Bond: Long-Term Mass Transit Investment "Not Stimulative"

[STL Aviator]

Originally Posted by STL Aviator

Most of the TGV series of trains in Europe have top operating speeds of 300 km/h or 186 mph. Figure on a 135 mph average speed and a 298 mile distance and you can get between St. Louis and Chicago in 2 hours and 20 minutes without the hassles associated with air travel.

Eek. That should say 2 hours and 12 minutes, not 20 minutes.

[Huckleberry3911948]

Originally Posted by OA 5599

Please. I take it you don't ride the bus or light rail very often? I ride public transit every day and feel a heck of a lot safer than I do fighting my way through traffic on congested interstates. I also rode the light rail system in Washington, DC quite a bit when I lived there and it was super-safe, never a single issue. I've also ridden the subways in New York City at 3 AM...again, totally safe. The few cases where public transit may be "dangerous" would be in a rough area of town, but why would you want to go there in the first place?

40,000 Americans die in auto accidents every year, which averages out to 114 every day. If the media took the time to report on every single one rather than a murder or two people would seriously rethink driving anywhere. Public transportation is statistically MUCH safer than driving, more environmentally friendly, and promotes sustainable growth.

yes i am no stranger to public transport that is why i made the post.
what i just said to you will appear utterly silly & meaningless until you get mugged.
as to your quote that public transport is very safe, there are no stats whatsoever available on the BART system. go ahead google it. that also applies to other major cities as well, atlanta, memphis charlotte new orleans, google them too. read the CDF posts on this subject, i did. know anything about france?? they are having the same problem, they got trains, they got buses, i know em well, but they are no longer safe to ride --just like us. the streets got mean.
yes friend i have heard these stat arguments about cars and freeways. that you are safer in iraq than on an american freeway, but i get to choose how i die dont i. raped or stabbed does not work for me.

[OA 5599]

Originally Posted by Huckleberry3911948

yes i am no stranger to public transport that is why i made the post.
what i just said to you will appear utterly silly & meaningless until you get mugged.
as to your quote that public transport is very safe, there are no stats whatsoever available on the BART system. go ahead google it. that also applies to other major cities as well, atlanta, memphis charlotte new orleans, google them too. read the CDF posts on this subject, i did. know anything about france?? they are having the same problem, they got trains, they got buses, i know em well, but they are no longer safe to ride --just like us. the streets got mean.
yes friend i have heard these stat arguments about cars and freeways. that you are safer in iraq than on an american freeway, but i get to choose how i die dont i. raped or stabbed does not work for me.

No one gets to choose how they die. Any of us could be killed in a fiery car crash or get struck by lightning any day. I completely disagree that public transit is "dangerous". There may be some sketchy looking characters or homeless on some of the bus lines around here, but I've ridden with them many times and they completely leave me alone. Memphis and New Orleans have some of the highest crime rates in the nation and can be dangerous cities in certain places regardless of if you are on or off a bus.

As far as stats go, in 2001, 34 people were killed on buses, compared to 42,116 killed in auto accidents [Source: http://www.bts.gov/publications/nati...ble_02_01.html ]. These numbers obviously aren't adjusted for the total number or drivers vs. riders, but you tell me which is statistically safer.

I'll take my chances on the bus, rather than make an irrational decision based out of blind fear. I've had dozens of close-calls driving on the highway where I could have been easily killed, but so far the bus has been nothing but safe. I challenge you to ride public transportation in your area, or if that doesn't jive, come to Austin, DC, or New York and hop on a bus, light rail, or subway. I guarantee you you'll walk off perfectly safe and happy.