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Posts in category The Rapid

The Rapid bus system reacts to its disconnection from reality by further disconnecting itself from reality

Sep01
2012 1 Comment Written by GRPundit

The Rapid bus system, which I’ve been no fan of in the past, seems to be so completely oblivious to its own disconnection from reality, that it’s often stunning. But the last two weeks have shown, to an even greater extent, just how disconnected they are at Rapid headquarters.

The folks over at the Kent County Taxpayers Alliance have helped out the group Walker Yes to get an issue on the ballot in November to let voters in Walker decide if they want to stay part of the Rapid’s tax district. As they’ve pointed out, the requirement of getting signatures of 20% of voters from the last gubernatorial election is the highest standard in state law. It takes 15% to get any other issue on the ballot in Walker, such as amending its city charter. It takes 10% to amend the state constitution. It takes even less for a state initiative or referendum. Yet, the Rapid’s boosters think that 20% really isn’t a sign of discontent in Walker.

In fact, the Rapid’s folks seem to think that the voters in Walker voting “no” on the Rapid’s tax requests in the last two elections to the tune of about 67% each is nothing to worry about. But voters in Walker, Grandville, Kentwood, and Wyoming have been saying no pretty consistently. What does the Rapid do? Nothing. They just pretend that it’s ok to subject entire cities to their higher and higher taxes without their permission.

Then they act surprised that a group like Walker Yes pops up and puts the issue on the ballot. No doubt, the Rapid’s people will claim that the world will end and babies will be murdered if Walker votes “yes” to withdraw from the Rapid’s tax authority. Of course, Walker would have the choice of whether to contract with the Rapid for the same service, like several townships already do. But the Rapid’s people aren’t interested in cost effectiveness or even democracy. They have their eyes on a plan that’s completely disconnected from reality.

Have you heard of the Rapid’s “Transit Master Plan?” Probably not. I’d bet that maybe 0.5% of the local population has. And that’s probably a high number. Well, this plan not only aims for two Silver Line bus systems, but it also plans to tear up downtown and install streetcars, which are pretty much trolleys. The cost for this? Only about half a billion dollars. And that’s just to build the thing. Tack on another $100 million a year to run everything.

Guess whose taxes they plan to raise to pay for this…

But they insist, laughingly, on calling the Transit Master Plan “the people’s plan.” What a joke. I don’t know how more disconnected from reality they can get. But wait, they can!

This week the Rapid’s board of directors, which is not elected by the way (the people’s board of directors?) decided to give a raise to Peter Varga, the head guy who insists on calling himself the CEO. Yes, a government agency has a CEO. He now makes over $200,000 a year, plus a free car on the backs of taxpayers. Of course, you’ll remember him from the video embedded at the end of this post. Yep, that guy makes more than the governor of Michigan. Even several of the Rapid’s own board members seem to be getting some sense of reality. One of them is quoted as saying that the whole thing doesn’t look to good when they voted on the pay increase. No kidding.

This was summed up pretty well by a line in a recent article on the city commission putting the issue on the ballot in Walker: “Walker City Commissioner Chuck Deschaine said officials with the Rapid should have seen this coming a year and a half ago, when Walker residents voted down, by a 3-1 margin, the most recent millage increase to expand the Rapid.”

Bingo.

What does the Rapid say in response? And I quote, “surveys show that nearly 750,000 riders have ridden the bus in Walker this year alone.”

One commenter on that article makes a good point. I looked this up. Walker has about 25,000 residents. Maybe 12,000 or so that are working age. The Rapid wants us to believe that everyone in Walker rides the bus an average of 30 times a year? Every single man, woman, and child?

Of course the Rapid has a credibility problem, they blatantly lie to the public, regularly… and the GR Press just goes on printing this nonsense with no critical thought whatsoever. Simple common sense tells you that 750,000 is beyond ridiculous, but it’s become clearer and clearer that the Press is really just the Rapid’s PR department.

Enjoy watching you tax dollars at work!

Epic Takedown of The Rapid’s Waste

May04
2012 Leave a Comment Written by GRPundit

Deer in the Headlights

I just had this video forwarded to me by a friend and it is a must see! A local media outlet finally took on The Rapid and its lies and waste. Normally local media, like the Grand Rapids Press, just regurgitate every press release that The Rapid puts out with no critical analysis at all. Or, as we saw last year during the “Silver Line” vote, the Grand Rapids Press reporter was essentially the Propaganda Minister for The Rapid, reporting false information and ignoring facts that The Rapid found uncomfortable. Frankly, the local media’s inability to report anything negative on The Rapid is baffling when they regularly go after Grand Rapids Community College or the City of Grand Rapids. This is despite the fact that The Rapid is the most wasteful government agency in the area.

Nonetheless, David Bailey of Channel 3 took them on and the result is epic. Peter Varga, the director of The Rapid, is a deer in the headlights when he is confronted with facts. Watch the video below and marvel at how incomprehensible his argument is — that is, when he can actually muster up the ability to speak.

UPDATE: Watch part two of the video report below. It’s even better than part one!! See Peter Varga, the “CEO” of The Rapid, walk out of the interview because he can’t handle the questioning!

Rapid Silver Line Wins – Buffoonery Ensues

May06
2011 Leave a Comment Written by GRPundit

Well, after a second vote where the entire political/bureaucratic elite establishment of six cities was mobilized (and hauling Vern Ehlers out of retirement, “weekend at Bernie’s” style), the Silver Line millage passed. With a whopping margin of success of 136 votes out of more than 34,000 cast, the voters of Grandville, Walker, Wyoming, and Kentwood once again learn that their money is happily sucked up by Grand Rapids when the issue was overwhelmingly defeated in those cities.

What’s next? The Rapid will add a bunch more buses to existing routes and not expand service one bit. The Silver Line will clog Division, Monroe, and Michigan streets with double-long accordion style buses at the price tag of $700,000 each. Lanes will be shut down so only these boondoggle buses will be able to use them, congesting traffic and pissing people off.

But hey, it’ll make young professionals want to live here!!

The Rapid

Posted in Rapid Silver Line

Rapid Bus Millage Tax Hike – It’s Heating Up

Apr23
2011 Leave a Comment Written by GRPundit

To my readers: I apologize for not posting much in the last year – life’s circumstances have kept me busy (you know, paying bills and all that stuff). But, I have been watching the debate heat up between the people in favor of The Rapid’s 31% tax hike and the people against it. I’ve been really surprised by the number of videos showing up on youtube by people who are against the tax hike. When voters said NO to the Silver Line in 2009, it seemed like a clear message. But, the politicians down at the Rapid didn’t get the message, so they doubled the tax increase and hoped that you wouldn’t notice that the Silver Line was part of it. Well, anyways, below are some of my favorite videos that I found online:

 


Posted in Grand Rapids Tax Increase, Rapid Silver Line

The Rapid Uses Communist-Inspired Logo for Free Concert

Apr03
2011 7 Comments Written by GRPundit

Vote Yes for Communism on May 3rd!

Does anyone else find it odd the The Rapid bus system is using a communist-inspired logo to advertise the free concert they are holding on April 16th? This concert, called the “Rapid Revolution,” is allegedly aimed at inspiring people to vote yes on the May 3rd millage increase for the Rapid Fail Line, oops, I mean the Rapid Silver Line. It’s a rather strange tactic to get out the vote. Frankly, it’s a little jarring and I can’t imagine that this type of imagery would inspire confidence or excitement in the average voter.

What I really can’t understand is why they would use a logo that has been used by communist and socialist groups for so long. Some examples are below. Do they really want to associate a bus system with governments which have murdered tens of millions of people through forced labor, starvation, war, and mass murder?

Well, if you’re inspired, I’m sure they’d love to have you at Rosa Parks Circle in downtown Grand Rapids on April 16th, between 2:00pm and 7:00pm. If you’re not inspired, maybe you’d want to contact The Rapid and ask why they’re associating with a communist symbol.

Posted in Grand Rapids City Taxes, Rapid Silver Line

The Rapid Silver Line is Back… Again.

Feb28
2011 3 Comments Written by GRPundit

The Rapid Silver Line, the boondoggle bus system that failed at the ballot in 2009, is back. Voters in Grand Rapids, East Grand Rapids, Grandville, Kentwood, Walker, and Wyoming will be asked for a 31% millage increase.

I did some extensive reporting on this mess in 2009. Please check those posts out for some detail on the proposed system. For more up to date information, my friends over at ITP Watch are doing a great job of keeping The Rapid on their toes.

Rapid FAIL Line

Posted in Rapid Silver Line, Uncategorized - Tagged , , , , ,

Mayor Heartwell to Taxpayers: Drop Dead

Aug19
2009 1 Comment Written by GRPundit

Last week the Grand Rapids Downtown Development Authority board approved the expenditure of $850,000 to help the city buy five new DASH buses for the downtown parking lots. The catch is that mayor Heartwell asked the DDA to kick in extra money so the city could buy hybrid-electric buses instead of standard buses. The standard buses cost $353,000 each, according to the Grand Rapids Press. The hybrid-electric buses cost $200,000 more (for a total of over $550,000) – each.

Earth to Heartwell: We are entering Great Depression II.

The mayor’s justification for the request to spend $1,000,000 more on five buses was summed up thusly:

Heartwell argued the DDA should somehow come up with the money — he didn’t know where it would come from — because having buses labeled ‘hybrid’ plays well with the city’s efforts to market itself as ‘green.’

“If for no other reason than the important symbolic benefit of having buses around downtown that say ‘hybrid,’ it’s an investment worth making,” he said. “It’s terribly expensive to do, but if we don’t start making these kinds of investments in our environment, we’re being short-sighted.”

So, in other words, the word “hybrid” painted on the side of a bus is worth spending an extra $1,000,000 of taxpayer money. Right.

Wisely, the DDA voted 5-1 (with Heartwell being the “one”) to reject his request.

Just to drive the point home of how the mayor is completely out of touch and apparently has absolutely no idea what a position of public trust involves, I was just leaked the actual improvements in gas mileage that the hybrid-electric buses enjoy. Get ready for this. These are the numbers from The Rapid (ITP) itself:

A standard diesel transit bus gets 4.45 miles per gallon. The hybrid-electric buses get 5.12 miles per gallon. Yes, that’s right – an improvement of 0.67 miles per gallon – all for the spiffy additional cost of $200,000 each.

Remember this when the city commission comes to taxpayers asking for a tax increase to shore up the rapidly-deteriorating budget.

Posted in George Heartwell, Grand Rapids City Taxes - Tagged ,

Rapid Silver Line: They Almost Got to Take Credit

May13
2009 1 Comment Written by GRPundit

An important article appeared in the Grand Rapids Press last week that highlights several issues regarding the failed Silver Line bus system and the false claims of economic development that are touted by the Silver Line’s supporters.

The Grand Valley Metro Council (very much pro-Silver Line) won $400,000 in federal grants to clean up several abandoned sites along Division avenue, in the hopes that this will attract more development. You can almost hear how this would have been announced if the Silver Line had passed. It would have been touted as the first in a series of positive developments because of the Silver Line. Of course, the Silver Line had nothing to do with this grant award, but it underlines the claims that these sorts of transportation projects somehow spur development. However, as this news item shows, the development is largely spurred by government subsidy, not the appearance of a fancy silver-colored bus line. The Rapid supporters confuse correlation with causation. It goes against logic that replacing the current buses with buses that are painted silver will someone convince people and business to move to Division Avenue.

As we have previously pointed out, the development in Portland around mass transit, as the pro-Rapid supporters love to point to, only occurred after government subsidies were enacted. The development did not occur due to the mass transit system. This is the heart of the pro-Silver Line argument; that the Silver Line “would have” spurred several dollars’ worth of development for each dollar spent. This is simply not the case. The only evidence the Rapid points to in support of their argument is a thinly-documented three page article, as we pointed out here.

However, this Press article also points out that they haven’t given up on the Silver Line boondoggle. The article states, “Although [The Rapid] expects the Silver Line route eventually to win the voters’ blessing, plenty of other properties could be helped in the meantime . . .” Clearly they aren’t done with trying to sell this mess to the voters. Based on the negative Silver Line feedback both in the Press and on other online sources, it seems unlikely that they can salvage this project without significant changes. Even the pro-transit people weren’t convinced about the need for the Silver Line.

Posted in Grand Rapids City Government, Grand Rapids City Taxes, Rapid Silver Line - Tagged , , ,

Rapid Silver Line Goes Down

May06
2009 6 Comments Written by GRPundit
silverline-logo2

Rapid Silver Line: FAIL

It’s fantastic news for taxpayers and for fiscal sanity in the Grand Rapids area. Last night the expensive and redundant Rapid “Silver Line” tax increase request went down in flames. The overall vote total was 52% against and 48% in favor, but when looking at the six cities in the Rapid service district, we see that a majority of the cities rejected the request:

Grand Rapids – 53% yes, 47% no

East Grand Rapids – 64% yes, 36% no

Grandville – 36% yes, 64% no

Kentwood – 46% yes, 54% no

Walker – 32% yes, 68% no

Wyoming – 36% yes, 64% no

As you can see, Walker, Wyoming, Kentwood, and Grandville all soundly rejected the tax increase request and even Grand Rapids was closer than expected.

The pro-Silver Line people are predictably dour. The comments of Peter Varga, executive director of the ITP (Rapid), sum up their attitude perfectly. He said it was rejected simply because voters didn’t understand the request. Right. Voters heard from this blog as well as other groups (including our friends at KCFFR) who exposed the bad plan of the Silver Line. The Rapid folks tried their hardest to limit the information available on this request, but active citizens exposed the Rapid and let voters know the facts. This web site alone received thousands of visits from people searching for more information.

The message was clear:

  • This new Silver Line was a duplicate of already-existing bus services
  • The Silver Line would cost tens of millions of dollars (just for buses)
  • The Silver Line would have cut off traffic on Division by shutting down lanes and dramatically increasing congestion
  • The Silver Line was slower than existing bus services (see our previous posts on the issue)
  • The claims of spurred development and “new jobs” were based on speculation and conjecture

In summary, bravo for the voters of the four cities who rejected this request. Make no mistake, they will be back, asking for more. Their next request will be for more than $100 million for an even more inefficient light rail line.

Posted in Grand Rapids City Taxes, Light Rail, Rapid Silver Line - Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,

Rapid Silver Line – Bus “Slow” Transit

Apr21
2009 4 Comments Written by GRPundit
Just Say No to the Silver Line Just Say No to the Silver Line

UPDATE: For more up to date information on the Silver Line and The Rapid, please visit our friends at http://www.itpwatch.org.

The supporters of the proposed $110 million Silver Line bus system in Grand Rapids tout it as a “Bus Rapid Transit” line. The proposed route of the Silver Line is up Division from 60th Street, a jog around the hospitals around Michigan street, and back to the Rapid station. The total route, according to Rapid, is 9.8 miles. It will take 35 minutes for the new “Silver Line” to travel this route. An important note here is that, as we’ve previously pointed out, Division will be turned into an effective two lane road (one lane each way) so that these Silver Line buses can have their own dedicated lanes. This supposedly will speed these buses up because they won’t have to share these lanes with regular cars.

But wait, the Rapid already has a bus, route #1, that travels from the Clyde Park Meijer, down to 68th Street, up Division, and around to the Rapid station. The total distance for the current buses on this route is 12 miles, according to Google Maps. In addition, according to the Rapid’s web site, the buses on this route take about 33 minutes.

Let’s do the math. The Silver Line is supposed to take 35 minutes to travel 9.8 miles, with dedicated lanes on Division. The current #1 bus, traveling 12 miles, takes 33 minutes, sharing the lanes like every other vehicle on the road. The Silver Line factors out to be traveling at around 16.8 miles per hour. The current bus factors out to 20.57 miles per hour.

Huh? How do they call this Bus Rapid Transit? It’s Bus Slow Transit. It’s slower than the regular buses that take the same route now!

Don’t forget that these dedicated Silver Line lanes on Division will squeeze all current traffic on Division down to one lane in each direction. Traffic jam, anyone?

Be sure to cast your vote on this idea on Tuesday, May 5th, if you live in Grand Rapids, East Grand Rapids, Wyoming, Walker, Kentwood, or Grandville.

See our prior posts on this subject:

Posted in Grand Rapids City Taxes, Rapid Silver Line - Tagged , , , , , , , , ,
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