Either stupidity knows no bounds, or this thing is being intentionally run into the ground.
According to the Las Vegas Advisor link:
“Monorail Fares Up: The bankrupt Las Vegas Monorail has raised its fares once more, increasing the cost of the unlimited-ride one-day pass to $14 (from $13) and adding $2 to the cost of the three-day pass, which is now $30. The single-ride fare remains the same, at $5.”
Honestly, I no longer think this is simply incompetence.
From inception to execution, they have done everything wrong.
Las Vegas Monorail with Hooters in the Background
Monorail Customer Service Booth Closed
Monorail Customer Service Booth Closed
Monorail Customer Service Booth Closed
Monorail Train at Station
Monorail Ticket Machines
Las Vegas Monorail with Hooters in the Background
Terrible route, terrible station locations, abominal fares, the abolition of discounted rides, the closure of customer service booths — I’ve never seen a single group of people put their dick in the light socket quite as many times as the executives at the Las Vegas Monorail Company.
You can pick any one of the individual missteps above and point to them as simple “mistakes” on the part of the company, but taken together, they just don’t make sense.
“Not enough people are riding the train, so let’s raise fares again. You know, the same thing that led to the drop in ridership the last time we did it.”
It’s too insane to be anything other than a premeditated attempt to self-destruct, or to stick a thumb in the eye of creditors as the train system winds its way through bankruptcy.
According to the LV Sun:
Even as the Las Vegas Monorail goes through bankruptcy proceedings, its proponents are touting possible futures for it.
Their hopes are tied to the Regional Transportation Commission and extending the monorail to McCarran International Airport.
One scenario would involve financial backing from China. Another is to get Federal Transit Administration funding, but that would require sponsorship by a government agency in Nevada. And a third, one that has long been speculated to be the monorail company’s ultimate bailout plan — Partnering with the valley’s public bus system.
…
If that happens, monorail board member and former Clark County Commissioner Bruce Woodbury says, “We then think it makes sense to improve and expand the system. Most people I’ve talked to say the monorail is a good thing, but that it needs to go to the airport. In order to attract any funding for that, we would have to get the debt restructured.”
You know, the more I think about it, I think I know what the execs at the Monorail Company might be doing.
They are well aware that they are on their way out, and for the remaining time that they own the system, they are going to try and make as much money for themselves as possible. This is the toy train that they built, and if they only have a few months left to own it, goddamn it … they are going to get as much as they can for it. Perhaps the lawyers told them to do so, or some kind of exit revenue (ie. “Keep what you can make”) deal was made.
It’s clear that the current owners have no concern about the long term viability of the system. They are going scorched-earth.
A public takeover of the system, however, might actually work — so long as the rail line is finally built out.
If (and this is a very big IF), the Monorail is also able to expand as planned post-bankruptcy, it would be a major coup for the neighborhood. I’ll have transit-induced priapism for a month.
Alas, I think it’s more vaporware.
Instead, I am just biding my time until the ACE Bus arrives:
The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada (RTC) will dramatically improve transportation within the resort corridor and Downtown Las Vegas in early 2010 with the premier of the ACE Gold Line, the ACExpress C Line, and associated route restructuring to other RTC transit services.
The ACE Gold Line, Deuce on the Strip, Route 108 on Paradise Road, and the ACExpress C-Line will each play a unique, important role in moving visitors and residents through the resort corridor and Downtown Las Vegas.
The ACE Gold Line will connect the southern and central portion of the Las Vegas Strip with off-Strip locations (such as Downtown Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Convention Center) as quickly as possible. The ACE Gold Line is designed to serve longer trips. The Deuce on the Strip will provide frequent stop service along the core of the Las Vegas Strip while providing a unique vantage point. Due to the number of stops, the Deuce is best suited for shorter trips from one Strip location to another.
Route 108 on Paradise Road will connect the northern portion of the Las Vegas Strip (Riviera Boulevard to the Stratosphere Hotel) with Downtown Las Vegas. Route 108 will also serve McCarran International Airport.
Signs around town have indicated that the ACE will begin operating in March 2010. For those of you who are chronologically-challenged, March 2010 begins in 3 days. My home ACE stop is undergoing finishing touches as I type this.
As a matter of fact, this is what it looks like as of today.
Stratosphere Ace Bus Stop
Stratosphere Ace Bus Stop
Stratosphere Ace Bus Stop
Stratosphere Ace Bus Stop
Kind of sweet, no?
I get excited about very few things, but I am really looking forward to the ACE. Not only might it be a complete Monorail replacement for yours truly, but it will put me within a stone’s throw of 3, count’em three bus stops that directly serve The Strip, my neighborhood, and Downtown.
If ever there were a mass transit Nirvana in the desert Southwest, that place would be Rexville.
Anybody want to buy a Porsche?