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I guess my question is summed up in the title: what's the public transportation like in your city/area? Are there any transit options for those who don't drive (except for walking and biking)?
Is it reliable, pleasant or more of something to dread?
Is there a stigma against public transit in your area? Or is it considered cool/green/modern to be a rider?
Boston? It is pretty good overall, although people like to complain. In the downtown city area the Green line is very convenient as it runs literally every 1-3 minutes between downtown and the Back Bay, which I take very frequently. I enjoy the other 3 lines, and theres a lot of expansions and service enhancements in the works.
Id give the MBTA Boston a 8/10.
If I could fix five things?
1. NSRL Connection, by eliminating North Station and making one large Central Station by Aquarium and throwing a 6-8 track railroad underground and connect the two separated North and South Commuter Rail networks. Much worth it.
2. Blue Line extensions to Lynn (North), and to Kenmore Square alongside Storrow Drive (South).
3. High Speed Orange Line Extension from Back Bay Station to Mattapan to link Dudley Square, Roxbury and Mattapan/Hyde Park to the Rapid Transit Lines in Boston.
4. Green line Further Extension to Porter Square to link Green and Red again in Cambridge. Also redo the A Line to Watertown through Allston and the future West Station.
5. Create a new line from Kenmore or Wet Station through the Grand Junction, linking it with MIT, Kendall Square, Cambridge Xing, Chelsea and possibly the city/downtown of Revere.
If those 5 things were fixed alongside service improvements, I would give it a 10/10
5.
I live in the suburbs of Chicago and mostly drive, but if I do use PT it's the local commuter rail (Metra) into the city, which is great and convenient. I don't use the CTA that much since I don't live/work in the city, but occasionally I'll use it if I'm going to some event. The CTA overall has a decent reputation, and is one of the most extensive PT systems in the country.
Reno is absolutely a car town. We have BRT and regular buses, but I have never seen someone waiting for either one who wasn't visibly poor. We're just not big enough for public transit to be more convenient than driving.
Baton Rouge has a public bus system that is only used by low income individuals who can't afford a car and its not particularly reliable. Buses come maybe 30 min and you rarely see them driving around, and the bus system does not go anywhere outside the city limits. Most suburban residents especially in the outlying parishes are perfectly happy not having public transportation. Uber and Lyft are becoming more and more prominent all the time here. There are very few private taxi companies. This is a car centered area and you basically need your own car if you live anywhere in the city, unless you want to spend a signifcant amount of money on Uber/Lyft. LSU does have its transport services for their students and staff but that stays around the campus area typically.
I've previously lived in the New Orleans, Charleston WV and Baltimore area. New Orleans ha s a dense streetcar network that's used by people from all walks of life. New Orleans is probably the only Southern city where mass transit isn't used by just low income people.
Charleston WV is similar to Baton Rouge when it comes to mass transit except Uber and Lyft are less reliable.
Baltimore has a subway and light rail but its only used by low income people and its known for being dangerous. There have also been a number of racist attacks against white people on board the city's buses and trains.
Milwaukee is hit or miss. We happen to live on a very convenient bus line. It goes from a shopping center in the burbs, through the popular east side, downtown, trendy Bay View, and terminates at the airport. It gets us almost everywhere we need to go. My husband rides the bus to work downtown every day. I used to ride the bus if I didn't ride my bike. You never have to wait more than 15 mins.
Now when I occasionally need to ride the bus out to my new job by Miller Park it's a huge pain in the ass. It's only a few miles further but I need to transfer busses and it takes an hour to get there. It's a 15-20 min drive.
Ridership is hit or miss as well. Certain lines are clearly full of lower income riders. "Our" line sees a lot of businessmen and UWM employees. Most people in Milwaukee seem to look down on the bus. Our friends think we're weird because we take the bus when we have events downtown. Our kids love the bus and want to take public transportation in any city we visit.
Our streetcar 'network' is too small to be effective. Unless they expand it it's really just a novelty. I've never actually ridden it because the route doesn't go anywhere you can't walk to.
Rhode Island has a pretty good bus/trolley/train system. The buses get you pretty much anywhere in the state (they even go to the beach), with Providence as the hub. Providence has a trolley system to get you around the city, and the train will take you to from Boston to DC
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