Mass Transit

[wrobert]

agreed SJ, this is a county issue, and needs to be addressed now. with less parking and less beach available every day, the county needs to institute a 30a shuttle service. it's that simple.

Once the TDC finishes installing the balance of the blue signs, maybe they can turn their efforts toward a shuttle service. That is certainly something the TDC tax ought to be able to subsidize.

 

[John R]

Once the TDC finishes installing the balance of the blue signs, maybe they can turn their efforts toward a shuttle service. That is certainly something the TDC tax ought to be able to subsidize.

wait, you heard it here first. the blue signs are the bus stops. ;-)

 

[NotDeadYet]

It might have been the summer of 2000, or 2001
Anyway, a trolley service was tried on 30A and it did not catch on. There were some problems with the schedules and the route, but I have forgotten the details. I think part of the problem was you could not just get on and off where you wanted to, like the closest beach access for your place might not have been on the list of stops. It was not financially profitable, but mass transit rarely is.
The problem with just running it up and down 30A is, well, who would use it? Maybe tourists, if they knew about it and got used to it, but they come and go so quickly. Maybe a few locals for shopping? But not folks needing transportation to work, because it didn't connect with anything, like a non-existent way to get to Freeport for instance.
For people just needing transportation to the beach, it would have to be more flexible in where it would pick people up and where it would stop. More like an informal shuttle you could just wave down maybe?

 

[Smiling JOe]

in 2000 and 2001, there weren't enough people here to warrant a trolley system, and people won't carry cash for the trolley. It would have to be paid for by gov't. Predetermined routes and stops are easy enough to handle. Bike racks would be needed to, so that people could ride from Pt Washington or Town of Santa Rosa, etc, and ride to 30A, then catch the trolley to Alys Beach for trivia night.

 

[hnooe]

agreed SJ, this is a county issue, and needs to be addressed now. with less parking and less beach available every day, the county needs to institute a 30a shuttle service. it's that simple.

Yes, the 30A Trolley should have route markers at the various Beaches of S W with stops stop at certain walkovers/retail location--- would that not help out with both traffic congestion and help the struggling retailers? Plus I think that kind of mass transit is fitting over a large GMC bus--and it should use bio fuels--that would be fitting for 30A.

My only fear is what the Trolley stop location signs would look like on 30A!!!

 

[Kurt]

Right SJ - still not enough people to make it work, especially in the off season, it would have to be seasonal and subsidized. The folks who visit here all want their vehicles nearby. But if there are traffic jams and no parking then it will need to be done. The proposed trolley was to be partially supported by advertising. you can still see a couple of benches with signs on them here and there. Iit was way ahead of its time and was doomed from the start.

On a related note, their may be an opportunity for an in-season "tour trolley" that went from one end of Scenic 30A to the other with designated stops and narration/entertainment.

 

[scooterbug44]

Based on my experiences with public transportation, I think a 30-A/Sowal system would be hard to make work just because of how spread out things are/the hot weather.

I absolutely LOVE public transportation ........... until I need groceries, have to wait in the heat, or walk along a road w/o a sidewalk to continue to my destination.

A seasonal shuttle from tourist hubs would be a more realistic/funn way to move people around, but I don't know if most people would utilize them beyond drunk taxis, bored teenagers, and special events.

If there was a 30-A shuttle I'd definitely use it to go from Seagrove to events in Rosemary, Grayton, Alys Beach, Redfish Village, Blue Mountain, Gulf Place, Watercolor, Sandestin etc. but I am not the typical user/driver, as I drive less than 10K a year and prefer to ride/bike rather than drive at any opportunity.

 

[mf]

I haven't been back in a while, but when I saw this thread I had to comment! Being a New Yorker, I'm not really a driver and always prefered to get around by foot or public transport.

I've been putting a "98 Tram" into the subconciousness of my friends here for along time. Everytime we plan to go out, I say, "Oh, let's take the tram!".

I actually spoke with some people at the TDC & Great Northwest Development group about it, but they looked at me like I had three heads and said public transport wasn't an option here.

Here's the vision: a tram that runs from Ft. Walton to Panama City on 98, will eliminate heavy summer traffic and be more environmentally sound and help prevent drunk driving, traffic lights at every intersection will ensure fewer accidents , free (and cheap) tram cars to restore are available through non-profits, will be a great tourist attraction

Thoughts?

 

[wrobert]

Here's the vision: a tram that runs from Ft. Walton to Panama City on 98, will eliminate heavy summer traffic and be more environmentally sound and help prevent drunk driving, traffic lights at every intersection will ensure fewer accidents , free (and cheap) tram cars to restore are available through non-profits, will be a great tourist attraction

Thoughts?

Traffic lights at every intersection will not work. Traffic lights cause the available trip counts to plummet. This forces a substantial increase in proportional fair share or development to stop. I know that would make a lot of people happy, but since it is not going to happen, you need to focus on a worthwhile solution. To get around the proportional fair share you will then start seeing an influx of side roades being upgraded, interconnected driveways, things of that nature. No one will use them, but they will be used to allow even more traffic on the main road and with all the lights congestion will get even worse.

I had an engineer tell me one day as we were stuck in traffic, that people pay him to show scientific proof that the traffic actually did not exist. This then allowed them to put in more businesses further exacerbating the problem. I think he plans on moving after it gets where you can not drive from Destin to Silver Sands.

 

[Smiling JOe]

Here's the vision: a tram that runs from Ft. Walton to Panama City on 98, will eliminate heavy summer traffic and be more environmentally sound and help prevent drunk driving, traffic lights at every intersection will ensure fewer accidents , free (and cheap) tram cars to restore are available through non-profits, will be a great tourist attraction

Thoughts?

I know of no one in the Santa Rosa Beach area who wants a tram to get us to Ft Walton or PC, nor do I think that people in SoWal want day trippers tramming over to SoWal from Ft Walton and PC on a daily basis. To do such a run, and make it work where people would use it, I think you would need to have at least 10-15 buses operating at any given time. Walton County Commissioners certainly don't want tax money going to Bay or Okaloosa Counties when they could keep the tax revenues here. Even running an effective tram in SoWal only, I think at least 6 buses would have to be running most of the day.