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Cincinnati before that, and Philly before that. Driving was still the preferred way to go in Cincinnati, and in Philly... SEPTA is kind of like that crappy ex-girlfriend that you sometimes love, sometimes utterly hate... ultimately I just didn't go into the city very often, which solved the issue nicely.
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If you wanted to fix the problem with the nation's roads, stop siphoning off federal gasoline taxes to fund transit projects (2.5 cents per gallon of the 18 cents in federal gas taxes), and stop using gas taxes to balance the federal budget (another 2.5 cents), which isn't balanced, anyway.
Using that extra 5 cents a gallon - probably amounting to tens of billions per year - to upgrade the nation's roads.
all well and good, but then you would actually need more money as transit projects would lack funding, pushing more people onto roads, creating higher demand for roads, more wear and tear, etc.
I take the bus from NE PA into NYC five days a week. I would not have accepted my job offer if I had to drive in. I am amazed every day as my bus sails along in the special bus lane to see the thousands of cars, single drivers all, sitting in miles of traffic. I have absolutely no idea why they do it. No clue. They can't all have free parking. So they're paying gas, plus $13 to enter the tunnel, plus God knows what to park in a garage .... for what??????
I used to have to drive 90 minutes each way to a job, as there was no public transportation (suburban/rural area). It's not that I was too snooty to take it -- there was no. option.
I was hit by a drunk driver, hit several deer, spun out in ice, spent the night on the side of the road because of bad weather, and spent countless hours steaming in traffic jams. The stress was immense. Unless the commute is less than a half-hour, I cannot possibly think it is preferable.
And I do not live in some elite enclave - far from it - it's a middle class area where people have moved because they can't afford the city.
I would love to have more public transit options - there is no easy way to get to Philly, for instance, or to interim points before NYC.
i admire your NEPA>NYC trip. i'm from that area originally. wish i could stomach that amount of time on transportation because I'd love to move back!
Trouble is, with many cities becoming more decentralized, public transit simply can't provide the level of service needed to be a viable alternative to driving. No matter how much money you throw at it, it will always be the fallback option for people who can't afford a car. The guy only lived a mile or so from downtown, which sounds great, except downtown isn't the major employment center, not for current college students, anyway.
there will be situations like his for quite some time, but I'm supprised with the statement about cities becoming more decentralized. that's what happened in the past, but now, at least in areas I've been to, cities are becoming more centralized. we'll always have the issue of industrial parks and there not being a great way to connect via mass transit, but then there are solutions such as light rail, or shuttles, etc. it will take a lot longer in areas like you describe, but more than 50% of the world lives in a metro area.
No. I am sorry, but no. lol. In Atlanta right now there is a cold front coming through. It is only about 40 degrees out but the wind is absolutely atrocious. So so so so windy.
I had nothing to do and I had to go to CVS to get some medicine, so I decided to walk, rather than drive my car there. It is about 15-20 minute walk to get there and 15 minutes walking back.
The whole time I was absolutely miserable. The wind felt like knives on my skin. It would fly right into my sweater and freeze my entire body. I can do this every now and then but if I had to do that every day because of relying on walking and public transit to get me around town I can only imagine the miserable person I would be. I am so happy to know that if I need to run any errands tonight I can simply walk into my garage, get in my car, and be warm wherever I decide to go.
up in the north we stumbled upon this brilliant product. it's called a 'jacket'. i'm unsure of how to pronounce it, but i suggest googling it. it's quite useful when a 'cold front' comes through.
seriously...that's your argument against public transit?
the current gas tax does not fully fund the cost of upgrading, maintaining, and building our driving infrastructure. so why do you call it coercing people?
I called it coercion because the guy to whom I was replying called it that. He was referring to discouraging automobile use through penalizing taxation. He was proposing this as if it were a good idea (to some it is, to some it is not).
When a gas tax is used solely for the purpose of maintaining, upgrading, etc, the existing roadways, and does not get used for any other purposes, a majority of voters can be expected to agree to raising that tax when it is deemed to be insufficient.
A friend of mine at work was just raving about how the AZ gas tax money has been appropriated to keep DPS funded for the last couple years though. Resistance to raising gas taxes is justified to many when the money is borrowed in this sort of underhanded way, or when it is openly borrowed to fund things they would not themselves agree to funding - like MT projects that seem dubious to them.
Many MT projects out here in the west are met with a great deal of skepticism by the everyday voter, because they have a good feel for the logistical problems of our very spread out cities. Those MT projects often will fail if they are put up for an up or down vote for independent funding - so gas taxes get co-opted.
all well and good, but then you would actually need more money as transit projects would lack funding, pushing more people onto roads, creating higher demand for roads, more wear and tear, etc.
bradykp--
Transit gobbles up 20% of the transportation funding but only accounts for 2-3% of the total commutes and passenger-miles... the money would generate a far better return on investment in 90% of situations if you upgraded the roads. Outside of NYC/Bay Area, transit is generally a poor return on investment.
I've had multiple people reference the poor state of transit in my own town (Dayton, OH). And I can say that it's an even bigger liability here. Montgomery County taxpayers shoulder something like 83% of the burden of supporting RTA here (via a countywide sales tax levy), fares are another 12%, and federal money covers the rest. Fares never even come close, in any jurisdiction, to paying for the true cost of transit.
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With a few exceptions (NYC, SF Bay Area), cities are still becoming more decentralized. Growth and renewal in the urban core gets all the headlines but even "new" cities like Charlotte, Columbus, and Atlanta are more spread out than ever... the greatest growth in Columbus isn't in the city center but is instead in Delaware County some twenty miles to the north... the center of suburbia if there ever was one. And Atlanta is notorious for the suburban growth ringing the city.
While the majority of the US lives in a "metro area", remember that metro area is extremely broadly defined... and often extends far beyond any urbanized or built up area... thus, far beyond the feasible range of transit.
I should clarify that I believe there's a time and a place for transit... but the amount of money transit gobbles up is obscene compared to the return on investment we're currently getting. Because of that, it simply doesn't make economic sense in most areas except as a safety net for those who can't afford cars.
But it irritates me when transit advocates keep telling me there's a shortage in the highway trust fund... it's because the same transit folks dip in there to fund their projects.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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In Seattle there are conflicting problems right now. While the transit system is planning huge cuts due to budget issues, the City is approving 40-60 unit "apodments" with zero parking for the tenants, based on their location near bus stops.
Recipe for a future mess when all of those people fight for a parking space on streets that have very few already.
In Seattle there are conflicting problems right now. While the transit system is planning huge cuts due to budget issues, the City is approving 40-60 unit "apodments" with zero parking for the tenants, based on their location near bus stops.
Recipe for a future mess when all of those people fight for a parking space on streets that have very few already.
Hopefully there will be plenty of local shopping and a car share service nearby.
Everything will change with self driving cars. It will be the end of mass transit.
I suspect given that legislatures can pass the appropriate laws self driving cars within five years will represent at least 25% of cars on the road. Ten years after that most urban areas will be self-driving auto's ONLY due to congestion caused by human drivers.
About that time you will see solutions to commuting with self-driving cars and mass transit systems will in most cases be removed just like trolley lines in the 1950's. I suspect a few VERY high density cities will keep mass transit systems
while self driving cars will greatly increase the capacity of existing roads, that still won't hold a candle to the capacity that same land could carry if we had a train traversing over it instead. but, it may solve the 'last mile' issues, so maybe that's why it will win. but you still have to waste space parking all of those vehicles. i'm not 100% convinced self-driving cars are the savior that is often described.
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