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call me biased...but I just don't see the southern cities as comparing to the northern ones. Maybe its their lack of public transit infrastructure. I love mass transit.
I know Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, and Atlanta are great cities, and deserve to be high on the list...
but in all honesty, it will take a lot for me to be convinced that they are ever on the levels of Boston, Philly, DC, and San Fran....let alone Chicago and NYC.
In my opinion, even cities like Seattle and Minneapolis should be higher ranked than some of those Southern ones.
I can see your point. But if you honestly think that than you are correct (bold statement) you have a huge bias against the Southern Cities.
Agree and DC is a great American example - not that a nice skyline is bad but much has to do with the construct and way things are developed. There are far too many buildings in the US that only serve as bravado and not really need
I honestly think skyline is a rather dumb criteria, though I guess it can factor into a recognition factor but even places like Paris or DC are in some ways some of the most recognizable in the world (Paris Eiffle or DC Monument/Capital) but skyline does make a city
Houston scores low on the mass transit factor (ie, miles of rail). Personally, I think everyone needs to look at what the factors are before passing judgement; especially the infrastructure category.
^^^Just infrastructure alone places cities like Chicago above the likes of LA. Cultural characteristics (ie, hosting the Olympics) is why Atlanta made Alpha back in 2000 (having the World's busiest airport and heavy rail transit certainly helps too). Also, the fact that Atl can be identified without spelling out the full name is yet another factor (much like NYC and LA). We also know names like "Philly" and "Big D". Houston (aka, "H-town") is not as known in certain circles; but the mass transit without a doubt is why Houston is being held back. 40 more miles of rail would put Houston in its proper place.
So with all things considered [Cultural amenities, Importance, economic power, international affairs and more]; Mass transit tops all and Houston becomes beta???
Technically; Houston's infrastructure competes with Atlanta because infrastructure doesn't stop at rail; we have one of the most extensive highway and bus systems in the country; not to mention the thriving Bush airport; which will be the primary HUB for United Airlines; which is now the largest in passenger revenue and 2nd largest in fleet size and destinations. Also lets not forget to mention the booming Texas Medical Center and the many medical centers popping up all around the Metropolitan area. I understand where you're coming from, but I'm not convinced.
So with all things considered [Cultural amenities, Importance, economic power, international affairs and more]; Mass transit tops all and Houston becomes beta???
Technically; Houston's infrastructure competes with Atlanta because infrastructure doesn't stop at rail; we have one of the most extensive highway and bus systems in the country; not to mention the thriving Bush airport; which will be the primary HUB for United Airlines; which is now the largest in passenger revenue and 2nd largest in fleet size and destinations. Also lets not forget to mention the booming Texas Medical Center and the many medical centers popping up all around the Metropolitan area. I understand where you're coming from, but I'm not convinced.
yeah, all of the excuses they have given so far has not made sense. First it was international connections and they have yet to say how places like ATl and DFW have more international business interactions than Houston, now they are saying that it is infrastructure??
Well Houston has more buildings than both those cities, it has taller skylines, etc.
so they are telling me, because DFW has more miles of track with lower ridership it places them higher?
So with all things considered [Cultural amenities, Importance, economic power, international affairs and more]; Mass transit tops all and Houston becomes beta???
Technically; Houston's infrastructure competes with Atlanta because infrastructure doesn't stop at rail; we have one of the most extensive highway and bus systems in the country; not to mention the thriving Bush airport; which will be the primary HUB for United Airlines; which is now the largest in passenger revenue and 2nd largest in fleet size and destinations. Also lets not forget to mention the booming Texas Medical Center and the many medical centers popping up all around the Metropolitan area. I understand where you're coming from, but I'm not convinced.
I am convinced that if Houston were still the same exact city that it is today (plus 40-50 miles of rail) it would be a low or mid alpha. Rail is the only thing that is lacking in Houston. 7.5 miles of rail is rather puny when compared to cities like Atlanta, Dallas, and even Miami (all three having more than 20 miles of rail, with Dallas and Atlanta having MUCH more than 20). There could be other factors as well, but rail seems to be the one that stands out.
Another factor could be our own ignorance when it comes to non-American cities. For example, if we took away the foreign cities, Houston is next on the list after Philly (making Houston an Alpha-). Thanks to competition from other countries, Houston got knocked out of the Alpha- category. There are only 8 cities on the planet that seperate Philly and Houston; none of them are in the US. So in a way, Houston is in the same tier as Dallas, Atl, and Philly. However, on a World view, it gets bumped back just a little by comparable cities in different countries. Being that Houston is America's only Beta+ city, that just makes Houston "special" and "unique".
Last edited by urbancharlotte; 09-21-2011 at 10:50 AM..
London has a terrible skyline, but is hugely important.
I actually love the London skyline--the fact that structures such as St. Paul's the Tower Bridge, Parliament, Westminster etc. are all visible from across the Thames. I think what you mean is that they don't have many tall skyscrapers dotting their skyline, which is largely true--but "skyline" isn't synonymous with "tall buildings".
I am convinced that if Houston were still the same exact city that it is today (plus 40-50 miles of rail) it would be a low or mid alpha. Rail is the only thing that is lacking in Houston. 7.5 miles of rail is rather puny when compared to cities like Atlanta, Dallas, and even Miami (all three having more than 20 miles of rail, with Dallas and Atlanta having MUCH more than 20).
There could be other factors as well, but rail seems to be the one that stands out.
highly doubt that. If that was so, and infrastructure had as much influence as you are making it out to be then, Seattle and Detroit would have been Alphas too. Baltimore, Pittsburgh and STL would have been ranked higher.
If you really look at the list from Alpha to Sufficiency you would see that the so called research they did does not make sense
I am convinced that if Houston were still the same exact city that it is today (plus 40-50 miles of rail) it would be a low or mid alpha. Rail is the only thing that is lacking in Houston. 7.5 miles of rail is rather puny when compared to cities like Atlanta, Dallas, and even Miami (all three having more than 20 miles of rail, with Dallas and Atlanta having MUCH more than 20).
There could be other factors as well, but rail seems to be the one that stands out.
If this is the case than these people have horrible research skills; the length of rail only tells one side of the story; DART [DFW] has horrible ridership numbers and not very convenient. Houston's measly 7.5 miles ranks 2nd in riders per square miles and attracts more than half of the ridership DART [70+ miles] attracts.
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