What’s the Best Way to Get 150 UC Students Home from the Fireworks?
We have previously examined the difficulties of large groups of UC students wanting to use public transportation to go a Bengals game. What if the same 150 students wanted to take the bus back to UC from the fireworks? As in the previous post, we will assume that any public transportation that comes to pick up the students will be about ¼ full (probably a low estimate as the streetcar and buses would be busy after the fireworks).
The first firework goes off at 9:05pm and the show lasts about 30 minutes. Google estimates a 16 minute walk from Yeatman’s Cove back to Government Square, which doesn’t account for fighting the crowd.
If the students are lucky, the first group will catch the 9:50pm bus, a 17, but given the crowds that seems unlikely they will make it up to government square in time. (Even without the crowds, they would probably be late).
If the Students arrive at Government Square at around 10pm, the first bus to UC, a 17, will come at 10:20pm. Around 35 students would add to those currently on the bus and fill it to capacity. This group would be back in their dorms studying away by 10:35pm.
The second bus, a 46, would arrive at 10:35pm, and would fill to capacity. This group makes it home before 11pm.
The third bus, a 17, would arrive at 10:55pm, after the students had been waiting for almost an hour.
The fourth bus and the fifth bus, a 17 and 46 both arrive at 11:50pm. This group of students will make it back after midnight. Hopefully there aren’t many other students, who weren’t a part of this 150 that thought the fireworks were a good idea, because there is only one more bus that runs from Government Square to UC for them to catch.
After Cincinnati invests in a streetcar and it begins operations, the students would walk about 10 minutes to Main and Freedom way, wait about ten minutes (maybe less if a streetcar was approaching when they arrive), would all board the same streetcar, and return to UC.
Building the Cincinnati Streetcar will make it easier to take transit between some of our densest neighborhoods, neighborhoods where parking comes at a premium. A Streetcar will boost transit ridership, introduce new riders to public transportation and create jobs in our center city—helping all 52 neighborhoods by growing our tax base. Make Riding Transit Easier—Build the Streetcar
September 4, 2009 at 1:52 pm
Last year I was lucky enough to take a 17 directly after the fireworks with a hoard of UC students back up to Clifton. Your description of the events encountered is not far off, but docile in comparison to my experience-both in numbers of people and behavior. I’m not anti-college student or even too far from being one myself but students were entering the back doors, the bus quickly became overloaded, students didn’t want to be separated from friends…it took much longer to leave Gov Square because of this, throwing off the whole schedule, etc…ugh. However, the bus is no longer free for UC students (they have the option of a $10/qtr subsidized pass) so maybe it will be different this year.
September 4, 2009 at 2:25 pm
Buses heading down to Riverfest from the University area are typically filled to capacity once they reach Stratford Heights along Clifton Avenue. In previous years I had to wait with friends for a bus that had room. The way back is even worse, as it is later and the surge of ridership is condensed into about one hour instead of being spread out all day.
September 4, 2009 at 3:17 pm
It seems possible for Metro to decide to offer more buses during special events, or for the streetcar schedule to be highly limited on a Sunday evening. I don’t see how the existence of the streetcar would inherently solve this problem.
September 4, 2009 at 3:34 pm
There are two reasons why it is easier to address this issue with streetcars than the current metro system.
One is vehicle capacity. Adding one streetcar adds the same capacity as adding four buses, but costs much less because you are only paying one driver instead of four.
The other is scheduling. Because streetcars run frequently enough, the majority of riders don’t consult a schedule, you just go to the stop and wait for a train to show up. Most visitors to New York or DC do the same thing with the subways there. To add extra buses, you probably have to put out a new schedule; with streetcars you just put extra cars on the line.
September 5, 2009 at 10:36 am
Public transit, including streetcars and subways, in most, if not all, cities, includes schedules that are published in print or online and/or can be queried over the phone or with a station attendant. Some people simply arrive at a stop or station and wait, while others consult a schedule and plan their trip.
Many cities also run extra transit, like more buses or longer trains, because of special events.
All cities vary frequency depending on the day and time. If you’re out in NYC in the middle of the night, the next train may not come for a while, so you may actually inquire as to when that will be. I’m not sure how we can be certain that the Cincinnati streetcar would necessarily avoid this situation.
September 6, 2009 at 4:19 pm
Why should many Cincinnati taxpayers pay for streetcars so that a transient UC crowd reaps the benefits. Many of these students are not burdened with the taxes as year round residents. This young generation feels that society owes them all these perks.
September 6, 2009 at 4:41 pm
The Cincinnati Streetcar will not raise your taxes.
September 7, 2009 at 9:43 am
The streetcars will raise taxes because the city will need money to subsidize the cars. They will need maintenance, etc. Cincy Metro is subsidized through taxes. This will be the biggest local boondoggle since the stadiums.
September 7, 2009 at 11:09 am
Brenda, your taxes will not be raised to pay for the streetcar and if you review the numerous posts on this website you can see just how the Cincinnati Streetcar would benefit all residents, not just the “transient UC crowd.”