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Ross D. Franklin / associated press
A light rail train pulls into downtown Phoenix for the first time during a 2008 test.
Friday, April 3, 2009 | 2 a.m.
Reader poll
The proposed light rail corridor through the Las Vegas Valley.
Sun Archives
Southern Nevada’s transportation planners, exploring how to improve public transit, opted in 2006 for new rapid bus lines over a far costlier system of street cars gliding on rails.
But now, state Sen. Mike Schneider is urging such a light-rail system — deep recession and declining government revenues notwithstanding. He is pushing state legislation that would require Clark County, Las Vegas, Henderson, North Las Vegas and the state transportation department to buy, “to the extent practicable,” rights-of-way (probably near Union Pacific Railroad lines) for “a fixed guideway” system, a dedicated route for light rail or buses. It would run from Nevada State College in Henderson through the resort corridor to downtown Las Vegas, terminating at a proposed North Las Vegas campus of UNLV.
The Las Vegas Democrat’s strategy may be shrewd politics. Urging local jurisdictions to buy land for the route would telegraph to the public that such a public transit system — he champions light rail — is inevitable as the region’s congestion worsens.
“We can’t dillydally anymore,” Schneider says.
Schneider thinks his bill — or a near duplicate sponsored by the committee he heads, Energy, Infrastructure and Transportation — would guarantee a fixed guideway system.
But the bill doesn’t set deadlines on how quickly local jurisdictions must comply. And the legislation seems to offer a loophole: The county or a city could decide it isn’t practical to spend the money on rights-of-way acquisition.
North Las Vegas City Manager Gregory Rose supports the bill but says he does not see it as a mandate to local governments. Henderson Public Works Director Robert Murnane says he interprets the bill as encouraging cities to buy rights-of-way when opportunities “come along.” Clark County spokesman Erik Pappa says officials are worried about the bill’s financial implications.
Littleton, Colo., spurred Denver’s popular light-rail system by buying rights-of-way for more than a decade before the system was formally planned and designed. Denver Regional Transportation District spokesman Scott Reed isn’t convinced Littleton’s actions assured light rail there, but believes that city sped the development of the commuter system.
“If you have opportunity to buy rights-of-way, you do it,” he says.
Cost is the largest impediment to light rail.
The Government Accountability Office, Congress’ investigative arm, says capital costs for rapid transit bus systems are $800,000 a mile when city streets are used and $16.4 million for dedicated lanes, whereas a mile of light-rail ranges from $15.1 million to $144.7 million.
Phoenix’s new, 20-mile light-rail system cost $1.4 billion, or $70 million a mile. That greatly dwarfs Southern Nevada’s first bus rapid transit line, the $52 million ACE Downtown Connector. But while the connector, opening this winter, has dedicated lanes downtown, buses will fight traffic when navigating the Strip.
Schneider’s timing may seem tone deaf — the state may cut basic services — but his bill coincides with a push by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Pennsylvania Gov. Edward Rendell and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg to invest nationally in America’s declining infrastructure, especially rail.
If Schneider’s bill fails, the proposed light-rail system will begin resembling the mirage that is the magnetic levitation train that would connect Las Vegas and Anaheim, Calif.: Discussion begets hope, only to be dashed by insufficient financial and political capital. Then a few years later the project is rekindled publicly, renewing the cycle. Maglev has been three decades in the making.
More ominous for light rail: The chairman of the California-Nevada Super Speed Train Commission figured two decades ago that maglev was a few years from operation. The project has barely budged since.
That’s why it’s in the best interest of light-rail proponents to get Schneider’s bill through the Legislature. (A hearing on the bill was postponed Thursday.) There would be the perception of progress. And then supporters could contend the project isn’t pie-in-the-sky, but inevitable — at least based on Denver’s experience.
Real simple - Light rail is a waste of money that can be used other places. To build the planned 31 mile system here in Las Vegas, using what it cost per mile for the system in Phoenix, it would cost 2.2 billion dollars today. In 10 years, what would be the price? 4 billion? Light rail is like a leech on society, where ever it is built, it drains money to cover it's costs of operation year after year. Add in crooked politics and this becomes a real expensive mess.
This is a very expensive project and Phoenix really messed this one up. Not only has it crashed into several cars already (t-boned btw, and most of these have been to traffic light errors), but they're having to rip up track and go back because they "forgot" to build a track to the airport!
Furthermore, the construction time took so long that many, many shops were forced out of business because the street in front of their store was ripped up. But that was probably part of the plan anyway, those shops were bought at bargain prices and developers are now working to build high end condos and retail units for rich yuppies.
This is simply a backwards 19th century technology that is not cost effective in reducing traffic congestion or remotely effective at combating climate change. It is very expensive and as such is nothing more than wealth redistribution from the common citizen to the wealthy developers.
Oh and Phoenix could have built between 100 and 140 miles of 4 lane highway for the same price it built the light rail.
You have to include the other things that this legislature is trying to do. Where can a person go when the freeway system (that we have paid for) will be a tollway. It shows that the people with money will continue to strangle those without it. It must be great when you are standing on those who aren't as unfortunate as you are. Build the railway. This fantastic city will always be a wannabe city until we do something about mass transit.
st. louis built one of these things in the early 1990s and still, to this day, it's almost always 80% empty.
the reason?
it takes 3 hours to get from the suburbs to downtown on the thing because it stops every 2 minutes!
the ONLY way to get people to really use mass transit is have express routes that only stop at major employment centers. stopping every 60 feet doesn't work.
JP,
Toll roads would actually help us reduce congestion, smog, and it would be cheaper to operate...that means less taxes or, at least, those tax dollars devoted to something more important like education or healthcare.
I cannot believe we are considered a wannabe city unless we spend billions on a light rail system to nowhere. You got to be kidding me.
I rode on the Blue Line in LA 5 times last year. Twice there was an on grade accident. Seems everybody tries to beat the train to a crossing. Plus there is always that language problem in LA. When I take the Red Line subway from Union Station, the train is always eerily empty. And it cost a fortune to build. And don't forget that any railway will become a Union worker paradise in Vegas. Yes, the CAT system is filled with private employees, but a rail system will always end up controlled by Union loafers. Just say "no" people......
It won't decrease congestion! It would put it on the streets. It would put it in the neighborhoods. Toll roads should only be utilized if THEY build the roads they are going to make us pay for AGAIN! It is not the legislature's roads to sell. It is the citizenry's roads. I do not want to sell my roads to some money-grubbing rich person/corporation. Tell Carson City that the roads we take to our jobs have been paid for and they are not for sale.
Fixed light rail for Las Vegas & Henderson would be to expensive and not used. The people who own land along this line have been driving this project. They stand to make alot of money at our expense.
The planned route for the LV Light Rail 'fails' miserably. It should be smaller routes, taking into consideration shopping centres, tourist attractions, and major areas of employment. Having a single route is pointless, as the majority of customers will not be wanting to travel in one single direction each time. As for usage, check out cities like Melbourne, which has used trams and light rail for decades with high patronage rates. The length of the LV Light Rail needs to be reduced, it needs to have several 'cross over' lines, and then you may see people using it. The US needs to quickly look at solutions FAR AWAY from cars and toll roads - the mentality of every city not having sufficient public transport is what has ruined your economy - lets just move out further and further from the cities and allow the car to get us everywhere. And how much are the carmakers now in DEBT ???
First off, the Phoenix rail that is laid out currently was the initial line. They did not "forget" any airport line. And in fact you can take it to a transfer station right outside of Sky Harbor where buses take you to the gate. That is temporary while the Autotrain is created to take you the rest of the way instead of the buses. It cost 40 million dollars a mile to build that rail. And everyone was against, and for the most part people are still against it to some degree.
However, against all odds, it has great usage and ridership. In fact it has more than was ever expected initially. People from east Mesa drive to the park and rides and take it into Phoenix rather than make the daunting journey through traffic. Arizona State makes a rediculous use of the system as it passes through 2 of their primary campuses. This also allows it to function as somewhat of a quick trolley between the Main Tempe campus and the Downtown Phoenix ASU campus. I personally used it multiple times to get to School, go to downtown phoenix, or go to downtown Tempe. All of those places are the worst for parking so Light Rail offered a great option to me. I was against it, and I think that it was a drastic change to the existing infrastructure. But it may have yet proven to be a necessary change.
The accidents have occured and have not been due to traffic light errors. In fact you can go to youtube and look up videos that show you the accidents as the cameras caught them. You can clearly see repeatedly that the offenders are the motorists not paying attention or usually making illegal U-turns in front of the coming light rail train.
It may not have been the best solution for people to swallow at the time. It put a lot of businesses in trouble along the construction route. But its worth has been proving itself steadily. It allows for people who want to go to the stadiums and into downtown Phoenix a way to travel there without the need for a vehicle or a parking space in their direct vicinity. Therefore allowing a larger number of people to become patrons to areas of cities they otherwise would have never bothered to visit.
Phoenix is still building it's road infrastructure as well and maintaining to a much higher level than Las Vegas does.
Las Vegas is built on much different values than Phoenix, and with much different attitudes in play.