i took that bus to a train and it was never a big deal. here's the way i look at it--when you're dealing with public transportation you have to do two things: make your own internal time schedule for things like buses and subways and els and expect that you might be a little late if you don't leave early enough. after a couple of times riding the same piece of transporatation, you can usually get a feel for how it runs during a certain time of the day. i think that i looked at the time schedules for the el maybe three times in my entire life and the same with the bus schedule. things generally run on time in chicago. generally and of course, there are sometimes big gaps but i'm sure that'll happen anywhere, especially when they're doing work on the tracks, which, in chicago, they've been doing for sometime now.
also, light rails = almost usually useless. the one in houston is joke--hardly anyone rides it because it either doesn't go to sensible locations or it's easier to get there some other way (car or bus). the nj transit is nice and clean and seems to actually service areas that would need it, but that's not in urban areas, it's to smaller outlying suburbs and communities that aren't necessarily serviced by the bus system, so it makes sense.
when i say "light rail" i include subways as well.
and i think that your city has a pretty useful subway system. :-)
a lot of cities are building light rail trains (or streetcars) now and are doing so in a completely ass backwards way. for instance, i'm pretty sure very few people use the new light rail in the twin cities, but it sure does help for travelers getting to the airport.
i think that they have to really make sure that it is usable before they do it, certainly. here in portland, there are areas of the city--for instance, my old neighborhood of st. johns--that were totally off the map until they built the light rail going that way, for better or for worse (it helped me out because it made the area a lot safer, but i'm sure gentrification is rearing its ugly head as well).
public transit is tough, i'll give you that. but this is why it is COMPLETELY LUDICROUS that portland is trying to fuck up something that WORKS.
and sure, in chicago i should have just left for work earlier. but when you look up th exact times and they give you exact times and then those times are COMPLETELY and UTTERLY useless, something is wrong. and i worry that is what the trimet is about to cause out here, and it sucks.
to me, the whole point of taking a train is that you don't have to worry about traffic, and should be able to get to where you are going a lot faster than you do when you have to deal with traffic. granted, you have to time it right, and you can't have a train every possible place in the universe, but this morning, when i was running late, i went for the train because i knew what time i would get to work (albeit, what time i would be late).
and seriously, i know you love chicago, but time and again i have heard how completely crapulent the transit is there, compared to (i'm told) the DC metro, the trimet here. i know it is a big city, but the damn city was designed around the el--they should be able to lead the nation in such things with all the resources and experience they have at their disposal.
and once you see how efficient, clean, and on time the subway is in seoul, the "oh but the city is too big" argument kind of falls apart.
really, the term light rail is more commonly used in reference to street-level transport systems running off of electricity (usually from an overhead source, not within the rails themselves), not really subways. and, you know, it's light. smaller, shorter trains with less capacity. the mta, by comparison, is no amtrak, but it's certainly heavier than the DART (in Dallas) or SEPTA (in Philadelphia).
and yeah, our subways are useful. but i've absolutely never, ever looked at a time schedule here.
the dc metro is great, no lie and i'm not comparing the el's wonder and beauty to everywhere else. all i was saying is that i never had huge problems with it. and i agree that they shouldn't fuck up something that works.
even though you just said my argument fell apart, i stand by the fact that big cities are in constant states of renewal and disrepair and shit just isn't always going to work the way it should or could. good for seoul, but doesn't make me hate chicago.
well, okay, i shoulda just said TRAINS not light rail, which is why i clarified.
this isn't just "i am so over chicago," though i am (although, yes, the el is pretty, i will give you that). i felt this way about the CTA before i left there, and the way that they are completely fucking with prices and the stupid chicago card and all of that is really crappy as well. they keep crying overbudget and then they find warehouses full of unused buses (something like that, i cant remember specifically, i now that makes me look idiotic).
i used seoul as an example that shit CAN work. with 10 million people.
isn't one of the big reasons they're messing with fares because they're revitalizing almost entire brown line and making the stations handicap-accessible, as well as making the platforms long enough to almost double the capacity of each run? i'm not saying it doesn't suck for the fares to be hiked, but it's still not that expensive. and what's wrong with the chicago card? mine worked fine and i had it for three years. it was nice to have a renewable source in case i lost it, which i did (three times).
and i know that's why you used seoul, dorkus. all i was saying is that just because it's better somewhere else doesn't make me (*personally*) hate chicago. i believe i actually said, "good for seoul..." and i meant it. hooray for them. that doesn't really make me get terribly pissed off at other places because they're not as good.
my problem with the chicago card is not that it exists.
it is that you HAVE TO HAVE ONE in order to get bulk discounts, etc., and the one you have to have is the one that must be linked up to a credit or debit card. and if i am not mistaken, one of the recent fare hikes was ONLY for people who don't use a Chicago card.
as someone who doesn't have credit cards and wouldnt want that kind of automatic buying power coming off of my debit card automatically, i think that this is a horrible idea. and on a broader scale, i think it makes things that much tougher for poor people, because of requiring a card for a discount.
PLUS, if you get your work to pay for your card, they can't add money on to your chicago card, and so you are paying more money than you would if you did things on your own (aside from the tax benefits).
there are certianly advantages to the system (loss prevention, not making zillions more of those plastic cards to clog the landfills), but i hate the discount thing for the same reason i hate that illinois tolls are 80 cents now, unless you have the automatic-tied-to-a-card iPass thingie.
the transit doesnt make me hate chicago--mostly, the crime i experienced, and just burning out one the same old place, did that. i just think it is a good example of a fucked up transportation system.
in any case, the discount for the chicago card thing isn't terrible. i agree it could be more accessible to people with needs, but new york doesn't have anything like it and personally, i'd like if i could get a discount on my fare by using a system that actually allows me to move through stations more quickly. i mean, that's the whole idea of it (and the i-pass), to increase efficiency so they don't have to keep hiking fares for EVERYONE (including people who can't/won't get the chicago card/i-pass). i understand it still sucks on some level. please don't beat it into the ground about how much it sucks. i get it.
i know you hate chicago for multiple reasons. i know that. and it's not even like i'm such huge pro-CTA person. i think i was just saying that i never had huge problems and that my chicago card was nice. really, that's all i was saying, right? i guess i kind of feel like i was lucky enough to live in a city that had mass transit at all. i mean, i don't drive. and so the fact that there were buses and trains at all and that i had options to around the entire city and suburbs without having to own a car, well, that made me pretty happy.
huh. i didnt think that i was being mean or creating an atmosphere you would need to escape from. or that i was making it hard for you to debate--i mean, i agreed with tons of what you said. this might be a case where my caffeine-fueled enthusiasm is taken as aggression, but i don't feel like i was being jerky in any way.
also, i misspoke. i dont hate chicago. i just dont want to live there again....
so yeah, sorry if you thought i was attacking your personally. i just like debating things.
i didn't think you were attacking me personally. i'm just not good at debating. especially online. or really, i guess, in person. i like THE QUIET LIFE.
also, i was cranky due to the fact that we have run out of q-tips (cotton, not rapper) and i've been feeling kind of waterlogged for two days. could i go to the drugstore only steps up the block right now? yes. will i? no. why? because i'm boycotting them? yes. because? they have absolutely no cadbury mini-eggs and yet they have scads of other crappy easter candy.
also, light rails = almost usually useless. the one in houston is joke--hardly anyone rides it because it either doesn't go to sensible locations or it's easier to get there some other way (car or bus). the nj transit is nice and clean and seems to actually service areas that would need it, but that's not in urban areas, it's to smaller outlying suburbs and communities that aren't necessarily serviced by the bus system, so it makes sense.
sorry for the long comment.
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and i think that your city has a pretty useful subway system. :-)
a lot of cities are building light rail trains (or streetcars) now and are doing so in a completely ass backwards way. for instance, i'm pretty sure very few people use the new light rail in the twin cities, but it sure does help for travelers getting to the airport.
i think that they have to really make sure that it is usable before they do it, certainly. here in portland, there are areas of the city--for instance, my old neighborhood of st. johns--that were totally off the map until they built the light rail going that way, for better or for worse (it helped me out because it made the area a lot safer, but i'm sure gentrification is rearing its ugly head as well).
public transit is tough, i'll give you that. but this is why it is COMPLETELY LUDICROUS that portland is trying to fuck up something that WORKS.
and sure, in chicago i should have just left for work earlier. but when you look up th exact times and they give you exact times and then those times are COMPLETELY and UTTERLY useless, something is wrong. and i worry that is what the trimet is about to cause out here, and it sucks.
to me, the whole point of taking a train is that you don't have to worry about traffic, and should be able to get to where you are going a lot faster than you do when you have to deal with traffic. granted, you have to time it right, and you can't have a train every possible place in the universe, but this morning, when i was running late, i went for the train because i knew what time i would get to work (albeit, what time i would be late).
and seriously, i know you love chicago, but time and again i have heard how completely crapulent the transit is there, compared to (i'm told) the DC metro, the trimet here. i know it is a big city, but the damn city was designed around the el--they should be able to lead the nation in such things with all the resources and experience they have at their disposal.
and once you see how efficient, clean, and on time the subway is in seoul, the "oh but the city is too big" argument kind of falls apart.
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and yeah, our subways are useful. but i've absolutely never, ever looked at a time schedule here.
the dc metro is great, no lie and i'm not comparing the el's wonder and beauty to everywhere else. all i was saying is that i never had huge problems with it. and i agree that they shouldn't fuck up something that works.
even though you just said my argument fell apart, i stand by the fact that big cities are in constant states of renewal and disrepair and shit just isn't always going to work the way it should or could. good for seoul, but doesn't make me hate chicago.
Reply
this isn't just "i am so over chicago," though i am (although, yes, the el is pretty, i will give you that). i felt this way about the CTA before i left there, and the way that they are completely fucking with prices and the stupid chicago card and all of that is really crappy as well. they keep crying overbudget and then they find warehouses full of unused buses (something like that, i cant remember specifically, i now that makes me look idiotic).
i used seoul as an example that shit CAN work. with 10 million people.
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and i know that's why you used seoul, dorkus. all i was saying is that just because it's better somewhere else doesn't make me (*personally*) hate chicago. i believe i actually said, "good for seoul..." and i meant it. hooray for them. that doesn't really make me get terribly pissed off at other places because they're not as good.
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it is that you HAVE TO HAVE ONE in order to get bulk discounts, etc., and the one you have to have is the one that must be linked up to a credit or debit card. and if i am not mistaken, one of the recent fare hikes was ONLY for people who don't use a Chicago card.
as someone who doesn't have credit cards and wouldnt want that kind of automatic buying power coming off of my debit card automatically, i think that this is a horrible idea. and on a broader scale, i think it makes things that much tougher for poor people, because of requiring a card for a discount.
PLUS, if you get your work to pay for your card, they can't add money on to your chicago card, and so you are paying more money than you would if you did things on your own (aside from the tax benefits).
there are certianly advantages to the system (loss prevention, not making zillions more of those plastic cards to clog the landfills), but i hate the discount thing for the same reason i hate that illinois tolls are 80 cents now, unless you have the automatic-tied-to-a-card iPass thingie.
the transit doesnt make me hate chicago--mostly, the crime i experienced, and just burning out one the same old place, did that. i just think it is a good example of a fucked up transportation system.
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in any case, the discount for the chicago card thing isn't terrible. i agree it could be more accessible to people with needs, but new york doesn't have anything like it and personally, i'd like if i could get a discount on my fare by using a system that actually allows me to move through stations more quickly. i mean, that's the whole idea of it (and the i-pass), to increase efficiency so they don't have to keep hiking fares for EVERYONE (including people who can't/won't get the chicago card/i-pass). i understand it still sucks on some level. please don't beat it into the ground about how much it sucks. i get it.
i know you hate chicago for multiple reasons. i know that. and it's not even like i'm such huge pro-CTA person. i think i was just saying that i never had huge problems and that my chicago card was nice. really, that's all i was saying, right? i guess i kind of feel like i was lucky enough to live in a city that had mass transit at all. i mean, i don't drive. and so the fact that there were buses and trains at all and that i had options to around the entire city and suburbs without having to own a car, well, that made me pretty happy.
i'm going to get out of this discussion now.
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also, i misspoke. i dont hate chicago. i just dont want to live there again....
so yeah, sorry if you thought i was attacking your personally. i just like debating things.
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also, i was cranky due to the fact that we have run out of q-tips (cotton, not rapper) and i've been feeling kind of waterlogged for two days. could i go to the drugstore only steps up the block right now? yes. will i? no. why? because i'm boycotting them? yes. because? they have absolutely no cadbury mini-eggs and yet they have scads of other crappy easter candy.
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