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>Why do people choose to drive when there are alternatives? In my experience as an American who prefers public transport but lives in the Midwest, where public
by lee-rhapsody 3y ago
>Why do people choose to drive when there are alternatives?
In my experience as an American who prefers public transport but lives in the Midwest, where public transport is essentially nonexistent: people have a skewed view of public transport thanks to horror stories about NYC subways and whatnot. So even if public transport were available, many people wouldn't take it because it would mean being around other people.
- xnx 3y agoHow skewed is the perception? Riding transit isn't a death sentence, but it does suck: slow, unreliable, expensive, dirty/smelly/germy, and with the potential of being a victim of violent crime.
- bombcar 3y agoIt really depends on the city. Some places it's just fine, and pretty popular, some places it's a rolling bathroom and pretty popular - the problems are the ones where it is unpopular and a rolling bathroom; that's the hardest to expand - which means it is perpetually stuck in a dead zone where it can't be used because it can't be expanded because it can't be used. Meanwhile things like the San Diego Trolley has gone from 16 miles and 17 stops in 1981 to 47,000 people a weekday in 1996 and to almost 70 miles and 62 stations today, with ridership peaking at around 38 million a year in 2019 (and slowly recovering back up). (Some of the original cars are still riding, down in Mendoza: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrotranvía_Mendoza https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrotranvía_Mendoza ) Something to note: that is a very successful light transit line and the total track is about the same as some people's daily commute.