LET'S FINISH WHAT WE STARTED! Have you Ever Started Something you Didn’t Finish?
WHAT IS THE EL PASO STREETCAR? The El Paso streetcar line is a proposed and fully studied, shovel ready plan for a 5.2 mile intra-city fixed rail streetcar line from UTEP to downtown. The idea of vintage streetcar line starting again has been in the minds and hearts of El Pasoans for over 40 years and now we are so very close to making it happen again. WHERE IS THE PROPOSED ROUTE FOR THE EL PASO STREETCAR? The proposed route runs from UTEP down North Oregon to Santa Fe Street in Downtown El Paso, turns left at Father Rahm in Segundo Barrio and then head north again at South Kansas to Stanton Street. WHO IS PAYING FOR THIS? The City of El Paso spent $4.7 million for the planning and design of the streetcar project with a promise from the Texas Department of Transportation that they would pay for the $90 million construction project. This petition is meant to remind both the City and TXDOT that we expect them to finish what they started. THIS SOUNDS EXPENSIVE. IS IT WORTH IT? Yes. Streetcars make cities more attractive to tourists and provide an alternative means of transportation for residents. Also, streetcars help build the taxbase A study commissioned by the City of El Paso found that for every public dollar invested in the streetcar project, the citizens of El Paso can expect $12 dollars to be invested by the private sector along the streetcar route. Large private investment helps grow the tax base and reduces the burden on homeowners for paying for government services. Let’s take a look at a similar project constructed in Portland, Oregon. The Portland Streetcar (http://www.portlandstreetcar.org/) is a modern-style streetcar system with a 4-mile line and had an initial cost of $100 million to build. As of 20XX, Portland has attracted $3.5 billion in new development within three blocks of the line -- an ROI of 35:1! City’s such as Tampa, Florida and Little Rock, Arkansas have newer systems with short 2.5 mile routes have also experience over $1 billion of direct investments. BUT WE ALREADY HAVE BUSES AND MASS TRANSIT, WHY DO WE NEED STREETCARS? Streetcars offer a sense of permanence and pride like the streetcars in San Francisco, California. Streetcars increase public transportation ridership by attracting non-traditional public transportation riders. For example in Portland, there was an 87% increase in their overall transit use after the Portland Streetcars were introduced into their transit system. DOES THIS HAVE ANY IMPACT ON EL PASO TOURISM? This streetcar corridor is not only transit project for local residents to benefit but also a tourism/branding project. For our city this isn’t a case of copying another city but rather showcasing our own long and vibrant history of international streetcar ridership. The proposed streetcar project could further the economic development in downtown while connecting the vibrant energy of the university and the University Entertainment District. The streetcar will build on the success of the Plaza Theater, Southwest University Park and the Downtown Art District. WHY DO STREETCARS MATTER TO EL PASO? El Paso had has a long history of electric streetcar use. For almost 100 years (1902-1974), a streetcar was a vital connection between El Paso and Cd. Juarez. At one point, the El Paso Streetcar had over 63 miles of track covering nearly every facet of the El Paso. There were as many as 500 trips a day between El Paso and Cd. Juarez. In many ways, it defined and shaped our historic neighborhoods like Segundo Barrio, Manhattan Heights, Sunsets Heights and Kern Place. It was a system that brought our city together with wonderful stories that our parents and grandparents can still vividly recall. The City of El Paso owns 6-8 P.C.C streetcars which are part of our history and and are sought out by other cities. Rather than selling our history, we should celebrate it! LETS FINISH WHAT WE STARTED! TO SIGN PETITION PLEASE CONTACT: Contact: Peter Svarzbein - [email protected] Alex Duran - [email protected] Facebook.com/EPTROLLEY
