Your Views on Metrolink TVMFail and Inland Empire SmartGrowth

By: Nicholas Ventrone, Community Engagement Director
riversidetransit@gmail.com

Thanks to all of our readers for commenting over the current matters regarding Metrolink and Inland Empire smart growth. Here's a rundown of your views:

How about getting some of those companies to start opening offices out in the IE so they don't have to commute. Mark Friis/Facebook

The real issue is that many people are clueless when it comes to personal finance and managing their money. For better or worse, nothing is guaranteed and trade-offs must be made. Many people are blissfully unaware as to what they're trading, so that's where they first need to get a grip on things. Nevram Norman/Facebook

What comes first: the jobs or the people? Seeing that a lot of people already commute out of the area to jobs, it is time to bring more jobs here to the ‪#‎IE‬. iNLand fIEts/Facebook

Amazon..Staters..Toys r Us...shall be the guiding light....use up every available inch at Norton. Robert Harp/Facebook

So how do we get (expanded jobs) into SBD? Nevram Norman/Facebook

Two things: One, San Bernardino needs to incentivize business growth targeted toward existing residents with business-friendly policies and specific master plans throughout the city. Second, the city needs to continue its efforts to expel gang crime and human trafficking; such crime that clearly de-incentivizes investments. That can be done by expanding law enforcement in a fiscally conservative way by growing its Reserve ranks, Explorers, Community Action Patrol, Station Volunteers, and Neighborhood Watch programs to assist the current full time officers. In addition, the city should ensure the non-profit sector aimed at improving the social conditions of the city can operate seamlessly. I've noticed the city has begun to take action on this serious issue.

Would your OC housing plan cause existing residents to be upside-down on their mortgages? Anonymous

Yes, that could very well be an unintended consequence for owners of condos, town homes and smaller tracts with a loan, but that is no excuse to keep supplies unfairly low and prices artificially high. Government officials will have to address this issue as the comprehensive master plans to boost OC housing supplies are formed. Professionals and economists in this field should be invited to form and debate a solution for existing homeowners who have to pay the high mortgage bill each month so they are not unfairly driven out as supplies go up and home prices come down. A number of fair government rebate and loan modification programs can be discussed for these residents who may have bought at the inflated rate with no intention of capitalizing or investing on the purchase and may face negative equity with the price drops. They should be able to take advantage of loan modification programs which would lower mortgage and property tax rates as an incentive to not walk away from their home. Tax and fee rebate programs can also incentivize banks to assist these homeowners by writing off the loses.

Also, I don't anticipate nor expect homes on large properties such as dwellings in Coto de Caza or Nellie Gail Ranch to drop significantly as much of OC is already developed.

We would love for #TVMfail hashtag to become moot sometime soon. Metrolink Diary/Twitter

Memo to the good citizens who operate and contribute to the Metrolink Diary Twitter Page: We're all in it together to fix our broken Metrolink system. I thank you for exposing #TVMfail and the late trains. Now we need to present some fiscally conservative solutions to solve this problem. More on that soon.

Regarding our position of off-peak DMU train sets not saving Metrolink money:

Very interesting! You're right, I would think that a DMU would cost less to operate that a regular train, although with the crew costs being the same and the problems you mentioned with storage I never considered that it washes out. I have ridden the things here in Germany and it's not exactly pleasant so I wouldn't push for it The diesel engines are quite a loud drone through the entire trip, and you miss the best part of the train trip—here at least—beer on tap in the dining car! Alexis Kasperavičius/The Transit Coalition Discussion Board

The Sprinter DMU sets are actually not as noisy as the European train sets. If you're down in San Diego County one day, give it a try. This DMU set is not a real noise maker.