By Mike Smith (originally published June 2015)
Well, Sunrail celebrated its one-year anniversary last month! With that anniversary was the subsequent release of how it fared in its first year. The nay-sayers rejoiced when it was announced that the fledgling rail system only recouped 20% of its costs. They were delighted to be able to dust off the word “boondoggle” and gloat at the perceived failure of such a silly project.
We feel that people who share that sentiment are short-sighted and/or don’t have a need for better public transportation as many in the area do. This first leg of this system is exactly that, the first leg. A region that has thumbed its nose at any notion toward planning for the future, simply does not have the capability to just drop in an entire mass transit system to instantly appeal to each and every one of us.
Keep in mind that the I4 improvements underway are going to take 6 years and an estimated 2.3 Billion (and they ALWAYS go over budget) before the new version is completed. And do you know what’s going to happen right after they cut the ribbon? Our interstate will be full of cars again . . . . and I guarantee you that I4 won’t come close to recouping 20% of their costs for this makeover, not even with the new toll lanes ( which by the way is a kick in the nuts that we are paying for a road, and then we have the option to pay again to ride on the cool part of it?).
Sure, it’s easy to argue that the train doesn’t take you exactly where YOU want to go. Nay-sayers are quick to list the destinations that this first leg DOES NOT go to and label it a failure because of that. The most world renowned mass transit systems all started out with a first leg. Then a second leg. A third. Etc. They struggled as well despite having several advantages that this region does not have. First was that they were being built before the automobile became a household item. Because of that, and secondly, they had population density. A lot of people in one place that all most likely needed to get to similar other places. New York, Chicago, and Boston are all examples of this.
Cities like Atlanta and Washington D.C., saw the writing on the wall in 80’s and started work on their first legs of a transit system. These entries into the fixed-rail mass-transit world were widely mocked and ridiculed by all. Now, 30 years later, Washington’s system is highly regarded as one of the best in the country. Atlanta’s much maligned system is now complete enough to actually give many people a very viable alternative to their traffic nightmares.
And then there is Los Angeles. . . . a city who thought the car was king. They actually had the beginnings of a subway system earlier in the 20th century but the automobile industry used their muscle to squash the fledgling system before it could really get going. Now, ask any person who has lived in L.A. how long it takes to get anywhere, anyplace, any time of day by car and the answer is almost always “about an hour”. . They have the most elaborate highway system in the country and it fails them every single day.
Los Angeles is now in the middle of building a new rail system that they begrudgingly started in 1990. They are spending BILLIONS on a mass transit system because they are at a point of not having any other options. They cannot expand any more highways, they cannot build any new highways, the automobile is choking their city. So they started with one line in 1990, and are now up to six lines in service. Many residents in Los Angeles who wanted an alternative to driving, now have one.
We do agree that Sunrail is far from perfect. Just look at our stop here in Sanford . . . so close but yet so far away still to be effective for the masses. Which brings us to our question of the month! What should the City of Sanford be doing to make our Sunrail more beneficial to visitors and residents of this city? We here at The Current have a few suggestions!
- Zip lines! They could be the solution to many problems in the future! Imagine the visitor traffic we would get if every rider received a complimentary zip-line into town with their Sunrail fare? People would visit our town just for that! Then they would be deposited right into the middle of our little burg and spend some time hanging out before their zip-line back to the station. The Wells Fargo building would be ideal as a receiving /launching station?
- The Worlds largest sliding board! Same principle as the zip-lines but just not as sexy. Although it would give us quite the landmark for all of those cars stuck on I4 to gander at too.
- Or, how about a trolley? Everyone loves trolleys! Trolleys are relatively inexpensive. They are flexible and can be used for other events in and around town. The majority of their costs can be covered by selling ad space on the exterior. They do not require special lanes, stations, or any other additional infrastructure build-out. They can be up-and-running tomorrow.
And, speaking of one year anniversary . . . for one year now hundreds and hundreds of people have taken Sunrail to Sanford, only to encounter confusion and inconvenience on how to get to and from our Downtown. Those are hundreds and hundreds of people that will not do it again. We need to do something sooner than later about this as more and more people work hard to draw new people here.
As for Sunrail as a whole? Look at it this way, this first foray into mass transit in our region isn’t really for you. It’s for your children and their children. Perhaps if past city and state leaders had a little more vision and had begun this a couple of decades ago? Well then maybe the layout of the system would be more useful to you by now. The biggest positive that no one will acknowledge is that we should all be glad we started it now instead of waiting another 20 years. . .