iPhone App Review - SJ Transit Lite v 2.0

New update for VTA Transit app

Category: Navigation

Updated: Jan 17, 2012

Version: 2.2.1

Size: 3.2 MB

Language: English

See previous review for SJ Transit.

Tuesday the author of VTA Transit Lite posted a completely new version of an existing transit app on the iTunes store. This was most likely to coincide with VTA's normal January schedule of changes.  As I mentioned in the previous review the app was not much better than the traditional paper maps that it was intended to replace.

Map view showing bus stops

Even with my lack of support for this app it will never really be useful until there is some type of GPS or "Next Bus" type of functionality included with it. Given the spread out suburban nature of the Santa Clara Valley, many times it doesn't matter what time the bus should be there, but where is it now and when is expected to arrive at its destination. This is especially important in the valley due to the less frequent schedules compared with San Francisco's which see buses every 5 minutes on some routes. If you miss one bus another will be along shortly.

I checked out the new version on iTunes and the screenshots looked promising so I downloaded the app even after reading that it was prone to crash. After downloading the app the user is required to download the data portion of the program; a 10MB file containing the time schedules. This is a good idea since it frees users from having to download a new app for each VTA schedule change. The download took less than five minutes.

Route View showing
 both directions

After the download was complete I started the SJ Transit Lite back up and was elated at the many positive changes the author made to the app. A long awaited "favorite" star was there to make sorting through a long list of routes easier. All bus stops were listed alphabetically and on a google map (see screenshot above). This made it easy to "favorite" your daily bus stops. For example I could favorite the 64 southbound stop at Diridon station. By instantly pulling up that station I could see when the next bus is expected at its timeline along the remainder of the route. I could also show the route on the map with a pin point of each bus stop along the way.

The author has included both the major time points as well as estimations of arrival times on all bus stops. You also have the ability to see only the time points or all bus stops with time estimations.

However....

Initially many users were never able to open the program due to crashes. Soon after posting the new version the author posted a new fix. I downloaded the new version and starting using it; going through all the new features. But my excitement wouldn't last long. Yesterday morning it would crash a few times but by evening it would crash once the app was opened and I haven't been able to get it to work since. Its sad because this had the look and feel of really being a useful app, one that is sorely needed in this valley. So until this major flaw gets fixed I guess I just wait for a new VTA app to come along. Whenever that is.

SJ Transit Lite on iTunes

Bike Share in Paris - Presenting Velib

Bike Share is Coming to the Silicon Valley

Bike Share is due to arrive in our part of the world by late summer if all goes well. Over the next few months I will be highlighting bike share systems around the U.S. and the world. But first here is a video clip on the Parisian model called Velib. This systems has over 20,000 available bicycles to share.

This video was produced by Bikes Belong, an advocacy organization based on Washington D.C. which seeks to get more people on bikes. That Simple.

Activism and creativity among the generations

As many of my friends may know I am involved in a number of civic events, ventures, committees, and organizations. In general, those that deal along mainly traditional civic lines tend to skew higher in the age and maturity bracket. Those that tend to involve more creativity and less formal ties tend to attract a younger audience.

By traditional I am referring to neighborhood associations, business associations, and some advocacy organizations. By more creative, less formal organizations I am referring to social organizations with a civic flavor such as bike party and riding groups, pop up type groups such as food carts groups etc., and groups seeking to create something new in their city whether it by an art event, food crawl, or spontaneous music event.

 

Traditional - I remarked to a friend the other day that the neighborhood association in which he is affiliated with skews predominately to older, retired, empty nesters who have lived in their home for over 15 years. Missing in his civic group are parents, singles, or single parents under the age of 55 or 60 years.

 

Creative -  Likewise in other groups in which I belong, they involve mostly singles, single parents, a few with children, and if they own a home at all they may have only been living in it a short while. The funny thing is both of these organizations are effective in their own ways, but they might as well be on different planets as far as how they get the job done. So I'll start off by highlighting organization and social characteristics of each.

Characteristics of traditional groups consisting of older members.

1.  Not as constrained with time so informal and formal face to face meetings predominate.
2. Authority is more specialized and hierarchical.
3. Decisions happen slower, sometimes out of a perceived need to be right or 100% accurate.
4. Tasks are delegated with long lead times.
5. Research takes longer.
6. Meeting are more formalized, members roles specialized.
7. Media and Communications are less effective (posters, fliers, phonebooks)
8. Groups are less diverse. Generally easier to have face to face with someone like you.

 Younger groups tend to rely on some of the techno/social changes that have taken place over the last few years; therefore

1. Meetings are less formal
2. Participants are generally multitasking during meetings
3. Less hierarchy more collaboration. Far more use of online collaborative tools.
4. With more use of online social, office, and graphic arts tools participants produce media faster with more input from the group.
5. Communication is generally faster with the ability to choose between documents, emails, texts, collaborative tools, and smart phones.
6. Communication to members, constituents, or stakeholders also use a diverse set of communications tools, usually instantaneous. This also tends to get the word out to a wider more diverse audience.
7. Instead of only using libraries and government agencies, younger groups tend to do more research online.
8. Informal meetings and decisions can be handled online. Less need for more formal meetings.

  

One of the reasons the discussion amongst myself and members of more traditional groups started in the first place was not only the lack of age and other diversity in the participants but it has been getting harder and harder to attract more participants and get critical input from the community. Between careers, families, and just a tough job market many younger residents just don't have a lot of time to devote to civic affairs but that doesn't mean they still cannot participate.

 

A new way to advocate - Last year while attempting to advocate for a certain transportation policy decision with the county it dawned on me that we didn't have the numbers to get our message across. Traditional you get the phone tree ready and start dialing enough people to show up wearing your color of choice to show solidarity in the crowd. Some of those in your group will speak within their allotted two minutes of public comment.

In our case we didn't have a large group and we had to skip the colored T-Shirts but we were affective. We were able to make our presence felt on all fronts; a letter write campaign to the media, traditional snail mail and emails to elected officials, and phone calls to elected officials staff members.

One interested participant while working (coding) at home was able to view the Supervisory meeting from the comfort of his home while also looking after his child. He as able to contact supervisors staff through phone and email. In all with a greater email, phone, letter, and public comment input we were able to call it a success. In this case a physical presence was always needed.

Likewise your group can also be respectful of their precious time by using online surveys, calendars, email-blasts etc. One group I know just published their last paper newsletter. Formal board meetings can also be divided between the more mundane agenda items, and that portion of the meeting devoted to informative presentations and a social hour. Invite those with limited schedules to come for the speaker series or the social hour. That way those pressed for time will fit it easier to stay for just the "fun" part

Of course now days your are seeing more electronic media in the form of online petitions. Twitter has also been very effective. Last fall when General Motors ran ads in a UCLA student newspaper showing cyclists as "40 year old virgin" stereotypes, the cycling community responded quickly. In just over 24 hours GM had announced that they were pulling the ad.

  Don't rely on the same (static) web page that you have been using for the last ten years (yes this happens). Use your web page but also consider Twitter, Facebook, wikis, Google Docs or other types of social or cloud based computing. Figure that (at least here in the Silicon Valley) your readers may be seeing it on a mobile device (Apple iOS or Android). Again use surveys, accept civil comments, use forums, what ever helps to provide a two way type of feedback.

 

One neighborhood association president I know complained when a candidate city council had misrepresented their endorsement of the candidate (their bylaws forbid them to endorse any candidate for any race), I asked her if she had a web page on their site that publicly and specifically stated just what they endorse she said that they had nothing like that. With that page they could easily link it to Google +, Facebook, or Twitter posts to easily let the community know just where they stand.

Now if you have traditionally used one or two key members to get out the monthly newsletter now is the time to consider a more looser communications policy. Allow for additional members to collaborate and respond. Take advantage of the "Wisdom of the Crowds".

 

So if you belong to a civilly minded group that skews to the older more traditional way of doing things. Try to include younger, more time pressed individuals and families that would love to contribute but need some flexibility. Allow them to contribute in small doses in other ways and ask for their opinions outside of formal meetings. With greater numbers of committed members you'll achieve greater success in your community.

January 17, 2012 - Cycling Events in the Bay Area and Beyond

Upcoming Events in the Silicon Valley

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

San Jose Bike Party

Friday, January 20, 2012 8:00
This Month's Theme:
Circus.
Location: Campbell Community Center at Winchester and Campbell Aves.

Do you remember when you were a kid riding your bike and pretending you were a superhero flying through the skies? Well thats exactly what November's theme is supposed to remind you of. Dress up and make your own costume so you can be your own home made superhero.

Unless someone makes a superhero that can actually change the weather it's time to watch the skies again and be prepared. We are in the season where rain is a possibility but we could get lucky.

Santa Cruz Bike Party
Saturday, January 28, 2012
6:00 - 11:30 PM
In historic surfer slang, a "Hoedad" is a poseur who hangs out at beaches and other surfer hangouts, trying to evoke the image; yet never actually rides waves.

Legend has it this name (preserved in early 1960's beach b-movies) originated in the brussel sprouts fields jus...t north of town, where the surfers had to cross to access the secluded coves up there, sometimes dodging garden-tool-wielding old farmers. One dude made it across the field, only to chicken out of actual surf riding... his buddies taunted him,"You just one of them Hoe-Daddy-O's!"

This theme is easy... dress up like a fake surfer, a farmer, or anything in between.

---

Last Sunday of the Month Ride Willow Glen to Los Gatos

Saturday, January 29, 2012

2:30 - 7:00 PM

~20 mile medium pace ride. (No one will be drop from the ride).
Will stop at LeBoulanger in Los Gatos for late afternoon brunch.
THERE IS NO FOOTBALL THIS WEEKEND!

San Francisco Bike Party
Friday February 3, 2012
http://sfbikeparty.wordpress.com/

Bike Soiree
Saturday, February 4, 2012 5:00 - 10:00 PM
See Facebook page for more details
http://www.facebook.com/#!/events/299720246733660/

East Bay Bike Party
Friday, February 10, 2011 7:30 PM

http://eastbaybikeparty.wordpress.com/

Woodside > Pacific Ocean > Woodside

Saturday, February 4, 2012

11:00am until 4:00pm
Wanna see the ocean?
Wanna see the ocean after biking there?
Wanna see the ocean after biking there with cool people?
http://ridewithgps.com/routes/302607
It's actually less steep and shorter to do this route than to go from Los Gatos to Santa Cruz, but the climb up La Honda is steep.

---

Too see all rides on the map click the link just below the map. Thanks.

View Upcomming Bay Area Bike Events in a larger map

San Jose Downtown Parking

This little tidbit from the San Jose Downtown Association Newsletter...

Headlines from the Valley
10 years ago:
December 2001 - The City Council agreed downtown was short 4,625 parking spaces and approved a plan to build two new garages on the site of The Greyhound bus depot and just north of the DeAnza Hotel (now the Axis high-rise condo tower).

 

It's amazing how times change. The city has found it increasingly difficult to keep city garages at capacity or even full enough to help pay for the bonds that built them.

Innovating our way to congestion

Valley Fair 1958

Like the greeting "Aloha" which is heard constantly in the Hawaiin Islands to inflect several meanings, here in the Silicon Valley you hear the word "innovation" so many times you just want to call a hyperbolic time out.

In almost any San Jose city function or staff presentation, the word is often used in a sentence such as, "San Jose is an innovative city', as if some of the Valley's fairy dust somehow sprinkles everything done here even if it is not tech related. At a neighborhood meeting several months back, after hearing the word proudly proclaimed yet another time, I had to stand up list examples of real civic innovation, mentioning the work on Broadway in the Times Square area of New York, Portland's Greenways , along with San Francisco growing use of "parklets". These I mentioned are real urban innovations. I have yet to see anything that I could add to the list from this area.

Valley Fair & Santana Row 2007

In Monday's  (December 19, 2011) edition of the San Jose Mercury News the "I" word was used in a front page article in both the heading and the first paragraph no less ("New York throws down the innovation gauntlet") and in the first sentence in an opinion piece ("VTA's creative solution require Caltrans' help") written by Michael T. Burns, General Manager for VTA the Santa Clara countywide transportation agency. See also last Wednesday's post, "San Jose's coming of age?"

The first paragraph sets the stage

Focus and innovation. Here in Silicon Valley, these are words you usually hear from high-tech firms, but the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is taking these principles to heart. We are looking to employ focus and innovation in a new way to accelerate highway projects and get them done more cheaply. And we need Caltrans' help.

VTA is responsible for planning, designing and, in some cases, constructing highway improvements in Silicon Valley, as well as for building and operating the public transit system. On a daily basis, we move 700,000-plus commuters along our county's highways, not including the number of commuters coming in from neighboring counties. Because of this, VTA has a close and important working relationship with Caltrans. VTA has several high-priority highway projects awaiting funding, while at the same time, local, state and federal funding sources are diminishing. Not satisfied to accept the status quo, VTA is looking for creative solutions to address our county's highway needs. (emphasis in bold is my own)

The opinion piece goes on to describe how "simple interchange improvement in Santa Clara County competes for staff time with the building of the new Bay Bridge; the reconstruction of Doyle Drive, which is the gateway to San Francisco off the Golden Gate Bridge; and the $2 billion Devil's Slide project". But making administrative and approval processes more efficient to build more congestion is like handing two large spoons to the

In addition to the 700,000 commuters mentioned above, according to MTC, there was a 47% increase in the number of commuters to Santa Clara County from surrounding areas, with over 100,000 daily commuters coming from the east.

The simple interchange improvement is one of the most congested intersections in the Bay Area handling traffic coming directly into the county from Gilroy, Los Banos and Salinas from the south valley, Santa Cruz from the coast, Oakland and the East Bay from the North East and San Francisco and the Peninsula from the northern peninsula.

The expansion of two regional shopping areas (Valley Fair and Santana Row) have now "necessitated" the expansion of this interchange. And when the construction dust has settled Valley Fair is seeking to expand the center with two additional anchor stores along with small shops. Meanwhile downtown San Jose has a Ross discount store and San Jose's small number of traditional merchant districts such as Japantown and Willow Glen find it more difficult to compete.

By concentrating the massive single use regional shopping development near a equally massive freeway interchange we have a created an auto dominated, congested, polluted gateway to the city of San Jose. While the state, with the recent passage of SB 32 and SB 375 seeks to reduce the region's congestion and auto pollution (through a reduction in VMT or Vehicle Miles Travelled) and the city seeks to do the same as stated in the recently prepared 2040 General Plan

Most recently Sam Liccardo, the council representative for the downtown and airport area also used "the word" in a Sunday, Juanuary 8 Op/Ed piece ("Redevelopment is gone, but downtown can thrive") to describe the city's Economic develoment team. The essay went on to describe all of the great improvements being made to the downtown and airport areas. I would caution however that anything that increases parking in the downtown core is not "innovative". Innovative would be tyring to bring more residents, employees, and visitors downtown without increasing the demand for parking.

I applaud the desire to make the process more innovative and efficient, however we need to realize that our innovations haven't done much to decrease our freeway frustrations. With an economy that is struggling, most Silicon Valley freeways and expressway are at a standstill at rush hour and beyond. With shopping activity having been promoted in mall and big box configurations roadways around these developments are packed during the weekends and holidays.

We can do better. But instead of wearing a false badge of innovation on our sleeve, lets look to other cities and what they have done. Long Beach has promoted the bicycle as a way for businesses in each of their four traditional business district to attract customers, Minneapolis attributes its growth in bicycling and walking to an array of new street improvements such as more bike lanes and special bicycle-and-pedestrian boulevards, and Los Angles has expand their Metrolink rail system.


So for 2012 let's just focus on tackling the big projects, the useful projects because they are right. Let's save real innovation to the tech industry with its R&D labs and rapid obsolescence. So for 2012 lets all agree that the "I" word is now officially off limits.



Online Resources

I280/880 Stevens Creek Interchange
http://bikesiliconvalley.org/content/1747

I-280/I-880/Stevens Creek Boulevard Improvements Project Website

photos: Buena Vista Neighborhood Association


View Larger Map

Comments on VTA Chair Yeagers remarks - January 5, 2012

Silicon Valley's push to lead the Bay Area

On January 5, 2012 incoming Chair to the VTA Board of Directors Ken Yeager spoke about his goals for the new year (complete text of his remarks). His three main themes of his speech was:

1. The ambitious transportation goals the county has over the next decade.
2. The innovative response by VTA towards those goals (efficiencies, cost containment, etc),and
3. The lack of political effectiveness that the county has given its population and employment size.

Ambitious transportation goals over the next decade

The county of Santa Clara has an impressive list of transportation projects over the next ten years, involving rail, transit, freeways, roads, and expressways. As Mr. Yeager mentioned the 880-280-Stevens Creek Interchange, which is one of the most congested in the Bay Area, is due for a makeover beginning in September of this year. Work is currently in progress on the Tully Road 101 interchange. At last month's VTA Board meeting the new BART extension to the Silicon Valley was formally announced.

VTA is currently in the implementation stages on a Bus Rapid Transit system through the valley as well as a new upgraded Express Bus System beginning Monday, January 9, 2012.

VTA innovations, structural efficiencies, and cost containment strategies

As Chair Yeager mentioned in his opening remarks, VTA's political and administrative efficiencies are due to its consolidated structure. Transit operations and management, which includes VTA bus and light rail service, congestion management, as well as sales tax authority are all under one roof.

VTA is not only the "bus operator" but also the name given to the umbrella organization of these three components. The transit portion is an operational entity and actually does very little construction projects. (For more detail see VTA's own description of its structure)

The congestion management (CMA, or Congestion Management Agency) portion of VTA is the bulk of the VTA umbrella organization. It acts as the local funding arm of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), while also coordinating road, expressway, freeway, bicycle, and rail projects in the area. It also works with cities in local monitoring regional guidelines such as Greenhouse Gas Emissions goals, VMT reduction goals (Vehicle Miles Traveled), and Complete Streets Guidelines. Complete Streets guidelines help to ensure that new roadway improvements also take into account pedestrians, cyclists, transit users, the disabled, and the elderly.

Congestion management agencies were formed by California State legislation. These agencies are organized to receive, administer, and fund projects that are from funds outside the area such as Federal and State funds.

Local sales, fuel, and property taxes to fund transportation projects are generally referred to "Self Help" funds in that they are voted on by local residents with the intent to tax themselves. In California sales tax measures are administered by the state's Franchise Tax Board which collects the taxes and apportions these taxes back to the city, county, CMA, or transit authority. As part of the sales tax initiative "self help" taxes usually include a watchdog group or committee associated with the funds. In this instance the CAC, or Citizens Advisory Committee serves that function.

Santa Clara County's VTA is administered by the same board for all three functions under the VTA umbrella. The board whose makeup is determined by a formula to ensure adequate representation from the big city (San Jose), smaller cities, and county representation as well. As Yeager states "this is not necessarily true for all counties".

To contrast with Santa Clara County San Mateo County has different organizations with different leadership, meeting in different locations. The Transit Operator, SamTrans (9 members) meets once a month with its own board. The sales tax authority also known as the San Mateo County Transportation Authority (7 members) meets each month with a different board, and the Congestion Management Agency (City/County Association of Governments) meets in a different city with a completely different board. (23 members) representing all San Mateo cities as well as county government.

With a CMA of over 20 members from a geographically disperse (bayside and Pacific Oceanside cities) county such as San Mateo it becomes increasing difficult to manage from a political and administrative point of view. Added to this fact that Caltrain (Caltrain JPB or Joint Powers Board) also shares staff and office space with these county agencies and you can see how unwieldy it can be. Only one individual within all of San Mateo County sits on all three agency boards.

Cyclists Frustrations - Case in Point

One of the many frustrations shared by cyclists in San Mateo County is this fractured structure and its effect on getting adequate bicycle infrastructure built within the county. Funds coming from outside sources (from the MTC) are administered out of the county's CMA, or Cities and County Association of Governments(C/CAG), however the self-help or funds originated by local sales taxes are administered out of the San Mateo County Transportation Authority. Neither organization has a bicycle coordinator that would help administer these bifurcated funds. The two agencies are even housed in different San Mateo County cities.

VTA has created a extemely useful resource called Bicycle Technical Guidline (BTG). The BTG manual is a set of optimum standards and best practices for roadway and bikeway design. VTA was able to write, adopt, and revise this excellent resource due to adequate staffing at the countywide level. It is highly unlikely that this would happen in San Mateo County given its current transportation management structure.

Alameda County Tries a Different Approach

In an effort to streamline their agencies and make them more effective, just last year Alameda county combined their sales tax authority and congestion management agency into one organization. What used to be the Alameda County Congestion Management Agency (ACCMA) and the Alamaeda County Transportation Improvement Authority (ACTIA) is now the Alameda County Transportation Commission (ACTC).

Santa Clara County's push for greater regional representation

The Silicon Valley, which in the past was referred to as the Valley of Heart's Delight has found it hard to shake its rural and agricultural routes vis a vis its more urbane neighbors to the north (namely San Francisco). Commerce, banking, shipping, rail, and trade along with all of the other political, administrative, and organization functions traditional found a home in either San Francisco or Oakland.

Organizations such as the regents of the University of California, ABAG (Association of Bay Area Governments), BAAQMD (Bay Area Air Quality Management District), BART, MTC, are all located in either San Francisco or Oakland. Civic and urban policy groups such as the Commonwealth Club, and SPUR (San Francisco Planning and Urban Research) are also located in San Francisco along with major media outlets in print, radio & television (see map below).

Similar to the passionate scene in the first Godfather movie where the older brother "Fredo" tells his younger brother Michael Corleone that he should have been chosen to be the family Don, sometimes San Jose and the Silicon Valle feel the same way. With 25% of the Bay Area's population they feel that like Fredo Corleone in the "I'm Smart" scene from the movie Godfather II, they "were passed over" and its not what they "wanted".

Now as Chair Yeager states in his remark with over one-quarter of the regions population and jobs its time San Jose got the respect it deserves; not just sent out to take care of some Mickey Mouse nightclub somewhere.


Chair Yeager is maybe the first locally elected official to publicly state that we're "smart and want some respect". If you notice the map below I have placed markers showing the offices of regional transportation and planning agencies, media offices, and leading civic organizations. With a city of over 1 million residents downtown San Jose is not home to one of these organizations. Not even the local transportation planning and transit operator is located downtown (its actually 5.5 miles to the north). Same for any media organizations. This does a city of its size a disservice. With only one major corporate headquarters based downtown the area lacks the vitality that a downtown Oakland or San Francisco has to offer.

Conclusion

So although I applaud Supervisor Yeager's plea for more political representation, somehow I get the feeling that it will only mean more more of the same auto oriented and prioritized expansion. What this area does not need is more expressway expansion (along with an increase in speed and volume), more freeway interchange expansions, which severely impact struggling neighborhoods, and more auto oriented benefits to residents who choose to live at the south end of the valley and work in the north and on the peninsula. Let's hope that this year does bring greater representation but also great wisdom at how we look at our transportation options. Happy New Year.

San Francisco Bay Area Agencies, Organization, and Media Resources

View San Francisco Bay Area Agencies and Organizations in a larger map

Incoming VTA chair's remarks - Ken Yeager January 5, 2012

The following remarks were given by Santa Clara County Supervisor Ken Yeager the new Valley Transportation Authority Chair of the Board for 2012. These opening remarks were given at the begining of the VTA Board's first meeting of the new year.

Please refer to this link for comments to Board Chair Yager's remarks.

As a member of the Board of Directors of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) for the past 11 years, I am honored to serve as chair during what will prove to be a banner year.

In 2012 my goal is for VTA to do a better job of telling the story of how it has accomplished so much and why we need to change the Bay Area's transportation, political, and administrative landscape so that we can accomplish even more.

It is my belief that few Santa Clara County residents know the VTA story and even fewer people know it beyond our borders. In fact it wasn't until 2007 when I became a commissioner on the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and interacted with MTC commissioners and staff that I learned how little other commissioners knew about our transportation projects. I was always pleased to give them tours of our county so they saw first hand how innovative we are.

One reason why VTA can achieve so much is that is the only such agency in the Bay Area where transit, congestion management, and sales tax authority are all under one roof. This makes us extremely efficient. Most counties have a different governing board for each function, and those boards are often at odds with each other. Each of those also has its own administrative staff, which is duplicative and expensive. But here at VTA, it is one board and one staff, with everything coordinated.

VTA's solid planning has built trust with voters. The willingness of the residents of Santa Clara County to tax themselves has allowed VTA to undertake massive infrastructure improvements.

We are just a few months away from breaking ground on construction that will finally bring BART to San Jose. This will be the year's most exciting project. Nearly 5,500 jobs will be created during the construction of the line, track, systems and station elements of the Berryessa Extension. An additional 4,000 indirect jobs will be created to to activities related to this contract. Furthermore, 3,800 jobs will be created to support construction of the station campus areas, access roadways, parking structures and transit centers. All total, more than 14,000 jobs will be created. (See link below)

The main contract for this project was $77 million less than the engineer's estimate. Moreover, we anticipate a more condensed construction schedule than originally planned. This didn't all happen by chance. VTA staff was will to go beyond the conventional practice in awarding of contracts to make it easier for the contractor to work faster and cheaper.

Adding to the cost savings an the anticipated accelerated construction schedule was the Board's adoption of the first Project Labor Agreement for VTA. This agreement promises fair wages and a smoothly run project. Congratulations go to the Board and staff for making this happen.

Santa Clara County is what is known as a "self-help" county. Because we have our own sales tax dedicated to transportation, we have been able to address many of our county's transportation infrastructure needs on our own.

However, our forward thinking has worked against us when it comes to securing funding through MTC, the regional governing body that makes decision regarding transportation funding for the nine-county Bay Area.

Santa Clara County has one quarter of all the Bay Area's residents, and one quarter of all of its jobs, yet Santa Clara County doesn't even come close to receiving one quarter of the regional transportation dollars administered by MTC.

The problem is compounded by the fact that representation on MTC is not proportional to population. With one quarter of the Bay Area population, Santa Clara County has only one-eighth of the representation on MTC. That is why I will continue to work closely with (California) Assembly member Jim Beall and our two Santa Clara County commissioners, Dave Cortese and Sam Liccardo, to urge the State Legislature to pass AB57, which will add an extra seat on MTC for the City of San Jose.

Another example of VTA challenging the status quo is its proposal to create the CalTRANS Innovative District or "iDistrict" at VTA headquarters. This new model will streamline CalTRANS operations in Santa Clara County, resulting in the completion of more projects on time and on budget.

What better place to serve as an incubator for more efficient government and improved transportation technologies than the Silicon Valley. The success we have here can be replicated throughout the CalTRANS organization for the benefit of all Californians.

Another exciting project that demonstrates VTA's willingness to be cutting edge is Bus Rapid Transit, or BRT. By working with cities that have Santa Clara Street, The Alameda, and El Camino Real running through them, VTA will create a 17-mile transit route that will allow for buses to move more quickly, this increasing ridership, lowering costs, and raising farebox recovery.

In addition to transit, VTA will also be delivering highway improvements, including the opening of our first express lane in Santa Clara County. Additionally, two important freeway projects--the 880-280-Stevens Creek Interchange and the 101-Tully-Capitol-Yerba Buena corridor improvements--will go a long way toward easing congestion.

One of the many challenges facing us is Caltrain. As someone who has served on the Caltrain Board for 11 years, I know its problems are far from solved. Its budgetary problems almost shut it down last year. VTA stepped up to the plate and made sure it dept running. But fiscal problems remain that must be resolved.

Moreover, I believe it is essential that Caltrain become electrified. Although the fate of High Speed Rail remains unclear, I hope --at a minimum--we can use High Speed Rail money to electrify the tracks, buy new rolling stock, and construct grade-separations. WE may not all agree on High Speed Rail, but I hope we can speak with one voice in advocating for electrification.

I want to thank VTA staff or all the hard work they do. In my role on different transportation agencies throughout the region, I have seen firsthand how respected VTA staff is. They are well known for their diligence and competence. Additionally, they are a pleasure to work with.

From bus drivers, to mechanics, to planners, to schedulers, VTA employees are the ones who interact with our public and provide the best service possible. They truly are our greatest assets. Thank you for all that you do.

In closing, I ask my fellow Board members to help VTA get its fair share of regional transportation dollars and to promote the idea of the iDistrict. If we can succeed on these fronts, we can achieve even more to address the transportation needs of our County.

I know my fellow Board members are as excited as I am about the year ahead. I believe the challenges will require all of us to put in more time than in past years, bu the rewards will be worth it. All of us are in public service to make a difference an to improve the quality of life for our constituents. This is a year that the VTA can make significant progress towards that goal.

With that said, lets get to work.

See related post - Jobs or Job-Years - Mercury News asks the question.

Jobs or Job-Years - Mercury News asks the question.

Insfrastructure, Jobs, and Recessions

Given these tough times news of new, fully funded infrastructure projects are highly welcomed by cities, labor, and ancillary services, such as restaurants and construction suppliers. But in a recent Mercury News article and editorial the paper highlights the propensity of construction proponents to well, stretch the truth a little. The paper goes on to describe the difference between jobs and job years:

Job-years is an excellent tool to calculate the amount of work needed to complete a project. A job-year is one year of work for one person; a new construction job that lasts five years is five job-years. It is a more precise measure because an individual job may last for six months or a year or forever.

Recently this topic came up in recent job creation claims by the California High Speed Rail Association and the BART in promoting its East Bay extension into the Silicon Valley. Also Santa Clara County Supervisor and VTA chair Ken Yeager commented on local BART construction jobs in his New Year remarks. The paper goes on to tie the confusion to agency credibility:

In a weak economy like today's, construction jobs are a factor to consider for projects like stadiums and transit systems. But the main consideration has to be the long-term value to the community, once construction is finished. What's especially unfortunate about high-speed rail is that the real number of likely jobs, some 60,000, is substantial. Only because 1 million were touted is the rail authority's credibility further damaged.

It's a cautionary tale for others. VTA, take note.

State high-speed rail vows to show real job figures (Mercury News 12-22-2011)

Mercury News editorial: Jobs or job-years? Be sure to ask the question (1-7-2012)

Incoming VTA chair's remarks - Ken Yeager January 5, 2012

Caltrain to propose fare increases

Public Hearing

The Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board will hold a public hearing and take public comment on proposed adjustments to its Codified Tariff effective July 1, 2012.

Proposals to be considered include:

Additional Regional Clipper® Implementation Measures- Increasing the cost of paper One-way and Zone Upgrade tickets by up to 25 cents per zone and Day passes by up to 50 cents per zone. Note: The cost of a One-way ride will remain the same for those using a Clipper card. Monthly Pass prices will remain the same.  For proposed fare chart, click HERE (PDF, 15K).
- Elimination of the 8-ride Ticket.

Go Pass- Increasing the cost of the Go Pass by $10 to $165, and setting the minimum level at $13,750.
Sales Period
- Lengthening the sales period for monthly transportation passes and parking permits from the 9th of the month to the 15th of the month.

The public hearing will be held:
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012 at 10 a.m.
Caltrain Administrative Office1250 San Carlos Ave., San Carlos
Prior to the hearing, comments may be sent by mail, e-mail or phone to:
Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board, JPB Secretary
P.O. Box 3006, San Carlos, CA 94070-1306
changes@caltrain.com - 1.800.660.4287

Public Meetings
Caltrain will hold four public meetings to present the proposal and receive comments. The meetings will take place in:
Gilroy – Jan. 24 at 6 p.m.
Gilroy Senior Center, 7371 Hanna St.
San Francisco – Jan. 24 at 6 p.m.
San Francisco Tennis Club, 645 Fifth St.
Mountain View – Jan. 25 at 6 p.m.
City Council Chambers, 500 Castro St.
San Carlos – Jan. 25 at 6 p.m.
Caltrain Administrative Office, 1250 San Carlos Ave.
The proposed fare chart will be available by Jan. 16 at http://www.caltrain.com/ or by calling 800-660-4287 (TTY only 650.508.6448).

Para servicio de traducción en Español, llame a Caltrain al 650.508.6242 por lo menos tres días antes de las audiencias.

Santa Clara County Supervisor Ken Yeager to chair VTA

This evening Ken Yeager will assume the role as VTA (Valley Transportation Authority) chair representing the County of Santa Clara. Ken represents the 4th District, which includes the cities of Campbell and Santa Clara, as well as west San Jose and the Burbank and Cambrian neighborhoods.

Ken previously served six years on the San Jose City Council, first elected in November 2000 and re-elected to a second term in March 2004. Prior to that, Ken served two terms as a Trustee of the San Jose Evergreen Community College District, from 1992-2000.
Ken is an avid cyclist as well as a long-time advocate for expanding parks and trails throughout the County.

In December 2008, Ken was appointed by Governor Schwarzenegger to the board of the California Air Resources Board (ARB), the statewide agency responsible reducing air pollution and combating global warming. He also sits on the local Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD).

Ken also sits on the Joint Policy Committee that coordinates the regional planning efforts between ABAG, BAAQMD, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), and the Bay Conservation and Development. He also serves as the MTC appointment as Director to the Caltrain Joint Powers Board.

Ken will be taking over the board at a time when the county is seeking to expanded its demographic and political power within the area. Santa Clara is seeking additional representation on the regional MTC Board of Commissioners. With one quarter of the San Francisco Bay Area's population Ken hopes to increase representation to about a quarter of the Board. Doing so would increase funding for key transportation projects, which county transportation officials believe is long overdue.

Ken will be replacing Mountain View Council member Margaret Abe-Koga who will remain on the VTA board.

Margaret Abe-Koga

Santa Clara to Diridon Station capital improvements almost complete



New underground passageway
 is now complete.



South Terminal Station Improvement Project

Phase I - Construction is almost complete at the Santa Clara and Diridon San Jose Caltrain Stations on track, signaling, and platform improvements. These improvements fit into a larger plan to upgrade the Caltrain system in preparation for electrification in 2015. With a new signal and track improvements between the two stations track capacity will increase. Due to the current reduced capacity a slight delay in the Caltrain system can have effects on other train lines. The total cost of Phase I of this project is $52 million which is funded through Federal, State, Regional, and Local sources.



View from Santa Clara Station

 SE to downtown San Jose. New platform

improvements are visible in the background

 (just before the train).



Most riders coming into Diridon station have noticed that the train slows to a crawl on the last two miles before reaching the station. Now with the new system trains will not only come into Diridon faster, but the system will allow for additional trains. The new improvements also added an additional track to the Santa Clara Station which will require not only an additional platform but a safe passageway to the platform as well.





Two new tracks (four platforms at 1,200 feet in length) are being added to Diridon Station. With five different train operations (Caltrain, Amtrak Coast Starlight, Amtrak Capitol Corridor, ACE, and Union Pacific freight trains) using the station it can get a bit hectic at times.

Phase II - This phase will consist of the addition of an additional mainline track which will allow for operational flexibility north of the station benefit the Caltrain, ACE, and Capitol Corridor systems. This will allow these train lines to increase service levels in the future. The total cost of Phase II of the project is $37 million.



New platform

improvements are

almost done.



Caltrain by the Numbers

Passengers: 11.9 million annually

Trains: 98 weekdays, 32 Saturdays, 28 Sundays

Stations: 32

Track Miles: 50 mainline and 27 - commute hour only.

Terminals: San Francisco, San Jose, and Gilroy





Looking North.
Concrete work on right
will include skylighting
within the passageway.



Happy New Year

High Line Park
Photo: High Line Park

Happy New Year

I hope everyone was able to take some time off at the end of the year and reflect on the inspirations and challenges that we experienced over the last 12 months. Hopefully you were also able to sit and figure out new goals and challenges for the new year.

I've spent some time thinking about how to make this blog both interesting and relevant to those who desire to see positive changes in their communities. Living in the Silicon Valley area of the San Francisco Bay, I have come to expect dynamic changes in certain areas especially the technology sector; but in other areas, well change and innovation is a bit disappointing. In a land blessed with ideal weather, great soil and beautiful mountains and shores we still spend much of our time indoors, inactive, eating overly processed foods that are grown more than a time zone away. It's sad to see that outdoor dining is more common in Quebec, Canada (where it is 0 degrees Fahrenheit right now), or that an outdoor activity such as cycling is more popular in places like Copenhagen and Portland than in the Santa Clara Valley.

Outdoor dinning in Montreal

I plan to continue to discuss and write about key transportation, land use, and urban and livability issues. The need for effective and dynamic leadership in this area is crucial if we expect to continue to attract talented and creative workers to the area. In 2011, I was amazed at the positive changes taking place in other parts of the country. In a recent "Dream City" series Salon writer Will Doig  highlighted 12 bold and imaginative projects in the works right now across the country (The Bold Urban Future Starts Now). From the Millennium Reserve Initiative in Chicago to the taking back of the Los Angles River down south the author highlights imaginative steps taken in these financially tough times.

Instead of running from our urban, transportation, energy , and livability issues, Americans are beginning to confront and embrace these issues head on. New residents are migrating to abandon inner cities which have been neglected for over 40 years and remaking them to reflect new values such as community, sustainability, local production and agriculture, and especially exercising new powers in local leadership.

Much of this is due to the localizing effects of new and mobile technology. Some of it is due to a new generation that eschews the suburbs, shuns auto ownership and seeks to connect to others not just online but in their neighborhoods as well. With ubiquitous Wi/Fi, who wants to drive one hour to work isolated and unproductive. That time could be spent with someone else doing the driving, freeing up time to catch up on reading, work, or just to talking with a fellow passenger.

Of course I plan to cover local issues as well, such as regional transportation plans, policies, and financing (Wonky), BART to San Jose, Caltrain, highway and road funding, and of course bike culture such as San Jose Bike Party. In addition I plan to cover issues of a national concern such as:

• Bike Sharing
• The drop in auto usage and ownership.
• The shift to local retail.
• The resurgence of intercity bus travel
• The New Urbanism - New ways of living, working, playing and raising families in America's new urban frontier.
• The challenge of infrastructure funding
• New ideas in livability.

So feel free to contact me to add any additional ideas. These are exciting times.

San Jose's coming of age?

As San Jose passes the million resident mark several key indicators reveal that this bedroom community in the valley may actually be growing into a real city. The last few years have witnessed the proposal, planning, and design of several large projects, including a sports venue and transportation projects including high speed rail, a new ballpark, a BART extension, a major freeway interchange makeover, and Bus Rapid Transit.

With a world renowned high tech industry, a growing population, and those key infrastructure projects just mentioned, San Jose has recently sought the need to flex its political muscle. Assembly member Jim Beall has introduced AB 57 which seeks to increase Santa Clara County (as well as Alameda County) representation on the Board of Commissioners at the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC). As Assembly member Beall states, "about 40 years ago, the [state] legislature created the MTC and its voting membership based on a 1970 snapshot of a San Francisco dominated Bay Area. Today, the Bay Area population and employment clusters have shifted. Santa Clara County has become the technological center of the world."

This same reasoning is VTA's argument in requesting Caltrans to open an office in San Jose. Caltran's 12 state-wide districts and district office map was drawn in 1961 when San Jose was one-fifth the size that it is today. VTA, the area's Congestion Management Agency (CMA) has cited the growing importance of the region as well as previous delays in getting approvals on key projects for the request. Except for the Bay Area district (No. 4), all Caltrans district offices are located in the district's largest cities. In the Bay Area San Francisco is only six miles away but San Jose, the largest city in the nine-county district is over 40 miles away.

The map below show another disadvantage in getting late to the political party. Whether it be transportation agencies, planning agencies, non-profit, or even key civic groups, not one is headquartered in Santa Clara County. Except for Caltrain's offices in the city of San Carlos, Bay Area agencies and non-profits are all located in either San Francisco or Oakland.

Until MTC representation gets resolved or a new office is opened, at least one positive change in the works is the 2012 opening of a SPUR office. SPUR is a San Francisco based urban planning and research organization that has been at the forefront of many of the city's key issues such as the central subway, park funding, a new Transbay Transit Center, the transformation of mid-Market St., as well as many others. Although a small step this will be a great first step in seeing the "power" center of gravity move further south along the bay.

To find out about future SPUR - San Jose events, join their mailing list.

View San Francisco Bay Area Agencies and Organizations in a larger map