Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I wonder if the Puget Sound Regional Council has taken into account the number of new tolls that will be going into effect, or may be, such as I90 bridge, 405 in Kirkland, and dozen or so other routes that the state has been studying for tolls. Around here people may prefer to just pay the tolls, I suppose, but it seems like it could have some effect on transit. When I take the 219 or 216 from Sammamish to Seattle, it's nearly empty until we stop at Issaquah Highlands where 30-40 people get on, (and there are about 6 per hour at commute times) yet their bus patronage is still under 10%.
Getting a bit far afield with the Seattle-centric content, but tolls could have a massive effect. I-90 is noticeably more congested and for longer longer periods since tolling began on 520. If both routes were tolled, though, it wouldn't be surprising to see things even out a bit.
How much did you pay for your smartphone? I paid $375 for this car and drove it home:
Insurance was dirt cheap and gas is less than your data plan.
My brother has been a mechanic for 30 years, and when I was contemplating buying a used car 12 years ago, he warned me: In addition to the price of the car, do you have $3k in the bank for inevitable repairs?
I went through $3k (a 1985 Toyota with 105k miles on it) very quickly (a pricey valve job for one) and, I needed another $2k to really get that car in really good shape!
Mind you, it wasn't one of these high-tech, gadgetry cars, where replacing a computer can set you back, minimum $2k! A friend is facing a computer replacement for her 10YO Cadillac @$3k!
And the millenials are smart enough to know that without being told!
And what about the outrageous traffic fines of today, the millenials know about that too! One speeding ticket, and they're back riding the buses! My last traffic fine, and I tried futilely to fight it, set me back $482!
My last triffic fine was in 1987. And it was $45. So bringing up traffic fines as a reasion is BS. There's no reason to get them (and I drive performance cars and drive fast). And a DUI? Don't drink and drive and that problem is solved.
That Cavalier needed $50 in parts over the course of 3 years, as well as 2 oil changes I did in the driveway for $25 each. You don't have to make a car perfect, and you don't have to pay people to work on them like ylur brother the mechanic who makes a living off of ignorant people. The point being if you want a car you CAN have one cheaply. Anything else is an excuse.
Poor people drive cheap cars all the time. No they're not new, no they're not perfect. But they own and drive cheap cars cheaply, reliably. They don't make stupid excuses. They don't act entitled.
Why would anyone believe anything that comes from NPR? Programming, Propaganda, Pravda American style. In fact, I can't imagine a reason for listening to them? Anyhow, anyone who buys that must be living in one of those very small areas in the east where mass transit makes more sense. In the rest of the nation, cars, trucks, and motorcycles are the only reliable way to get where you're going.
4) Car centric cities keep you locked up like a prisoner in your own home if you don't have a car. And even if you do have a car, you might not want to get out much because in such cities nothing is really built with walking in mind and, so, if you need to go to more than one store to buy something you need/want, then that might mean an extra 10-15 minute drive (times two perhaps if you include the time to get back home). It is especially miserable growing up in such a city because you can't get anywhere on your own and have to ask your parents to take you everywhere. Yea, I'm sure that doesn't breed dependency or people turning to socializing online and then being labeled as anti-social for not wanting to get out and do things with people in real life (sarcasm).
5) You can't do anything while driving, except listen to a bunch of Christian nonsense or crappy Clear Channel playlists that might change 1 or 2 songs every 10 years or so. Sure, you could get a mp3 player and hook it up to one of those things that lets you listen to what's on it in your car, but you are still limited to listening. With public transit you can get some reading or studying or whatever random stuff you can do on your phone in as well.
6) If you don't have a car in the first place, then you don't have to worry about your car breaking down or being broken into, stolen, or (in bigger cities and city centers anyway) not being able to find parking places or paying a lot for a parking space. On a broader scale, perhaps you could say that this last point, along with point 4, is ultimately about not wanting your possessions to own you. I find it funny when older generations talk about millenials as being materialistic because they want a cellphone or pc or something. I think in a lot of ways it is the exact opposite. Millenials saw a lot of older people buying a bunch of material crap they didn't need and living beyond their means (of course this was not the only reason - outsourcing, overpopulation, corporate exploitation, etc), which helped to contribute to the financial mess that we are in now that is making it harder for us to make it or even get started. A lot of younger people, at least the ones who themselves haven't already been eaten up by rampant consumerism, saw this and want no part in it. Much more than previous generations might understand, most of what many millenials need/want can be found online (much of it for free too, when it comes to entertainment and socializing at least): entertainment (games, movies, tv shows, youtube and other random videos, etc), socializing, school work and related documents (many schools, especially colleges, have assignments that can only be completed online), or even just work in general. A cellphone or pc is just something to connect us to that online world. A car is also unnecessary to get to and from one website to another ^^. What is somewhat necessary though is a decent internet connection, which is just yet another reason many younger people would likely find city living, with its decent internet and public transit, more appealing.
You can definitely read on public transit. I could read War and Peace trying to get around using buses and trains. NO THANKS
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My last traffic fine, and I tried futilely to fight it, set me back $482!
