Were you sent here by the devil?

No, good man, I'm on the level!



Okay so we haven't worked out the full musical number but Transport for NOLA's Jeff Schwartz was good enough to respond to yesterday's post. I'll copy his response here since I know not everybody reads the comments.

Hi all. I am the artist formerly known as Jeffrey S.

I'm glad this is getting some interest here and elsewhere! I think that's nothing but a good thing: the whole initial point of TfNOLA was to try and start a conversation around transportation in this city. The folks who founded TfNOLA--and many of our colleagues, neighbors, and other fellow communitymembers--feel that transportation (not just streetcars) touches so many of the issues that we find important, from affordable housing, equal access to jobs and amenities, and long-term sustainable development to promoting reinvestment in our old commercial corridors, promoting larger economic and community development, and getting to Saints and Hornets games without having to drive.

We're trying to create a grassroots effort to change the fact that the agencies and elected representatives who are formally responsible for planning for a future that presents New Orleanians with transportation alternatives--namely, the Regional Planning Commission, the RTA, the City Planning Commission, and others--have no long term plans for improving transit. If you look at the RPC's Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP)--the 20-year master plan for transportation enhancements in our metro area--on their website (http://www.norpc.org/projects_programs/transportation/transp_documents/transp_docs_about.html),you'll notice a preponderance of highways and suburban projects, and an almost complete absence of transit projects.

Transport for NOLA is not a shadow organization with an agenda to push, but rather a group of individuals who want to see better transit in New Orleans, and who also saw that literally no one is advocating for that future. You can look us up on the Secretary of State's corporations database and see that we're already a Louisiana non-profit, and we are in the process of getting our federal 501(c)(3) designation. Of the people who have been actively involved with TfNOLA so far, we're mostly pretty young, and we're not faux-historicists just looking to put Perley streetcars back where they were. We want bus and streetcars to run on-time. We want shelters that protect our residents. We want to take a train to the airport. We believe crosswalks, bike lanes, and ADA-compliance should be a matter-of-course in all city road projects, not an "enhancement." We're all-volunteer, and we have had various public meetings related to the RTA's streetcar expansion. The reason why my name comes up most is not because I am looking to personally profit from advocating for transit, but because I am one of the members of TfNOLA whose day jobs lets me be an advocate on these sorts of issues. I don't know what else to say except that we aren't bird-dogging anything for firms from here or elsewhere looking to get some contract or other. My UPT comment on Eli's post was simply one that I've been thinking about for some time: the city has been trying to reform how it manages TIFs, and one great way to set a policy is to make it geography-based, rather than ad hoc, project-based. The UPT and the parking lots around it could be a good fit--I brought it up more to argue the point that transit can drive development than actually advocating for such a TIF district.

The CityBusiness write-up was a pretty-poorly executed re-working of one of our press releases on last week's TIGER announcement. TfNOLA has indeed helped the RTA's consultant (HDR) write a portion of their TIGER grant (and their current Urban Circulator grant). We did it for free (we're just advocates, not a consulting firm), and despite our qualms about it, we felt that they were going to do such a bad job of writing about how the proposed streetcar line would help promote neighborhood economic development in the communities through which it is going to run, that we'd just hold our noses and write those sections for them. FYI, the CityBiz write-up also bungled a few other significant points--the two most salient are the fact that I wasn't on WIST (it was Kaare who was interviewing Justin Augustine), and Justin still hasn't made the commitment to extend the line to the existing St. Charles line, even though it's so mind-numbingly stupid not to do so.

A few points of clarification: our website is heavily oriented towards streetcars/lightrail because the site was designed as a conversation starter. Light rail is sexy and it has money behind it right now, and the site was meant to say: "Why can't we have something like this?" It wasn't meant to be a site that would inform folks about TfNOLA--we're working on that. It also wasn't supposed to imply that we're only looking for investments in streetcars/light rail/rail--we want everything from bike/ped infrastructure to better bus lines to rail. Lastly, the lines on the map are definitely NOT monorails. Most of them would be streetcars or light rail lines, except for potential high speed rail corridors, which are noted.

I love the conversation, and would like to keep it up. I also would suggest that you all sign up for our email newsletter, which will not only keep you abreast of the things we're working on, but also let you know when the IRS application is approved and when we're forming committees and expanding the board--I would hope that a lot of you want to get involved.

Which brings me to the last point I wanted to make: just cause we're advocating for transit as our 'hobby' doesn't mean that it's only about a single issue--I would argue that you can't name an issue facing the city where transit and transportation isn't at least a moderately important factor. Plus, I like bikes and long walks on the beach, so it's not my only hobby, anyway.

Holler back at me with any thoughts, comments, suggestions, ideas, criticisms...

PS--I can't believe you dug up that old-ass blogspot blog!

Thanks to Jeff for responding. I'm not sure it clears everything up but it does help. I wanted to ask about TfNOLA because I agree in principle with much of TfNOLA's stated purpose. I believe a city's public services, including its transit system, should be an asset to all of its citizens and not just an amusement for its visitors. I also think it's natural to ask questions about advocacy non-profits with obvious connections to consulting firms working for city agencies who don't clearly identify themselves through their "conversation starter" website. Looking forward to seeing more from this group in the future.

Monorail!

I spent much of this afternoon trying to find out exactly who Transport For NOLA is and why they're so interested in offering us free advice on redeveloping our public transit system. As a citizen of New Orleans, I am interested in improving city services such as transportation but am generally suspicious of folks who make single-issue advocacy a full-time hobby. I am especially suspicious when the full-time hobbyism comes with the dreaded Monorail! proposal. (As we've said previously, this is one of your classic red flags) Usually when someone gets this interested in potential development, it's because they see themselves with a piece of the action eventually.

But, hey, maybe this bunch is on the up-and-up. They write pretty ideas on their website which I would like to support.

Transport for NOLA is an idea: state-of-the art transportation in New Orleans as a public service and a public good.

And it is a group of people: advocating for the creation of public transit in New Orleans that provides transport choices and transportation innovation for New Orleanians. We want transit that is connected to our daily lives, that is a public service, that we use by choice.

But, again, who the heck is this "group of people" and what do they want? The site doesn't tell us. Neither does the Facebook page, although it does have 60 "fans" Are any of the "fans" involved with it? Who knows? (Side note: I am curious about this organization and would like to keep up to date with its activity but am hesitant to add myself as a "fan" because I don't want to make an implicit endorsement of something I'm just curious about. It's one of the worst things about the way social media works these days)

Last week, the investigative journalists at The Lens told me this about Transport for NOLA.

Thankfully, citizens organized Transport For Nola, which quickly raised awareness of the impending decision and advocated for a hybrid proposal essentially combining the Loyola Avenue and Rampart Street routes. Though their composite idea didn’t make it into the RTA’s grant applications, the public relations brush fire they caused was enough to ensure that the RTA didn’t simply submit the Convention Center route.

Well done, "citizens"! Looks like you saved our asses.... or at least managed to get tangentially credited for doing so. But, again, who are you?

In comments below a subsequent Lens opinion piece, someone named "Jeff" identifies himself with Transport for NOLA while arguing 1) That Governor PBJ has a poor grasp of the value of investing in infrastructure. (I agree with that) 2) Perhaps improvements to Union Passenger Terminal and rail development could be funded through Tax Increment Financing (Not so sure I would agree with that) He is obviously very interested in this development happening. But... who is he?

So, because I'm curious, I've been "following" T-for NOLA on Twitter. (I like that "follow" thing much better than "friending" or "fanning" It's much nearer to describing my nosing around) And this afternoon, this pops up.

CityBusiness features TfNOLA's comments on new streetcar line; RTA still not committed to connecting to Lee Circle

Here's the CityBiz piece.

New Orleans will receive $45 million in federal money to build a streetcar line along Loyola Avenue in the Central Business District, and transportation advocates would like to see it connected with the St. Charles Avenue route and the Bywater neighborhood.

The nonprofit Transport for NOLA was among the groups that reviewed route options before planners submitted a proposal to the U.S. Department of Transportation for grant consideration. The advocacy group supports the proposed Loyola route but wants the Regional Transit Authority to use the money to improve streetcar access to other parts of the city.

The Loyola line will run from Canal Street to the Union Passenger Terminal, taking passengers through the Central Business District, past City Hall and near the Louisiana Superdome to the city’s Amtrak passenger train station.

Jeff Schwartz, a Transport for NOLA founding member and urban planner, is calling for the RTA to turn its attention now to extending the Loyola line down contiguous Rampart Street and St. Claude Avenue until it reaches Press Street in the Bywater.

“Without this, the $45 million won’t amount to much,” Schwartz said. “Who will ride a line only for less than a mile from Union Passenger Terminal to Canal Street? It needs to connect to neighborhoods.”

Jeff Schwartz. Okay okay that's this guy. He's that guy on Blogger who would always confuse the hell out of the comment threads at WCBF whenever he and I were in the same conversation. I sort of know who that is. He usually has a lot of helpful stuff to say. In the quote above, he says something very helpful which I agree with very strongly.

Although this other stuff, I dunno, seems a little nit-picky.

During an interview on WIST Radio last week, Schwartz noted to an RTA official that there was no connection between the Loyola line and the existing St. Charles Avenue route as was proposed last year during the community review process. Justin Augstine, who oversees RTA operations for management contractor Veolia, said money from the $45 million grant will be used to connect the Loyola line with St. Charles via existing rail on Howard Avenue.

Schwartz also suggested that RTA officials improve the design of the Loyola line.

“Currently, the RTA is looking at six stops along the 0.75 miles between the UPT and Canal Street,” he said. “That is more stops per mile than you even get on the St. Charles line today, and that means slow service.”

Here's what I don't understand about this. On the one hand, Schwartz is saying that the Loyola line stops too often meaning that people should be able to walk a bit further to catch a stop. On the other hand, he's disappointed that the St. Charles line, which stops at Carondelet and Howard, won't connect to UPT? That's like a three block walk as it is. Anyway, now maybe I'm being nit-picky.

I still do wonder why Schwartz doesn't put his name on his monorail drawings. At the very least, it would help me to know that the "group of citizens" I was interested in following had professional planning experience.