Very few signs exist that Lubbock’s love affair with the automobile will end soon. Work continues on the new freeway that exists to move effectively people from the growing southwest Lubbock and Wolfforth areas to campus and downtown Lubbock. New housing and retail developments spring up along 98th Street like weeds. All three proposed plans for downtown Lubbock’s redevelopment show few commitments to transportation beyond the personal automobile. For drivers in Lubbock, it really is 1967.
Too bad the calendar displays 2007.
Many city planners hail Oklahoma City’s redevelopment success because OKC understood the mix transportation use concept. Downtown San Antonio boasts trolleys, wide sidewalks, and a nightlife that exists off the Paseo del Rio. A person can successfully navigate by bicycle the city that the car.
Lubbock’s transportation planners discussed an interesting redevelopment of Citibus at their November 2006 meeting but nothing more was mentioned in the January 2007 meeting. Citibus did eliminate the 4th Street bus route, which has many apartments populated by students.
Citibus’ Hoyt Day said the service carried between 300 to 500 students a day. Do the math. Those 300 to 500 students would need a car and parking spaces. Fourth Street does not need another 600 to 1000 cars a day. It is doubtful that Tech has enough parking for another 300 to 500 cars. Yes, Lubbock’s municipal managers love their car and so should you.
Lubbock’s crush on the car represents an unsustainable approach to city management. The price of oil will rise by the end of year assuming no supply disruptions. Although Lubbock represents one of the few cities in west Texas reporting increasing population growth, the city is running out of usable land. In 10 to 15 years, commutes will become costlier in terms of money and time.
If I was a progressive mayor and you were my high priced consultant, what would you tell me? Given what you know about motivation, perceptions, and by Monday, attitude, what you recommend? What city resources would you allocate or re-allocate to convince people to get out of their cars and onto buses. Remember as mayor, I carry no Hugo Chavez like authority. Therefore, I cannot order people out of their cars and onto buses.
35 responses so far ↓
christopherf2 // February 19, 2007 at 11:09 am |
Getting people in Lubbock out of their cars and into their busses is going to be very difficult. Most cities in Texas are not as spread out as Lubbock, therefore walking, biking and using public transportation in those cities is much more inviting. However, if I was Mayor Miller I would increase the bus traffic. I am aware that this would cost the community a lot of tax dollars, but it would ultimately increase the amount of people that use public transportation. It seems that the number of busses available is becoming less proportionate to the growth of the city, thus causing people to drive because of issues like time. I would also put together promotional cooperation’s between companies in Lubbock and Citibus. For instance, I would randomly give out certificates for a free lunch at participating restaurants for the purchase of an all day bus pass. This would not only increase the amount of bus occupants, but it would also help certain Lubbock restaurants.
hunterh1 // February 19, 2007 at 1:33 pm |
I think that the city bus system in its current form is not capable of supporting the city. I think that there needs to be a major revamp of the way the Citi bus system is run. I personally cannot use the bus system because there is not a bus stop within 3 miles of my house. It would not take much for the city to convince the student population to use the bus system, if it was adequate. All the city would have to do is mention how much money the students would save, and there would be a large increase in bus use. The downside is that the bus system would have to be adequate, as in enough bus routes, and enough busses to keep people from having to wait 20 minutes for a bus. The workforce of Lubbock would be more difficult to convince than the students. The average Lubbock worker probably has a very negative view of the current bus system. The city would have to put more time, money and planning into the bus routes, times, and convenience. Then the city would have to go into a significant advertisement campaign in an attempt to change the attitudes of the general Lubbock populous. Promotions of bus use from local restaurants and businesses would help; but only if the busses actually ran, and stopped near the businesses!
milevin // February 20, 2007 at 3:17 pm |
Plantizen has a nice article on creating a walking city.
whitneyw1 // February 20, 2007 at 6:08 pm |
I agree with what was stated above about riding the bus. If I had a bus stop near my house I would ride the bus, but I don’t. In addition that, when I did live near a bus stop I waited nearly 30 minutes to get on a bus and sat on the bus for another fifteen. The time consuming nature of the bus system in Lubbock is a really bad way to promote the systems use. I agree that if Lubbock allocated more money to a better bus system that provided stops in a vast amount of areas, the likelihood of people riding the bus (at least students) would increase. I do not have a parking permit at this time, but it is easier for me to drive and park at a distant church and walk to class then it is for me to find a bus to take to school. To motive people to use the bus I completely agree that the bus system must be made more efficent. In addition to a new bus system, I think that Lubbock could promote the idea of riding buses by appealing to a more environmental friendly crowd. If people are more informed about the benefit to our environment reducing car use can cause, then maybe people will be more willing to try riding the bus to work or school. Though I think it would be hard to change peoples attitudes concerning the present bus system, I think that using repitition in ads for a new and improved bus system could infact increase use, but like I said before the current system would need to be made better. In terms of making Lubbock a walking city, as discussed in the second article posted by Michael, I am not too sure that would go over very well with too many people. Though I know the benefits to my health that walknig may create, I am not willing to walk around Lubbok Texas during the night. Walking around Lubbock at night would make me feel extremely unsafe. I would much rather drive!
koltb2 // February 21, 2007 at 10:19 am |
What an issue! I agree with the other students that it is going to be extremely difficult to get Lubbock residents out of their cars and onto public transportation. In my opinion the main reason is that Lubbock is vastly spread out. I currently live in Levelland which is 30 miles west of Lubbock, and honestly is takes me the same amount of time to get from my house to Tech, as it does for me to get from one side of Lubbock to the other. I am very excited to see if the Marsha Sharp Freeway will improve the flow of traffic. I have to admit, I am slightly skeptical. I also keep seeing signs that state the freeway will be completed by this summer. I am sure that will happen! Furthermore, I heard that the city invested $4 million in a system, a few years ago, that was intended to synchronize all of the traffic lights. It did not work! Then today I heard the city coucnil has decided to hold-off on the red light cameras because most of the yellow lights are not correctly adjusted. How much did that cost the taxpayers? I do not know exactly how to solve the traffic problem in Lubbock, but I do feel a major overhaul of the Citibus system would be a good route to look at. There is one thing that I am quiet positive about and that is, the road construction in Lubbock will never end, so we better get used to it.
maryc1 // February 21, 2007 at 11:45 am |
I just don’t think that Lubbock will ever be a bus kind of city. Everything here is so spread out and not set up for people to stay in one area. In order for a successful bus route to take place people cannot be traveling far distances. People don’t want to ride a bus 45 minutes to go to the store. The reason buses and walking have been so successful in other cities is because everything people need is close. For instance in New York in every community there is a store, places to eat, entertainment ect. However in Lubbock it is the opposite there are many places to eat all together or entertainment together but not many places were you get all in one. If I were mayor I would encourage people to ride the buses by showing them what is on each route. However the main thing I would do is setup the up and coming areas to be more like small communities where people are able to walk, bike and ride buses to get to most of the things they need.
kkovacic // February 21, 2007 at 12:30 pm |
I think it would be very hard to convince people to start using the bus more, even though the parking situation is pretty bad. I think Lubbock and Citibus are going about this the wrong way. I use to ride the bus a lot when I didn’t own a car yet, and every semester they were eliminating routes, they also wanted to make students pay for the bus… All this was just bad publicity.
I think the city of Lubbock would have to have some kind of promotional campaign to get more people on the bus. They would have to have some kind of schedule, which would have to be accurate and the bus would actually have to be there on time. A lot of people don’t want to wait for the bus in the wind, not knowing when the bus is coming. If the Citibus wants an increase they have to be reliable. Therefore, I think developing some kind of trust and relationship is the key in this situation.
Obviously, the campaign would have to focus on the accurate and reliable schedule, saving money because you are not wasting your gas, and on the fact that the bus will bring you right to the building, which is your final destination. Another good area to focus on would be the increase of the busses in the morning hours – when most students go to campus, which would mean that you are more likely to get a seat on the bus. All of these factors could motivate someone to start riding the bus again. Most of all the Citibus needs to make sure riding the bus would be convenient and comfortable.
troutknoxville // February 21, 2007 at 1:29 pm |
What is hard for me to understand is how much more money will be needed for the buses to stretch out to the new housing and businesses popping up on 98th and beyond. I currently live on 108th street and i believe it would be impossible for me to take the bus to school or at least try to get somewhere in a reasonable time frame. Lubbock is a pretty spread out place, and to be able to affectively transport people it would require a ton of buses. Has anyone rode the DART train system in Dallas? I think that would be a cool thing to have in Lubbock, but there is no way in hell that the city could afford it, we can hardly fund the Marsha Sharp Freeway. Maybe after Marsha is done we could have the Bob Knight or Mike Leach Train system.
jalderson2 // February 21, 2007 at 2:50 pm |
I have lived in Lubbock for all of my 23 years and this is not a new issue. Lubbock as a community is a big city with a hometown attitude. No matter where your destination is, my money is on you can get there in no longer than 15 mins. If you have to sit through 2 lights at one intersection, its a bad traffic jam. For years, Lubbock’s leaders have not seen this to be a issue. Finally many are seeing this problem of Lubbock not becoming a great city but a great small town. Planners now are working to get downtown Lubbock back up and running. Downtowns are usually the focal point in great cities and Lubbock has seem to have fallen behind. My issue would be more orinetated to building back the downtown area and almost re-zoning Lubbock’s downtown and east Idustrial side. LEDA is a committee that is working to bring more economic development to the Hub City. A great downtown business district would highly defer traffic and make bus and trolly commutes a reality. As of now, the Marsha Sharp highway seems to be a million dollar mistake. Lubbock has to rezone and focus its energy on moving growth back into the city itself and the north east.
Josh Alderson for Mayor 2020
kyleb2 // February 21, 2007 at 7:21 pm |
I would have to agree with everyone on the bus situation. It is almost impossible to increase the bus usage because everyone has a car, so why not use it. Yes, it may be more beneficial to our environment, but people are lazy and would prefer to get in their own car and drive to their destination. I would personally choose to drive than wait for a bus for many reasons. One is convenience. I can more easily hop in my car and drive and be comfortable because I have control of what I’m doing, or if I want to listen to music and so forth. Lubbock would have to find some other means of transportation to attract more riders. They should have different busses for different transportation purposes. For example, you have students who ride them for class purposes and then you have regulars who need to get places. To increase the speed we need to separate these two categories and determine where people need to go. Overall, I do not think situation will increase.
micheller2 // February 23, 2007 at 12:58 am |
I lived in Washington D.C, and I absolutely LOVE the Metro system, it was great and very well planned; people can drive or ride buses into the transfer centers and the train will bring them into the city. Lubbock’s main problem is that the city continues to spread outward while neglecting central Lubbock; this puts stain on the current bus system, with not enough buses for the area of coverage without long waits, thus only those who have no other choice use the bus.
codyj002 // February 25, 2007 at 7:48 pm |
The whole situation is a difficult one. The perception of people that ride the busses is not a favorable one. How many people do you think would honestly ride a bus with some of Lubbock’s poverty-stricken hoodlums? I am from the north side of San Antonio and the only time that you would ever get me to ride a bus down there is for NIOSA (Night in Old San Antonio). Riding the bus is the only mode of transportation to and from the event. The types of people that ride the bus scare some people. I would not want my younger sisters to ride a bus at night. I am not saying that Citibus needs to turn bus riding into a luxury affair but they should do something about the perception of the people that ride the bus.
Last year I lived on Fourth Street and rode the bus to school everyday. I had class at 9 am and I never knew when I needed to be at the bus stop to be on time. I have had drivers get out and take smoke breaks. I think that Citibus should put a tracker at their stops that said when their next bus was coming. The busses should be on a stricter schedule. They should not be taking breaks at 8:45 am when there is a 9 am class.
I know that there are benefits to the environment to riding busses. If I were going to campaign for Citibus, I would focus on reliable schedules, saving the Environment and safety. This is a tall order for the city of Lubbock and Citibus. Either build some more parking garages or fix the bus system.
Texas Tech has excessive pointless reserved parking spots. Honestly, does service and maintenance need a dozen spots out in front of the dorms? What kills me even more than that is the reserved parking lot on the first floor of the parking garage? I have never seen more than ten cars in the fifty-car lot. It blows my mind to see these empty spots and have administration say that we have a spot shortage. If students have to fight for spots so should faculty and staff.
clintt1 // February 26, 2007 at 12:19 am |
I agree with everything that most people have been saying. A shift from driving to riding a bus doesn’t seem like a feasable option right now for Lubbock. The city is extremely spread out. Public transportation works well whenever it is almost nonstop, or people are not traveling the distances that would require here in lubbock. For a person who lives East of campus to take a Citi bus to the mall, it would take almost an hour. That is a long distance with multiple stops. Even the off campus routes for students take a long time. I lived in one of the apartments on the West 4th Street Route, and I would have to catch the bus over a half hour before my class, if the bus even showed up when it was supposed to. It was just faster and more convenient for me to drive, and I’m sure most people in Lubbock feel that way. It is going to be difficult to change that perception. With the drastic renovations to the West loop within the past few years and the construction of the Marsha Sharp freeway, Lubbock have proven that it wants to invest its money in ways that continue to promote private transportation. A suggestion to change perception would be to create more reliable pick up times, and make the most popular routes arrive faster. If research was conducted, there could be ways to create non-stop or few stop routes to the most popular locations in Lubbock. If I could take a bus to work in about the same amount of time I could drive, I might be persuaded. I pass at least 10 stops on my way, and I don’t want to have to wait for each stop.
rossc1 // February 26, 2007 at 9:31 am |
Getting people to use public transportation over their own personal vehicle is a challenge that Lubbock will not win any time soon. The population of Lubbock is estimated at 210,373 people by 2011, but the average person will only be spending approximately $485 on public transportation per year. It is also noted that the average person in Lubbock spends $8,717 on their own transportation per year, a substantial amount over public transportation. In order to decrease the difference between these two numbers, I believe that it is wise for Lubbock officials to make it safer for people to ride bikes on main streets and find easier access to public transportation. This could be done with more bus stops and quicker routes. Personally, I never take the bus because it always takes way too long. With gas prices on the rise, some people will be forced to use public transportation, however many will not. Inceased advertising and marketing efforts for public transportation might also spark an increase in usage.
lexib2 // February 26, 2007 at 2:57 pm |
Currently, it is not convenient to hop on a bus to be transported somewhere as opposed to your car. The waiting time for a bus, although not horrible, still has some catching up to do. In addition to the long waiting periods, there aren’t enough bus stops close enough to the spread out layout of most of Lubbock. If you are trying to convince a town to use a new form of transportation you are going to have to provide stops for people that live on Quaker and 110th street as well as college kids on 4th. This might also help build a different image of public transportation. Currently when I think of public transportation in Lubbock, Texas, I think of people who either don’t have a car, or are too poor to keep up a car. Now this image is a little different when the bus is used around campus, but in other areas of town this is the connatation I get. I think in order to change this attitude, the transportation system is going to have to focus on building up clientele in more well-off parts of Lubbock and getting them involved in it daily. This would help to change the perspectives of many other people who feel that driving a car says so much more positive on social status then riding the bus currently.
rachelh1 // February 26, 2007 at 3:38 pm |
First of all, how obvious is it that the bus routes are inefficient? Really, knowing there is no room for cars or parking on campus, why cancel that very full and important bus route. As a Tech student, I know the frustration and inconvenience that comes with transporting to class. To catch the bus at my apartment, Raider’s Pass across of campus, I have to catch the bus 40 minutes before class!!! If I decide to drive, I have to leave 30 minutes before class to beat traffic, find a parking space in North Commuter and walk to the BA! This is ridiculous, the city is not paying attention to the problem. The conservative, older minds that make up the city council continue to pay little attention to the ever-increasing universtiy student population generated by Texas Tech. This is very evident from the inefficient bus routes, ignored parking situation and alcohol “prohibition”. To fix the situation at hand, I would suggest city council start OPENING their eyes to the GIANT University that makes their beloved Lubbock the GIANT somewhat sustainable. More bus routes should be added; more buses in the same route sould be added. Also, I would build a giant parking garage where the Satellite parking lot is to increase parking ability for students. There is no shortage of students who need to park, and if they continue to take away our bus transportation, this problem will only get worse! My question is, how can a group of somewhat educated, elder adults not realize this very simple and very obvious solution? How is it this question is even an issue? Stop ignoring Texas Tech University; Stop ignoring college students!
milevin // February 26, 2007 at 5:24 pm |
I like Rachel H’s comment because it addresses the issue of how to increase ridership. That was the initial idea of this posting.
Many of you have responded with a negative affect. How could you change this negative affect? What about cognitive related attitudes? What about behavior related attitudes?
All three of these types of attitudes need to be changed. How would you change them? Throwing more buses and adding more routes is a start.
Ridership will not increase simply because the city council tripled the fleet size and doubled the route miles.
How will you get more people on the increased number of buses that ply the increased number of routes?
rachelc1 // February 26, 2007 at 9:13 pm |
I believe that it will be almost impossible to persuade a majority of students and workers to start taking the bus system to school and work. Construction is something that is going on in many major cities. In Dallas a person has to maneuver around construction sites on a day to day basis. Lubbock is constantly trying to expand its streets and freeways to allow drivers a more efficient way to travel. I believe Lubbock has realized that with so many students traveling back and forth to campus, they need to develop a more efficient way to cut down on the car population. All the cars on the road are causing traffic congestion, but also heavily polluting our environment. I have had the worst allergies since I have moved here and I blame it fully on the pollution and the dust. I think it would be a great idea to install a metro system. A agree completely with Micheller2, because I think a train system would allow people a fast way to get around. A train system would also make transportation for people in Lubbock very convenient. Many cities have selected to use this exact transportation and it has had very positive feedback. Dallas created the Dart system that travels above ground and Chicago has the underground EL. I think the best solution for Lubbock would be to create a monorail system, like the Dallas Zoo. This method of transportation is very successful and it could be built above streets and buildings. However, cost is a huge issue and this would be expensive. In the long run though I believe this method would save people time and worry. I think if people were encouraged more to take an alternate method of transportation they would. We should definitely offer gift certificates to Walmart or United for people that purchase year bus passes. Someone commented earlier on handing out gift certificates and I think that is an excellent solution to our traffic dilemma.
iana1 // February 26, 2007 at 10:04 pm |
If there are going to be less bus routes and the need for more parking Tech should make more multi level parking structures and have them higher than 4 stories. I’m sure many more students wouldn’t mind driving to campus if they know there will be a place to park. Some sort of trolly system would be good too. It doesn’t have to be on rails, but if there were something that could get students to the night scene without them having to drive i’m all for it.
brookea2 // February 26, 2007 at 10:41 pm |
America is known for our hurriedness and busy schedules. Especially being a college student with jobs, school and extra-curricular activities, the motivation to use a public transportation is going to be extremely difficult. Personally, I don’t believe Lubbock has enough resources to have a highly functioning bus system. We need more people and money to make it successful.
Having a bus travel from the BA to Holden Hall, it makes about 3 stops, and those stops are LONG. For a car, it would take about 2 minutes, and about 10 for a bus. However, if Tech had more money to invest into the bus routes, it could make a bus that goes straight from the BA to Holden Hall with 0 stops, and get there in about the same time as a car. That would be successful. On the contrary, how many people every, say 30 minutes, need to make that trip? Not that many. Maybe 3 or 4, and that’s not worth it. That’s where the numbers come in. We need more people. If we had about 20 or 30 people that needed that route; then it would be worth it.
This bus system is a difficult matter to solve, because Lubbock is lacking many things to make it successful. An obvious solution is make more parking spaces, and yes, that is not good for the environment, but until Texas Tech increases in size, this problem will not be solved.
lynsmith // February 27, 2007 at 9:22 am |
I cannot see Lubbock ever becoming a busing city. Let’s face it, Lubbock is set in its ways on this issue… and a lot of others too. I currently do not live near a bus stop. If I did I would be more willing to ride it. On that same note, I live on 25th street. That is merely 6 blocks to campus. I really should walk more to school, but there are no safe ways to walk down Indiana or cross 19th street for civilians. This city was mapped out beautifully but there are some things they forgot to consider. We all know this by the way the streets flood when it sprinkles outside. There should be more sidewalks or bike lanes if they want to decrease the car traffic. When I did live near a bus stop, the bus was every 30 minutes and then usually 15 minutes to get to campus. That is a lot of wasted time when the drive was ten minutes in car. When I was in Europe this summer I walked everywhere. Sometimes I am amazed when I think back to just how much I walked and depended on public transportation. We would wait for an hour for a bus or train and did not mind. A lot, in my opinion, has to do with the mindset of the individual and the culture presented. People in Lubbock are not willing to give up their cars and wait or walk. The mindset is not going to change. The town is too spread out and adding more bus stops or routes will not help. I am glad I am not the Mayor. I do not know what solutions could be given to the city that loves the car.
amandaj1 // February 27, 2007 at 2:41 pm |
As your consultant I would first tell you to do some major research. This research should include information about Lubbock resident’s feelings and attitudes about the city’s current transportation state, specific demographic information on randomly chosen residents, and the relationships between income and transportation, as well as social class. Based on these findings, I would create a new marketing and advertising plan to increase exposure of various transportation methods offered in Lubbock, rather than automobiles. I would also breakdown the information to find the underlying problems as to why many people do not ride the Citibuses, and then work hard to fix these problems. This would create public awareness of Citibus routes and give them more information so that they can utilize them. In these advertisements, it would be wise to use classical conditioning (i.e. create a pleasant feeling along with the ad) to increase attention. After this, I would suggest holding a meeting with Lubbock’s Department of Transportation to discuss further development of sidewalks, bicycle routes, trolleys, etc. This would be the main hurdle to overcome, and after this, you should also begin another marketing campaign emphasizing Lubbock’s transportation development program.
agammage1 // February 27, 2007 at 10:45 pm |
It is hard to imagine Lubbock being a city that utilizes buses, bicycles, and trolleys for a main form of transportation. Lubbock is very spread out and this makes it more difficult to imagine waiting on alternate transportation to get from place to place. I, as your consultant, would tell you to start marketing and campaigning to see what the community thinks about a sudden change of transportation. Taking the buses off 4th street seems very extreme when so many students are dependable on them to get to class. The construction is at its worst in that location, but that is no need to deprive students from easier transportation to campus. Parking on campus is bad enough as it is and good luck trying to manipulate the campus to fit in more parking spaces. I would then tell you to set up a meeting with the Department of Transportation to see just how this can be implemented into Lubbock’s society. I can recall a time my roommate had to have a taxi pick her up from the airport, and she waited a good hour for it to arrive. A taxi in Lubbock is not as demanding as they are in huge cities. I think the idea will just be new for the community to grasp and hard to get started.
julianneb1 // February 28, 2007 at 9:39 pm |
I’m really not a huge fan of busses. The only time I ride one is if I am on campus and I had to park way out because there were no available spots. I think that people will be reluctant to ride the bus because most people have cars, and let’s face it, it is much more convenient to drive yourself. Maybe on campus we should consider “moving up”. Perhaps building more parking garages would add for more spaces and wouldn’t take up any additional land. Apartment complexes and other offices should also consider it. Although it would be expensive, would it not be worth having your employees and students there on time because they could drive themselves there and not have to wait on a bus?
kellis1 // March 1, 2007 at 2:35 pm |
In my opinion Lubbock will never be a bus city. Everything is entirely too spread out and there arent enough neccesary business locations. If there were a starbucks around every corner, or a grocery store 5 minutes from every house, bus usage could become more prominant. People will still use there cars as long as the places they want to go to are far from their homes. Lubbock is a very spread out city that has very few retail locations, and this makes it hard for individuals to walk, ride a bike, or take a bus to their destination. As the city grows, and more communities are formed, there is an opportunity for more retailers to move in. Iin time this will allow for more locations closer to more communities making it less of a commute.
ricardoc2 // March 1, 2007 at 3:22 pm |
Lets face the facts here, Lubbock may be one of the only cities to show growth in Texas but that is only because it is so small to begin with. I would not buy a car in New York city because I would strangle myself in hours worth of traffic. I don’t think I ever experienced traffic in Lubbock and I can usually make it across town in about 15 minutes. I stronly believe by adding more buses to the city is a waste of tax payers money and basically not feasable. I do however believe that the shuttles should increase their stops to more student housing to decrease the headaches of TTU parking. Lubbock is simply to vast and seperated to imlplement buses going all over the city. I would suggest to the mayor not to invest in such a project and maybe concentrate on fixing the horrible roads that pave this city. I love my car and I am tired of always running over pot holes or uneven streets.
kendallk1 // March 1, 2007 at 5:02 pm |
If I were your high prided consultant, I would probably tell you that Lubbock is growing very quickly, but you have to keep in mind that we still live in west Texas in a relatively small town compared to major cities across the United States that have efficient transit systems. Lubbock is growing and has many amenities that larger cities have, but we have the luxury of space. Places of business (entertainment based and otherwise) are spread out across town so much that turning Lubbock into a “walking city” would be nearly impossible. There is not a downtown nightlife area like the River Walk in San Antonio at all. For someone to go out to dinner and then to a club, they would have to drive across town. I live near the mall, but for me to walk to school every morning would obviously take too long. Clearly, not many people that use Citibus are very pleased with their performance. Most of these comments about their services have been negative, and I agree. The system is not very efficient. I waited on a bus today for over thirty minutes. To help get people out of their cars, I would first recommend adding more Citibus routes. Peoples’ attitudes about Citibus need a serious revamping for the company to be as successful as I’m sure they would like to be. More routes would help to rebuild customers’ trust considerably, especially on the busses that run through campus during the day. When I ride the bus from the commuter west parking lot in the mornings there is sometimes only room to stand in the aisle crammed against a bunch of other people standing next to you. Tech students make up a considerable portion of the population of Lubbock and the issue of parking on campus should also be addressed. If Citibus could increase their number of routes and the efficiency of those routes, Texas Tech could possibly add more commuter and satellite parking spaces (or even another garage) and be able to charge a lower price for a permit. With a more efficient bus system, shuttle service from these areas, which would be considerably closer to campus than most apartments, would be a better option than some people parking in random parking lots around town and walking across busy streets. As far as getting people completely out of their cars, I would suggest possibly implementing a train system similar to the Dart Rail system in Dallas. The cost for this type of system would be considerable, but with everything in Lubbock spread out the way it is, this seems to be one of the only options to move people around town other than Citibus. It will be difficult to change peoples’ beliefs about driving their cars less since it has been the only efficient way to get around in Lubbock, but such a noticeable effort to improve public transit like a Dart Rail will most likely be made use of. I think this transit system would cause Lubbock to grow exponentially and is a good option if the problem is significant enough for the city to pay for it to be constructed.
codyh2 // March 1, 2007 at 8:07 pm |
The car is always going to be the main principle in getting around here in Lubbock but to avoid another negative construction project like the Marsha Sharp Freeway, the city as a whole is going to have to look at other cities and see what they can change to bring more people away from driving their cars from destination to destination to walking or taking buses. Downtown Fort Worth is my example of a great city for our situation. Sundance Square in Ft. Worth has always been there but since the Bass family, they own mostly all of downtown ft. worth, has revamped and put more money into the area it has been the number one hotspot for new businesses and entertainment in the metroplex. Lubbock already has its depot district and has great potential but in order to mke that area like sundance square you will need to put the customers there. Sundance Square is surrounded by hotels and restaurants, along with the clubs and bars, all Lubbock has to do is start putting more hotels and restaurants around the depot district and concentrate on commuting between there and tech with citibus and it could start a new trend towards nightlife here in Lubbock along with the new ways of commuting without cars.
ashleyho1 // March 1, 2007 at 10:25 pm |
The size and layout of Lubbock makes it difficult to rely on anything other than a car. This city is too spread out and does not have the population in order to sucessfully have a bus system. Bus systems work in large towns, such as, San Antonio becuase it is a much more densely populated area and more of the population is forced to move across the city everyday. In Lubbock, people tend to stay around their neighborhoods in which they live rather than traveling across the city each day. In order for a mass transportation system to work in Lubbock, such as, a bus system we would need more strategically placed routes and more advertising in order to create awareness.
milevin // March 1, 2007 at 11:18 pm |
How come so many comments fixate on buses? Is that Lubbockites only option? Buses or driving their car?
I like the train idea, but agree that it would be super expensive. I am not sure if the city has the resource to build and support a train.
Bus. Train. That’s it?
How could the city change people’s attitudes?
meascott // March 2, 2007 at 10:17 am |
Being from Lubbock, I don’t see that people are going to stray away from their cars anytime soon. When closer nit communities are formed is when Lubbockites will grow to appreciate other forms of transportation. I also believe that the only way for the city to change the communities view about other forms of transportation would be to present them with a large amount of information regarding the change. For instance, the could conduct a survey within the Lubbock community regarding this type of change. The city could also research and observe other city’s that have the same demographics as Lubbock but use other forms of transportation. Also, the efficency of implenting new transportation will have to be top notche. For example, the buses now are almost completely unreliable which is a large reason why citizens don’t use them. To chagne the attitudes of Lubbock citizens the city will have to address how this change will affect them (the citizens) personally. In particular, financially they will save money if they don’t use their car and pay for gas. To effectivley change their attitudes you must reach them at a personal and individual level or understanding, and something they can relate to easily.
jvasquez2 // March 2, 2007 at 2:31 pm |
With Lubbock being spread out as it is it will be difficult to change the ways of transportation. In the big cities, you can get on a bus/trolley/subway and not worry about driving in heavy traffic, and with in a reasonable amount of time ( reasonable to natives of big cities) you can be at your destination. This way you can commute worry free, and even have someone to talk to while on your way. In Lubbock you can get anywhere in about 15 minutes, literally, in your own car. Why would you want to get on a bus that moves slower than your car. Lubbock is a large city with small town ways of life. It will be that way for year to come. Also Lubbock is to widely spread for people to walk or ride a bike to work, for most people. In big cities people live fairly close to work, because if they don’t they would be in car or bus for hours. In Lubbock it doesn’t matter.
marcusk1 // March 2, 2007 at 3:57 pm |
I agree with the previous postings, Lubbock is extremely different in lifestyle, than in major cities in Texas. I do however like the idea of catering to the downtown area, Lubbock is trying to get its name on the map and grow will benefit the city and also bring more indiviuals to Texas Tech.
lesleyh1 // March 2, 2007 at 5:59 pm |
I have lived in Lubbock all of my life and I dont think that people relying on cars is going to change. It is a much more convient way of transportation. On campus, when you cant park next to your class, I do rely on Citybus to take me from my car to somewhere on campus. Other than the times at school, I would not rely on a bus. Lubbock has a pretty good parking situation at most businesses, so why not take your own car. You can get in and get out quicker than having to wait for a bus. I think an idea of a train would be too expensive and there is not enough room to squeeze in a train downtown or around campus. We rely on our cars for convience. If a marketer wants to focus on something new for Lubbock, I just dont think there is anything. This town is set in their ways and enjoys the comfort of their own car.
jakeg2 // March 3, 2007 at 12:38 pm |
Lubbock is and always will be the last to come into any type of new trend. Look at our liquor policies… It is a joke, and does not surprise me that we would be the last to promote more efficient cars, or even a mass transit systen of some sort. If you want to see less cars on the road and a healthier enviornment, then look to Dallas or Houston. When they do something add 10 years and then you can expect to see it in Lubbock. That is the equation. It may be an ego thing for the locals here on the big ol’ side of Texas, but we as college minds need to go against the grain with every opportunity that we get. Call it civic duty.
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