Ontopic Transportation costs

dbzeag said:
Actually to run the CTA public system in Chicago for a year is $1.3 billion. They have 1.4 million users. That's abut $1000 a person. I am pretty sure if you told each of those users:

For $8000 a year, you will have the ability of a car in freedom and functionality and timing and convenience. But you will also have the safety of public transport as well as the ease of maintenance. And you will enjoy the freedom from traffic.

I am pretty sure at least half of those 1.4 million people would buy in. That's over $11 billion a year you would raise vs. the $1.3 they require now to run arguably one of the top public systems in the country.

I would like to put out there that if you do enjoy driving, that is one thing. If you need the functionality of a truck, that is something else. I like driving just for the freedom of going wherever I want to go whenever I want to do it. I don't care to take my car to the track and actually experience the limits of a car. I just want to experience the freedom a car leads itself to.

You have done well on your purchases as most on these boards do, but in countless examples this board is not the norm. We are far smarter.
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We don't all live in an urban setting though. Trying to add reliable public transportation in a town like mine that would be able to get me anywhere I wanted to go would be a logistical nightmare and I'm willing to be there are a lot of communities like that. I don't even think the majority of people in the US live in cities where a denser population makes it easier to provide public transport that will go anywhere and connect to trains that will take you anywhere else. I would like to think if it were really cost effective they would have already added good public transportation to many more areas. I'd love it if there were a metro stop anywhere near where I live, but sadly, right now, if I want to take purely public transportation to get anywhere in a nearby city it would take 3 or 4 times as long if it were the right time of day and possible at all. I think the reason they don't do it is because the cost of building the infrastructure is too great. Running it once it is built is a different story I think.
 
dbzeag said:
Actually to run the CTA public system in Chicago for a year is $1.3 billion. They have 1.4 million users. That's abut $1000 a person. I am pretty sure if you told each of those users:

For $8000 a year, you will have the ability of a car in freedom and functionality and timing and convenience. But you will also have the safety of public transport as well as the ease of maintenance. And you will enjoy the freedom from traffic.

I am pretty sure at least half of those 1.4 million people would buy in. That's over $11 billion a year you would raise vs. the $1.3 they require now to run arguably one of the top public systems in the country.

I would like to put out there that if you do enjoy driving, that is one thing. If you need the functionality of a truck, that is something else. I like driving just for the freedom of going wherever I want to go whenever I want to do it. I don't care to take my car to the track and actually experience the limits of a car. I just want to experience the freedom a car leads itself to.

You have done well on your purchases as most on these boards do, but in countless examples this board is not the norm. We are far smarter.
Click to expand...
The MTA (NYC public transport) had $6 billion something in fares for 2010. $2 million in net cash for year 2010, and is estimated $-247 million in the hole for year 2011 and 8% of their budget is state tax subsidies. You aren't just paying for gas on the bus, you are paying for the union workers, their sweet benefit/retirement plans, capital costs etc.

I drive a 10 y/o car that looks new-ish. $45 a month insurance :p Biggest repair so far was a CV shaft that I did myself. Then the inspection place forgot to put the dipstick back in the torque converter which was all kinds of fun but bleh.
 
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