August 16 – August 23, 2018 COMMUNITY STREETCAR COALITION NEWS CLIPS COMPILED BY BROADCAST CLIPS Oklahoma City KWTV August 23, 2018 LINK: https://bit.ly/2w9bzfn Oklahoma City leaders are pushing hard for drivers to share the road with the city’s new streetcar system. News 9’s Chris Gilmore says parking is also part of the problem. It’s definitely a work in progress out here. I want to show you the white lines running right alongside the streetcar tracks throughout Midtown and Downtown Oklahoma City; it’s to encourage drivers and visitors to park inside these boundaries, that’s the big message city leaders want everyone to know this morning. They’re also putting up these white signs to bring the point further home to park inside the white lines. Now this whole testing process for the streetcar system has been going on for months now, you may have noticed as you’ve been driving through the area. It’s to prepare the system to be fully operational later this year. Drivers have had a hard time parking in the right areas to avoid the streetcar during that time. The system itself consists of two loops; one running from Myriad Gardens to Bricktown and the other from Scissortail Park to Midtown. Some drivers have ignored those tests driving on tracks, still, the city wants to make sure people downtown can learn to share the road with the streetcars before they start running daily. And even though there are no formal infractions or ordinances in place governing traffic or parking around the streetcars, city leaders and police are currently putting their heads together to come up with an ordinance proposal that will have to go before the city council before it’s approved. Phoenix KSAZ August 22, 2018 LINK: https://bit.ly/2MLB8MJ Change is coming to Tempe. Valley Metro and the City of Tempe giving out details tonight on the Tempe streetcar project. Officials will unveil the final design for it, landscaping and public art elements will also be unveiled. The three-mile stretch will have 14 stops, with four cars running at a time, each holding about 125 people. Tonight’s meeting is happening from 6-8pm at the Tempe Transportation Center. El Paso KTSM August 22, 2018 LINK: https://bit.ly/2Lo98ud Streetcar testing is ongoing in Central El Paso, and safety is a top concern following the first crash involving a city streetcar. As we reported, a suspected drunk driver crashed into a streetcar early Tuesday morning while it was on a test run. Officers arrested the driver for DWI, but the buses are back on the rails for more training. And today is the second streetcar safety community meeting. During the first meeting last night, city officials offered several safety tips; they include removing your headphones near the streetcar route, that allows you to hear the warning bells that one of the cars is approaching. Also be aware of where you park; if you are blocking a track, you will be towed. Sun Metro leaders say the new routes will impact everyone. “We want everyone to get used to it. We want our drivers to get used to it, we want pedestrians to get used to it, bikers to get used to it, and so the more they see it, with one car out there, two cars out there, soon we’ll have four or five cars out there. So it’s a learning process.” 2 PRINT COVERAGE Tempe Streetcar project receives federal clearance to enter construction RT&S By Mischa Wanek-Libman August 23, 2018 Valley Metro received a Letter of No Prejudice on the Tempe Streetcar project from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). The letter means the rail project is cleared to proceed to the next phase of construction. Preliminary construction and underground utility work is currently underway. Valley Metro expects construction will shift into high gear this fall with the building of the system’s rail trackway, power systems and street improvements. The rail project construction, estimated to cost $176.6 million, will proceed pending approval of a requested grant from the FTA Small Starts program. Valley Metro says it hopes to enter into a funding agreement with FTA in early 2019. “This milestone would not have been possible without the support of our federal delegation and officials at FTA, for which we are grateful. With this approval, we can now move forward to keep this project on budget and on schedule,” said Tempe Mayor Mark Mitchell. “Many, including advocates in the local business community, have been working tirelessly to see this project come to fruition for the betterment of our community’s quality of life and economic sustainability.” LINK: https://www.rtands.com/regulatory/tempe-streetcar-project-receives-federal-clearance-to- enter-construction/ 3 Officials Urging Proper Parking Protocol Near Downtown Street Cars KWTV By Chris Gilmore August 23, 2018 Oklahoma City leaders are pushing hard for drivers to share the road with the city's new streetcar system. There are white boundary lanes running alongside the new streetcar system downtown. Drivers are asked to park inside the boundaries of that line to give the streetcars space to maneuver comfortably. Test runs have been going on for months to prepare to be fully operational later this year. Drivers have had a hard time parking in the right areas to avoid the streetcars. The system consists of 2 loops: one running from Myriad Gardens to Bricktown and the other running from Scissortail Park to Midtown. Some drivers have ignored those tests, driving on the tracks. The city wants to make sure people downtown can learn to share the road with the streetcars before they start running daily. City Hall staff and police are working on traffic and parking ordinance proposals tied to streetcars. LINK: http://www.news9.com/story/38947573/officials-urging-proper-parking-protocol-near- downtown-street-cars 4 First Crew of the Milwaukee Streetcar Takes Full-Route Daylight Test Drive [PHOTOS] Milwaukee Independent No author listed August 23, 2018 The Milwaukee Streetcar training class and support staff took Vehicle #03 for a 2.1 mile run from the Intermodal Terminal to Burns Commons on August 22, making it the first daylight end-to-end route test. The 83,000 pound vehicle was expected to test between 31 and 42 miles along the route, with higher through less traffic-dense straightaways, like East Ogden Avenue. Including the weight of the training crew, stacks of bottled water bundles created 20,000 pounds of ballast to simulate a capacity ride load. The streetcar fleet must log more than 620 miles of testing before it can begin passenger service, which is expected to be completed in time for a November launch. These images document the streetcar’s testing at the Burns Commons Station. LINK: http://www.milwaukeeindependent.com/featured/first-crew-milwaukee-streetcar-takes- full-route-daylight-test-drive/ 5 Can We Expect More Traffic Accidents With The Streetcar KLAQ By Veronica Gonzalez August 22, 2018 Just recently they were testing the new Streetcar and already was involved in an accident. The accident happened in Central El Paso after 2:30 am on East Rio Grande Avenue and North Stanton street. This accident happened around the time most nightlife partiers are heading home. But will the Streetcar that is coming soon cause more traffic accidents? Granted, this latest accident that happened in Central was not the Streetcars fault. Things will change on the roads once the Streetcar starts rolling around town for good. NewsChannel 9 was first to report about the traffic accident involving the Streetcar which you will see above. I am very excited to see something from our past be brought back but worry that it can affect other drivers. Now if you pay attention to the road instead of using your phone while driving then the Streetcars shouldn't be a problem. But you're not only sharing the road with bicyclists, now you're sharing the road with the Streetcars soon! Give us your opinion on whether or not the Streetcar will be the cause of traffic accidents in the poll below! LINK: http://klaq.com/can-we-expect-more-traffic-accidents-with-the-streetcar/ 6 MARTA board to vote on spending $2.5B for transit expansion in October Curbed Atlanta By Sean Keenan August 22, 2018 October 4 is shaping up to be a consequential day for Atlanta. On that date, MARTA’s board of directors is expected to vote on a plan to expand the city’s transit network by way of roughly $2.5 billion in tax funds, to be spent over the next four decades. Exactly how they elect to divvy up that cash, however, is subject to a debate over which parts of Atlanta need mass transit most. Decisions made this year could help shape Atlanta for generations to come. It’s a big deal. Here’s a primer: The current project list proposed by MARTA officials includes plans to snake 21 miles of light rail through the city and expand the bus network. But the most controversial aspect of the transit agency’s current priorities involves the placement of such rail lines. Roughly four of those 21 miles of streetcar lines are slated to connect MARTA’s Lindbergh Station to Emory University and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It’s called the Clifton Corridor. Just about everyone agrees the Clifton Corridor is an important project that will pay dividends aplenty. But some worry that funding it could mean shortchanging other necessary additions to Atlanta’s transit system.