Walker wrote >>
A Streetcar works best for shorter lines. Running over 6 miles from the CC down Broad Street might not be a good Streetcar route.
Personally, I think it would make more sense to run a commuter rail line along the existing tracks from the Airport to the Convention Center to the West Side (tracks cross near Wilson & Broad and run behind the Delphi site).
Penn said that they were willing to pony up a few hundred million for new highway off ramps at the Arena District site. Perhaps they can pony up some money to help connect their site to the rest of the city via rail?
Yes, please!
I can't think of any single thing that would help Columbus (including the West side) as much as a reliable form of transportation on that route. We desperately need a non-taxi/car way to get to and from the airport (the bus route is not one of COTA's strongest), and I think that a commuter line heading West would open up a lot more development than anything running up or down High St would (which isn't to say that I wouldn't love a street car someday).
Even if Penn National wasn't willing to chip in, I wonder if this would be a more viable route to propose for a starter line. It seems like this is a route that would link a more diverse and underserviced stretch of the city than High St. does, but would also have direct advantages for the big players downtown and in the Arena District.
Or has this been proposed and shot down in the past?