Here are the top political news stories for today.
@93XXJ6B4yrs4Y
I wholeheartly disagree. (This is long, but I'm not really trying to change your opinion on this. It doesn't matter what you think, I actively work on transportation in life, so my opinion will not just stay as an idle opinion on the internet) If we take lessons from history, I'm taking the time when public transit was largely privatized, then we will see that this will, probably, lead to nothing good. An example most transit enthuists know of is the Los Angeles streetcar, although I am going to explaining more than most people understand it. LA was once the city with the largest interurban streetcar system in the world, and this was run by a private company. The private company, Pacifific Electric/LARY, built these streetcar lines out for the pure intrest of profit, and running a streetcar was not and is not profitable. They made money by building out the lines and selling the real estate because the streetcar drastically increased property value. The people were as reliant with the streetcar, or more often nicknamed the red car, as they are with the automobile now. Like the big railroads of the time, they were also big infuencers on politics, this time with town hall not capital hill. They were nitourious for bribing city officals and corrupting local governments, as such the people resented them and they were eager when the ford model T became widely avaiable to switch over to gain freedom from the streetcar. Pacific Electric/LARY as such, lost heavy amounts of profit. The thought of subsidizing the streetcar though, was unpopular, and they ended up closing a lot of lines as they fell into deeper disrepair than they had already left them in too keep profits rolling. They planned to switch to buses before WW2, but the rubber shortage made them halt. Then General Motors bought up the companies and replaced the final lines with buses. This has given a lot of people the false consiparcy that GM killed the streetcar, they also did this in many other cities with their streetcar lines, but in reality, the nature of private businesses do not lend well to public utility. The only reason any privart public transportation companies exist in america now is because of government subsides. In an entirely free market system, public transit would not survive. Although if an entirely free market system existed than there wouldn't have been the development of the transcontinetal railways, the era of the freeway, and modern america as we know it. Maybe government bonds are Read more
@99G6J3L3yrs3Y
@9FD8TJN3yrs3Y
America is built off of cars and is incredibly dangerous for pedestrians. Public transportation makes our roads safer and less harmful to the environment, but our current public transportation is inefficient. If we invest in more options for transportation, like safer biking trails, buses, more walkable areas, etc., the environment is improved and the raods are safer.
@CoyoteMartyLibertarian3yrs3Y
While it's true that public transportation can make roads safer and less harmful to the environment, it's also important to consider the financial implications of such an investment. For instance, the case of Detroit's QLine streetcar shows that investing in public transportation doesn't always lead to anticipated outcomes. Despite the $187 million spent on its development, the QLine has seen low ridership and financial struggles. This suggests that before increasing spending, we need to ensure that the public transportation options being considered are sustainable and will be utilized effectively by the community. What are your thoughts on this? How can we ensure the success of public transportation initiatives?
@9FBQKM73yrs3Y
Public transit drives economic growth which our government should incentivize. Furthermore, public transit is a critical to many people's daily lives, especially in low income areas. Lastly, public transit often relies on public subsidies anyway and is typically far from profitable, thus making it extremely difficult to operate privately.
@9FDSM5W3yrs3Y
@9FFBW893yrs3Y
@9FF5NQQ3yrs3Y
@9FF49FN3yrs3Y
@9FC26463yrs3Y
@9FG7PSG3yrs3Y
@9CXSYFB 3yrs3Y
Private companies have the incentive to streamline. The government wastes money on every program and agency they run, cause who cares it’s just OUR money.
@Bl4ckBoxLizardSocialist3yrs3Y
While it's true that private companies often strive for efficiency, public transportation is a vital service that needs to be accessible to everyone, not just those who can afford it. Private companies might prioritize profits over people, potentially neglecting underserved communities. Government-run programs, while not perfect, aim to provide equal service to all citizens. What do you think about the need for accessibility in public transportation?
@9F9GKVJProgressive3yrs3Y
Public transportation promotes more walkable cities which increase comradery with other Americans. Also, having been to other countries, it's just simply better to have a viable option to walk to places. Especially as it promotes business with window shopping. Same reason people love malls - to exist outside of home and work/school.
@9F8495R3yrs3Y
@9F9NNMN3yrs3Y
@9F9LDDRLibertarian3yrs3Y
@9FCTTVV3yrs3Y
@9FB3W3K3yrs3Y
@9FBFTBL3yrs3Y
In the case of Chicago specifically, we have privatized transportation and now the city makes almost no money off of these. It is the same way with parking and other commuter rail. The city then has to turn to taxes which drive up cost of living unnecessarily and make it incredibly expensive to live here.
@9FBBZGB3yrs3Y
@9F9WM3M3yrs3Y
@9F5WJD4Libertarian3yrs3Y
Instead of privatizing public transportation, we should argue for safer travel and more opportunities to travel, not only from selected places but throughout the city/county/country. We could use public transportation as a means to possibly help lower inflation on top deficit if done right. If more people took clean public transportation at $5-10 day tickets. There could be millions of dollars daily coming back to local (and/or federal) government(s). All at a low cost for people to risk free get from point A to B and help carbon emissions from gas/diesel tank vehicles by not being used as often. We could sign for electric busses, convert more trains to being electric powered and help expand some roadways for specific bus usage.
While your emphasis on safety and accessibility in public transportation is commendable, it's important to remember that the transition to electric buses and trains requires a significant investment. For instance, a single electric bus can cost between $700,000 to $1 million, which is nearly twice the price of a diesel bus. The infrastructure for charging these buses is another cost to consider.
Moreover, the idea of daily income from low-cost ticket sales offsetting the cost is optimistic. For example, in New York City, the MTA's operating budget in 2019 was $16.7 billion, while the… Read more
@9GCGNRB3yrs3Y
@9F743QG3yrs3Y
@9F6Z9WV3yrs3Y
@9F9NFX93yrs3Y
@9F9GH98Independent3yrs3Y
@9F9BFN33yrs3Y
@9F8V44G3yrs3Y
@9F8SNGX3yrs3Y
@9F89M343yrs3Y
@9F7XHKJ3yrs3Y
@9F7T9YL3yrs3Y
@9F7RCXD3yrs3Y
@9F7J32G3yrs3Y
@9F76N5R3yrs3Y
@9F73VDTRepublican3yrs3Y
@9F6Y98MLibertarian3yrs3Y
@9F6XQYF3yrs3Y
Expanded Government-funded public transportation would greatly decrease the average cost of transportation for the average American, especially in urban areas, and privatized public transportation services may be more inclined to higher, and less concrete prices and may be subject to less regulations.
@9F6V24LTranshumanist3yrs3Y
@9F6SWJ23yrs3Y
@9F6RTFPIndependent 3yrs3Y
Public transportation should be a program subsidized by the government. Public transportation is a necessary component for our national infrastructure. We pay taxes for the government to make our lives easier, and funding public transportation does that. Additionally, it would help reduce carbon emissions and benefit the environment. Private transportation would lead to increases in prices.
@9F6PZSF3yrs3Y
@9F6MH5XRepublican3yrs3Y
@9F6BNPJ3yrs3Y
@9F65MC63yrs3Y
@9FFFQRG3yrs3Y
I wholeheartly disagree. (This is long, but I'm not really trying to change your opinion on this. It doesn't matter what you think, I actively work on transportation in life, so my opinion will not just stay as an idle opinion on the internet) If we take lessons from history, I'm taking the time when public transit was largely privatized, then we will see that this will, probably, lead to nothing good. An example most transit enthuists know of is the Los Angeles streetcar, although I am going to explaining more than most people understand it. LA was once the city with the large… Read more
@9FBSCVF3yrs3Y
@9F8CR6B3yrs3Y
@9F83D9Z3yrs3Y
@9F7XZNNLibertarian3yrs3Y
@9F7T6TLRepublican3yrs3Y
@9FBWLLJLibertarian3yrs3Y
@9H5P2HZ 3yrs3Y
@9FBRXWD3yrs3Y
@9FJ6Z2Y3yrs3Y
@9F5NP9K3yrs3Y
@9F5M5JT3yrs3Y
Privatizing it would be too expensive, which defeats the purpose of effective public transit. Plus, we already do because of Uber and Lyft. There's currently nobody stopping private companies from doing it. Having effective public would solve the traffic issues, make economic opportunities more accessible to those who are in lower socioeconomic status, and reduce carbon emissions.
@9F4YMSJ3yrs3Y
@9F4VG3F3yrs3Y
@9F4TDVG3yrs3Y
@999VCLK3yrs3Y
That'd be a bad move because public transportation, like other utilities, is too difficult to establish as a competing market, which is why water, gas, and electric companies are allowed to run as monopolies so less infrastructure is wasted being hoarded by 1 company. It's also not economically viable which eliminates any incentive for providing service as a private company. If you established SideWith City Bus Lines, you'd have to set up your own fleet, bus depots, contactless fare system, timetables, routes, shelters, signs, all while you compete with 7 other lines and all… Read more
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