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The street car was obviously a very important invention and revolutionized the way people got around cities. They were also very impressive machines that had the ability to move large numbers of people quickly. Something that a horse carriage could not do.
But over time they were replaced by better forms of transport. Primarily buses. Buses are usually faster, have a smoother ride, and do not require expensive infrastructure. Today most street cars are just relics of the past, an interesting way for tourists to get around on. I think this is really the only reason to have street cars. Every day commuters want transportation that can get them to their destination quickly and comfortably. And buses do that better than street cars.
Busses are not faster and they are not smother then a streetcar. Obviously you have never ever ridden a streetcar. Pavement is not smother then rails. Streetcars have priority over other traffic. Therefore they are not subject to the delays that busses are. Streetcars are still much more efficient then busses with ability to move large numbers of people quickly. The only reason most cities got rid of them was to make more room for private automobiles.
nonsense. the US isn't Siberia. most weather in the US is pretty mild, so open air cars would
indeed work in most of the US. maybe not in Alaska, but in almost every other state it would be fine.
San Francisco is the only city I can think of that has historically used open air cars, and even those are partially enclosed. That is the cable cars, and those date to 1873. The 19th century, as I said. Plus San Francisco has a more mild then average climate. I don't think they would go over very well in colder weather cities.
Here is from the Platte Valley Trolley website:
This is a photo of the original Denver Tramways sightseeing car sitting in front of the famous Brown Place Hotel. The picture was taken about 1906 and was used on the cover of sheet music entitled “Seeing Denver”. The fare back then was $0.50 for a 2 hour – 25 mile trip. While we cannot duplicate the original route, our “Breezer” proudly carries on the same tradition as you will see when you ride with us!
Again those type of special open air cars were used exclusively to give tours of the Denver. Probably mostly in the summer time. All other Denver streetcars were inclosed and heated.
It's called the free market: street cars were on the decline and buses took their place.
The fact that buses grew in popularity and were used more is proof that people preferred them.
Free market?
Can you justify every sort of disaster that way?
If you want to solve a problem, first you have to admit that you have one!
Regional planners agree that to accommodate the projected population growth while protecting open space, they must increase density in these urbanized areas and make them attractive alternatives to suburban sprawl. Take a look at how San Diego is tackling the issues.
First, the car owners pushed out the streetcars.
(They did not want them "slowing down" traffic.)
Then, the developers built poorly-designed medium density housing... Huffman-zing.
As the old homeowers fled further out...
NYC must have old and/or poorly designed equipment.
It need not be like that
There's no way to tell without further inquiry, but it's also possible that the structure of the tunnels themselves might be an aggrvating factor -- we'll just have to find out as the issue develops.
It's also worth noting that rubber tires, rather than steel-on-steel, are used in some points of contact on the Monteal system (which appears to be somewhat less noisy), and might be in Toronto as well.
But a point remains -- the decision which led to this inconnvenience was imposed at a time when not all the current tecnhology was available, when future developments were impossiblr to predict, and when authority was heavily centralized -- just the sort of scenarion the zealots seek to re-impose.
Regional planners agree that to accommodate the projected population growth while protecting open space, they must increase density in these urbanized areas and make them attractive alternatives to suburban sprawl. Take a look at how San Diego is tackling the issues.
First, the car owners pushed out the streetcars.
(They did not want them "slowing down" traffic.)
Then, the developers built poorly-designed medium density housing... Huffman-zing.
As the old homeowers fled further out...
It is a familiar story
And then they came for you! Thank you, Dietrich Bonhoeffer!
And then they came for you! Thank you, Dietrich Bonhoeffer!
Do you ever watch the Videos posted here, K.
What ever became of your thirst for knowledge?
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