infrastructure, too, according to the study.'To this, I give a resounding "duuuh."
Shailen Bhatt, head of DOT, seems to like the idea of a hub, but points out that it would be expensive. He suggests raising fares, among other sources of potential income. So... Dover got a hub, Newark got a hub, and fares remained the same. Wilmington gets a hub and fares must be raised? Also, as the most populous city and population center in Delaware, why is Wilmington the last to get a transportation hub? That doesn't even make sense.
The study also suggests that DART should "maintain a presence" at Rodney Square. Another big "duuhhh."
A third not-so-favorite quote from the article:
"DART has recently tried to find ways to reduce dangerous bus-stacking around the square."Ummm, not so much. If you sat at Rodney Square and observed bus traffic, you would have seen long, quiet periods with almost no buses arriving, punctuated with shorter frantic periods when dozens of buses would arrive, let off and take on riders, and then depart. During those periods, buses were indeed "stacked." DART has never, in the years I've been a rider, attempted to stagger bus arrivals and departures in a way that would even out traffic. Talk about creating a problem and then using it to try to justify an unpopular solution.
And speaking of unpopular solutions, the article, as background, rehashes the previous attempts to dismantle the hub and redistribute stops throughout the downtown area. Well, with relocation of Rodney Square stops during construction at the Square and adjacent library, that objective was partially and temporarily accomplished, wasn't it? And what fun it was, last summer, having to fight through traffic in King Street in order to get to other nearby stops for a transfer, because no practicable accommodation had been made for foot traffic. I just stopped shopping downtown, personally. Sorry, Wilmington merchants. I'm sure many others did the same.
The City of Wilmington and DART really need to get together and at least begin planning a real hub. And the train station area is indeed the logical place, for the reasons noted above. It just totally makes sense in every way. It could eliminate bus and pedestrian congestion in the downtown area, but be close enough to run frequent trolleys so that nobody getting off a bus from the suburbs has to wait for more than a few minutes to be on their way downtown. It would allow easy coordination of bus and train travel. It would concentrate travelers in one area, making safety and policing easier and more economical. In turn, more effective policing would heighten travelers' safety, and perception of safety, especially at night.
Wilmington just absolutely needs a real transit hub. Gas is not going to get cheaper, and as the 1% get richer and the rest of us, not so much... it is inevitable that public transportation use will increase. Rodney Square worked for a while, but now we need to join the 21st century, and make plans for a first class transportation hub for our city. One that will make it easy, practical, and safe for people to come here to work and shop will benefit everyone.
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