Background Transportation services are a must when it comes to major cities. It helps the crowds of immense density to move together and more effectively to get everybody where they need to be. A big improvement was made when linked streetcars were introduced. It seems as if a machine that is run off electricity and can get through a mile in a little more than a minute was established not to long ago, but the streetcar has actually been around since the late 1890’s. They have been around since and are still one of the most effective ways of getting large amount of people anywhere in the city. That is only a few of the benefits it contains. One of the most prestigious and most known streetcar networks is that of the city of San Francisco, in California. The streetcars have added to the cities identity and when San Francisco is mentioned people tend to automatically think streetcars/cable cars. San Francisco’s streetcar network can carry more than 13,000 passengers per hour during rush hour and 173,000 passengers on the weekdays. Ed Reiskin, the SFMTA Director of Transportation adds on to the statement about, the amount of people who ride the streetcars, by saying, “This goes to show that while people come from all over the world to ride these vehicles, there are thousands of San Franciscans who rely on this line for their daily commute.” Showing that maybe without this streetcar network, the city would not flow so effectively. San Francisco has embraced the popularity that they have with the streetcars and it still has been and still provides beneficial dividends for the city and the people. A city that is in the works of rebuilding a streetcar network is Washington D.C. As a city that is growing in population each year, this network system of transportation would allow the city traffic flow of people to improve. Washington D.C used to have a network, but they are rebuilding and improving the system to be back in business. They are deciding to bring them back into service because of the lack of transportation in between neighborhoods without getting stuck or swamped by the metro system. As D.C director of Transportation declared, “Today, even with our great Metro system – which was primarily designed to move people in and out of the city – there is still a need for more, high quality transit service that links neighborhoods together and helps residents circulate around the District.” Which leads to a similar problem that the city of San Antonio has. Being a big city with many tourist attractions San Antonio should implement a streetcar network to help the flow of people move more effectively. This would not only attract more tourists to the city but it will help increase the economic development of the city. It will help with the economic side because adding a streetcar network would and does add land value and it increases by a significant amount, not only that but it will also increase local property tax revenues. Since this network will help people to get around the city in a more uncongested way, it increases the amount of the places visited by tourists and would increase the city’s economy as a whole. San Antonio, like Washington D.C, is growing in population each year. With these predictions of more populated urban areas why not imbed a system of transportation that has a proven potential to be more efficient than the metro? San Antonio has the capacity and the numbers in population to show that it should have a streetcar network for the betterment of the city flow.

Evaluation & Outcome

Proposing this complex plan of having a streetcar transportation network is one of the first obstacles that come across when introducing this idea to head officials or stakeholders/investors and apparently getting voters to vote on it was a problem as well. Another possible reason for why this proposal didn’t pass was due to the head official in charge, Henry Muñoz. Much controversy was surrounded around him when he had bought a building by where the streetcar network was going to run through. Thus creating a massive doubt for the public helping to vote for this project. If under the wrong leadership, could this really be a good idea of spending millions of dollars for the city? Another obstacle that interfered with the streetcar project was determining the railways and what places it would connect. When a new railway plan was proposed there seemed to always be a problem on where it should be. While some business wanted it connected to mostly downtown, others wanted to bring back a road that they think should be passed more often. While all of these issues could possibly be fixed under good leadership, another main issue was money. There wasn’t enough money to extend the railways where they had proposed in countless proposals. While the streetcar system would attempt to bring better flow to congestion in downtown it would cause a problem for suburbs and their surrounding areas. This would create more congestion for them thus having to spend more money to make improvements to highways that have already been improved. Citizens of San Antonio tend to not see a problem with spending money on highways because highways will always be in use and they know how they should work. While on the other hand, there was a possibility that this streetcar project might not help San Antonio’s issues and just spend on something that was doubtful in the first place. It makes sense that the public would think of that because making improvements on highways is an easier idea to get around rather than something that has the citizens concerned. The construction of the streetcar network would also have to slow business down for a while as construction went about. Roads would be closed due to the streetcar network being built, also having an impact on the business owners choice and then persuading them into perhaps this system of transportation is not necessary. Then came the extra push made by suburbs leading to a petition for the streetcar project to go underway. This petition would force the vote so then the city leaders could make any decisions based on transportation and transit without public approval. Also if signed this would lead to budget cuts for uniformed employers such as firemen and that would not be taken well by either the public or the firemen themselves. These are all factors as to why the San Antonio Streetcar project was let down. It was all controversy driven and led to many officials making decisions that the public did not like, therefore not voting for those decisions and the biggest one of all, money. With insufficient funds, nothing is possible. But all of this still leads with the idea of, what if a streetcar network is worth all the money it takes to make it and how is it more beneficial than the usual metro buses that San Antonio is so accustomed to? Streetcars do have advantages to them rather than your usual metro. First off, they can carry almost double the capacity as a bus can. In Portland, for example, they implemented a streetcar network where the bus routes used to be and they have a capacity of 92 riders, which is almost double of the 52 that a bus’ capacity can hold. Another advantage is that it costs less to ride the streetcar than riding the bus. This intrigues more people with only the price. Another aspect that is intriguing is the streetcar itself. The way its shaped, the futuristic look it gives, the sleeker finish attracts more people to ride on it, therefore providing more revenue than your usual boring metro buses. The cost of maintenance for streetcars is also lower than buses, due to them being a newer more improved way of transportation. Again, this is all while they have the capacity of carrying up to almost half of the buses maximum capacity. In contrast, where there is always a good side, there is also a bad side. A disadvantage to creating a streetcar network is the start up cost. Due to the new technology that it carries and needs, it will be much more costly than starting up a metro which is mostly just purchasing buses. Also, streetcars, if expanded into a larger size, it will need to contain command centers and stations. Making more costs to make. While San Antonio has pulled the plug on the Streetcar Project, it should not just leave it behind. Maybe the streetcar project is something the city really does need but then again maybe it doesn’t. Which is why more research could be done to better the plan proposal for the Streetcar Project. References http://www.therivardreport.com/san-antonios-streetcar-project-ran-rails/ http://www.politifact.com/oregon/statements/2012/apr/03/charlie-hales/do-streetcars-really-beat-out-buses-capacity-rider/
http://web1.ctaa.org/webmodules/webarticles/articlefiles/RAIL_34.pdf