Public Transportation vs. Cars in Large Cities

During this summer, I worked for my mom in downtown New York City (NYC). I live in a suburb of NYC, right across the Hudson River. The bridge and the buses across the bridge are a mere ten minutes walking distance from my house. Every morning after I got on the bus and crossed the bridge, I went onto the subway and took the 'A' train all the way downtown. These methods of public transportation were definitely more economical and convenient than driving to my mom's office every morning. Driving in NYC means dealing with traffic, finding seemingly non-existent parking, and spending a fortune over time on gas. Subways are the obvious alternative to driving in the city. Taking the subway is almost like a culture that I'm a part of; all over the place, there are posters and billboards of the distinctive New York Subway letters and entrances. Many people share the same feeling I have towards public transportation in New York City. Public transportation is the best method of travel for commuters in most large cities.

A very common sight: a traffic jam in NYC.

Unlike other large cities, the New York City subway system isn't severely marred by racism or the feeling of being 'lower' than someone driving. The general consensus among NYC subway riders is quite the opposite of that. A testament to that is the fact that many wealthy businessmen take the subway downtown to their respective stops on the subway map. I didn't explain my transportation experiences in NYC just because I wanted to; there are several important points in my summer daily commute. The first point is that public transportation is a necessity in cities: I would not be able to work for my mom or anywhere in New York City, for that matter, if not for public transportation. The second point is that public transportation, if made strategically and intelligently, is a better option than cars in big cities. Not long from now, cars are going to become impractical in large cities in the United States and consequently, public transportation will probably grow exponentially and model some of the premier public transportation systems across the world.

 A high speed train in Nanjing, China.

The main reason why cars are going to be completely impractical in the big cities is the rising price of gasoline. Cars already have been kind of impractical ever since the expansion of public transportation in the cities for a number of reasons including traffic congestion and the difficulty of finding parking in cities. However, cars can be useful in suburban communities simply because there usually is limited or no public transportation. There happened to be a bus system in the suburb where I lived. This bus system was linked to an intra-state public transportation system known as NJ Transit, or New Jersey Transit. Since a bus system isn't too plausible in bigger states, a light rail and high speed interstate rail should be implemented. Either way, public transportation in the form of buses or trains are a better way of getting around than cars.

 A NJ Transit Bus.

A rail system essentially accomplishes the same thing that a bus system does, except it uses less gas and is less expensive to run over long distances. Buses are an improvement to cars, but they also cause some of the same problems that cars do; they release harmful emissions to the atmosphere, they contribute to traffic, and they can cause motor vehicle accidents. Therefore, rail is the best form of public transportation. For example, it is less expensive and much faster for the consumer to take a high speed train to a certain city than to drive all the way there. A great example of a good heavy rail system in a city is the New York City Subway system. The subway is very accessible, not a fortune to use, and definitely faster than driving around and finding a parking spot in the city. Quite differently, Detroit, MI has a terrible light rail system that is almost completely useless. The 'people mover', as described in the "Beyond the Motor City" video, was a part of a huge plan for a public transportation system in Detroit that failed. Cities such as Detroit and Atlanta need to bolster their public transportation systems by expanding their rail systems.

 An entrance to the NYC subway system.

As Dr. Conrad said in her lecture and wrote about extensively in her book, "the future of Marta is grim". One big component of her argument was the fact that the state of Georgia does not fund Marta. I agree that the state of Georgia should contribute in order to help run and improve Marta. I am not suggesting that the state of Georgia pay for a completely new infrastructure: that is implausible. What I do believe would be best for Marta, however, is the expansion of the service into more parts of Atlanta and the improvement of its overall security and schedule. Marta's future isn't necessarily grim, as Dr. Conrad claims, if the proper steps are made to improve the rail systems and maybe add in a new light rail or streetcar system in addition to the heavy rail that's already there.

 A map of MARTA. Clearly, it doesn't quite enough areas of Atlanta.

This theme of not enough funding for public transportation is evident on a national scale. 80 percent of government money spent towards transportation goes to the building and maintaining of infrastructure for roads and highways, and only 20 percent goes to public transportation. (Transportation Nation) Over time, the funding will definitely be more evenly split because people will realize how much having cars has destroyed the environment, some cities, and the wallets of many a driver. Society will realize that having smooth and accessible public transportation is absolutely critical to the success of a city. It is definitely the best method of travel in large cities and will continue to be for a long time to come.

Works Cited

 

"Back of the Bus: Mass Transit, Race and Inequality." Prod. Andrea Bernstein and Nancy Solomon.
     American Radio Works. 18 February 2011. MP3 file. Transportation Nation.
     www.transportationnation.org. Web. 19 September 2011.

"Beyond the Motor City." Dir. Aaron Woolf. Blueprint America. PBS, 2010. Film. www.pbs.org/wnet
     /blueprintamerica. 8 February 2010. Web. 19 September 2011.

Commuter3. Image. http://www.wpunj.edu/commuter/images/commuter3.jpg. Web. 19 September 2011.
 

Conrad, Miriam. D.M. Smith Building, Room 105, Atlanta, GA. 16 September 2011. Lecture.
 

Hybrid-car-hyper. Image. http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_FuYHZ06Yub8/ShHAFTzYV_I/AAAAAAAAB0U

     /l16S9QYA25E/s400/hybrid-car-hyper.jpg. Web. 19 September 2011.
 

Marta-map. Image. http://www.visitingdc.com/images/marta-map.jpg. Web. 19 September 2011.
 

Nanjinghighspeedtrain. Image. http://www.airrailnews.com/images/stories/nanjinghighspeedtrain.jpg. Web. 

     19 September 2011.
 

Nyc_traffic_jam. Image. http://www.directoryofnewyorkcity.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/05

     /nyc-traffic-jam.jpg. Web. 19 September 2011.

Nycsubway. Image. http://cdn.berryreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/nycsubway.jpg. Web. 19 

     September 2011.