Do you think we should focus on building up public transit in SMALLER cities? (major, park)

[grapico]

no, there are plenty of big cities that still have inadequate transportation.

[TexasTheKid]

Price should be enough to encourage cities to build the infrastructure now rather than later. For instance, in the 90s Houston (even though not a small city then, the example is still relevant) turned down an elevated rail system that would start out with two lines. One of those lines would be pretty much where the existing single light rail line sits, plus the other line would have gone pretty much where one of the current proposed expansion lines will go. The thing is, those two proposed elevated lines had approximately the same combined price tag as the single line that was built a decade and a half later. Waiting doesn't make any fiscal sense. Build now.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by ckhthankgod

Here in NY, smaller cities like Ithaca, Binghamton, Watertown, Elmira, Oneonta and some others have Bus systems and have for a while. Some smaller cities share it with some bigger cities too. For instance, the Syracuse area Bus system, CENTRO, also has bus systems in other Central NY cities like Oswego, Auburn, Utica, Rome and Fulton. CENTRO is one of the best mid major area Bus systems in the country too.

Here's a listing of public transportation systems in NY State: APTA: New York Transit Links

[Bumerang]

You aren't even safe in your car anymore and you want to force the middle class into mass-transit? In South America, those with money have taken to using helicopters.

[Hoarfrost]

By 2050, the US population is expected to increase by 50% or 150 million people. That's roughly the population of Russia. Even if we cut all immigration, the childbirth would account for a population increase the size of Germany. There is no question that our small-to-mid-size cities are going to grow exponentially. The question is whether we are going to have adequate infrastructure and planning to accommodate this population increase beforehand or whether we are going to do what many people regret has been done in the past, and put it off until it's much more difficult.

We've got to build our new areas to energy efficient standards, curb sprawl, and promote pedestrian and transit oriented development. We're also going to need regional HSR working in conjunction with county level rail and bus transportation. If we don't, our roads and airways are going to be even more overwhelmed than they are now.

I however, don't have confidence that any of this will happen. It's simply too responsible to happen in this country.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by Bumerang

You aren't even safe in your car anymore and you want to force the middle class into mass-transit? In South America, those with money have taken to using helicopters.

Where did that come from? Also, I think public transit varies by city. So, concerns in one city might not necessarily be the same for another.

[leighland]

Originally Posted by grapico

no, there are plenty of big cities that still have inadequate transportation.

And plenty of cities whose aging Public Transit is completely falling apart- Hello DC. How are we going to pay for new transit if no one is willing to up for fixing current aging transit?

[Chicago60614]

Well back 50 years ago every smaller city in the USA had pretty extensive streetcar systems, along with bus and trolley. It was the 50's and 60's that everying was ripped out. GM bought all the streetcar systems (well most of them), and systematically destroyed them all to replace the systems with buses made by.......GM.

Unfortunate it had to turn out that way. I know the whole flight to the suburbs probably would have killed off many of the systems as ridership would certainly have fallen more than it did - but we were left with virtually every city in the country without a very functional mass transit system except for the very large Pre-WWII cities.

Cities can really only function to a certain size and expect everyone to be able to drive a car. Once you hit a critical mass of drivers, it becomes VERY difficult to move people efficiently. You can't just build massive highways EVERYWHERE. They really tear up the livability of a city and the flow of the urban environment.

I think everyone driving cars is really killing off a segment of our society. People just aren't use to dealing with other people anymore. It's so segregated. Drive to work, drive to the store, drive home. Can't walk anywhere....can't just relax.

[Nebat]

I'm all for increasing rail transit between cities, and to do that the destination city/town needs to have adequate public transportation, whether it be bus or rail. So, yes to building up public transit. It's a shame that our ancestors had the right idea generations ago. Near where I live Richmond, VA is known for pioneering the trolley, and now you wouldn't even know it ever had rail lines going down every street. The same could be said for hundreds of other cities as well. It's ironic that these systems were torn up, even in small towns and now we would need to pay millions to rebuild them.

[pw72]

Public transportation generally works best where private transportation doesn't. This isn't to say that modest public systems are not good ideas in smaller towns...sometimes they are. But the reality is, if private auto transportation is easy (i.e., little traffic, low parking costs, etc.), then public transport is generally a waste of resources.