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One major difference is that the streetcar companies in the US sold the land whereas Japanese companies held on to the choicest parcels to self-develop. This m
by bobthepanda 2y ago
One major difference is that the streetcar companies in the US sold the land whereas Japanese companies held on to the choicest parcels to self-develop.
This meant that 50 years later when everything was at end of life, the streetcar companies could not repeat the trick.
- Tiktaalik 2y agoYep! It was a pretty scammy system. In NA effectively the streetcars were a scheme to sell real estate, with the streetcar being the sweetener to convince people to buy into the neighbourhood. Once sales were over the streetcar was then a pointless drag on profits. No surprise unscrupulous business persons cut back on maintenance and abandoned the "unprofitable" streetcars.