It is crucial that this message be disseminated and understood by all Valley Metro bus and METRO light rail passengers.
1) Purchasing fares at the farebox or “on-board” the bus will cost more tomorrow (Wed, July 1). The local bus/METRO light rail/LINK All-day bus fare increases from $2.50 to $3.50. Purchasing this same All-day fare at the BUS farebox will cost $5.25.
2) Purchasing fares in advance will save riders money.
3) You can purchase a fare in advance at: METRO light rail station fare vending machines, online at valleymetro.org, transit centers, some public libraries, Safeway grocery stores, and Fry’s Foods.
4) Why does the All-day pass for local, express and reduced fares now vary? Because purchasing fares at the farebox or “on-board” the bus slows down the boarding process for everyone and makes it more difficult for the bus to stay on schedule. 90% of our All-day passes are purchased on the bus—but now we have doubled our locations to purchase fares making it more convenient to save money.
Since I don’t have a car (or a license for that matter, but by personal choice), I’m limited to public transport, walking, biking, friends, and the parents. Which is fine. But a Segway, I feel, would complement this repertory of mobility extensively.
So yesterday, I sent out the following tweet on Twitter (as a complete aside, if you’re on Twitter, follow me: I’m @edwardjensen):
Does anyone know if Metro will allow Segways on its trains? If I get one, it better be able to go on the Metro… #raillife#phx
And I get the following tweet back in response from @PhoenixMetroBus, the Twitter account for Valley Metro (spelling, punctuation, etc. retained from the original):
@edwardjensen If u push it to the platform and onto the train, yes, Segways are allowed on the train. #raillife#phx
I should also thank @michichan for her replytweets offering a clarification (again, spelling, punctuation, etc. retained):
@edwardjensen you can take a segway on board. you can’t ride it on platforms or trains unless it’s a mobility aid and it is marked as such … the only major restriction is on gas powered devices (including gas powered motorized bicycles) #raillife
To do list: i. figure out where to park the Segway on the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus, and ii. raise capital to purchase a Segway. Then have lots of fun…
[author's note: With a slight change to the format this time around, I'm continuing my series on ASU Downtown Phoenix campus adventures, or trips to little-known places in and around the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus. New editions will be posted on Mondays under the 'Downtown Phoenix campus adventures' tag, so be sure to check back!]
Readers of my blog will notice that I haven’t posted in a week. This is because I was on a family vacation to Colorado. I enjoyed my time there but I’m rather happy to be back in Phoenix.
I bring this up because although I didn’t have time to prepare a new edition of ASU Downtown Phoenix campus adventures, friend and colleague Amy Freberg read my mind and gave a video overview of the Lincoln Family YMCA from my favorite spot on the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus, the roof deck of University Center.
“Governance is focused on the protection and enhancement of the public realm. Included are both tangible and intangible values: streets and sidewalks, water resources and wildlife, markets and settlements, peace and prosperity. Sharing a common resource, we have learned from studies of collective action, is often problematic. The problems of sharing – from the scale of a household to the scale of the planet – constitute the agenda of governance.” [Ronald J. Oakerson, 'The Study of Metropolitan Governance,' in 'Metropolitan Governance: Conflict, Competition, and Cooperation', R.C. Feiock, editor]
[author's note: I'm continuing a new multiweek blog series on ASU Downtown Phoenix campus adventures, or little trips to places that aren't as well known here on the Downtown Phoenix campus. Last week, we featured the Galleria at the Mercado. But since the campus and Downtown Phoenix merge together - as in there are no set boundaries for the campus - this will naturally expand to Downtown Phoenix. So, for all of these posts, check out the "Downtown Phoenix campus adventures" tag.]
If you’re in the ASU College of Public Programs, as most students on the Downtown Phoenix campus are, then chances are that you’ll never have a reason to explore the home for the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. This would be sad, because it is a very cool building. Granted, you might have a class in the first floor, but the focal point for the building is the second floor, home to the First Amendment Forum. During ASU sporting events, the second floor’s 16-foot by 9-foot television becomes a home for Downtown Phoenix campus students to enjoy events that take place on the Tempe campus.
Something that you might not notice in the building, however, is the Clifford Gallery. If one were to look at the giant television screen, the gallery is off to the right. The gallery is home to many interesting artifacts of journalism history – including cameras, typewriters, and a mixing console – and how journalists covered some of history’s greatest events. There’s even a newspaper vending machine with the final edition of the Phoenix Gazette (longtime Phoenicians will remember this!).
If you go…
The Clifford Gallery is located on the second floor of the Cronkite School building, 555 N. Central Avenue. It is the building directly north of University Center. Once in the building, take the stairs or elevator to the second floor. You’ll see the First Amendment Forum. Behind the giant television screen is the Clifford Gallery.
So earlier in time (16-21 March 2009) I did this thing called JS Bach Week, wherein I highlighted some of the best works by Johann Sebastian Bach in the week leading up to his 324th birthday.
My favorite JS Bach organ work -- and quite possibly my favorite organ work ever -- is his Fugue in E-flat Major, colloquially known as the “St Anne” fugue after the English hymn tune (you probably know it as “O God, our help in ages past”). My favorite recording of this is Masaaki Suzuki‘s (you may know him as the director for the Bach Collegium Japan) as part of the Clavier-Übung III, but I could never find a decent edition on YouTube.
Say no more. Earlier today, I did, and here is what I found:
It has been announced that ASU’s Parking and Transit Services will begin charging students for the U-Pass. For the past four years, it has been a free program, but with the addition of the light rail and also with the new fare structure for Valley Metro, they couldn’t justify keeping it as a free program. From last year (July 2008), University faculty and staff have had to pay for their U-Passes, and so it was inevitable that students would have to pay at some point.
But in this time of change, I’ve been doing a little bit of thinking on the new pricing scheme. To summarize, the card will now cost $40 for a semester (August-December or January-May) or $80 for the entire year (August-May). If you’re taking a summer class and require a pass earlier, then you can do that (still paying $40 or $80, depending on what you want).
From 1 July 2009, an all-day local pass (local bus + light rail) is $3.50 if purchased at a fare vending machine. To justify spending $40 on a semester pass, one would have to use the bus and/or light rail 12 days (i.e. purchase 12 one-day passes) before spending more than $40. If one were to buy the yearlong pass, that figure is 23 days (i.e. purchase 23 one-day passes).
Yes, this is a shock that this program now costs money, but if one is going to ride the light rail practically every day (as I do), this is an incredible bargain. It would be really worthwhile if, during the semester, Metro doesn’t use any one-car trains…
[source: Arizona State University Parking & Transit Services] Arizona State University Parking and Transit Services announced today it will begin charging students for the ASU U-Pass. Valid for unlimited rides on the METRO light rail and all Valley Metro bus routes, the Student U-Pass is $40 per semester or $80 for the academic year not including summer sessions. 2009-2010 U-Passes are valid July 1, 2009 – May 15, 2010. Students can pay $80 for the full academic year or $40 in the fall and spring semesters. Beginning summer 2010, summer session U-Passes, good for both summer sessions, will sell for an additional $25.
Valley Metro will implement a 40 percent fare increase effective July 1. Consequently, the cost of the U-Pass program to PTS also increases. In charging $40 per semester, PTS continues to subsidize the majority of the cost to students for the transit pass. While PTS pays for each U-Pass boarding, students who purchase U-Passes pay the fixed $40 and can then ride METRO light rail or Valley Metro buses an unlimited number of times throughout the semester.
“Parking and Transit Services is pleased that we have been able to provide this valuable service to our community members,” PTS director Theresa Fletcher says. “We are not aware of any other university comparable in size to ASU that has been able to financially sustain a free transit pass program for their students and employees for as long as we have. We are proud that the program’s goals of offering multi-modal transit options to the ASU community were met.”
To assist students who are required to attend classes at the Tempe and Downtown Phoenix campuses, PTS is enhancing its free West-Tempe intercampus shuttle service. Beginning fall 2009, all buses on the West-Tempe intercampus shuttle route will make a stop at the Downtown Phoenix campus.
The U-Pass program was introduced as a pilot program in the fall of 2005. In its inaugural year, the U-Pass program cost PTS $600,000. The program’s expenses increased in each of the following years, with PTS seeing a price tag of $1.3 million in 2007-08. For the first three years, PTS paid for the program in full, without any contributions from ASU students or employees. As a self-funded auxiliary department of ASU, PTS does not receive any tuition, student fees or state money to support its operational costs. In July 2008, PTS began charging employees $10 per pay period for a local U-Pass ($15 per pay period for an express transit pass). PTS projects the U-Pass program costs for 2008-09 to reach between $1.5 million – $1.8 million.
PTS and university officials carefully examined a number of options with respect to the administration of the U-Pass program for the upcoming school year. One option was to discontinue the U-Pass subsidy altogether. Additional proposals included implementing a mandatory student transit fee aimed at $50 per academic year, or requiring a lower mandatory student fee with the option to purchase the U-Pass at a significantly higher rate per semester. After thorough consideration, PTS is pleased to provide students the lowest cost alternative in adopting the $40 per semester charge for an ASU U-Pass.
Student U-Passes will be available for students enrolled in Summer Session II to purchase at any ASU campus permit sales office beginning June 29. Students who are not enrolled in classes until the fall 2009 semester may purchase their U-Pass beginning Aug. 10.
View Student Frequently Asked Questions, including including eligibility requirements for purchasing a Student U-Pass, payment options and refund policy.
[author's note: I'm starting a new multiweek blog series on ASU Downtown Phoenix campus adventures, or little trips to places that aren't as well known here on the Downtown Phoenix campus. But since the campus and Downtown Phoenix merge together - as in there are no set boundaries for the campus - this will naturally expand to Downtown Phoenix. So, for all of these posts, check out the "Downtown Phoenix campus adventures" tag.]
So something that I’m starting is a weekly series on places that aren’t so well-known here on the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus. The first stop is over to the Mercado, part of the original ASU Downtown Center (in our pre-campus days!), and their Galleria. If you’re wondering, the Mercado is opposite Van Buren Street from the Arizona Center, and is a quick 5-7 minute walk from University Center.
Students, faculty, staff, and visitors to the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus know about the art collection in University Center, the main building for the campus and home to the College of Public Programs. The building features art from nonprofits that are associated with the University as well as art by faculty emeriti.
Last week, I thought it appropriate to check out the Galleria in the Mercado and see how it compares with the artwork here in University Center. It is displayed there much like it is displayed at University Center: in the hallways. It’s nothing special, really. The exhibition this month is “Transparent Reflections” by local artist and ASU alumna Kathy Mitchell. Ms. Mitchell’s work was for sale, with prices ranging from $150 for a small canvas to over $1,000.
If you’re in the Mercado taking a class, then check out the Galleria. But if your travels don’t take you in that direction, then check out the art at University Center.
If you go…
The Galleria is located in Building C of the Mercado at the northeast corner of 5th St and Monroe St. From University Center, head south on Central Avenue to Monroe Street (two blocks) and then head east five blocks on Monroe. Once in Building C, take the elevators up to the 2nd floor. The artwork is in the common hallways of that floor.
I have a bit of a confession to make, but it should come of no surprise to those who know me: when I was younger (okay, 15-16), I watched KAET‘s (the PBS station here in Phoenix) Saturday night lineup. Since KAET has changed their Saturday night lineup regularly, the constant thing was The Red Green Show at 11.00pm. (In my opinion, the later episodes were much funnier than the early episodes.)
In between the show before Red Green and The Red Green Show (like 10.55pm), they’d play something from Animusic, and the Aqua Harp was by far my favorite. It was beautiful then, it’s still beautiful now, and so I have to share it with you.
