Did you know the City of Lake Worth, to have bus service restored to the Lake Worth Beach once again, will have to pay up to $250,000 and fund the entire project? Most certainly the editor(s) at The Palm Beach Post will see the injustice. Isn’t more public access to the Lake Worth Beach a matter of social justice? But will the editor(s) call this out?
Recently a beat reporter at the Post wrote about parking at the Beach going from $2 to $3:
Many of the residents The Palm Beach Post spoke with were fine with the rate increase. [emphasis added]
Wonderful news, right? Not so much for low-income families west of Dixie Hwy. with transportation by car being one of the only viable options. But what about that family just hopping on the bus? Have kids learn about the value of public transportation?
Are you just fine with this City having to foot the entire bill for a new Palm Tran bus stop? Will anyone from the public in Central Palm Beach County (CPBC) rise up, grab the laptop and compose a letter to the editor? The instructions to compose a Letter to the Editor are below.
Remember, it was Lake Worth Commissioner Scott Maxwell who first hammered the point home several years ago: the Lake Worth Beach is a regional beach. The public as far out as Wellington consider the Lake Worth Beach to be their beach too. And so does every person in CPBC that uses Palm Tran Route 62 except the bus doesn’t go that far.
This bus route, Route 62, serves Lake Worth Rd., a main County arterial in the County. Major bus stops include The Mall at Wellington, Nassau Square, Wellington Regional Medical Center, Greenacres Library, Greenacres Post Office, vast areas of suburban (unincorporated) Lake Worth, Palm Beach State College, Lake Worth Tri-Rail Station, Lake and Lucerne avenues to Lake Worth City Hall, and potentially the Lake Worth Beach.
As of now the last eastern stop on Route 62 is Lake Worth City Hall on Dixie Hwy. One could continue to the Beach using a ride-sharing service like Uber. By bicycle using the Palm Tran “Bikes On Buses” program the public Lake Worth Beach is about ten minutes away (≈1.5 miles). By foot it’s a brisk 25–30 minute walk further east, up and over the Robert Harris Bridge (unless there is a bridge opening for ships to pass), and then the pedestrian making it thus far has to dodge traffic on A1A and then up another incline to the Beach by which time that person might wish for ropes and a Sherpa escort.
The Beach bus stop will provide a benefit for Palm Tran and their bus drivers. This bus stop, if constructed, will be what is called the “pee stop” for bus Route 62. There are plenty of necessary facilities for drivers at the Casino Complex. But the main purpose of the so-called ‘pee stop’ is for drivers to have time to catch up on their records, plan the next drive out west, and return calls to supervisors as well.
As to the editor(s) at the Post. . .
Did you know today marks three hundred and forty-seven (347) days since the last editorial was published in the Post about this little City of Lake Worth. Hard to believe, but that was prior to Hurricane Irma last year.
Contact the editor(s) at the Post by calling 561-820-4663 and ask them to address this situation about a Palm Tran bus stop at the Beach and ask them to be nice too. None of us have a problem with Palm Tran. We love Palm Tran. We just think they should help our City construct a bus stop at the Beach.
And as to letters to the editor(s). . .
Positive letters never get published about this City, for example any letter calling out all the hard work by residents and the Little Free Libraries, or a City official (Lauren Bennett!), or uplifting words for the community about the mayor and city manager and their unfolding vision for the future; letters published in the Post just mostly focus on the negative like this one that got published on Independence Day, July 4th.
Sit down and write down a Letter to the Editor today!
And please be nice. And be charming and full of good will too. We don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings at Palm Tran. Our little City would just like some help constructing a bus stop at the Beach for everyone who rides the bus, and the future bus ridership here in CPBC.
The Instructions:
How to properly compose and submit the Letter to the Editor (LTE) with a few simple steps.
- Keep your LTE to 150–200 words in length. The “shorter the better” is a good rule.
- An LTE submitted by email (see below) is the best method and remember to include your phone number and complete address.
- Engage like-minded “average citizens” to write LTEs on the same subject.
- Listing your credentials will help greatly; then always follow up your LTE!
This is very important:
- Once you have submitted your LTE follow up with an email or fax (fax number below) later that day or the next morning.
- Then later, call or contact the editorial department and explain why your letter is important.
- Don’t be timid! Stay pleasant and respectful but make a strong pitch.
- To hammer it home just ask outright, “Are you planning to publish my letter?”
So get cracking and have your LTE published in
the Post, hopefully some day very soon:
- Email: letters@pbpost.com
- Fax: 561-820-4728
- Phone: 561-820-4476
Using snail mail:
Palm Beach PostATTN: Letter to Editor (LTE)
2751 S. Dixie Highway
West Palm Beach, FL 33405
Maybe an editorial in the Post and letters to the editor(s) will do the trick and encourage Palm Tran to help our City construct a new bus stop at this popular and treasured public beach in coastal CPBC.
![Dr. W. H. Cotton’s ode: “Oh, My Lake Worth, Florida!” [circa 1920].](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUL75cv6zJQFjX15ojOIIz9AjnbqH4asHJTYSDhnGnYr7rJZRha1NcNTirj2xPcId158vkz5Hw-wXgOfrlztj8Zr8jLFFCfuEN6PyV44ZlpMRmJ68xbtFL9vzxNiG7xDs_HJvm/s1600/LakeWorthPioneers.JPG)
