17th February 2010
So for some, the benefits of being car-free are enough to take public transportation. There’s that feeling one gets that one is helping the environment. There’s also that feeling that one is contributing to creating walkable cities. But if that isn’t enough incentive, there’s a contest with prizes to ASU sporting events, whose stadia are located close to the light rail line. More details:
This February, Valley Metro is asking residents to “Try 1 in 5” , share the ride via carpool, vanpool, bus or light rail at least one day a week. It reduces pollution, eases traffic congestion and saves money. They also want to help residents find a commuting partner using their new Share The Ride ride-matching system.
As a thank you to residents who are sharing the ride, Valley Metro will be giving out pairs of ASU Baseball and Basketball tickets to their fans and followers this month. They will announce via Twitter (@ValleyMetroRPTA) and Facebook (Valley Metro RPTA) ways that fans can win the tickets, and where they will be to give them out. Valley Metro staff will look for people with transit passes on hand or who are tweeting pictures of themselves on the bus.
I’ll be seeing you on either the light rail or the bus!
-Edward Jensen
18th December 2009
[source: METRO light rail/17 December 2009] Take a trip on light rail this Saturday for your chance to receive a “golden” transit pass, discover new and interesting retailers offering discounts to transit riders and be generally rewarded for your support of METRO in its first year. Here’s the inside scoop:
GOLDEN PASS PROMOTION
Ala Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, METRO will specially mark “golden” transit passes in station fare vending machines along the line. With more than 100 machines, METRO wants to help increase your odds. Visit any or all of the following stations and their on-platform fare vending machines for your pass purchase and chance to win.
- Montebello/19th Avenue
- Central Avenue/Camelback
- Roosevelt/Central Avenue
- Van Buren/Central Avenue and Van Buren/1st Avenue
- Mill Avenue/3rd Street
- Veterans Way/College Avenue
- Price-101 Freeway/Apache Boulevard
- Sycamore/Main Street
The 50 “golden” transit pass recipients will be entered into a raffle to receive one of 30 pairs of US Airways Center event tickets – either to a regular season Phoenix Suns home game or a family-friendly event, Disney on Ice or Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus – or one of two “Grand Golden VIP Experiences” that include:
- Four lower-level tickets to a Phoenix Suns home game
- Seats on the Suns bench during pre-game warm-ups
- Suns locker room tour
- Suns autographed memorabilia
For additional information, including rules, regulations and eligibility details, visit www.metrolightrail.org. Platinum Pass and U-Pass cardholders have also been integrated into this program.
RIDER APPRECIATION DISCOUNTS
To sweeten the anniversary celebration, more than 45 gracious retailers along the line will offer special discounts or deals to anyone who presents a valid transit pass on December 19. Riders will enjoy substantial savings such as two-for-one deals or as much as 30% off at these one-of-a-kind businesses.
The Suns are also offering a great deal extended through the holiday season. Present a valid transit pass at the US Airways Center ticket office between December 19 – 31 and receive $20 off lower level tickets or $10 off upper level tickets for any January 2010 game. Great seats are still available. Give a gift that will make your favorite Suns fan cheer! The offer may be redeemed at the US Airways Center ticket office during normal business hours while supplies last.
For a complete list of businesses and their discounts, visit www.metrolightrail.org.
About METRO
METRO is celebrating it first year of operation having served more than 10.3 million riders through November 2009. With the community’s support, METRO’s weekday ridership is 34 percent greater than projected, with Saturdays and Sundays fairing even better. METRO will continue to look for ways to refine its 20-mile operation and level of customer service, while also planning for 37 miles of future extensions. Go to the www.metrolightrail.org site and click on Metro Turns One. At Events to Enjoy there are lists of activities in the areas around Metro stations.
12th October 2009
Barrett Cross-Campus Progressive Dinner: “One Barrett, Many Places, Same Love of Great Times”
Friday, October 23rd, 5:45-10:00pm
Join our Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=155084705123
Barrett, The Honors College, is proud to announce a new Barrett signature event highlighting two of our four Barrett campuses and including students from all campuses. Beginning at the new Barrett Tempe campus complex at 5:45pm, students will mix and mingle then eat dinner in the Refectory. Following dinner, students travel to Downtown Phoenix via METRO light rail for dessert and exploration of the vibrant Downtown Phoenix campus. The event will conclude at 10:00pm and students will return to their home campus onboard the light rail or intercampus shuttle bus.
- Tempe campus students: the event begins at the Barrett complex at 5:45pm. When departing from the Downtown Phoenix campus, METRO light rail trains depart from the Van Buren/1st Avenue at 10:02pm and every 20 minutes thereafter until 2:22am.
- Downtown Phoenix campus students: plan to meet in the lobby of University Center at 4:40pm to travel together to the Tempe campus onboard the light rail.
- West campus students: plan to depart the West campus at 4:00pm on the intercampus shuttle and get off at the Downtown Phoenix campus to travel with the Barrett Downtown group onboard the light rail. At 10:00pm, you can board the intercampus shuttle back to the West campus.
- Polytechnic campus students: click here for shuttle information.
- Commuter students: Take advantage of the free park-and-ride lots along the light rail line! If you wish to park closer to the Downtown Phoenix campus (where the event concludes), there is a $5 surface lot situated a couple blocks north of the Downtown Phoenix campus at Central & Fillmore. We then encourage you to join the Downtown Phoenix and West campus group that is traveling to the Tempe campus together—please plan to arrive at University Center, 411 N. Central Ave., at 4:40pm.
Light Rail Pass information: If you do not have a U-Pass or other light rail pass, plan to buy your all-day pass ($3.50) in advance to save time. Passes can be purchased in advance at a fare vending machine at all of the light rail stations (click to learn more) and in-person at Central Station in Downtown Phoenix or the Tempe Transportation Center. On October 23, the day of the event, be sure to activate your pass at a fare vending machine. If you want more information about purchasing the U-Pass, good for unlimited travel on Valley Metro light rail and bus, click here.
Dinner information:
- Students with a Barrett Tempe Meal Plan can use a meal swipe
- Students with a non-Tempe Meal Plan can use a swipe plus $4 in M&G
- Students without a meal plan can pay cash ($12.50)
- A limited number of free and subsidized meals for commuter and non-Tempe students will be available, so…
Click Here to Make Your Dinner Reservation! (All reservations must be made by October 16th!)
This event is co-sponsored and co-planned by the Barrett Leadership and Service Team (BLAST) and the Barrett Leadership and Service Team at the Downtown Phoenix campus (BLAST’D). If you are interested in helping out with this event, please talk to your campus’s BLAST representative. For Tempe, this is Sean Nonnenmacher (sean.nonnenmacher@asu.edu). For the Downtown Phoenix campus, it is Janessa Hilliard (janessa.hilliard@asu.edu). Polytechnic and West campus students, please contact Edward Jensen (echj@asu.edu).
6th October 2009
So every city, it seems, has a place where one can buy trinkets of the usual touristy traps there. New York City’s visitors are inundated with tchotchkes of the Empire State Building or snowglobes with the Manhattan skyline. London’s tourists find models of what most people call Big Ben (but what’s technically called the Clock Tower at the Palace of Westminster) or those fuzzy hats that the Buckingham Palace guards wear. Toronto visitors can buy models of the CN Tower, this hemisphere’s tallest free-standing structure.
Preface given. Back a couple of weeks in the Dean’s Office of the College of Public Programs, friend and colleague Lonni Summers were discussing this same thing. Where’s the METRO light rail gift shop? Where can I buy a bumper sticker that says, “My other car is METRO light rail”? Or what about a keychain with a model of the trains?
The Phoenix METRO’s success isn’t really hinged on how many people ride it during the week. A recent New York Times article posited that it was the weekend users that make our light rail a success. My point here is that Phoenicians do it differently.
Why just limit this to the light rail? Who wouldn’t want a little replica of Her Secret is Patience (the art installation hanging over the Civic Space park) sitting on their desk? (I do!) Yes, the Grand Canyon might be the most clichéd and tourist-exploited place here in Arizona, but what about for urbanistas?
The economy is bad. Cities need to be creative in generating new revenue. So why not start here? And I really want my light rail tchotchkes.
-Edward Jensen
2nd October 2009
The Barrett Progressive Dinner
“One Barrett, Many Places”
Barrett, The Honors College, is proud to announce a Barrett signature event highlighting two of our four Barrett campuses and including students from all campuses. The event will begin on students’ “home” campus, then progress to the Tempe Campus for fun and dinner beginning at 5:30pm in the new Barrett campus. After dinner, students progress Downtown via Metro Light Rail for dessert and exploration of the Downtown Phoenix campus. The event will conclude at 10pm and students will return to their home campus.
Date: Friday, October 23rd
Where: Barrett Tempe & Barrett Downtown
Time: 4-11pm (start time depends on home campus)
Downtown students will begin at 4:30 and end at 10pm (30 minutes of light rail travel)
Tempe students begin at 5:30pm and end at 10:30pm (30 minutes of light rail travel)
West students plan to take the intercampus shuttle. For shuttle information click here.
Polytechnic students plan to take the intercampus shuttle. For shuttle information click here .
Cost: Dinner, $12.50* (or free with meal plan)
Light Rail Pass, $3.50 round trip (or free with U-Pass)
Dessert, FREE
The Progressive Dinner Experience, PRICELESS!
*Students with a Barrett Tempe Meal Plan can use a swipe
Students with a non-Tempe Meal Plan can use a swipe plus $4 in M&G**
Students without a meal plan can pay cash**
**A limited number of free and subsidized meals will be available, so…
Click Here to Make Your Dinner Reservation!
All reservations must be made by October 16th
This event is a Barrett Leadership and Service Team Downtown (BLAST’D) and Barrett Leadership and Service Team (BLAST) co-sponsored event
10th July 2009
posted at 1.57 pm under themes Light Rail and tags poetry, Valley Metro
[editor's note: Amy Freberg, the guest author of this post, is the Student Ambassador for the School of Social Work here at the ASU College of Public Programs. Her blog is at http://aafreberg.blogspot.com/.]
Ode to the Noisy Train
Inspired by Edward Jensen
I wait on the platform
With the heat of the summer
Dripping down the back of my neck.
I stand waiting.
Down the street as far as one can see
A metro train grows in the distance,
Lights flashing as a warning.
I stand waiting.
As it rolls up to the stop
I collect my things,
There is a pause before the doors open.
I stand waiting.
On entering I look for a seat
In this one-car-train,
None are to be found.
I stand waiting.
The train jolts into movement,
I try to keep my balance.
A noise explodes from somewhere below,
The sound of a new train in need of oil,
And I stand, Waiting.
30th June 2009
posted at 9.00 am under themes Light Rail and tags Light Rail, Segway, Valley Metro
Ok, so something I’ve long been considering is getting a Segway. You may know them as those futuristic-looking vehicles that balance on two wheels and are controlled by how the driver leans. (If you’re curious, I’m looking at the i2 Commuter.)
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 reply tweets 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
Next, I have to figure out where I can park my hypothetical Segway on the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus…
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…
-Edward Jensen
17th June 2009
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…
Food for thought.
-Edward Jensen
15th June 2009
posted at 10.21 pm under themes ASU, Light Rail and tags PTS, Valley Metro
[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.
4th June 2009
Dear Metro Light Rail,
I am undoubtedly one of your biggest fans. Since you’ve been open for business, I think there have only been 15 days where I haven’t boarded one of your trains. So there’s just one question I must ask:
What’s with these one-car trains?
This week (through last night), I have been on a Metro train eight times, and all during peak travel times (morning, lunch, evening). Of those eight times, six trips have been on a one-car train. Of those six trips, the train has been packed, standing room only. When there is demand for people to ride the Metro, why cut capacity?
I understand that you’re trying to save some money, and given the current economic climate, it’s necessary. But in reality, how much does it cost to operate a one-car vs. two-car train? It would seem like the biggest cost – the operator’s salary – is the same whether they are driving a one-car train or a fifteen-car train. Is the electricity to power a second car that much? Or the maintenance costs? If you planned your rolling stock purchase right, you should have enough cars to take one or two out of service while maintaining enough cars to keep two-car trains along the entire route.
If we look at wasteful spending on the Metro, it would be having the driver open all doors when it’s hotter than Hades outside when the air conditioning is running full blast to keep the cars comfortable. Isn’t that what those yellow buttons on the doors are for: for people to open the train’s doors as they need while keeping the hot outside and the cool inside? I know that when you tested that out in the winter, few people figured out that that’s what the yellow buttons were for. So then, put a little sign on the outside of the trains to tell people to push the yellow buttons to open the doors.
When the infrastructure of the Metro was built for three-car trains (e.g. platform length), running one-car trains seems and looks silly. I hope that you reconsider this, because you’re just reinforcing the notion that “buses can do everything trains can do,” which you and I know is completely not true.
-Edward Jensen
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