Anthony, I don't think the analysis is that faulty, but whatever. In Chicago, public transit works for 100,000-200,000 people who work in the city center (2 square miles) and travel in and out daily. Suburbanites fill heavy rail trains for a 20+ minute ride into the city.
The rest of the system is sad & expensive. A last resort for those without autos. Short trips with stops every 1/2 mile trying to attract customers. Travel speeds are low and travel times long, and safety is a concern, especially when waiting at transfer points in off hours. It doesn't work for a reason. The folks from the Federal Reserve are just trying to point out the absurdity of it all. Regards, Bob S. On Thu, Dec 4, 2008 at 7:45 PM, Anthony Farr <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Bob, > > That quoted argument is so faulty in its conclusion as to be laughable. The > 7,700 "poor riders" (lack of a car being the factor defining the riders' > impoverishment)do not necessarily number the entire ridership of the light > rail, yet 7,700 is the number of extra vehicles that the author suggests > would hit the road if the light rail service ceased. That is clearly wrong. > And what of the car owners who choose not to commute by car, because of > either the running costs or a lack of desire to drive in peak traffic, among > many reasons? Shouldn't they be subsidised for their extra costs, and that > figure added to the equation? If not , why not? > > IOW the St Louis Federal Reserve is attempting to promote a point of view by > the use of deception. It's rubbish. > > Regards, Anthony > >> -----Original Message----- >> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of >> Bob Sullivan >> Sent: Friday, 5 December 2008 6:04 AM >> To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List >> Subject: Re: PESO: Union Station Grand Hall >> >> Scott, >> Good article from the Federal Reserve of St.Louis. >> I especially like the part that says, >> "Based solely on dollar costs, the annual light- >> rail subsidies could instead be used to buy an >> environmentally friendly hybrid Toyota Prius >> every five years for each poor rider and even >> to pay annual maintenance costs of $6,000. >> Increases in polution would be minimal with the >> hybrid vehicle, and 7,700 new vehicles on the >> roadway would result in only 0.5 percent increase >> in traffic congestion. And there would still be funds >> left over - about $49 million per year. These funds >> could be given to all other MetroLink riders >> (amounting to roughly $1,045 per person per year) >> and be used for cab fare, bus fare, etc." >> >> PJ, it's the public's choice NOT to support mass transit. >> Always has been. Taxes never killed it, cars and suburbia did. >> >> Regards, Bob S. >> >> >> On Thu, Dec 4, 2008 at 12:10 PM, Scott Loveless <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > wrote: >> > On 12/4/08, Bob Sullivan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >> >> Oh well, I guess a couple of A's and a B+ ourtank my Masters Thesis in >> >> urban transportation planning, and work experience in Cost and >> >> Economic Analysis for the railroad plus 24 years at Mickey D's doing >> >> Real Estate Market planning. Oh well... Regards, Bob S. >> > >> > This is an interesting read. >> > > <http://research.stlouisfed.org/publications/regional/04/07/light_rail.pdf> >> > >> > -- >> > Scott Loveless >> > New Cumberland, Pennsylvania, USA >> > http://www.twosixteen.com/fivetoedsloth/ >> > >> > -- >> > PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List >> > PDML@pdml.net >> > http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net >> > to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and > follow >> the directions. >> > >> >> -- >> PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List >> PDML@pdml.net >> http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net >> to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and > follow >> the directions. > > > -- > PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List > PDML@pdml.net > http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net > to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow > the directions. > -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
