[lbo-talk] discreet charms of transportation apartheid

Jordan Hayes jmhayes at j-o-r-d-a-n.com
Wed Apr 9 13:32:48 PDT 2008


tim francis-wright writes:


> There are generally half to two-thirds of the number of trains
> available for reverse commuting on the New Haven line as well
> as the NJ Transit and LIRR trains.

Right. I'm not saying that it should be different; I'm just saying that this disparity is a not-insignificant part of auto use in NYC, and you can't just say "well, those people are just *choosing* to drive" ...

To further this point, the paper I've cited goes on to show that as an area (they use counties) has less transit options (either fewer trains or slower ones) into the city, the proportion of trips made using transit goes down. This ought to be obvious, but since so many people have basically said "NYC has subways, you're eeevil if you drive" that I feel it's important to point it out explicitly.

/jordan



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