cars and events

[amw]

ohnotheydidnt dropped a great wank post today: US Swifties can't comprehend the concept of public transport in Melbourne. But, probably because it was posted when America was awake and the rest of the world was still asleep, there is a bunch of bizarro comments like how people would rather sit in the comfort of their own car for two hours waiting to get out of

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[geminiwench]

Our local papers reported on why they burned their streetcars, exactly stating it was a part of the contract with the new bus company the city had signed. They weren't even allowed to keep one for posterity, although the city had legally asked to keep one, hoping to put it in a park as a band pavillion.

So... do I send copies of that microfische to snopes or.... who? Ha!

The trains were built SO weird in America... it was all self-funded these little local business/development barons who couldn't/wouldn't work together, and just competed to the point the rail system connected... but didn't actually work together. By the 1950s, the highway system was sold (by car manufacturers) as the way of the future and a way around our crappy train system.

And it's just been that way ever since. A few American cities were forward looking enough to invest in major and dedicated public transportation systems. NYC impressed me so much (having only known Seattle's and San Francisco's subways) but then I saw how Europe does it and I realized how far behind ALL our public transport is.
Every facet shows a lack of care, investment, or even... interest in the concept DESPITE how effective and efficient it is INCLUDING cost effective/efficient in mega-business minded America. The public good doesn't often get good marketing in America;) ha!