Congested freeways in Los Angeles are well documented in today's pop culture and the impacts on the city's residents are very real. Angelenos experience the effects through wasted gas costs, pollution, and an average of 89 hours spent in traffic (Jones). In hope of relief, 70 percent of Angelenos voted to pass measure M last november, a measure which will allocate $29 billion to rail transit expansion (Metro). However, with the enormous cost of these developments, it is reasonable to question if this measure will successfully reduce traffic congestion. The limitations of rail transportation in Los Angeles County will be discussed as it relates to the following issues: Accessibility and Convenience Measure M looks to extend service to several …show more content…
Accessibility and Convenience: Rail systems have proven to be very successful investments for a number of american cities and much of this success is rooted in population density. Measure M aims expand its network in order to provide greater accessibility by encapturing more residents within service areas. Certainly, expansion will result in greater convenience for those living within walking distance of new stations; however, the impacts of expansion are limited by: The sprawling landscape of los …show more content…
Multiple studies show that rail station tend to be less accessible to lower income populations. One such study focused on Boston found that low income populations tended to live outside of convenient walking distance to rail transit stations resulting in greater access distances. In addition to these disparities, bus stops and lines eliminated due to rail expansion unintendedly make access more difficult for many. One study focused on the Metro Expo line found that many users of bus routes eliminated with this rail line, experienced increased access distances (Houston). Cost Effectiveness Rail transportation may be the most romanticized method of improving transportation in Los Angeles because of success elsewhere; however, it may not deliver the most return on investment. One study by the Dukakis center found that due to gentrification, car ownership near rail stations increased in some cases resulting in lower use of public transportation overall (Nuscas).This finding points to the possibility taxpayer money could be used better spent since: Congestion will persist due to induced demand Ideally, if people that usually drive begin using rail transit, this would lead to a
When time came to build the transcontinental railroads, the government had given about 150 millions of acres of land for the railroad development, which would greatly influence transporta...
In Henry George’s article, What the Railroad Will Bring Us, it discusses the main social, political, and economic transformations that the trans-continental railroad would bring to the state of California. More importantly, he discusses not only the benefits, but also discusses the major drawbacks with the arrival of the railroad. Henry George stated the railroad would be the “greatest work of the age” (297). With a railroad stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific, multiple benefits would be brought to the state of California. First, the railroad will not only create a new means of transportation across the United States, it additionally would also become “one of the greatest material prosperity” of its time (298). This means more people, more houses,
When you encounter a city such as Chicago, it is practically impossible to avoid CTA and Metra trains. From short store errands to long journeys home, the CTA is there as your personal downtown car. If you do not have enough money to put into owning a car or simply do not want to put up with trying to find parking in the congested city, the CTA is there for you. Where more people to use the CTA, the amount of gas polluting the earth would significantly decrease the pollution levels in Chicago. Since there aren't as many cars on the road, it not only decreases the carbon monoxide leaking from cars but the amount of cars on the road, which also decreases the amount of people on the road. Numerous laws state how using the CTA could benefit people in Chicago overall. These are just some of the reasons Metra and the CTA has impacted everything from population to economics and even political and environmental issues.
Since the beginning of the United States the American people have been on the move. Public transportation has played a major role in the development of this nation and in bringing its citizens together. In the book “Divided Highways”, author Tom Lewis takes the reader on a journey of the building of the Interstates and the consequences(good and bad) that came from them. Lewis believes that the Interstates are a physical characteristic of America and that it shows “all our glory and our meanness; all our vision and our shortsightedness”(xiv).
Since the early 1990s, the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA) had been exploring public transit resolutions that would improve access to Cleveland’s two largest employment hubs, downtown Cleveland and University Circle. During this examination period, GCRTA’s discussions with the local communities and local business leaders specified that there was a major need for improved public transit mobility along the Euclid Avenue Corridor. These discussions led to the development and evaluation of alternatives to the current bus route that served this area, the local bus route #6. By coordinating with Cuyahoga County and the City of Cleveland, and by hosting a series of public meetings, GCRTA had more than enough input and assistance in the final determination of alternatives to meet the transportation needs of the community and the Euclid ...
public transit networks. But just how serious is the burden of car ownership, and how exactly does
A good chunk of people in the Big Apple (New York City) feels that the MTA makes their ride efficient, cheap, easy, and convenient way of getting around town. On a scale of 1-10, N...
Amtrak is a state-owned, for profit, national railroad Company that provides efficient rail service both long and short distance transportation services. Being the primary provider of passenger-rail service in the U.S has a network that connects more than 500 cities and towns in 46 states. It offers long-distance and short-distance service corridors throughout nationwide operating daily, offering several choice of service class – first class sleeping car, custom class and economic services for different age groups with different travel needs. Amtrak receives federal funds to be used for their operating expenses. Its ridership and revenue growth have progressively increased in the past five-year successfully building relationships with the public and customers, recreating branding, and improving new services/quality, and it projects a continued growth in passenger revenue at about 4% per year with modest growth in passenger ridership (Exhibit C4.1, Page 245).
The rail systems put into place in Chicago have always been a major factor in freight transportation. The city provides a centralized hub for the railways throughout the country. After a long run the system is bound to find flaws as old technologies are passed by new ones. The existing railroad structures have in time taken a toll over the years of service. “The railroad system of Chicago has been around for a long time now. After many years it has gone past time time of despair. With the new project it is hoping to bring the popularity back to where it once was” (Chicago Transit Renovation to Improve Service). This update needed will guide Chicagos railroad system into the future. The city also has to take a look on how it is going to keep up with the constant increase of railcars on their tracks. With the new technologies of the future Chicago can only make their infrastructure better. The aim is to stay on time with the railcars to diminish the amount of overcrowding presented in the old rail systems in Chicago.
The most noticeable inconvenience of driving in Miami is traffic congestion. In fact, because the highways are cluttered with a significant amount of vehicles carpooling is encouraged. For this purpose, high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes were formed. Each weekday, a simple twenty-minute drive turns into an eternal wait for forward progress. With each minute that goes by cars advance less than twenty feet. And while the traffic may open up in some areas, in its entirety I-95 remains congested during the morning and evening hours, as seen in the image where cars on the South Florida Highways line up bumper-to-bumper. The cause for such highway clutter varies, but it is interesting to note the difficulty in explaining highway driving conditions. It is uncertain as to whether the accidents cause traffic congestion or the traffic congestion causes accidents. Either way, the main roads and highways commuters take to work are crowded with drivers. Furthermore, I-95 passes through several commercial districts in the lower Miami area. Many large trucks and commercial vehicles, as well as passenger vehicles, drive to work at these commercial areas. The weekday traffic congestions on the Miami roadways are, in large part, a major inconvenience to commuters, all with intent to arrive early to work.
Public transportation is an essential part of a city. A good public transit can encourage a city’s economic activities and can provide its citizen a convenient life. Does our Phoenix public transit work well? Does it provide sufficient service to the citizen? From my experience, the answer is no. This November I tried to attend the popular State Fair in Phoenix. However, I found that there were not any buses or metros could take me to the fair directly. It means I need 2 hours or more spend on the public transits. As the sixth most populous city nationwide (“Phoenix Quick Fact” 1), compared with Los Angeles and other big cities in America, Phoenix’s public transportation is indeed subpar. Due to Los Angeles has 154 bus lines and 30 metros (“Schedule”), New York has 316 bus lines and 28 subways(“Maps & Timetables”), while Phoenix only has 98 bus lines, and the number of metro line is only one! (“Route Schedules & Maps”) The problem is
For formulating a more efficient transport pattern, there are some specific strategies. Firstly, government can encourage people to pay more attention to public transit. The actual data about transit use from most cities indicates that transit use is growing in many cities, in addition, some developed cities have been reducing their car use and pay more attention to the public transport (Newman, 1999). Encouraging urban citizens use more public transit is effective in reducing the quantity of private cars. It is generally known that private cars have brought great pressure on urban traffic. Secondly, government can restrict cars based on the “odd-and-even l...
Most people take the urban public transportation system for granted. It is used in every aspect of our daily lives: work, education, medical necessities, recreation, etc. It is also important for the transportation of goods and services, which aids the growth and maintenance of our economy. Urban public transportation is the critical component of our quality of life and economic stability. The MBTA, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, is Boston and Eastern Massachusetts’s major transportation service. The MBTA has played a central role in the development of Boston and surrounding cities and towns for more than a century; providing service from 175 cities and towns into Boston. On an average weekday over 1.2 million trips are made on the subway, buses, commuter lines and other services in the mass transit system. With an international airport, a ship port, the highways, and the rail lines to connect regional cities and towns to national and international destinations and markets, Boston’s urban public transportation system has made the region’s growing role in the global economy possible.
Furthermore, the high-speed rail network could mean twenty-nine million fewer car trips and 500,000 fewer plane flights annually, according to a 2006 study ...
It is considered a holistic approach that might be involved some factors providing an overall speed of journey (Mannering, Walter, and Scott, 2004). Wyatt (1997) states that the rail transportation has been made the urban areas to develop the transport network places with producing a good network to be placed over location with a poor network. For example in European Union (EU), the rail company had been employing around 570,000 people across passenger and freight operations in year 2012. From here, the rail transport is critical by the EU strategy to improve their economic condition. This rail sector had been makes a large contribution in oversea country.