Public transport bros?

[mozfonky]

Great, great video on how car-dependent infrastructure fucks up our individual, local & national economy.

There are just too damned many people on earth and we don't really like each other. Bill Maher said it once when he talked about atm machines and the grocery machines where we don't have to deal with anyone.

Neighbors don't get along much of the time, sue each other, complain about everything and that's with the suburban sprawl they have, packing them in tighter won't help. Packing people into busses doesn't make life less stressfull for most people. Some people might not mind it but most probably would rather not have to sit or stand next to a bunch of strangers several times a day.

 

[TeTe]

Brown line, I was near Racine and Roscoe.

Rodgers park was more my stomping ground in HS, as I lived in Evanston / Skokie at the time.

Brown line was probably the least sketchy of them all. I used to live right next to the Montrose stop in ravenswood and took it downtown and to all the neighborhoods along the way all the time.

 

[HeffDoesWant]

Public transportation SUCKS

Honestly, that probably just means that that city sucks.

It's almost entirely dependent on infrastructure spend and social conditions.

 

[KBE6EKCTAH_CCP]

Yeah I think bikes are more of a thing in Euro cities as well, probably for similar reasons. Cars are a shit way to get around the Melbourne CBD, PT is the best, we have a decent tram system throughout the city as well as underground trains.

Oh yes biking is huge here

 

[ssBaldy]

I used to use PT when I worked in Moscow City. It was 25 minutes from the door of my apartment to the door to my office, ant the trains are spacious and nice.

 

[subtlySteve]

Currently on the train to work on the train. I work in IT, often out seeing customers in the car but if in the office all day I usually get the train.

Anyone else sound poor like me and use PT?

Pros and cons below:

Pros: Attractive females sometimes in business attire, can have an extra one or two drinks in the office cause I don’t have to drive, don’t have to deal with traffic, it’s usually quicker going to the CBD

Cons: Dealing with riff raff, delays, sometimes I have to stand, sometimes the trains stink, people having annoying conversations on their phone, people playing shit music on their phone without earphones sometimes

In Sweden, public transportation is commonly used by many people, whether they own a vehicle or not.

For me, it varies based on circumstances.

Personally, I prefer the hour-long train commute over driving.

I don't have to stress about traffic, and I can enjoy my coffee on the way.

On the return trip, I can relax and do some reading.

Especially when it snows, taking the train is much safer and more convenient, as I don't have to deal with the road conditions and the people who don't know how to drive in snow.

 

[GSP_37]

You seem to need to pay to gain access to the platform, so I would guess the pay barrier might keep some bums away as well as no public restroom access here where they said it's like that on the mainland too. The Walmart restrooms are accessible by bums and smell awful.

I don't recall seeing crazy bums on trains in Japan. What was nice about Japan that they don't have here is the train stations platforms in Japan often had food vendor shops, bakery, various vending machines. One even had a mini dept store.

I only rode the new train here once during the free trial days. It was nice they let you have some grace period to get off anywhere and explore a bit and get back on without paying extra.

 

[jesusisangry]

I used to ride NYC subways when my territory was NYC. I have added 10 years BACK to my life not riding them anymore. The last few years got NUTS. So many mentally ill homeless people...violent outbursts, horrible smells. Then a year and a half ago all of a sudden, the subways looked like a 3rd world country. Migrants everywhere. Not families, tatted up mean mofos. I saw people every day jumping the turnstiles while I pay $127 a month. I see cell phones and head phones being stolen almost every few days. SOMETHING happens every day. Now I am in my own car and happy as fuck. There is almost no amount of money that could make me go back to the subways.

you pay more for car now or cheaper than subway?

 

[I Am Legion]

you pay more for car now or cheaper than subway?

I have a company car. But if I didn't it would be WAY more expensive to own a car. I paid 295 a month for LIRR and 127 for metro pass. I spend that in gas alone a month (If I paid for it).

 

[BreatheSherBro]

Public transportation doesn't have to suck. The DC area MARC train is great. The train is clean, on time, and doesn't really carry undesireable people because it charges more, it has multiple conductors and train staff to maintain order, and only runs early in the morning and in the evening. It's for commuters.

I've been here two years and only had one issue where there were major delays and cancellations related to track repair. Compare that one incident to how many traffic delays drivers experienced any time there is an accident.

Public transit can be awesome. It depends on how it is operated. DC has another train service called Metro that isn't nearly good as MARC. The Metro is understaffed, runs at all times of day, and charges cheaper fares so it has many more undesirable people ride.

When public transit is done well, it is much better than driving a car in areas with tons of traffic. Driving in heavy traffic sucks ass. Some people that commute to DC by car regularly spend an hour and a half in heavy traffic. Fuck that.

 

[kjg1672]

I take the Broad Steet Line when I'm in Philadelphia. I've had any issues. The Market-Frankford El can be a bit rough, though.

 

[ferrisjso]

There are just too damned many people on earth and we don't really like each other. Bill Maher said it once when he talked about atm machines and the grocery machines where we don't have to deal with anyone.

Neighbors don't get along much of the time, sue each other, complain about everything and that's with the suburban sprawl they have, packing them in tighter won't help. Packing people into busses doesn't make life less stressfull for most people. Some people might not mind it but most probably would rather not have to sit or stand next to a bunch of strangers several times a day.

Yeah buses. PT advocates usually hate buses which have most of the same issues cars have. That is not the issue here. PT advocates are almost always talking about some type of rail whether it be a train or a street car(which has a rail). When people are complaining about "car dominant infrastructure" thats the infrastructure buses use too.

 

[650lb Sumo]

That's only true in North America cuz outside of NYC, Chicago (& maybe Boston, Philly, DC, Seattle & San Fran) American cities were bulldozed for cars.

In the early 20th century, American cities were walkable, however, the automobile & oil companies did everything in their power to destroy the streetcar systems of the country, implement car-dependent zoning laws & parking minimums so that most Americans cities would be structured around cars (also destroying neighborhoods of color via redlining & bulldozing those neighbors for dumbass highways).

When public transportation is on point, it's FUCKING AMAZING. Who wouldn't wanna be able to hop onto the train to their next destination so that they can relax & chill until they reach their destination? Or even better, who wouldn't wanna live someplace where they can walk or cycle to the bodega, coffee shop, library, pharmacy, pub, park, etc.?! It's way, way better than having to drive everywhere for everything & gotta worry about like 5-6 things (gas, is the vehicle working properly, are my licenses & tags up to date, fighting against traffic so you don't get into an accident, is there parking in my destination) that's A LOT of shit to worry about just to get from point A to point B (very stressful).

The average American spends about $10-$12k annually on car expenses alone, that's A LOT outta your income! Also like 40k people died on our highways back in 2022 but we Americans act like "that's just life" fucken dumb!

There's a reason why America is dealing with a housing & a loneliness (isolation) crisis, it's because cars have DESTROYED our cities. Living in a walkable city is paradise on earth compared to the suburban sprawl/car-dependent hellscape that is most American cities. It's because of these damn zoning laws & parking minimums that we are having housing shortages & people are isolated af. CARS RUIN CITIES 100%! I'm always gonna be a militant urbanist, I want to educate people about the prosperity of walkable cities.

My bad man I'm genuinely not trying to attack you or anything, you're legit a solid poster on this forum, I just wanted to point out that there's nuance to the topic of transportation & this is something I'm greatly passionate about.

www.reddit.com/r/fuckcars

 

[650lb Sumo]

Yeah buses. PT advocates usually hate buses which have most of the same issues cars have. That is not the issue here. PT advocates are almost always talking about some type of rail whether it be a train or a street car(which has a rail). When people are complaining about "car dominant infrastructure" thats the infrastructure buses use too.

Really? I haven't looked into this much, but you can't send a railway close to every building, like every building has a road near it. Also people using buses instead of cars is much more efficient, fuel, air pollution, noise pollution, wear and tear on the roads, clogging up the roads, less parking space needed, fewer accidents, less material required to build one bus than 92 cars, less maintenance etc. etc. Being against buses as not going far enough seems a bit fanatical.

 

[ferrisjso]

Really? I haven't looked into this much, but you can't send a railway close to every building, like every building has a road near it. Also people using buses instead of cars is much more efficient, fuel, air pollution, noise pollution, wear and tear on the roads, clogging up the roads, less parking space needed, fewer accidents, less material required to build one bus than 92 cars, less maintenance etc. etc. Being against buses as not going far enough seems a bit fanatical.

You can have rails within walking distance of everything. You know how we know? This country once had that. It was dismantled.

You're forgetting peoples main issues with cars are mainly with roads, highways and the various negative things they've done to society. Buses do nothing to solve that. Yes buses take away the expense of owning a vehicle and minimize various logistical problems within the current framework that you've referred to. PT advocates generally want an alternative to roads not a more convienant way of travelling by them.

But the biggest issues with buses is it is not possible for them to be on time because they do not have a right of way and they are limited in the amount of passengers they can take. People are looking for transit to be something reliable they and everyone can rely on to meet a schedule. Buses can never be that they are beholden to road conditions.

 

[650lb Sumo]

You can have rails within walking distance of everything. You know how we know? This country once had that. It was dismantled.

You're forgetting peoples main issues with cars are mainly with roads, highways and the various negative things they've done to society. Buses do nothing to solve that. Yes buses take away the expense of owning a vehicle and minimize various logistical problems within the current framework that you've referred to. PT advocates generally want an alternative to roads not a more convienant way of travelling by them.

But the biggest issues with buses is it is not possible for them to be on time because they do not have a right of way and they are limited in the amount of passengers they can take. People are looking for transit to be something reliable they and everyone can rely on to meet a schedule. Buses can never be that they are beholden to road conditions.

Ok thanks for the response. Obviously you can have bus lanes but sounds like that isn't enough for hardliners.

 

[ferrisjso]

Ok thanks for the response. Obviously you can have bus lanes but sounds like that isn't enough for hardliners.

Bus lanes aren't a replacement for rails. Buses on rails are called street cars and PT people are more friendly towards them though not as friendly as trains. With buses you still can't have multiple cars on one vehicle. A bus is a bus and if theres 1 bus with x amount of seats theres 1 bus with x amount of seats. It is not a viable replacement for the car it is meant as a complement for a minority of people who don't drive. People can be packed on to trains too but it takes a lot more. Whereas with a bus thats more an inherent part of the experience.

 

[traditionally_irreverent]

Here in Austin it doesn't really make sense to use public transportation if you own a vehicle.

The bus system is just not very good for a big city. Its not terrible, but it's a major inconvenience compared to driving. I did have a few years in my 20s where I went without a car. Not something I am trying to do again.

Seems like its surrounded by toll roads as well. Still not as bad as Houston traffic.

 

[CrimsonFan]

Seems like its surrounded by toll roads as well. Still not as bad as Houston traffic.

Not really. There's a few toll roads but they're mainly for getting completely around the city if you're passing through. I never used them.

 

[IIIIIIII]

Public transportation doesn't have to suck. The DC area MARC train is great. The train is clean, on time, and doesn't really carry undesireable people because it charges more, it has multiple conductors and train staff to maintain order, and only runs early in the morning and in the evening. It's for commuters.

I've been here two years and only had one issue where there were major delays and cancellations related to track repair. Compare that one incident to how many traffic delays drivers experienced any time there is an accident.

Public transit can be awesome. It depends on how it is operated. DC has another train service called Metro that isn't nearly good as MARC. The Metro is understaffed, runs at all times of day, and charges cheaper fares so it has many more undesirable people ride.

When public transit is done well, it is much better than driving a car in areas with tons of traffic. Driving in heavy traffic sucks ass. Some people that commute to DC by car regularly spend an hour and a half in heavy traffic. Fuck that.

i agree 100%. it is completely dependent on how the service is run, and whether they allow the public to take advantage via jumping turnstiles, or not reprimanding people who play loud music and harass passengers, etc.

a lot of crap, and rightly, has been spoken about the public transportation in the sf bay area, and i completely agree. i use it often. it's frustrating because the infrastructure for a smooth-running public system is in place. it's there. it's the politics of the area that is hindering law enforcement from keeping the peace.