High gas prices lead to surge in mass transit

[UpInArms]

Source: Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) -- It's standing-room-only on many commuter buses from Washington's suburbs. Rail systems from Boston to Los Angeles are begging passengers to shift their travel to non-peak hours. And some seats have been removed from San Francisco's subway cars to allow more people to cram in.

Around the country, high gas prices are pushing more people to leave their cars at home and crowd onto trains, buses and subways.

And while that's usually good news for transit agencies, some are struggling to accommodate new riders at a time when tight budgets are making local and state governments reluctant to put more money toward public transportation.

"I began last month taking the public bus to work because of the gas prices," said Tammy Vega of Austin, Texas, who also takes mass transit when she is on business trips. "Whether I'm in town or out of town, public transportation is going to be the way to go for now."

Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/G/GAS_PRICES_MASS_TRANSIT?SITE=MOCOD&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-06-03-16-47-32

[NNadir]

1. The SEPTA conductor told me today that there will be no new cars until 2009.

But full mass transit is a good thing, make no mistake.

[tofurkey]

4. Put auto workers in jobs to improve the public transit infrastructure

Add more subway systems, re-format highways to allow for bike transit, build more vegetable oil/alternative energy buses, FIX OUR RAIL SYSTEM. We've waited too long to acknowledge that we've done it all wrong, and it's about time my disgust with the SUV/Hummer/highway mentality is now being forced upon the rest of the country. What has everyone been thinking? Or should I say, why wasn't anyone thinking?

I've been sickened for years at the giant parking lot our nation has become, where you can't avoid vehicles no matter where you turn. I have always refused to commute by car for hours in traffic because I equate the idea to insanity. Now we have proof...

[AndyTiedye]

5. Can't the Auto Workers Build Buses and Rail Cars?

We are going to need more of those.

[Hardrada]

6. Same here. We got out of cities entirely.

[Tesha]

9. Unfortunately, many US companies have abandoned railcar construction.

Most of the modern production mass transit vehicles come
from Bombardier (Canada), Kinki-Sharyo (Japan), or Siemens
(Germany). (And I'm probably forgetting a few.)

I don't know of any American company competing in the
business any more. The last I knew was Boeing-Vertol's
total and complete flame-out in Boston in the 80's.

Tesha

[Selatius]

2. We really desperately need to expand passenger rail and bus fleets to decrease oil dependency.

This way is simply unsustainable.

[TommyO]

8. Not only that, but mid-range travel needs to change as well

We need to replace short to mid-range planes with a high-speed transportation system, maglev is a perfect technology to link cities on each coast. It would be great if we would see these linking our cities:

[DCKit]

3. "We're going broke because our ridership - along with our income - has risen 20%"

That doesn't make any sense to me, but after 20 years of watching DC's METRO make every possible excuse for lousy service and horrible maintenance, all the while raising prices with regularity, I'm not surprised.

Talk about taking a cue from Big Oil.

[Quantess]

7. I have noticed the roads are a little more empty.

I can drive slow, without impeding traffic! The incorrigible leadfoots pass me, then I meet them again just as the light turns green!
Wouldn't it be nice if these driving habits stuck, after the gas prices dropped to pre-W levels?

[raccoon]

10. No shit, Sherlock. Who is it that keeps saying Americans LOOOOOVE their cars?

Even those Americans who do love their cars don't love high gas prices.