# Trending Trendy

 

 

"Don't like it? Well, get used to it! More are coming!"

I am so excited! Our two major cities are now connected by high speed rail. Okay, that was a poor joke. Our two major cities are now connected by an LRT which moves only slightly faster than an octogenarian using a walker. But who cares? It is trendy. And the colors! It looks really pretty as it crawls down University Avenue.

Let me think. If I was still working at Ecolab in St. Paul, I could take the train all the way in. I would drive to the Coon Rapids station, which is about a 15 minute drive. From there,  I would catch the Northstar into the Target Field Station. Assuming there were no delays due to the increased amount of oil traffic on the Burlington Northern rail line, it is quick 30 minute ride into the Target Field Station. I would then transfer to the brand spanking new green line LRT. A 48 minute ride would dump me off at Union Station in St. Paul. There would then be some foot traffic as the stop is not close at all to the front door of where I work. Bottom line - if I left home at 7am, I would arrive at my desk somewhere between 9am and 10am. When I did work there and drove in, it was about an hour drive with traffic.

And here we have the folly of the entire LRT system. It works great if you live directly on a stop on route and work directly off another stop. That is, unless you are in a hurry. It seems the very trendy and long awaited green line has a 18 minute problem. It is 18 minutes slower than the other mass transit - the bus. But who in the world would want to ride on a smelly old bus, when you can ride on a colorful and trendy train? Do we really care if it takes 18 minutes longer each way? That is only an extra 2 1/2 hours a week in transit. Big deal!

Here is the bottom line. If the planners at the Met Council have a prayer to get citizens out of their cars willingly, they need to come up with a better mousetrap. They need a system which is cheaper and faster than the automobile. All this pie in the sky stuff like "it is so good for Mother Earth" does not cut it when your boss asks why you are once again an hour late to work. All of us are paying a huge price tag for a rail system that few people ride. It was not only the cost of building this thing, every ride is subsidized by the taxpayers. In "realville", this thing would be called a "lemon".

However, I digress. I am Mr. "Rain Cloud" once again. I need to get my head in the clouds like the City Planners do and gaze in awe and wonder at our new municipal toy. After all, government people don't worry about costs, so why should I? As for me, I am looking forward to my first ride into St. Paul totally on the train system. I just need to find an entire day to waste in order to do it.