“We’ve got to keep on building our transit system, not abandon it”
Dec 1st, 2008 by Jervey
Juliette Michaelson from the Regional Plan Association hits it square:
It may sound crazy to say at a time of ballooning budget deficits, but rather than cutting subway and commuter rail service, the region’s governors and mayors should instead find the resources to actually increase the quality, speed and frequency of transit — because that’s the type of investment that will quickly boomerang right back to us and help us get back on the road to prosperity.
Yep. Couldn’t agree more. RPA’s graphic–showing MTA ridership levels after the 1982 capital plan–tells quite the story:
What does it mean for the city? After the jump.
Can you imagine a thriving City with graffitied subway cars getting stuck because of track fires? Didn’t think so. The transit system is now a net asset for the region, not a liability like it used to be. Families actually like the idea of moving here and giving up one, two or all their cars.
Now imagine what New York could look like if dozens of billions of dollars more were invested in our transit system - if it took half as much time to get to Manhattan from the Bronx and the farthest parts of Brooklyn and Queens; if the commercial centers of New Jersey, Westchester, Southern Connecticut and Long Island were connected to each other with fast through-service on the commuter railroads; if AirTrain took passengers directly from Penn Station to JFK, or from Lower Manhattan to Newark Airport. Our quality of life would go up, and even more neighborhoods and commercial centers would turn around, as hundreds of thousands of new residents and jobs came to the region.