New Orleans St Claude Line Stops Short of Press Street.

The New Orleans RTA streetcar line down St. Claude Avenue to Poland Ave. is stopped short for now; the line will end at Elysian Fields Ave. because the Norfolk Southern Railroad will have nothing to do with a streetcar line crossing their tracks at Press Street. There's nothing mentioning a possible flyover or duckunder at the NSRR tracks, but I suspect they'd have nothing to do with that, either. Considering how unsafe the existing St. Claude Ave. grade crossing is , if I were the railroad, I'd demand that the state and the city shut it down immediately! Plus all other grade crossings on the riverside of Gentilly Boulevard, all the way to the river.

Anyway, here are some images:

Suggested forty-five year plan for New Orleans area rapid transit to 2050.

Basically, light railways and commuter rail. [1]

Closeup of same, at the historic core. [2]

 

So what I would suggest, is sever the Rampart Street section of the line at Franklin Ave. and send it out that way to the Lake. I would then take the section of the line east of the NSRR and hook it up to the riverfront Streetcar in the French Quarter. Both suggested modifications are shown in blue. 

My suggested changes using a nola.com-generated map.

 

Because eventually, we are going to have to get around using non-petroleum dependent forms of transportation because we won't have oil extraction at the rates we've been having since 1995 for much longer. Peak Oil, you know.

 

Notes:

 

[1]  Eugene L. Birch & Susan M. Wachter, eds. Rebuilding Urban Places After Disaster / Lessons from Hurricane Katrina. Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2006, Plate 20: Transit and transportation plan.

[2] Ibid.

Blighted Property in the Medical Area.

This one is on S. Galvez South Johnson Street, in New Orleans' Bioinnovation District, a.k.a., the Tulane-Gravier medical area. This building should be occupied by medical professionals, but nooooo...o...o...o! It's boarded up, has vines growing on it, and has a piece of its roof missing.

No. 433 South Johnson Street.

View from the front. See the missing roof?

Three-quarters profile at right hand side.

Vines are growing on the back.

Another view of the front-right corner,

viewed diagonally across from Tulane Ave.

Two Blighted Properties in Gentrified Areas.

In an era of peak oil and the fashionableness and popularity of city living, these buildings should have been rehabbed into perfect condition by now.

First blighted property! Magazine at Napoleon Avenue in the Faubourg Bouligny. Miss Mae's, a local tavern, is on the bottom floor, the top floor is vacant and boarded up.

 

 

If this isn't fixed up and fixed up soon, Miss Mae's will have to move.

 

 

The second blighted property is on Sophie Wright Place near Felicity, in the Coliseum Square / Lower Garden District.

 

Three-quarters front and left profile.

View of front with collapsing gutter and soffit.

"Nice noggin' youse got there. I'd hate to lose it."

Nice warning sign.

Too bad it's at the wrong (left) end of the front of the house.

And here is the collapsing gutter and soffit - at the right end!

 

Looking up at the collapse-in-slow-motion.

Somebody could get killed by this once it lets go.

Three-quarters profile of right side from across the street.

Graced with oh, so lovely graffiti.

Close-up of the right side.

Grey Ghost, you have a job to do!

 

Left end of the house from across the street.

Look! You can see daylight!

And here's a dogtrot down the middle!

Did it used to be a garage???

Three-quarters profile view of the left side of the house.

Nice view from the front bedroom!

Satellite dish behind the right end of the house.

Clearly inoperable; only serves as a support for weed vines.

 

 

 

 



Hellooo, Detroit!

Actually the subject piece of Urban Decay is at Claiborne Ave and Soniat Street, southeast (River-Downtown) corner in Uptown New Orleans.

Front view.

Right side view.

Front view at left side.