I'm originally from the home of BART -- Bay Area Rapid Transit -- and so I was so happy when I learned that a transit system was coming to Phoenix. Now that the Light Rail has been in operation for a couple of years, I can say that it's definitely not perfect but I will say that it's better than what we had before which was ... a bus and taxi system.
The Light Rail provides hope to Downtown Phoenix. When I'm in Downtown Phoenix, this is an excellent option to get me from point a to point b. If I am coming from Mill and want to get to Central all I have to do is hop in the Light Rail. But what about when I'm in Scottsdale and want to take the Light Rail to Downtown Phoenix? Sadly, that does not exist my friends. Unfortunately the Light Rail does a great job of getting someone from Central and Camelback to Mill Avenue, but not from Mill Avenue to North Scottsdale...or even Glendale or Old Town.
I like the Light Rail. I think it provides great transportation and I've compromised with its lack of drop-off points by doing things like driving my car to Mill to take the Light Rail to a game downtown. The Light Rail is cheap and yes, it can be shady but that's half the character of public transportation. However, I honestly don't benefit from the Light Rail very much since it doesn't go north and south or even to places like The University of Phoenix stadium. I have my hopes that we are just experiencing phase one of the Light Rail and that the city has it in their plans to expand it so that it truly becomes a helpful transportation resource in the Valley and one that might end the issues involving drunk driving, smog and clogged roads. If we had a Light Rail that covered the entire Valley like BART covers nearly the entire Bay Area, we would see thriving change to different parts of the Valley and especially areas like Downtown Phoenix. I know I would spend even more time down there if I could hop on the Light Rail in Old Town on a Saturday and ride through the Valley on the Rail rather than driving my car.