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So the article (which I can't load again due to paywall) ends on the note of "the only solution is to build more housing in the most desired places" which is we

So the article (which I can't load again due to paywall) ends on the note of "the only solution is to build more housing in the most desired places" which is well enough but not true. like Christopher Alexander explained in A City Is Not A Tree, places and locations are not the same thing. We can extend a place far beyond its location by connecting it efficiently to other locations. Build homes, yes. But build really good transit as well. Help people move around a big area easily and cheaply and the housing crisis will be no more.

listenallyall 4y ago
> Help people move around a big area easily and cheaply and the housing crisis will be no more And yet, cities/regions with great transit systems are the most expensive to live and have the most severe shortages. HK, London, NYC, SF...
- seymourhersh 4y ago
  Your point is correct, but let’s note that SF doesn’t have a great transit system.
- jseliger 4y ago
  Untrue: https://jamesjgleeson.wordpress.com/2018/02/19/how-tokyo-built-its-way-to-abundant-housing/ https://jamesjgleeson.wordpress.com/2018/02/19/how-tokyo-bui... Also, SF has a great transit system?
  - listenallyall 4y ago
    Don't many people in Tokyo regularly spend their nights in tiny capsules or pods?
    - piperswe 4y ago
      I certainly wouldn't say "regularly" - rarely might be a better word. Sometimes it makes sense to crash at a capsule hotel if the trains are closed for the night or something, but that's not common for most (or many) people. Nowadays the capsule hotels cater more towards tourists than their original market anyways.
- zemvpferreira 4y ago
  I get your point but none of those are regions with great transit any more. SF's transit is awful, NYC the same. If borderless transit with mainland existed HK's residential pressure would definitely be eased by Guangdong. Consider Tokyo, where both building and transit have progressed at a good pace and housing prices have remained affordable (despite the fame). Still, maybe I should have put my idea forward a different way: If you are currently facing a housing crisis, the way to fix it is to build great transit to somewhere with plenty of housing availability. This fix needs to be implemented recursively at a scale that matches the city in need. It's much easier than the alternative of trying to densify an existing city, which could be impossible in many scenarios.

listenallyall 4y ago

> Help people move around a big area easily and cheaply and the housing crisis will be no more And yet, cities/regions with great transit systems are the most expensive to live and have the most severe shortages. HK, London, NYC, SF...

seymourhersh 4y ago
Your point is correct, but let’s note that SF doesn’t have a great transit system.
jseliger 4y ago
Untrue: https://jamesjgleeson.wordpress.com/2018/02/19/how-tokyo-built-its-way-to-abundant-housing/ https://jamesjgleeson.wordpress.com/2018/02/19/how-tokyo-bui... Also, SF has a great transit system?
- listenallyall 4y ago
  Don't many people in Tokyo regularly spend their nights in tiny capsules or pods?
  - piperswe 4y ago
    I certainly wouldn't say "regularly" - rarely might be a better word. Sometimes it makes sense to crash at a capsule hotel if the trains are closed for the night or something, but that's not common for most (or many) people. Nowadays the capsule hotels cater more towards tourists than their original market anyways.
zemvpferreira 4y ago
I get your point but none of those are regions with great transit any more. SF's transit is awful, NYC the same. If borderless transit with mainland existed HK's residential pressure would definitely be eased by Guangdong. Consider Tokyo, where both building and transit have progressed at a good pace and housing prices have remained affordable (despite the fame). Still, maybe I should have put my idea forward a different way: If you are currently facing a housing crisis, the way to fix it is to build great transit to somewhere with plenty of housing availability. This fix needs to be implemented recursively at a scale that matches the city in need. It's much easier than the alternative of trying to densify an existing city, which could be impossible in many scenarios.