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Park and Ride lots on Light Rail/Commuter Rail and the reason for them

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Park and Ride lots on Light Rail/Commuter Rail and the reason for them
Posted by divebardave on Monday, March 9, 2020 6:03 PM

There are a number of legacy rail transit systems that have installed Park and Ride lots. Shaker Hts Rapid starting in the 1960s, MBTA Purple Line to Lowell (never enough parking), Buffalo Metro @ Lassalle, Pittsburgh PAT in the 1980s. So the transit purists here would say in a ideal world you would take a local bus from your doorstep to the light rail station. In reality this tends to add 30-45 min to my travel time. Furthermore buses in many citys still stop at the city line and have not been extended in years. I am in Farmdale KY as of now and the city TARQ bus stops about 2 miles away at Rochester/Outer Belt....Why? Because that is where the streetcar loop end of the line was 70 years ago. Transit Rail tends to work in citys that have parking at a premium due to its downtowns being land locked. Manhatten is on a Island,Boston is on a Penuisula, DC was built on a swamp. Pittsburgh is on a Triangle and both Portland WA/ME is hemmed in by the river and greenbelts.

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Posted by CSSHEGEWISCH on Tuesday, March 10, 2020 10:08 AM

Park'n'Ride lots have been around for decades.  CTA promoted their existence at the outer ends of their Rapid Transit routes since at least the 1950's.  Several outlying stations on Metra have been opened or expanded with huge parking lots since that's the easiest way to attract passengers.

The daily commute is part of everyday life but I get two rides a day out of it. Paul
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Posted by BaltACD on Tuesday, March 10, 2020 10:19 AM

Locally around the Baltimore area they have constructed 'Park'n Ride' lots all over the area - not necessarily connected to any form of mass transit, either rail or bus.  The intent in the area is to at the very least promote car pooling.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by divebardave on Tuesday, March 10, 2020 2:21 PM

A older term was "Kiss and Ride" which in the 1950s "Leave it to Beaver World" The 1950s housewife would drop off her Husband at the station and have the car to spend his paycheck shopping for the day.-Now with both husband and wife working the term is obsolete.

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Posted by BaltACD on Thursday, March 12, 2020 1:16 PM

divebardave
A older term was "Kiss and Ride" which in the 1950s "Leave it to Beaver World" The 1950s housewife would drop off her Husband at the station and have the car to spend his paycheck shopping for the day.-Now with both husband and wife working the term is obsolete.

My mother in the 'Leave it to Beaver' era never learned to drive and never wanted to.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by alphas on Friday, March 27, 2020 10:31 AM

There still are a very few left like that.    One women I know didn't want to do it because her mother never drove.    The chain was broken by her daughter who couldn't wait to drive.

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