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Sure, commute times in NYC are much longer than Dallas, but Dallas has a metro population of 2.5 million compared to NYC's 20 million, so that is a bit apples to oranges.
I don't see what the size of NYC has to do with the length of time it takes for the average Manhattan commuter to arrive at work.
I don't see what the size of NYC has to do with the length of time it takes for the average Manhattan commuter to arrive at work.
A lot actually, people here tend to have to commute much further due to the size of the metro to get to work. A city like Dallas can still have a centralized system and the commute times are going to be much shorter because people aren't coming from further distances out. Though I am mostly guessing when it comes to this due to the fact I have never had any interest in Texas cities or know anything about them.
A lot actually, people here tend to have to commute much further due to the size of the metro to get to work. A city like Dallas can still have a centralized system and the commute times are going to be much shorter because people aren't coming from further distances out. Though I am mostly guessing when it comes to this due to the fact I have never had any interest in Texas cities or know anything about them.
Manhattan is 22 sq. miles. And most residents of Manhattan work in Manhattan. Dallas, on the other hand, is 340 sq. miles.
One would also think that the denser, walkable cities would have many more people with short commutes due to high rates of walking, transit ridership and cycling. Here is the number and percentage of commuters who need less than 15 minutes to get to work.
New York - 370,335 (10.3%)
Los Angeles - 287,452 (17.4%)
Houston - 209,412 (22.3%)
Chicago - 160,937 (13.8%)
Dallas - 123,233 (22.3%)
Philadelphia - 84,892 (14.6%)
San Francisco - 52,976 (12.7%)
Boston - 51,200 (16.2%)
Atlanta - 42,212 (22.3%)
Washington, DC - 41,201 (13.2%)
Miami - 30,018 (17.42%)
Atlanta actually has more people with "mini" commutes than DC. There are more people who get to work in less than 5 minutes in Atlanta than there are in DC. Also, who would have figured that sprawling Houston and Dallas would have so many more people with short commutes than Philadelphia?
Yup, and the people living in cities that the urbanistas deride as "sprawl" also get to live in a place they can enjoy instead of being crammed together like hamsters with zero personal space. There's nothing magical about living ten minutes from work when the abode is an efficiency with a hot plate that half or more of your salary is spent on.
Yup, and the people living in cities that the urbanistas deride as "sprawl" also get to live in a place they can enjoy instead of being crammed together like hamsters with zero personal space. There's nothing magical about living ten minutes from work when the abode is an efficiency with a hot plate that half or more of your salary is spent on.
There are advantages to living in dense, urban cities. Getting to work more quickly than people living in more sprawly, car-oriented cities is not one of them.
Yup, and the people living in cities that the urbanistas deride as "sprawl" also get to live in a place they can enjoy instead of being crammed together like hamsters with zero personal space. There's nothing magical about living ten minutes from work when the abode is an efficiency with a hot plate that half or more of your salary is spent on.
If living in Manhattan is so terrible, why are so many people willing to pay top dollar to live there? Why is the land value so much higher than basically anywhere else in the country?
The answer is that people have different preferences, and what seems like a terrible lifestyle to you is great for others.
You're really deluding yourself if you think that people in dense cities like NYC don't enjoy living there.
Manhattan is 22 sq. miles. And most residents of Manhattan work in Manhattan. Dallas, on the other hand, is 340 sq. miles.
Then we are talking about two different things, I was talking about metro sizes. Manhattan is an employment center with people coming in from all over the metro for work.
Now if you want to talk about just Manhattan, commute times for anyone south of Upper East Side and Upper West Side is less than 30 minutes and even Upper Manhattan has an average commute time of 40 minutes. So commuting for much of Manhattan takes about 20-30 minutes.
There are advantages to living in dense, urban cities. Getting to work more quickly than people living in more sprawly, car-oriented cities is not one of them.
Especially since that objective isn't achieved.
I'd add:
- living like a hamster isn't an advantage.
- living in a tiny abode due to cost isn't an advantage
- spending a large chunk of your income on a tiny abode isn't an advantage
- having shopping within walking distance, well maybe but there's no place to put it in your tiny abode
- crime stats usually aren't better
- school districts typically aren't better
Maybe it's good for those that like to play choo-choo. Maybe that's why some people use transit - cause it certainly isn't for the reasons above.
If living in Manhattan is so terrible, why are so many people willing to pay top dollar to live there? Why is the land value so much higher than basically anywhere else in the country?
The answer is that people have different preferences, and what seems like a terrible lifestyle to you is great for others.
You're really deluding yourself if you think that people in dense cities like NYC don't enjoy living there.
Heck, if I could afford a nice apartment in Manhattan, though I would prefer Brooklyn, I would love it too, but too many people want to live in Manhattan so I can't afford it.
Especially since that objective isn't achieved.
I'd add:
- living like a hamster isn't an advantage.
- living in a tiny abode due to cost isn't an advantage
- spending a large chunk of your income on a tiny abode isn't an advantage
- having shopping within walking distance, well maybe but there's no place to put it in your tiny abode
- crime stats usually aren't better
- school districts typically aren't better
Maybe it's good for those that like to play choo-choo. Maybe that's why some people use transit - cause it certainly isn't for the reasons above.
Yet millions upon millions of Americans live in dense cities.
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Manhattan is 22 sq. miles. And most residents of Manhattan work in Manhattan. Dallas, on the other hand, is 340 sq. miles.
