Community Value

We already know that Mass Transit strategies could include so many fantastic value-adds for our communities. We see transit centres all over Edmonton that include such intergral operational components such as good systems design, comfortable waiting areas, effective communication, effective internal security measures.

We see that mass transit can include things that are not directly related to the pragmatic funtion of the operation, but are simply good investments such as good architecture, public art, trees and green space, commercial connections, and gathering space (not just waiting space).

To me, mass transit is about the entire journey, not just the middle bit, and the "last mile" is a key component of what non-LRT mass transit is. If a mass transit journey ends in a 15 minute walk through a parking lot, it is 15 minutes too long, and it's far too expensive. We need to ensure that the A and the B are destinations. Not near destinations. They ARE destinations.

I live near the Jasper Place transit station at the moment. It's across the street from the Orange Hub. It's going to get additional transit connections in the near future, and it's a good candidate for a destination for other mass transit. The question is, if ETS is willing to pay millions to create a parking lot for some other transit station, what could we do at Jasper Place to, first of all, prevent that from destroying our neighborhood, and then secondly, redirect that funding to make our local transit stop into even more of a destination and a better investment?

I'm imagining the innovation of a rooftop local museum that depicts Jasper Place in the 1950s. A mock drive-in movie theatre (cars stationary, built into the roof) that plays local movies and historical films about the area. Something that dares people to forget it. Something that redoubles its value in social media viral advertising every year. Something unique and interesting that adds value at a cost similar to that of a sprawling wasteland of concrete.

Surely, if we are considering how best to recharge users' electric cars while they take transit, we can reach as far afield as making the transit terminal a destination in-and-of itself, especially through partnerships with other Edmonton, Alberta, and private interest groups.