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Metro Times: Ridership has reached record lows; operating expenses are more than 10x revenue.

https://www.metrotimes.com/detroit/two- ... meThisWeek

You may have called it, but I bet more than half of us were thinking it.

True! Didn't mean to imply I was the only one.

Government screws up a lot!

I didn't pay much attention to the whole concept when it was proposed and the building was happening. But when I realized it was going to share a lane with cars on Woodward I thought it was a dumb idea. It might as well be a bus that at least can change lanes, or give it a dedicated lane.

People don’t want to ride trains, especially in this area. We love our cars. I also knew this would flop.

Government screws up a lot!

Actually, a group of well-heeled high profile businessmen hatched the idea. The feds and the state of MI kicked in some money, but the vast majority of the project was funded with foundation & private money.

Here are some great snippets from the Metro Times article:

One of the streetcars has operated for months without a working fare box. At Congress Street, the primary downtown station, the credit card machine doesn't work.

"Don't worry about it," we overheard a QLine operator telling a passenger who couldn't get the credit card machine to work at a station. "It happens all the time." It's unclear what percentage of riders are now paying fares, because officials don't keep track.

M-1 Rail leaders originally estimated the QLine would cost $5 million to operate. The operating budget grew this year to $6.7 million, up from $5.8 million. Lijana said the budget has increased because of enforcement and longer hours of operation.

The growing budget could become a big problem because the QLine operates with a limited amount of private and government funds. M-1 Rail officials said last year they had about $40 million in pledged donations to operate the line through 2027. At this rate, the QLine doesn't have enough money to operate beyond 2023, Crains Detroit Business reported last year.

M-1 Rail CEO Matt Cullen said last year that the group may have to look for additional donations.

How long before there's a millage proposal or local sales tax to subsidize this white elephant?

The FEDERAL government has smartened up, to its credit:

The so-called streetcar renaissance that began less than a decade ago has largely fallen short of overhyped expectations, and the federal government has stopped funding them.

I spend time with public transit in dozens of cities around the world and Qline is a novelty.

Public Transit is a regional network of mobility. The complete lack of collaboration between Detroit vs the counties will likely keep things staying just as they are.

It's one of those reasons Detroit will continue to struggle to attract high value new investment. Why there isn't rail from DTW to Detroit and Ann Arbor I just can't understand.

Don’t need it 92 percent of Detroit drives a car to work, This is not New York City, Chicago or L.A. it’s Detroit The Motor Capital Of The World. And the suburbs do not need a mass transit system, We drive the cars we build to work and home again.

"Novelty" is the PERFECT term to describe the Q Line.

Nicely done, TC Talks!

Ann Arborites love Ann Arbor. They don't want to go to Detroit. The only time the rail would get used is when college kids want to travel to & from the airport. That's hardly a reason to invest in such a project. When Metro Detroiters wish to travel to Ann Arbor - they simply drive.

Better synergies between SMART and DDOT is all that's needed, and in the last year or two, some progress has been made in that realm.

Metro Detroit has had trouble attracting "high value new investment" because our infrastructure is rotting, our workforce is not highly skilled, and we're not one of the handful of fortunate metropolises where once young tech firms that have grown into corporate giants have planted their roots. The stranglehold Big Labor had on regional & statewide policy for so many years certainly hasn't helped, either.

The lack of light rail transit is very, very low on the list of what's caused Metro Detroit's economic malaise.

Detroit had north of 12 million visitors last year that landed at Detroit Metro Airport. This isn't the total number of people who flew through the airport which was about 34 million.

I'm not worried about people getting to and from work as much as people from around the world getting in and out of Detroit. Almost all major cities from around the globe have a reliable transportation solution from the airport to the economic Center. You have one black car service and Uber which the airport tries to disrupt at every opportunity.

I don't know how to break it to you but only 52% of 20 year olds in the United States have driver's licenses. The share of 16-year-olds getting their licenses has decreased by almost half since the 1980s. Generation Z does not want to drive. Should they just skip Detroit and go find a real City? Apparently all you old fools think this will not happen.

In 20 years it will be largely autonomous transportation and the concept of owning your own car will be on the decline. Cities with a strong Regional Transportation plan will continue to grow. Why do you think Amazon cut Detroit in the first round? I'm sorry to break it to you but it's not simply the unions it's the general bulshit attitude that the business Community has about innovation. And I'm not talking about self-heating cup holders and other gadgets that the automakers are trying to stuff in the cars. Innovation on how we live.

I have one of those innovations, That self-heating cup, I had chicken soup in it yesterday, What a great invention, It kept my chicken soup warm for hours. Now I don’t know how to break it to you about 52 percent of Gen Z not driving, But you know what that’s their problem, How are these kids being raised? To be dependent on other people instead of themselves, Is Gen Z going to be a bunch of pussies and won’t own a car that’s really stupid especially in Detroit, If your born and raised in Detroit well then for the most part you better know how to drive and have car or move to another City.

I think TC's observation that young people are not interested in driving like we boomers were at that age is spot on. But they aren't the only ones.

My boss is in his early 60s, just a year younger than I am. He's both a doctor and an attorney ... and he gave his car to one of his kids because she needed a safe vehicle to drive to Alaska. It's been Uber, Lyft and his bicycle ever since.

In addition to losing a lot of weight and improving his health, he says that his transportation costs are lower. He also says it reminds him of his carefree undergrad days when he was free of most encumbrances.

This says age 20 is 77%.

https://www.npr.org/2016/02/11/46617852 ... om-driving

(Tim Allen’s voice Please!)The Q-Line and The People Mover, Michigan’s newest Amusement Rides sort of like Cedar Point but not as many rides, So take the kids to Downtown Detroit and spend a day on The Q-Line and visit the People Mover at the same time (If it’s running) Make it a day the kids will remember for the rest of their lives. Another great place to visit because this is Pure Michigan.