[- CATrail Station Evaluation part 1 part 2

Example station: Boulevard Mall Station

The Basics

Each station of this type is located in the center of the street, mid-block, in a wide median. Each station features a ticket vendor, trash cans, system map, cover with station identifier and route identifiers, and a stairway leading underground to a pedestrian crossing tunnel. Disabled customers may push a button located at a crosswalk on a wide part of the platform and cross when car traffic is stopped.

Downstairs

The downstairs area serves a variety of purposes. It is important to note that they range from ephemeral qualities to traffic engineering advantages.

Starting with the practical side (traffic engineering): Las Vegas’ streets are wide and take time to cross. Pedestrians and motorists in Las Vegas do not have the best relationship when they must share the same grade. Motorists expect a certain flow-through performance out of the off-freeway streets in the Las Vegas metro area, and that performance is a quality of life factor for them. In addition, it gets very hot and bright in Las Vegas in the summer, so a sheltered crossing is good for the transit customer.

The more ephemeral side of things is that a tunnel adds a certain level of engineering sophistication that other light rail systems don’t have. It provides a truly rapid transit feel, with the tunnels and also provides a place for the system to make some money on advertising. In the case of a station located adjacent a shopping mall, the tunnel could well feature retailers and an elevator for the disabled customers.

Changes to the environment

The reader should note from this model that a primary goal of building a transit system to serve in-city residents is that pedestrian-oriented, human-scale development must follow to truly maximize the investment in transit – both for the operating agency and for the area stakeholders. In our example of the mall, the asphalt open space (parking lots) opens up new areas to development. The users for the new development will be delivered from a facility requiring no parking – if – developers add places for those users to live right near the transit line. Narrowing of the street and control of the automobile environment occurs in this example but the on-street traffic should see the aforementioned benefits of the pedestrian tunnel.

Lessons for the developer

The property developer owning shopping centers or apartment complexes immediately bordering the line and especially those bordering stations have opportunities open to them with the transit line that they did not have before. Grand stairs coming out of the pedestrian tunnels can open up onto new plaza space which can be used to accent infill projects housing offices, housing, and retail uses.

Destinations

CATrail is focused on two primary endpoint destinations – Downtown Las Vegas and McCarran International Airport. In the example of this station situated right in the middle of those two destinations on a track route that serves 5 distinct train routes, the possibilities for crossfeeding are quite good.