Did a similar commute myself (out of Minneapolis to an edge suburb, via a train, then a bus, then a smaller shuttle bus). Likewise, there was a core group of ab

Did a similar commute myself (out of Minneapolis to an edge suburb, via a train, then a bus, then a smaller shuttle bus). Likewise, there was a core group of about 10 of us who had almost the exact same commute. In that scenario, though, we were living in a much smaller city than those discussed in the article. We commuted that way for a combination of reasons- folks either couldn't afford a car, couldn't drive for medical reasons, etc. I bought a cheap car and cut my commute time in half, since I could take a much more efficient route to work than the bus could. The rail portion of my commute had been great. The shuttle worked well too, since all the jobs in that area were concentrated in a couple industrial parks. The only problem was the bus that took me out of the city, and to the shuttle. I'm left with many "what ifs" about commuter rail in small cities.