The sad truth is probably that the RTA doesn’t want to lose out on all that pretty green grant money and tax incentives if the NRHP decides that the new cars violate their criteria. See, it’s not the cars, but the entire Line which is on the Register. It’s a moronic stance by the RTA simply because they won’t even ask if the change can be made.

Jonah Bascle’s plan is simplicity in itself. Move a few wheelchair accessible cars from the Canal and Riverfront Lines to the St Charles Line and presto!, zero-cost solution! The current WA cars are actually cars from the St Charles line which were re-fitted for ADA compliance on the newer Lines. The Willow Street barn does all the fabrication and upkeep so there’s no need for any new cars, contracts, hiring, etc. The only thing standing in the way is the RTA.

And Loki, you know CH had nothing to do with your recovery. It was Elsie’s Magic Nose! (Note: That would have been much funnier and obscure had you not added the article. I still have my shirt!)

Didn’t this same station broadcast Limbaugh’s remarks about Katrina being handled very well by the Bush Administration, while New Orleanians were to blame for any ‘problems’?

These people are now, and forever will be, cretinous assholes.

I suggest shooting your AM Radio several times with a very large caliber weapon, and dancing around in a Saints Cheerleader’s outfit.

Oh, wait….

It’s this feeble approximation of a man getting paid to spout this sort of crap on the air. How far is it from s certain sportscaster who got canned recently for using the phrase “nappy headed” ?

It would also seem to me that switching out a couple of street cars (the protesters asked for two) would be required by the ADA.

Again, we see the City of New Orleans miss a simple point of human decency, one well connected not only to our recovery, but in wooing all those tourist dollars we hear about so much.

Perhaps they were busy finding legal precedent for Mayor Nagin to bill his Super Bowl Get Away to the city, meaning the taxpayers, meaning us.

He is after all, going to be well over two years in to being Ex-Mayor Nagin by the time the NFL comes to visit in 2013.

Does ESPN come to the federal penitentiary?

And maybe I ‘m missing something here but isn’t there a better venue for getting this done? I mean, protesting is “so last century”. Is it that hard to get city council to address the issue? I think actually stopping the streetcars worked against the cause. It certainly made them appear less sympathetic and more intrusive. I was aware of the protest and the Elvi were encouraged to attend, but I didn’t know they were planning on shutting down the line. Maybe it was a last minute decision. I dunno.

You’d think , after the events of 2005, we would have developed a better collective sense of empathy for our neighbors. This “shut up and die” attitude towards the handicapped is really disturbing.

Perhaps it went unnoticed or ignored, but the protest involved a request to trade out a couple of Street Cars with the Canal Street line, which have handicap accessible lifts already in place.
This would seem to be a rather easy fix.

But then, New Orleans City Hall is a shit pile of thieves and pimps.
On a good day.

John Osterlind will no doubt be found murdered one day, his body riddled with wheel chair tracks & crutch marks of every description.

Or maybe just tied to the Street Car tracks…