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Given the urban fabric of the cities and the steady growth in the area, do you think that this award/acknowledgment of the local public transportation will make the area more appealing to those looking for an urban environment with walkability?
Given the urban fabric of the cities and the steady growth in the area, do you think that this award/acknowledgment of the local public transportation will make the area more appealing to those looking for an urban environment with walkability?
I doubt it. Although to be fair, the new CDTA buses are really nice and spacious.
Most people who live in Albany who don't use CDTA associate it with being full of lower class people, which unfortunately makes it less desirable. Plenty of terrible press about fights on CDTA buses too. Check YouTube lol. I just don't see it being something that's going to attract people to the area.
Most people who live in Albany who don't use CDTA associate it with being full of lower class people, which unfortunately makes it less desirable. Plenty of terrible press about fights on CDTA buses too. Check YouTube lol. I just don't see it being something that's going to attract people to the area.
Got it and I see what you mean...Yeah, I wouldn’t say that CDTA by itself would attract people(lol), but an area with some nice core neighborhoods with walkability, a solid public transportation system and a steadily growing area is what I was thinking of.
Got it and I see what you mean...Yeah, I wouldn’t say that CDTA by itself would attract people(lol), but an area with some nice core neighborhoods with walkability, a solid public transportation system and a steadily growing area is what I was thinking of.
There just isn't enough good press about upstate NY as a whole even though it's larger cities are very walkable and friendly for those who use public transportation. I think even Amsterdam has a bus system.
Unfortunately the only time you ever hear of an upstate city is when someone is discussing its miserable economy and population loss.
I just saw a billboard along I-90 stating that about CDTA and I immediately thought that declaration was/is highly subjective and an advertising ploy of the bus company. CDTA could be a great transit system if they policed or did not tolerate unacceptable behavior from some of their riders. The Bus Plus routes are better because there isn't so much stop and go. I recently gave it a fair shot, riding for a solid week in order to determine if leaving my car at a park n ride was worth it. The main corridor of Central Ave / State St. gets the brunt of the bad behavior, as do some of the routes along Washington Ave. It's unfair in many respects, because it only takes a few bad apples to cement a bad reputation. My friend rode the bus from the Schenectady/Colonie line into downtown Albany for 13 years and for the most part, rode without incident. But for the times that were memorable for the wrong reasons, it was enough to taint the entire experience. Examples - admittedly some were isolated, but others were not - included youth acting in a gang mentality and intimidating passengers, laughing about it, while the driver did nothing. In fairness, short of calling police and pulling over, what can he/she really do? Waiting for a bus only to be passed by because the bus is full; a bus repeatedly off schedule. A drug deal going down in plain sight, again nothing done because of fear. Waiting inside the covered shelter and moving to the elements because the inside of the shelter is disgustingly filthy. One time a female waiting for the bus appeared to be a hooker, and decided (at 7am, when her shift apparently ended), that she had to pee, but didn't want to miss the bus, so she walked behind the shelter and took a squat in full view of everyone else waiting. Drug use (not just smoking pot, which would probably be ignored) going on & then leaving the needles behind - that one was filmed & made it on the news.
My trial week was tamer - mostly schedule/crowded issues - but I decided to find another way to curb the budget.
I just saw a billboard along I-90 stating that about CDTA and I immediately thought that declaration was/is highly subjective and an advertising ploy of the bus company. CDTA could be a great transit system if they policed or did not tolerate unacceptable behavior from some of their riders. The Bus Plus routes are better because there isn't so much stop and go. I recently gave it a fair shot, riding for a solid week in order to determine if leaving my car at a park n ride was worth it. The main corridor of Central Ave / State St. gets the brunt of the bad behavior, as do some of the routes along Washington Ave. It's unfair in many respects, because it only takes a few bad apples to cement a bad reputation. My friend rode the bus from the Schenectady/Colonie line into downtown Albany for 13 years and for the most part, rode without incident. But for the times that were memorable for the wrong reasons, it was enough to taint the entire experience. Examples - admittedly some were isolated, but others were not - included youth acting in a gang mentality and intimidating passengers, laughing about it, while the driver did nothing. In fairness, short of calling police and pulling over, what can he/she really do? Waiting for a bus only to be passed by because the bus is full; a bus repeatedly off schedule. A drug deal going down in plain sight, again nothing done because of fear. Waiting inside the covered shelter and moving to the elements because the inside of the shelter is disgustingly filthy. One time a female waiting for the bus appeared to be a hooker, and decided (at 7am, when her shift apparently ended), that she had to pee, but didn't want to miss the bus, so she walked behind the shelter and took a squat in full view of everyone else waiting. Drug use (not just smoking pot, which would probably be ignored) going on & then leaving the needles behind - that one was filmed & made it on the news.
My trial week was tamer - mostly schedule/crowded issues - but I decided to find another way to curb the budget.
This declaration actually came from the American Public Transportation Association, not from CDTA.
This declaration actually came from the American Public Transportation Association, not from CDTA.
Thanks for that clarification ckhthankgod, though I still have to wonder how they come to that conclusion. By the number of complaints & compliments each transit authority receives? I doubt many riders are reaching out to the APTA with feedback, pro or con. I think it's human nature that most consumers stay silent either way and only a small segment speak up. Just a thought.
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