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I host visitors from Europe on occasion... they are individuals I met when I worked overseas years ago.
Mostly engineers.
It never fails... they take pictures of our roads and utility poles! (SF Bay Area)
Even small alpine Mountain villages of a 3 houses have high speed underground fiber and almost all power is underground... too many issues with lightning strikes and trees with above ground.
I see this in NJ. Housing prices within reasonable commuting distance of NYC are insane, while towns beyond that range are emptying out and decaying. If we could improve our existing rail and extend it farther out in the state, it would solve a lot of problems.
My mom used to live in Perth Amboy. She stated she could see the NYC skyline from her second story window. Do people commute from this area?
IMO this also contributes somewhat to the success of uber / lyft. If someone can pay $5 to get somewhere vs paying $2 on the bus as long as they can avoid "the poor people" they'll pay the extra $3.
It's not just about avoiding "the poor people" but actually getting where you want to go in a reasonable amount of time.
And much of the avoiding of "the poor people" is about avoiding poor behavior exhibited on public transportation, especially in places like San Francisco. It only takes a few crazy/loud/obnoxious people to make your commute miserable.
Yeah, but France is full of, you know, French people.
Social philosophy is irrelevant. The outrageous price tag of public infrastructure in the USA compared to other countries is the issue.
Then how do we solve it? If healthcare is any barometer, privatizing will ensure skyrocketing costs. Neither will creating the inept, semi-privatized natural monopoly of a rail mess we have today in most of the country (Amtrak).
That said, I don't buy expense being a sufficient deterrant to avoid maintaining and expanding infrastructure. In reality, cost has never stopped anyone in Washington and that's unlikely to change in the future. The question is *what* kind of spending we want to encourage. Hence, social philosophy. Do we spend billions on corporate bailouts and F-16s that don't fly or on bolstering our infrastructure?
Have you driven across america? I still have notes from driving NYC to South Cal and can tell you what roads to avoid due to construction zones that been going for decades and didnt go anywhere.
Actually I'd love to hear an example of a construction zone that has been going on for decades that didn't go anywhere.
Quote:
Originally Posted by HappyinCali
What? It is called walking and observing. i can walk around any city and see the potholes. I can walk around Japan and see how amazing their streets are, how all the markings look like they were painted yesterday, how there are no potholes, the curbs are not busted etc.
So your commentary on Japanese versus American road infrastructure was specifically related to your observations during a brief vacation in Japan walking around in cites as opposed to actually using the road system to get anywhere. Pretty paint and all.
Companies do invest their profits, but if investing in expansion or new plants, etc offers a low return, then sending money to the shareholders is the right thing to do, as is paying down debt. Companies do not always have good investment opportunities - business is cyclic, and there may be periods of several years where investing just doesn't make sense.
I host visitors from Europe on occasion... they are individuals I met when I worked overseas years ago.
Mostly engineers.
It never fails... they take pictures of our roads and utility poles! (SF Bay Area)
Even small alpine Mountain villages of a 3 houses have high speed underground fiber and almost all power is underground... too many issues with lightning strikes and trees with above ground.
The Germans spent money on improved infrastructure. That benefited everyone.
We spent and borrowed money for the Military. That mostly benefited the companies with the contracts.
Thw wall was voted in during the Bush administration. It was delayed for lack of funding so we are taking the funds we used to send to Mexico and building the previously funded wall.
I see this in NJ. Housing prices within reasonable commuting distance of NYC are insane, while towns beyond that range are emptying out and decaying. If we could improve our existing rail and extend it farther out in the state, it would solve a lot of problems.
Isn't what you suggest called "sprawl?"
Also, I've seen reporting the the price of NYC apartments has been in a tailspin. One of the issues usually cited is the new tax laws.
The Germans spent money on improved infrastructure. That benefited everyone.
We spent and borrowed money for the Military. That mostly benefited the companies with the contracts.
+1
Very true.
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