Outside NYC, which other cities have "Greenwhich Village" type neighborhoods?? (largest, populations)
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DC (CITY) is more car free than Philly, Boston and Chicago. A higher percentage of people in DC use PT than all each of these cities. DC is second to NYC in that regard. DC is now building lightrail throughout the city. Most of these posters make incredible statements about cities they no nothing about.
I'm going to pile on with a couple of the DC posters regarding statements from some other folks on this thread that Boston and Philly have better public transit than DC. On what are you basing these statements? I understand how you can say that Boston or Philly have better "Vibes". While I do not necessarily agree (especially with Boston), it's a subjective topic and different people can have varying opinions and tastes. However, public transportation can be somewhat quantified. Here are the facts:
DC has the second busiest subway system in the country, even busier than Chicago, which has four times as many people living within the city limits. Ridership is double that of Boston's T and triple Philly's Septa. The size of DC's subway is quadruple that of Septa and triple Boston's T. Boston, DC and Philly all have fairly comparable commuter lines, so those are basically a wash. So someone from Philly or Boston tell me again how it's easier to live without a car in your city than DC? I'm all ears.
Albany does have a very attractive historic square -- but I'm sorry, there is no way Albany ever feels like Greenwich Village (and yes, I've been there, several times). If the OP wants a little more activity than DC, I think we would all have to agree he's not going to find it in Albany. (No hate, Upstate New York! You have a lot of things going for you, but this is not one of them.)
I'm talking about the Center Square neighborhood, which includes Lark Street. I'll add some information.
If they want something bigger in Upstate NY, try Buffalo's Elwood Village, which was ranked as one of the best neighborhoods in the country a couple of years ago by the APA.
I'm going to pile on with a couple of the DC posters regarding statements from some other folks on this thread that Boston and Philly have better public transit than DC. On what are you basing these statements? I understand how you can say that Boston or Philly have better "Vibes". While I do not necessarily agree (especially with Boston), it's a subjective topic and different people can have varying opinions and tastes. However, public transportation can be somewhat quantified. Here are the facts:
DC has the second busiest subway system in the country, even busier than Chicago, which has four times as many people living within the city limits. Ridership is double that of Boston's T and triple Philly's Septa. The size of DC's subway is quadruple that of Septa and triple Boston's T. Boston, DC and Philly all have fairly comparable commuter lines, so those are basically a wash. So someone from Philly or Boston tell me again how it's easier to live without a car in your city than DC? I'm all ears.
Washington's commuter rail services are NOWHERE COMPARABLE to those in Philadelphia (SEPTA regional rail + one NJ Transit line) or Boston (MBTA commuter rail). DC has 5 commuter rail lines (3 MARC, 2 VRE), and none of them operate on the weekend. Furthermore, 4 of the 5 lines have limited or no mid-day service, and 3 of the 5 lines have limited or no reverse commute service.
As for heavy/light rail services, Washington's system is more extensive than either Philadelphia (SEPTA + PATCO) or Boston (MBTA). Of course, neither Philadelphia nor Boston had the benefit of government largess when their transit systems were built either.
I'm going to pile on with a couple of the DC posters regarding statements from some other folks on this thread that Boston and Philly have better public transit than DC. On what are you basing these statements? I understand how you can say that Boston or Philly have better "Vibes". While I do not necessarily agree (especially with Boston), it's a subjective topic and different people can have varying opinions and tastes. However, public transportation can be somewhat quantified. Here are the facts:
DC has the second busiest subway system in the country, even busier than Chicago, which has four times as many people living within the city limits. Ridership is double that of Boston's T and triple Philly's Septa. The size of DC's subway is quadruple that of Septa and triple Boston's T. Boston, DC and Philly all have fairly comparable commuter lines, so those are basically a wash. So someone from Philly or Boston tell me again how it's easier to live without a car in your city than DC? I'm all ears.
I won't dispute that DC has more Metro riders than the other system's heavy rail components, but you are off on the orders of magnitude regarding total rail system. Please note, these stats are all from wikipedia:
DC Ridership:
Heavy Rail: 935,200
Light Rail: 0
Regional Rail: 46,600
Total Rail: 981,800
Boston Ridership:
Heavy Rail: 481,300
Light Rail: 237,700
Regional Rail: 130,800
Total Rail: 849,800
So, yes, DC is doing well, but ridership is not twice Boston's. You can only get that number if you are selective about your data.
I won't dispute that DC has more Metro riders than the other system's heavy rail components, but you are off on the orders of magnitude regarding total rail system. Please note, these stats are all from wikipedia:
DC Ridership:
Heavy Rail: 935,200
Light Rail: 0
Regional Rail: 46,600
Total Rail: 981,800
Boston Ridership:
Heavy Rail: 481,300
Light Rail: 237,700
Regional Rail: 130,800
Total Rail: 849,800
So, yes, DC is doing well, but ridership is not twice Boston's. You can only get that number if you are selective about your data.
Not to nit pick, but I think there is double counting when you sum the system totals. If a person switches from the green (light) to the red (heavy) line in Boston it would be counted twice. Whereas if a person switched green to red in DC, it would only be counted one.
Granted it doesn’t change the basic argument. In the grand scheme of things, Bos and DC are roughly similar in terms of transit. Both blow most US cities out of the water, but are still tiny relative to the truly car free cities: NYC, Lon, Berlin, Tokyo, etc/
Washington's commuter rail services are NOWHERE COMPARABLE to those in Philadelphia (SEPTA regional rail + one NJ Transit line) or Boston (MBTA commuter rail). DC has 5 commuter rail lines (3 MARC, 2 VRE), and none of them operate on the weekend. Furthermore, 4 of the 5 lines have limited or no mid-day service, and 3 of the 5 lines have limited or no reverse commute service.
MARC and VRE are pretty pathetic--they're basically weekday rush hour commuter lines, that's it.
By what measure? As I mentioned, I've spent considerable time in Lincoln Park, and in fact live in Logan Circle, and I don't agree with your assessment.
The amenities and culture are there in both neighborhoods--I can't imagine by what criteria that might be measured you could say that Lincoln Park "blows away" Logan Circle. From where I sit, that just isn't the case.
We'll just have to agree to disagree. I used to live in Mount Pleasant, and have worked close to Logan Circle for decades. It has very nice architecture and improving retail options, and it's surely safer now than it was not too many years ago, when it was definitely an area to be avoided.
But I find it a place where the whole is less than the sum of its parts - it's a place increasingly inhabited by self-satisfied folks in their 20s or 30s who congratulate themselves for living in an urban environment, until they move elsewhere, and by gays. In comparison, in places like Lincoln Park, you find far more residents and families who've put down long-term roots in the community. I get the same feeling in Lincoln Park as I get on the UWS of Manhattan, where I also used to live, or many parts of Brooklyn. These neighborhoods feel like communities to me; Logan Circle feels like an urban internship.
Maybe that will change if more people like Logan Circle as much as you do, but I think it still has a long way to go.
Not to nit pick, but I think there is double counting when you sum the system totals. If a person switches from the green (light) to the red (heavy) line in Boston it would be counted twice. Whereas if a person switched green to red in DC, it would only be counted one.
On the other hand, there is a much higher percentage of people receiving a work-related transit subsidy in Washington than in any other U.S. city, so that skews Washington's transit numbers semi-artificially higher relative to other cities.
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