Comments on: Making Oklahoma City a Boomerang Destination

By: Colin Newman

Colin Newman — Thu, 05 Jul 2012 05:55:28 +0000

Here’s something I wrote a while ago about my own boomerang experience. Please forgive the self promotion.

http://okc.net/2011/02/28/why-im-here-why-im-doing-this-and-why-you-should-stay/

Here’s a money quote, should you not care to click through:

“I can’t help but feel that the Oklahoma City I grew up in and the one I inhabit now are radically different. The professional civic boosters would have you believe that this is a case of urban renewal done right, the rising tide lifting all boats. There is probably some measure of truth to that, but I think something else is at play. People who would have left 10 years ago, kids who are the same age as I was when I left, are deciding to stay. I can’t pretend to know the motives of these kids, but I suspect they are staying for the same reason I am; things are changing for the better, ordinary people are building something remarkable, and we want to be a part of that.”

This impression is dependent on continual progress; it’s too soon for the victory parade. Build our streetcar. Build it right. Make us proud. It’s worth doing.

By: tj

tj — Wed, 04 Jul 2012 13:29:02 +0000

Extracted from the article. This applies to OKC. Light rail is only “one” necessary addition to make OKC urban. First make OKC attractive to all the Oklahomans in Texas and then maybe talk can begin about non native in migration. Most of OKC talk forums are frequented by “former” Oklahomans

Quote: You want more people to move from New York to Cleveland? Get native Clevelanders to move back first, and then they’ll work their New York networks and get out the word that Cleveland is popping.”

By: david ball

david ball — Fri, 29 Jun 2012 17:44:54 +0000

i forgot to mention, k w makes a good point. frontier city is nice to have, but nobody is going to come from out of state to experience it. something about the size of disneyland would be nice.

By: david ball

david ball — Fri, 29 Jun 2012 17:42:13 +0000

san francisco is consistently ranked in the top four most successful transit systems in the country, sometimes being ranked the best. my map (available online for free) shows accessibility we can only dream of. what struck me about MUNI is that they view the entire network as a SYSTEM. although they are legally the “municipal railway,” they have subways, streetcars, and gobs of buses. i did not detect jealousies between the modes of transportation, which i thought really aided the traveler. the buses took me to the streetcars, the streetcars took me to the ferry building, the ferry took me to sausalito, the bus took me to the redwood forest. the point is, there was cooperation between the different conveyances and they were all used by EVERYONE (except for the cable cars, which are just too jammed with tourists for the locals to rely on).

yes, i want streetcars. they offer better service, and i think are more of an incentive to bigger development. my point is, buses CAN be made to work, and people CAN be convinced to use them. they offer a good way to spread the reach of our system to various enclaves. however, our sprawl is going to pose a real challenge to offering frequent, reliable service. without that, use will be low.

the old interurban and local system would be great, if only it were already built. but that’s a HUGE if.

By: K W

K W — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 17:46:13 +0000

Okc needs to build a bigger amusement park for our children because frontier city and all these small water parks are WACK! Every summer is the same people leave and go to Texas but its like nobody cares why not build a bigger amusement park and keep the money here to help our economy, I guarantee you that if okc proposed to build a big amusement park in maps 3, it would get all the votes it needed and the people in okc would love to have that instead of a light rail system but nobody wants to talk about that! Every big league city has BIG WATER AND AND AMUSEMENT PARK! White water and frontier city is prehistoric compared to six flags and schlitter bahn in texas! Wake up OKC & talk about something the city can really use because our kids need something for them to and id rather spend my money in okc than texas anyday but not to go to the same old wack parks we have now! U can bet whoever decides to build a nice water and amusement park will reap the benefits for a long long long time AMEN! OKC NEEDS TO BUILD NOW BKUS OUR CITY LOOKS WACK ON TNT!

By: Nick Roberts

Nick Roberts — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 18:00:25 +0000

Bike share is not a transit system. Lol

By: Matt C.

Matt C. — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 12:45:40 +0000

I agree 100% with Nick’s assessment on streetcars, and their abilities to pull in commuters not satisfied with other public transit options. Yes, understanding the break-even equilibrium is important. However, I believe the focus on conversation on streetcars needs to be extended to other significant impacting elements.
As David pointed out, the capital costs associated with buses is far cheaper. I have to ask however, even with a streamlined system, will the bus system alone ever truly spur a significant shift amongst commuters in their transportation decisions? I don’t believe so. In my opinion, I believe creating an effective tram system in our central corridor would serve as a catalyst amongst commuters to seriously consider the overwhelming benefits associated with wide-spred mass transit. Having first-hand experienced the effects of effective tram systems in peer cities both in the US and abroad, I think once people get a feel for the conveniences associated with streetcars, they will be very vocal in efforts for extensions in the future. From personal experience, I favored them because they were generally more reliable, and often stops included screens showing precisely when the next tram would show.
I would also point out that the use of streetcars can also greatly effect many of the issues that linger in out downtown. An effective streetcar system can dissipate many of the parking issues we now face. There also data supporting economic stimulation in areas adjacent to streetcar service. Most of all with a streetcar system, I believe it will get more people out and about downtown. Our downtown is noticeably baron, and lack of life at times. I think by supporting public transit options that effectively get commuters out of the confines of their own cars, it can go along ways in creating a community atmosphere that will generate enthusiasm to explore our streets. WE HAVE SOME OF THE NICEST RESIDENTS ON EARTH, WHY DO WE CHOOSE TO HIDE THEM?

By: MikeN

MikeN — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 11:44:46 +0000

The inner city/core would benefit greatly from a dedicated transit system. Now with the sprawl in place it is a worthless pipe dream to think that extending that system out to the fringes of the city is a viable program. IT IS NOT. Folks from Edmond are not going to give up their cars en masse if we had a larger transit system that went there.

Neither will Yukon, Norman etc. It is time that the transit proponents get the reality that it only works for the core and not the suburbs. The DART system in Dallas removed SO FEW vehicles from the road that the reduction is not even noticed. David Ball even in SF you cannot get everywhere on public transit. There are many neighborhoods that are not connected to the system. Neither in Tacoma. That is what many folks forget it is only a partial not the complete solution.

By: david ball

david ball — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 23:09:49 +0000

the advantage of the bus is twofold: one, it obviously costs much, much less to implement. two, if you find that you have indeed made a blunder in your planning, it is much easier to fix.

reality check: no one in okc trusts ANYONE to properly run a bus system. we may not have a crystal ball, but we can see what’s been done in the past. it’s not a pretty picture.

that said, i think the planning aspects are the easiest problem to overcome. it’s the implementation that is a killer.

By: brandon S

brandon S — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 20:29:52 +0000

I’m from OKC but i currently live in Dallas. The DART system is a great program with poor planning. As of now there are 4 lines that run north and south. None that connect each line goinf east-west throughtout the city. This means you would either have to rely on a bus to take you east or west or cab (both are also terribly hard to access.) none of these systems work together. I fear in OKC the same issues will occur. Poor Planning. Downtown is the easy part, but what happens next? Tinker? Norman? Edmond or the Airport. Even still the density in OKC is going to require a better bus system. Chicago’s public transportation system would be nothing without how often and realiable thier bus system is. Spend the money on buses and satellite stations. Those too will attract development if done correctly.