You could call this “Phil Day.”

Tidal Wave flows over Norfolk

Today is the day Tide-watchers had been waiting for: the day HRT President Philip Shucet announced the official date that service will begin for the Tide. It’s August 19. You can come up with your own traditions for celebrating Phil Day. As for myself, I’ll honor the man who saved The Tide by saluting the next light rail car I see rolling down the track, and heaving a sigh of relief. (I’ll also have cake and give presents to my daughter, who’s turning 4 today. Phil Day will be an easy date for me to remember).

And here’s the deal. On August 19 through 21 you’ll be able to ride The Tide for free. From August 22 forward, it’ll cost you $1.50 per ride. Starting today you’ll start to see much more frequent service runs of empty trains, as HRT trains its drivers on the line, and runs through safety simulations. The idea is to get the operators used to Norfolk, and to get Norfolk drivers and pedestrians used to the trains.

Shucet has been very canny about releasing this launch date. He’s held back to make sure he doesn’t commit HRT to another deadline, and another budget, that it won’t be able to hit. That’s the way the last guy operated, but it’s not the Philip Shucet way. Shucet even suggested that he plans to come in $10 million or so under the $338 million that’s budgeted for the construction. Of course, that $338 million is $109 million higher than the original cost estimate, but again, that’s a legacy of the Michael Townes era.

We at AltDaily are Tide boosters, to be sure. We plan to ride it during the preview period, and as often as it makes sense to afterward. But we know that the current route is inadequate. It still has a ways to go before it is truly useful to people. It must reach up to ODU and the Navy base, and out to the Beach. It should go to the airport. It needs to, above all else, cross over the water to get to Portsmouth, Suffolk, Hampton and Newport News. Only then, when offers a ride to work without the hassles of traffic backups, will it live up to its potential as a regional transportation alternative.

On this, the first Phil Day, I raise my voice in praise for the man who’s put HRT back on the track to success, and I offer my support to help move The Tide into its future phases, where it will become a truly useful element of life in Hampton Roads. Somewhere in the offices of HRT is a map that shows the additional routes that will be built, and Phil Shucet is there, planning for how that expansion can be funded and delivered, on time and under budget.

ODU Campus Insecurity

Elijah Cummings, the Representative from Maryland and the uncle of Christopher Cummings, the ODU student who was shot and killed in his home near campus, has visited the school and spoken with police and administrators. The Pilot reports that his nephew lived “in an area hit hard by robberies, home invasions and burglaries, often involving students.” This is not good PR for ODU, the school where I earned my masters degree, but it’s past time for spin control.

This is a problem screaming for a real solution. More police patrols in the neighborhoods near the school seems like an obvious choice. ODU has been growing is size and reputation over the last decade, extending its presence into nearby Kensington and Lambert’s Point. The school and the city now have an interest and an obligation to ensure safety in these neighborhoods. The current environment, where students are harassed, robbed, and even murdered, is sure to put a stop to future growth if it doesn’t get fixed soon.

Scott Rigell has a lot of money

Is this news? I don’t know, but it was in the paper.

Patty Jenkins’ nose piercing dilemma

Free yourself from doubt and fear. Don’t worry that you are 46 years old, or that you have diabetes. Get your nose pierced. Or not. Up to you!

Mermaid Ellie is living the dream

Of being a mermaid. At Virginia Beach. This summer. And she’d like you to recycle.

There’s nothing like riding a bike … naked

The World Naked Bike Ride, an annual cycling demonstration, took place in about 70 cities around the world last weekend. As tempers in Virginia Beach continue to boil over issues of road sharing and tack attacks, it’s nice to be reminded that you can always take off the spandex and ride Godiva-style. Of course, that lady of history had a reason for shedding her clothes, and so too the thousands of unclad WNBRiders. Nakedness reminds that cycling is fun and natural, but also that cyclists are vulnerable.
And now, let’s see some of these naked people…