Re: It's all relative
tokyogai
4/2/2012 9:10:51 AM
I would too, but it seems many Americans somehow feel that public transportation somehow infringes on personal fredom. I have lived in Japan on several occaisions and find the public transportation there to be great. I wish even the New York systems was as good as Tokyo.
Re: Trains, and fuel
mInvestor
3/31/2012 8:58:49 PM
@philtheinvestor,
So true. The government was so willing to spend billions to help 3 big autos, but hesitate to do anything to improve public transportation. Meanwhile those politicians cried for environment and conserve energy. People wondering what those politicians are really up to.
I'm pretty sure the car manufacturers and their lobbyists in Washington have some words of choice for posts like that. I think it would take alot, from the people and rail companies, to make a push towards better mass transit options.
I'm more optimistic than you are @AskAsa about the ability for high-speed rail to make inroads into areas where there is an entrenched car culture. When BART opened in the San Francisco bay area it was an instant success. Ditto the Washington Metro.
Now granted, those could be called more subway system than rail, though both cover a LOT of territory and really pick up speed for long stretches. What is undeniably high-speed rail however--and VERY popular--is the train line linking Los Angeles and Orange counties.
When that first opened, it was such a novelty that my older son's elementary school class took a FIELD TRIP to see and ride on it! Since that time, I've taken it several times and it is magnificent.
The scenery isn't much, as opposed to the other rail line that runs along the ocean. (Fun history fact: it does that because the original railroad robber barons wanted to own the beaches and coastline as part of their right-of-way) but you're going so fast that you can't see it anyway. In fact, not having picked up a printed schedule, I got a little worried about whether I'd miss my stop as the stations before it whizzed by and I couldn't read the names.
I would skip driving in an LA second to take that again, and I have plenty of company!
Re: Trains, and fuel
AskAsa
3/31/2012 3:21:30 PM
I remember reading some entertaining essays written by Europeans about Americans and cars. Where else can you find drive-in restaurants with curb service supplied by waiters on skates? Drive in Theatres that double as drive-in churches on Sundays?
Most of these things have faded away but I still find the drive-thru culture interesting.
Drive Thru hamburger joints, even pharmacies.
I just don't think mass transit will ever really replace the spirit that made a car so damned important we couldn't leave it to go inside a restaurant or pharmacy.
Re: Trains, and fuel
Broadway
3/31/2012 3:11:49 PM
@impactnow, I envy your idealism. Politically, trains are the equivalent of socialism. IE, poison in our current partisan environment. The car culture in the US is no where near close to fading. People will cling to it to the bloody end, because cars, like guns, symbolize Americans' individual liberty.
The bigger practical problem, though, is that most American communities are designed with cars and home-ownership in mind. Meaning, people buy houses far away from their work sites because that's where they can afford the white picket fence and single family home, and there are a whole host of poorly designed and overcongested roads that will take them from their soulless suburb to their office park or downtown high-rise office building.
Trains, and fuel
impactnow
3/31/2012 12:24:01 AM
With the increasing cost of fuel and insurance the car culture may begin to erode in the US, I am always amazed when I travel internationally how advanced the trains are and how backward our rail systems are in the US. Just think of the possibilities if we had high speed trains to major metro areas, labor pool increases, reduction in pollution and traffic, more affordable housing....
Re: It's all relative
Phoenix
3/30/2012 10:42:27 PM
Well you are right about that. The only reason people would consider such a change at the moment most likely would be because of economic reasons. If a good rail transport system is in place people could gradually be won over through discounts and good publicity. Increase in road taxes for driving in crowded areas, parking restrictions and even increased fuel costs could be other things that could entice the public. But first and foremost it is important to have a good public transport system (rail and good connectivty through buses, tram) in place to replace the current mode of transport. Currently the Singapore government is doing it with higher car ownership taxes and road taxes.
Washington - NY - Boston
ProfR
3/30/2012 2:09:13 PM
The only train route that makes money today is Washington - NY - Boston. We really could use higher speed rail in the Northeast corridor. The problem is that this train runs thru some pretty populated areas and getting high speed trains thru there will not be easy.
Re: It's all relative
AskAsa
3/30/2012 2:08:13 PM
I still don't thing Americans will ever take to trains the way people in other countries have. All of the places where rail has proven successful were without an established car culture.
Here a kid knows its his God Given right to grab a steering wheel and go at the tender age of 16.
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