With Uber, The Wave project must be Abandoned

Three years ago, I wrote about The Wave project, a proposed streecar for Downtown Fort Lauderdale that reeks of corruption. The Wave clearly illustrates how government corruption works; The Federal government pledges to give Millions to a city if they undertake these huge transportation products (Trains are more common, Streetcars are newer); the city commissioners see a way to funnel millions into their donor's pockets, and the taxpayers get screwed. The Wave fits this mold perfectly.

Things Have Changed

I previously wrote that the original Wave project, proposed in the early 2000s, was based on antiquated idea that had proven over time to be false. The idea was that downtown Fort Lauderdale would be a booming metropolis and that massive expansion would require mass transportation to bring people from population centers to Downtown. But the metropolis stalled. The proposed route along SE 3rd and Andrews has proven disinteresting. The route for the Wave serves no current purpose.

Uber Changes Everything

Something has happened in the last few years. UBER is here. Uber changes everything. Now you can get from point A to point B quickly and efficiently using an App on your phone. The days of waiting for busses and Trollies are over. The Wave is a massively expensive project that only connect a tiny portion of the city to another tiny portion. There's no business or main population center in Fort Lauderdale. Fort Lauderdale is all over the place. You're going to take a Streetcar for 6 blocks, get off at Las Olas; wait 10-15 minutes for a Trolly to take you to the beach? What is this, 1985?

What we SHOULD Do

I've also expressed my belief that the Trolley system was a "front" to help to justify the Wave. The Trollies, in the current configuration, are a joke. Uber makes them almost irrelevant. Who is going to wait 15 minutes in 90 degree heat for a Trolly to save $4? Poor people. Homeless people. It's not how you build a city.

What we SHOULD do is re-purpose the Trolly system to better serve the city's tourist industry, which is our lifeline of revenue. The way it's configured now is completely wrong. This is what we need.

1) Regular Trollies from the Airport and Port to the Beach Hotels. Trollies are a fun way to introduce tourists to the city, and the cab scene at the airport is a disaster. Charge $5 and tourists will save $20 each way and it will enhance our image as an accommodating destination.

2) A practical US1 Route. With all of the new residences on US1, there's no Trolly that goes from The Galleria to SE 17th. There should be a route from the mall, up US1 (with a stop at Las Olas near Morton's, going straight through to SE 17th. Sure there's busses that make those routes, but nobody wants to ride a bus.

3) Trollies should run from the Beach to Himmarshee (SW 2nd) all night, and until 4am on weekends. The idea that Trollies don't run when people 1) want to go to Las Olas and 2) are drinking and shouldn't be driving is folly. It shows that government is corrupt and not smart.

Of course with Uber you can get from anywhere to anywhere, so maybe we don't even need the Trollies anymore. I know one thing for sure; We CERTAINLY don't need The Wave.