One Approach to Better Public Transit
Should we pay more for a ride on public transit? This article by Frank Gruber makes a good case for answering "Yes." I'm not sure. How many rides could be subsidized by the $1.2 trillion spent in Iraq? I just got a pamphlet from the MTA (along with their excellent "12-Minute Map" detailing all the routes in town where buses run at least every 12 minutes) explaing their upcoming fare increases. The pamphlet says the system's deficit will reach $1.8 billion in 2016. Apply $1.2 trillion to that, and you have no deficit for 667 years. Hmmm....
posted by Glen Janken at 8:23 AM
1 Comments:
It's probably uneconomical to provide free transportation, but certainly economical to subsidize it more to encourage people to get out of their cars and on to buses and trains. There are SO many "unaccounted for" costs associated with automobile transporation - pollution, road maintenance, alienation - that driving should be more expensive, public transportation less expensive. Even a fraction of the $1.2 trillion would be better spent on mass transit.
Post a Comment
<< Home