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Transit-Age: Are you satisfied with your city's transit?
- Thread starter EvilMario
- Start date
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My blood pressure rises just looking at that picture. Life's too damn short to spend so much time doing that. Never again.God Bless the 401.
Cities that invest now in transit now are going to have a big advantage in the future over those that stick to the drive-drive-drive/drill-drill-drill paradigm, especially as fuel prices rise. Austin's rail system is still in its infancy, and for the sakes of the friends I have who live there, I hope that the voters and politicians there come to realize how very crucial it'll be.
Same goes for here in NOLA - the more rail lines, the better. Thank goodness the tourists and residents here love these streetcars.
edit: for anyone interested, http://www.thetransportpolitic.com/ is handy for keeping track of existing, proposed, and currently-under-construction rail projects.
Head of Vengarl
Banned
I live in Los Angeles, so no, I'm not satisfied. Driving from my suburb to the city makes my fucking blood boil every time. I can't imagine having to commute there to work every day.
My wife and I used to live in Surrey B.C. (right after we got married), and I had to deal with the old Port Mann bridge every single day. I would go over the port mann, hit the traffic in the burnaby lake stretch on the #1, and snarl my way over the ironworkers bridge to work in North Van. It took at least an hour there in the morning, and between 1-1.5 hours home. Ugh.
We chose that location because my wife worked in south langley at the time so it was relatively central.
Transit was not an option for that commute. I am SO happy to be able to take the c-train or bus here in Calgary.
We chose that location because my wife worked in south langley at the time so it was relatively central.
Transit was not an option for that commute. I am SO happy to be able to take the c-train or bus here in Calgary.
I think it is one of the best but the MTA is a fucking mess.
The few rails we have are terrible. A simple rail that ran along side most major freeways connecting the valley, Pasadena, downtown la, Santa Monica, with a few interconnections for major streets like sunset would be a godsend.
Problem with la is that all the places you want to get to are typically hard to get to using transit. Commuting to the few rails we have will often take as long as the commute itself which adds no incentive. Instead of improving shit in the city, we are building some rail to San Francisco. How about California improving the public transportation in its major cities first before expanding outward like that
Here in Paris and near cities, transit is both good and terrible.
Good because there is a huge amount of bus/subway/tramway/train lines, terrible because the majority are so over capacity they simply don't work as they should.
The biggest problem with the way Paris works is that many jobs are all centralized in the western part of the city, at the "La défense" quarter. And there are for the moment only two major lines going there, Metro line 1, and RER line A.
Both these lines go through some of the biggest stations in Paris, in an East/West line basically. Now add to this that the biggest new housing built in the last 20 years have all been near Disneyland Paris, within distance of RER A extension they made for its opening. The city I used to live in went from 1000 citizens to 25000 in 15 years, and it's one city among quite a few others. And since most of these people are young-ish couples, many of these work at La Défense.
So there you go, a huge number of people living in the East part, all going to the West part at the same time.
The result is that at least 50% of the time there is either a technical failure, or most likely someone who gets sick because there are so many people in the train they can't breath well. When I lived in the West (45 minutes RER A ride to La Défense), I had to take a train before 7h30 in the morning if I wanted both a chance to sit, and my ride to be on time. After that, sitting was impossible, and being on time was very random to say the least...
They are planning/building new lines for that east/west problem (RER E) and more subway lines for La Défense, but even then this is going to be more and more an issue.
And forget about taking a car to go from East to anywhere near Paris, the Highway A4 is one of the most congested in Europe, last I heard. A 20 minutes ride when it's clear is every morning changed to at least 90 minutes.
So yeah, while the subway lines plan is impressive, and many things are great with Paris' transit, it's a pure nightmare for hundreds of thousands of people every day. I moved to walking distance of La Défense because I couldn't deal with it anymore...
Good because there is a huge amount of bus/subway/tramway/train lines, terrible because the majority are so over capacity they simply don't work as they should.
The biggest problem with the way Paris works is that many jobs are all centralized in the western part of the city, at the "La défense" quarter. And there are for the moment only two major lines going there, Metro line 1, and RER line A.
Both these lines go through some of the biggest stations in Paris, in an East/West line basically. Now add to this that the biggest new housing built in the last 20 years have all been near Disneyland Paris, within distance of RER A extension they made for its opening. The city I used to live in went from 1000 citizens to 25000 in 15 years, and it's one city among quite a few others. And since most of these people are young-ish couples, many of these work at La Défense.
So there you go, a huge number of people living in the East part, all going to the West part at the same time.
The result is that at least 50% of the time there is either a technical failure, or most likely someone who gets sick because there are so many people in the train they can't breath well. When I lived in the West (45 minutes RER A ride to La Défense), I had to take a train before 7h30 in the morning if I wanted both a chance to sit, and my ride to be on time. After that, sitting was impossible, and being on time was very random to say the least...
They are planning/building new lines for that east/west problem (RER E) and more subway lines for La Défense, but even then this is going to be more and more an issue.
And forget about taking a car to go from East to anywhere near Paris, the Highway A4 is one of the most congested in Europe, last I heard. A 20 minutes ride when it's clear is every morning changed to at least 90 minutes.
So yeah, while the subway lines plan is impressive, and many things are great with Paris' transit, it's a pure nightmare for hundreds of thousands of people every day. I moved to walking distance of La Défense because I couldn't deal with it anymore...
London, England
Coverage - cannot fault this. We have trams, trains, buses, and underground service so pretty much everywhere is connected
Cost - The prices get hiked regularly far beyond inflation. A day's travel-card is something like £15, which seems excessive to me.
Modernism - well the underground is antiquated, and when the weather is hot a bit like an oven. The trains are okay. Trams are very modern. The bus stops mostly now have electronic systems to tell you when the next one is coming, which is a nice improvement
Management - oookay well the station staff are usually pretty good and willing to help out. Strikes are not uncommon, and it grates especially since train drivers seem to be paid very well for a not-that-tough job.
I wanna say also that the amount of advertising that's worked its way into our system is infuriating. I find myself trying to avert my eyes from the stuff lol
Also the crowding is getting out of control. I'm not sure how we're gonna cope in the olympics
Coverage - cannot fault this. We have trams, trains, buses, and underground service so pretty much everywhere is connected
Cost - The prices get hiked regularly far beyond inflation. A day's travel-card is something like £15, which seems excessive to me.
Modernism - well the underground is antiquated, and when the weather is hot a bit like an oven. The trains are okay. Trams are very modern. The bus stops mostly now have electronic systems to tell you when the next one is coming, which is a nice improvement
Management - oookay well the station staff are usually pretty good and willing to help out. Strikes are not uncommon, and it grates especially since train drivers seem to be paid very well for a not-that-tough job.
I wanna say also that the amount of advertising that's worked its way into our system is infuriating. I find myself trying to avert my eyes from the stuff lol
Also the crowding is getting out of control. I'm not sure how we're gonna cope in the olympics
Paris shits on NYC.
The biggest problems the NYC MTA has is its management and Albany. Other than that it's pretty awesome. 24hr service ensures I always get home no matter what shenanigans I've been up to.
I guess our stations are incredibly old though and do need renovations. Well, most do. Some Manhattan stations are just fine.
I'd like an expansion of train service for Queens in general.
I guess our stations are incredibly old though and do need renovations. Well, most do. Some Manhattan stations are just fine.
That's still pretty amazing. Once technology like magnetic levitation gets cheaper I'd like to see a similar expansion of elevated trains in Queens that lead directly to The Bronx and Brooklyn so people could take the train straight to them without having to go through Manhattan first. Waiting for maglev since it's way quieter than regular rails and would preempt the biggest potential NIMBY complaint. There already busses that do all that, but more trains is never bad.
I'd like an expansion of train service for Queens in general.
Yyyyep. I'm a student at UW there and go without a car. Buses are usable, but mostly you wind up staying close to where you live.
I'm in Redmond for the summer and the Seattle area system seems so much more comprehensive by comparison.
Measure R and America Fast Forward are going to build more rail in Los Angeles than any city in the US. Even more if Measure R+ is passed in the fall.
In San Antonio TX we have absolutely no public transportation outside of a city bus system which sucks and doesn't cover all of the city.
Any proposal to implement a rail system or anything other than "more roads/parking lots for my Ford F350 Supercrew" is met with immediate hostility.
Any proposal to implement a rail system or anything other than "more roads/parking lots for my Ford F350 Supercrew" is met with immediate hostility.
Living around LA, not that great.
...what the hell is that?
oh, metrolink. i was wondering why that all looked so foreign to me.
I'm living in Freiburg, a rather small (200k ish) city in the south west of Germany.
Coverage: We have 3 tram lines, that meet in the city centre. This system is reinforced by a number of bus lines and a robust train system. You can go pretty much anywhere you want by public transport.
Cost: It's expensive to buy single ride tickets (2,10), so almost everybody except for tourists uses the so-called Regio-Karte, a monthly ticket (50), that gives you access to a much bigger area than depicted above.
Modernism: We are currently in the transition from older trams:
to newer ones, called Combino:
They have horrible build quality though (Siemens, lol) so they have to be repaired all the time.
Management: Workers are typically friendly, though they can be kind of short-tempered at night, when the tram is full of drunken teenagers. They go on strike about once every two years, but the strikes are communicated well in advance, so you can prepare for them.
While it's certainly not as impressive as Bejing or Seoul I thought it would be interisting to share, please feel free to ask any questions you may have.
Coverage: We have 3 tram lines, that meet in the city centre. This system is reinforced by a number of bus lines and a robust train system. You can go pretty much anywhere you want by public transport.
Cost: It's expensive to buy single ride tickets (2,10), so almost everybody except for tourists uses the so-called Regio-Karte, a monthly ticket (50), that gives you access to a much bigger area than depicted above.
Modernism: We are currently in the transition from older trams:
to newer ones, called Combino:
They have horrible build quality though (Siemens, lol) so they have to be repaired all the time.
Management: Workers are typically friendly, though they can be kind of short-tempered at night, when the tram is full of drunken teenagers. They go on strike about once every two years, but the strikes are communicated well in advance, so you can prepare for them.
While it's certainly not as impressive as Bejing or Seoul I thought it would be interisting to share, please feel free to ask any questions you may have.
Overcrowded and overpriced shit, it was good some years ago, nowdays it has become obsolete.
Besides we still have streets full with thousands of private transportation busses, combine that with dumb citizens with no common sense who buy 2-4 cars despite the high fuel prices. The result is nothing but unbearable traffic jams everyday in the whole city.
Guess what happens when everyone gets some money, buys some busses and starts its own private transport company?.
In Lund, Sweden where i've lived in my entire life (~100 000 inhabitants) I was very satisfied with the public transports.
The city in itself is quite small (you're no further than 4km from the city center no matter where you are) and has a decent bus network with lines going to every suburb from about 6 am to midnight.
But what's really great is the regional transports. You can get to Malmö (10 minutes away, 300 000 inhabitants) and Copenhagen (45 minutes away, 1.5-2 million inhabitants) all around the clock with really frequent stops on peak hours. You also have great transport options to the rest of the Öresund region.
If I decide to stay there I don't ever see the meaning with owning a car. Right now i'm in the Norwegian capital of Oslo searching for a job but i've only got to the 31st to do so.
I'm quite satisfied with the public transports of Oslo. The only problem is that the city has got to few night lines on weekdays.
The city in itself is quite small (you're no further than 4km from the city center no matter where you are) and has a decent bus network with lines going to every suburb from about 6 am to midnight.
But what's really great is the regional transports. You can get to Malmö (10 minutes away, 300 000 inhabitants) and Copenhagen (45 minutes away, 1.5-2 million inhabitants) all around the clock with really frequent stops on peak hours. You also have great transport options to the rest of the Öresund region.
If I decide to stay there I don't ever see the meaning with owning a car. Right now i'm in the Norwegian capital of Oslo searching for a job but i've only got to the 31st to do so.
I'm quite satisfied with the public transports of Oslo. The only problem is that the city has got to few night lines on weekdays.
I wish NYC would renovate our stations the way London does their underground with the partition that separates the platform from the track. That way we wouldn't have all that garbage on the tracks and it could help with our rat problem.
Oh and Queens sucks. It doesn't need more train service. J/K...
Milwaukee, WI
Coverage - We have buses here, that is all. The mayor is trying to get a streetcar system put in place here but the suburbs to the west always like to meddle into the city of Milwaukee affairs so its an uphill battle. People in Wisconsin for whatever reason are very anti-rail (Governor campaigned on a platform of rejecting federal fund for the high-speed rail system going through Wisconsin, jerk). Other than that, the bus routes keep getting cut and they have terrible coverage and are super slow and unreliable at all.
Cost - It cost 2.25 to ride the bus in Milwaukee...yeah it suck hardcore. This is mainly to our brilliant governor doing everything he possibly could to destroy the transit system in Milwaukee. He hates Milwaukee and tries to punish it as much as he can (he was also the county executive for about 8 years and did absolutely nothing to try to help the transit system).
Modernism - Thank God of senator Coggs. She got some federal money earmarked to get some new buses in Milwaukee and was also able to get Milwaukee about 50 million dollars to start up the streetcar system. Only problem is that its probably gonna cost somewhere around 125 million to get the streetcar system to service a wide enough area to actually be of great use.
Management -The management of the transit system in Milwaukee plain and simple sucks. They don't make any sense most of the times. Like would it really be that hard to come with some ideas to make riding the bus easier? Since all buses have GPS trackers, couldn't they just design an app that shows you where the actual location of the bus is in any giving route (along with an ETA to your current local)?
The city is in the very unfortunate position where it has to constantly has to battle against the republican neighbors for anything. Even if it has nothing to do with the suburbs, Milwaukee still has to fight against them for everything since they make it impossible for Milwaukee to progress. So when it comes to transit, everyone in the city knows just how much a streetcar system would help the downtown area and beyond. A better bus system would help Milwaukee. But alas, our transit situation is beyond pitiful, because of this and the over reliance on cars our downtown is pretty much a joke. Look up any photo tour of Downtown Milwaukee and all you'll see it prime land being wasted on parking structures, is both sad and disgusting (this is partly why I have unending hatred for anything and everything suburban).
Coverage - We have buses here, that is all. The mayor is trying to get a streetcar system put in place here but the suburbs to the west always like to meddle into the city of Milwaukee affairs so its an uphill battle. People in Wisconsin for whatever reason are very anti-rail (Governor campaigned on a platform of rejecting federal fund for the high-speed rail system going through Wisconsin, jerk). Other than that, the bus routes keep getting cut and they have terrible coverage and are super slow and unreliable at all.
Cost - It cost 2.25 to ride the bus in Milwaukee...yeah it suck hardcore. This is mainly to our brilliant governor doing everything he possibly could to destroy the transit system in Milwaukee. He hates Milwaukee and tries to punish it as much as he can (he was also the county executive for about 8 years and did absolutely nothing to try to help the transit system).
Modernism - Thank God of senator Coggs. She got some federal money earmarked to get some new buses in Milwaukee and was also able to get Milwaukee about 50 million dollars to start up the streetcar system. Only problem is that its probably gonna cost somewhere around 125 million to get the streetcar system to service a wide enough area to actually be of great use.
Management -The management of the transit system in Milwaukee plain and simple sucks. They don't make any sense most of the times. Like would it really be that hard to come with some ideas to make riding the bus easier? Since all buses have GPS trackers, couldn't they just design an app that shows you where the actual location of the bus is in any giving route (along with an ETA to your current local)?
The city is in the very unfortunate position where it has to constantly has to battle against the republican neighbors for anything. Even if it has nothing to do with the suburbs, Milwaukee still has to fight against them for everything since they make it impossible for Milwaukee to progress. So when it comes to transit, everyone in the city knows just how much a streetcar system would help the downtown area and beyond. A better bus system would help Milwaukee. But alas, our transit situation is beyond pitiful, because of this and the over reliance on cars our downtown is pretty much a joke. Look up any photo tour of Downtown Milwaukee and all you'll see it prime land being wasted on parking structures, is both sad and disgusting (this is partly why I have unending hatred for anything and everything suburban).
I fixed that problem by moving from long island to queens.
I've travelled a fair bit, been to major cities in Asia and America and they all have far superior public transport systems to my home city of Sydney in Australia.
The previous state government was in power for 15 years and they severely mismanaged the infrastructure of the city and basically nothing was done except for a few toll motorways which was mostly paid by the private sector and exploit the hell out of drivers (it costs me $20 for a one way trip to the airport). We have an old heavy rail system that is congested and we have no metro system to speak of, and they did not budget for a second harbour crossing which is needed to expand capacity.
Sydney has needed a second airport for decades but the state government is paralysed to build it because of voter backlash in the electorates where the land is.
The two most annoying things though is that the Western M4 Motorway which serves millions of people ends on the outskirts of the city and is linked to what is probably the worst main road in Australia, and the government still has no plans to extend it underground and link it to Anzac Bridge, and the F3 motorway to Newcastle and Brisbane, a huge thoroughfare for trade is not linked to any of the cities motorways. This causes huge inefficiencies and traffic bottlenecks, and it is so frustrating to have governments ignore the problems our city has.
Compare this to when I travelled to China where cities like Shanghai have more underground metro than Sydney has heavy rail, have huge international airports and fantastic and modern motorways. The Chinese also have the best bullet trains in the world, travelling from Beijing to Shanghai at 300 km/h was incredible.
The previous state government was in power for 15 years and they severely mismanaged the infrastructure of the city and basically nothing was done except for a few toll motorways which was mostly paid by the private sector and exploit the hell out of drivers (it costs me $20 for a one way trip to the airport). We have an old heavy rail system that is congested and we have no metro system to speak of, and they did not budget for a second harbour crossing which is needed to expand capacity.
Sydney has needed a second airport for decades but the state government is paralysed to build it because of voter backlash in the electorates where the land is.
The two most annoying things though is that the Western M4 Motorway which serves millions of people ends on the outskirts of the city and is linked to what is probably the worst main road in Australia, and the government still has no plans to extend it underground and link it to Anzac Bridge, and the F3 motorway to Newcastle and Brisbane, a huge thoroughfare for trade is not linked to any of the cities motorways. This causes huge inefficiencies and traffic bottlenecks, and it is so frustrating to have governments ignore the problems our city has.
Compare this to when I travelled to China where cities like Shanghai have more underground metro than Sydney has heavy rail, have huge international airports and fantastic and modern motorways. The Chinese also have the best bullet trains in the world, travelling from Beijing to Shanghai at 300 km/h was incredible.
H.Protagonist
[-_-]/
I'm sure this has been echoed many a time in the thread already, but...
City: L.A.
Satisfaction: NONE!
I used mass transit here for 3 years @ 6 different buses a day and L.A. is apparently just too big to function. :/ Awful, awful experience.
City: L.A.
Satisfaction: NONE!
I used mass transit here for 3 years @ 6 different buses a day and L.A. is apparently just too big to function. :/ Awful, awful experience.
Coverage - Best in the world. Between buses, trains, tram and the tube getting where you want to go is a piece of cake.
Cost - But you definitely have to pay through the nose for it. Depending on how far you live from the city centre, a day's travelcard can cost up between £10-15. and Heaven forbid you try to go anywhere paying by cash. £2.30 for a single bus ticket is daylight robbery.
Modernism - Some parts of the network are reallly antiquated, but it feels like it is eternally undergoing renovation.
Management - Strikes aren't uncommon, but aren't life ending.
Cost - But you definitely have to pay through the nose for it. Depending on how far you live from the city centre, a day's travelcard can cost up between £10-15. and Heaven forbid you try to go anywhere paying by cash. £2.30 for a single bus ticket is daylight robbery.
Modernism - Some parts of the network are reallly antiquated, but it feels like it is eternally undergoing renovation.
Management - Strikes aren't uncommon, but aren't life ending.
Vicetrailia
Member
Greensboro North Carolina.
Satisfaction: Completely pathetic. This city is rife with with families with old money.
A city of 200,000 people and all we got is a bus system that comes once an hour and costs $1.50 to ride.
Satisfaction: Completely pathetic. This city is rife with with families with old money.
A city of 200,000 people and all we got is a bus system that comes once an hour and costs $1.50 to ride.
smokeandmirrors
Banned
Philadelphia actually has fairly decent mass transit when it comes down to it.
The subway coverage isn't fantastic, and it needs expansion down to the Navy Yard, and possibly a new Roosevelt Blvd line. The real gem is the regional rail coverage. The map below has both the subway/el coverage along with the regional rail coverage:
The other nice thing about Philadelphia is that in the city core you can get a bus on pretty much every single corner of every street. This PDF shows the coverage, with bus routes marked in red.
The subway is kind of dirty but it's cheap and quick and runs frequently. When the subway closes for the night they run buses along its route for late night commuting. A monthly pass for the city itself is around $80, and you can get an unlimited pass that covers all regional rail stops (so basically coverage to all suburbs) for $200 a month.
Another big perk is the PATCO line, which will take riders various town in NJ, and is linked to NJ transit. Additionally, AMTRAK services the NE corridor and you can catch AMTRAK trains from 30th street station. It runs from DC to Boston, and includes the high speed Acela line.
One thing not many people know is that you can take NJ transit trains from Philadelphia to NYC for $15.50 one way. It's amazingly cheap, but the ride is fairly long at around 3 hours. The other alternative is to take AMTRAK which is something like $70 one way, but that trip is half as long.
My man. Living in New Jersey, the PATCO is my saving grace from having to drive into philly. I love it.
It's also how I'll be getting to Rutgers Camden. It's dirty, but it's cheap. Instead of buying a parking pass and gas every week, it'll cost me $18. It's great. And runs 24-7 too.
Kuro Madoushi
Unconfirmed Member
Even better than Japan?!
What ever happened to those trains that didn't stop ? You got into the...compartment and the moving train picked you up or something
Makes me want to visit Shanghai sometime...I know they're growing, but didn't know about all this!
I've been on the Shanghai train. It's nice. They stop though (I think there are express trains that don't stop, or make fewer stops). The longest stop I timed was under 2 minutes, 30 seconds; most stops were under 90 seconds. They tell everyone to prepare to get off the train (if it's their stop) about 5 minutes beforehand.
Their high-speed rail building spree has been all over the news. They're faster because they're newer. They should have Beijing to Shenzhen by the end of the year, about an 8 hour trip, I think. I remember taking a 25 hour trip from Beijing to Hong Kong in 2010.
The nice thing about these trains is they run a ton of them, and you can buy your ticket from the station the day of your trip. They're slower than planes, but usually cheaper, with more legroom, and without the hassle of airport travel. I think at least 50% of my flights in China are always delayed for some reason or another.
Phobophile
A scientist and gentleman in the manner of Batman.
It's not just getting from the North to the West Side, it's also getting from the South to West Side, too. Going from Bridgeport to Humboldt Park via CTA is so pointless that I'm better off driving. You HAVE to go to the Loop if you want to transfer lines. Or I could take the Ashland bus but that's slow as hell. What's really a 20 minute drive ends up being an hour public transit trip.
And are you thinking of the Pink Line? Those aren't new rails. They did build a new station at Morgan St. but the Pink Line is technically just the old 54/Cermak line of the Blue Line running part of the time on Green Line tracks through the near West Side. It's really nothing new.
The city REALLY needs some bus rapid transit (BRT) lines, especially on the main arteries. One on Western (hell even Cicero god I hate Cicero) would help with getting to the north-south travel if you happen to live more than several blocks west of the Dan Ryan.
WeAreStarStuff
Member
It functions. You can certainly go some cool places on it.
This is great unless you ride the Red Line for your commute;delays always.
Admiral Bone to Pick
Banned
I ride the Red Line to Union Station for work on weekdays and it's usually fine. What time do you commute?
God, that sounds glorious. I'd love some 26 lane highways around the bay area.
WeAreStarStuff
Member
I ride the Red Line into Farragut North coming in from MD. I'm usually boarding around 8:40am or so. Also, pretty much every weekend they close the stops around me for maintenance.
I live in Montevideo, Uruguay, so the answer is lol no.
No train, tram or metro, only a gazillion lines of terrible expensive buses with no schedule and (mostly) disrespectful staff, who might or might not stop and let you in depending on whatever tickles their fancy that day. Transit laws don't apply to them, ever.
It's a piece of shit.
A bit of trivia: the city has a population of ~1.4 million, and the transport system has over 1 million passengers a day.
No train, tram or metro, only a gazillion lines of terrible expensive buses with no schedule and (mostly) disrespectful staff, who might or might not stop and let you in depending on whatever tickles their fancy that day. Transit laws don't apply to them, ever.
It's a piece of shit.
A bit of trivia: the city has a population of ~1.4 million, and the transport system has over 1 million passengers a day.
Coming from Metro Detroit, where there isn't even a skeleton of a public transit system, Chicago is a welcome change. My big issues are:
1) Buses stop too early. I live along the blue line, but knowmany people along the red line, so if it's after 1 and the buses stop, I have to go all the way downtown before I can transfer from red to blue. Certain buss should at least run until 2 AM (I know some buses run late, but not enough)
2) Are trains elevated in other major cities? Most of the time I use the L, it's underground, which completely went against my expectations.
1) Buses stop too early. I live along the blue line, but knowmany people along the red line, so if it's after 1 and the buses stop, I have to go all the way downtown before I can transfer from red to blue. Certain buss should at least run until 2 AM (I know some buses run late, but not enough)
2) Are trains elevated in other major cities? Most of the time I use the L, it's underground, which completely went against my expectations.
Love Beijing's subway system, not actually my city but my family lived there for a few years so I spent those summers there. Most trains were fairly new, upgraded for the Olympics, and it cost 2 yuan for any trip. That's just over a quarter to get pretty much anywhere in the city, and the layout is good enough that you usually don't have to walk much from any station.
I live in Ottawa, which doesn't have a subway system, but Beijing's is much better than the subways in nearby cities. Toronto's subway in the OP can't come close to this kind of coverage.
Buses are very good by me, every 5 - 20mins depending on the route, same with most of the city.
I don't need to look at a timetable for most routes, which is great.
Unfortunately there's no joined up fare system, and as there's two operators you'd need a pass for both for the best service.
The thing which always annoys me about American Bus transit, is that the buses always seem to depart at irregular times, having a 'clockface' timetable is much better for passengers, eg every 00,20,40 instead of 03,27, 39(and changing throughout day).
I don't need to look at a timetable for most routes, which is great.
Unfortunately there's no joined up fare system, and as there's two operators you'd need a pass for both for the best service.
The thing which always annoys me about American Bus transit, is that the buses always seem to depart at irregular times, having a 'clockface' timetable is much better for passengers, eg every 00,20,40 instead of 03,27, 39(and changing throughout day).
beat
Member
Well, yeah, that is one flaw I've seen a lot in LA: for some reason, the bus systems put the stops really way too close together, so buses stop so often. It's much better if you're on a major route that has local and express buses.
California has multiple problems. LA to SF air travel is reaching the limits of the airports' capacity; replacing those air routes with high speed rail would free up the airports to take on different routes.
Meanwhile, LA is building new rail, albeit not fast enough for my taste.
The real problem with LA is its physical size. It's unmanageably large to drive in my opinion (an hourlong drive is intolerable to me); taking transit for an hour might not even get you that far relative to the size of the city.
In my experience, day passes in most cities is fairly expensive -- though London's is still an outlier -- because the point is to soak tourists.
Transit within cities is one thing, but transit from the city to suburbs is another. Most suburbs lack sufficient density to make transit worthwhile. And then, since transit sucked so much there, people in the suburbs grew reliant on driving, and it's kind of a vicious circle.
"used"? Did you get a car? =(
True this. It's so bad that I don't mind driving up to 2hrs a day, 5 days a week, to take my partner to work there and back. She doesn't drive but when it only costs me $40 a week in petrol money compared to the calculated prices it would take for her to travel from home to work via public transport, everything starts to become more ridiculous.
Brisbane's public transport is a mess. They are trying to fix shit up with busways and tunnels with tolls attached but the real issue is that they fucked up the train lines, the transit system doesn't co-ordinate very well whatsoever, and the prices are outrageous. I remember having to put my car in for servicing years ago and it cost me $20 to get to and from work on a single day. There's a healthy reason why no one uses the public transport.
The city is the worst place to live as a young adult. Every single week passes where I consider how much cheaper it is to live elsewhere and to actively build a sense of savings. Doesn't help when it costs $10-20 to get 5mins away from your location with a taxi. Absolute joke.
arglebargle
Member
id argue the bigger problem is albany, but that doesnt change the fact that there are administrative and funding issues that could be improved.
I grew up in suburban Chicago (Elgin), and the PACE bus (Chicago suburbs public bus service) actually had pretty good coverage. I took a PACE bus to school every day for a few years. The coverage has been scaled down a bit since then, but it still goes all around. I guess some suburbs don't have a high enough population density to get good service, and actually Elgin is less like a suburb and more like an edge city so maybe that's why service was much better.
I grew up in a town of 1,200 and now live in Toronto. I find the TTC awful when compared to other systems (in cities of comparable size), because thankfully, I've been able to travel. It's usable to get you within the 'area' you want to go and it's better than some non-existent US city's transit systems. That's about the best thing to be said.
Razgriz-Specter
Member
Birmingham, AL
"What transit?"
Busses only cover downtown, and the same 2 miles of the two lane highway to the city as been under construction for nearly 4 years...
Its a nightmare.
"What transit?"
Busses only cover downtown, and the same 2 miles of the two lane highway to the city as been under construction for nearly 4 years...
Its a nightmare.
Shanghai, China -
Thus far i would say the public transit system is excellent
As you can probably see, there is extensive coverage from subways. The system is being expanded upon continually and is very modern in operation. The whole thing is super easy to use (particularly since all everything is done in both chinese & english). Can get a little crowded at times, but that is to be expected.
Bus coverage also seems very widespread and effective. I personally don't really use the buses, preferring the subway, but from what i have seen the coverage and service appears top class.
One particular advantage of the public transit here is the cost. The longest subway journeys cost 8 RMB, equivalent to just over $1 and in any case i have never had to take a journey that cost more than 4RMB. And the Buses are even cheaper!
Taxi service is one area that is slightly lacking. There are a number of providers and service can vary hugely between them. You can never be sure the taxi you are getting in is any good. What is more, even good taxi drivers will rarely know much of the city and will have to be directed to locations. Also the cost seems ridiculous compared to the other options, with a minimum fare of 14RMB. One advantage though is that the public transportation cards for the metro & bus service can also be used to pay taxi fares, which is very nice.
And of course, all public transport in shanghai has the added bonus of being hugely superior to traveling on the roads where no one has a clue how to drive.
Thus far i would say the public transit system is excellent
As you can probably see, there is extensive coverage from subways. The system is being expanded upon continually and is very modern in operation. The whole thing is super easy to use (particularly since all everything is done in both chinese & english). Can get a little crowded at times, but that is to be expected.
Bus coverage also seems very widespread and effective. I personally don't really use the buses, preferring the subway, but from what i have seen the coverage and service appears top class.
One particular advantage of the public transit here is the cost. The longest subway journeys cost 8 RMB, equivalent to just over $1 and in any case i have never had to take a journey that cost more than 4RMB. And the Buses are even cheaper!
Taxi service is one area that is slightly lacking. There are a number of providers and service can vary hugely between them. You can never be sure the taxi you are getting in is any good. What is more, even good taxi drivers will rarely know much of the city and will have to be directed to locations. Also the cost seems ridiculous compared to the other options, with a minimum fare of 14RMB. One advantage though is that the public transportation cards for the metro & bus service can also be used to pay taxi fares, which is very nice.
And of course, all public transport in shanghai has the added bonus of being hugely superior to traveling on the roads where no one has a clue how to drive.
Hypnotoad
Member
Public transport in Hamburg has a great coverage, 3 U-Bahn subway and around 10 S-Bahn (suburban metro) lines, then some more A-lines (going to the outer parts and adjacent towns). Bus lines are plentyful and usually on time, nothing to complain about in that regard. The fleet is modern and clean, and unlike Berlin, there are almost no violent incidents at the railway stations.
Al that comes at a high price unfortunately, tickets are expensive, a single trip over more than 4 bus stations costs at least 3 Euro, and prices go up from there. Its more expensive than any other city if been in Germany, and most of Europe. In fact, its probably competing with London in that regard.
One pretty bad development has been the new line 4 of the subway, which will open soon, and will mostly serve the affluent Hafen City instead of areas that have been neglected for decades. Its a prestige object, like this whole new quarter of town which had been a focal point of planned gentrification.
Now living in China, I can say that public transport is one of the things that really hold everything together here. Big cities are building subways on a large scale, and unlike some things here, it really does add to a nicer environment and is actually pretty reliable. Add to that a large network of bus services even in smaller towns and cheap ticket prices. Nothing to complain here, apart from some bus drivers who just love to compete with other drivers on the street in their recklessness.
Take Shanghai for example, which till two years ago had the 400km/h Maglev connecting the airport to the city center, and still built an additional subway line, effectively reducing the price of transport on that route from 50 to 8 Yuan.
Tokyo has, to coin an American style expression, the best public transport in the world. a fantastic train service and it will take you basically anywhere. It is air conditioned, transfers are usually good, usually fairly priced, clean, users are courteous, anti social behavior like music begging eating is generally not done. True public transit for the middle class, not poors and immigrants like in the US and other countries.
Only issue I have with it is not 24 hours. There are plenty of ways around this, but I don't like staying out all night. Also it can get crowded on the lines that connect to the suburban lines, but it's no worse than other major western cities.
Only issue I have with it is not 24 hours. There are plenty of ways around this, but I don't like staying out all night. Also it can get crowded on the lines that connect to the suburban lines, but it's no worse than other major western cities.
Omegasquash
Member
Imaged for clarity on Boston. When it works, it's great. When it doesn't work, well, it sucks. We've just recently seen a price hike. I take the commuter rail in from the Haverhill line (on the north) to North Station, and walk south past South Station, weather permitting.
The T is just too grimy to justify using it when it's not life threateningly cold.
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