[IP] Where There's Traffic There's a Traffic Jam

[David Farber <dave@farber.net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Greg Brooks <gregb@west-third.com>
Date: September 9, 2004 10:58:32 AM EDT
To: dave@farber.net
Subject: RE: [IP] Where There's Traffic There's a Traffic Jam
Reply-To: gregb@west-third.com

For IP, if you wish...


Dave, a memo to urban planners:

The second most congested city in the nation also lays claim to the 
third
highest level of transit use (about 31% of the population, tied with
Boston).

Something's wrong with this picture, and merely saying "well, people 
should
use transit to a greater degree" won't fix it. Urban planners in most 
(if
not all) U.S. metros make 30-year transportation decisions based on a
worldview (or profession-view, if you will) that more transit equals a
better transportation system. The fact is, there are better ways to 
tackle
traffic, but they require political will and a desire to do more than 
just
buy shiny new buses and rail cars.

Planners and local politicians are willing to embrace subsidized 
solutions
like transit, but too few take an equal look at market-based solutions 
like
congestion pricing. For politicians, this is understandable -- who 
wants to
be the one to propose tolls on the public's "free" roads? However, 
combined
with incentives for carpooling and/or off-peak use of the roadway,
variably-priced tolls have been shown to do what transit has trouble
achieving: increased efficiency of a roadway for a sustained period, 
without
subsidies.

Unless we're going to embrace growth limit lines (as I believe they've 
done
in Portland, Oregon), tax suburban developers into the ground or take 
other
really Draconian measures to enforce urban density, the fact will remain
that most folks want their quarter-acre of dirt and their single-family
detached home. That means suburbs and a primarily automobile-based
transportation system, and *that* means we need to figure out how to
encourage more efficient auto use rather than assuming everyone will 
climb
on the bus.

Warm Regards,
Greg Brooks
www.greg-brooks.com



-----Original Message-----
From: owner-ip@v2.listbox.com [mailto:owner-ip@v2.listbox.com] On 
Behalf Of
David Farber
Sent: Thursday, September 09, 2004 9:02 AM
To: Ip
Subject: [IP] Where There's Traffic There's a Traffic Jam

 From Capitol Hill Blue


Ain't This America. . .
Where There's Traffic There's a Traffic Jam
By DALE McFEATTERS
Sep 9, 2004, 05:35

<<SNIP>>


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