On Sat, 15 Mar 2008 10:33:28 -0700, Hatunen wrote:
>On Fri, 14 Mar 2008 19:03:50 +0100, Dusty Furtile Morrocan
> wrote:
>
>>On the particular moment of Fri, 14 Mar 2008 09:23:10 -0700 in
>>relation to Mary's disappointingly immaculate rumpy pumpy, Hatunen
>> put forth:
>>
>>>On Thu, 13 Mar 2008 15:23:34 -0700,
>>>"EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)" wrote:
>>
>>>>It's getting to a point where they CAN'T - and it will be a definite
>>>>problem in the American Southwest, where "public transportation" is
>>>>largely non-existent!
>>>
>>>That's silly. They'll just start buying more economical cars,
>>>like they did during the gas crisis some decades ago.
>>>
>>>And there's transit in the southwest. Why, Phoenix is
>>>inaugurating its new light rail system, isn't it?
>>
>>By roughly how much are they expecting car usage to drop?
>
>Damned if I know.
Oooh! I know this one!
The answer is: zero.
Americans (outside of NYC and SF) have a cynical view of public
transportation. Most folks agree that public transportation is a great
idea and should be implemented. But their agreement is predicated on
the understanding that other people (poor and/or brown people) will
use these services, leaving the highways freer for single-occupancy
vehicles. Preferably SUV's, in fact.
This dynamic is undeniable. I see it in every city. Seattle is a
perfect case in point. Battles rage over the monorail/light-rail/bus
systems. But none of the ragers ever actually USE these systems.
Here's a story for you:
A liberal/lefty friend of mine in Seattle decided to have a day at the
zoo with his wife, kids, and some friends who have kids. The zoo is a
simple 3-mile bus ride from his door. He told his friends (also
environmentally-conscious liberal lefties) to meet at his house and
they would all take the bus to the zoo. His friends were incensed and
disgusted at the idea.
Ride the BUS? With our CHILDREN? Are you MAD???
They insisted on driving in their SUV. It's for the CHILDREN. Their
safety is foremost.
This is just one story. But the American mind is just geared that way.
We drive. End of story. Packing into public transportation with the
kind of people who would use public transportation is a sign of
poverty and failure. What would everyone think if they knew you took a
bus? And let's face it: a tram is just a bus on rails.
My own story inre public transportation is a tale of woe. For years, I
worked in my city's downtown core. In fair weather, I rode a bike
(mostly trail). In foul weather, I rode the bus. The bus stopped at my
driveway and dropped me 50 yards from the office. Aside from the
occasional smelly vagrant, it was awesome.
Now, I work in an office park at the farthest northern reaches of the
city. The bus company had to re-organize due to a financial crisis
(ie, not enough passengers) and their routes changed. I can no longer
take the bus, even if I wanted to. Their earliest route would require
me to do two bus changes totaling 90 minutes of travel time, leaving
me late for work every day. It's a 15 mile bike ride each way through
dangerous traffic on roads with no bike lane. No way.
So now I'm a fully-fledged American commuter. I drive my Subaru as a
single occupant vehicle back and forth every day. It's stressful,
expensive and I hate it. I have contemplated moving closer to the
office, but I live in an Eden here on the southside, and who knows how
long I'll work at this office?
Alas, alack.
- TR
- I can haz European-style mass transit pleez?
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