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olivia_suttonActually, I'm a fan of public transit - I hate driving, so if I can take a subway, train, plane, or even bus, I tend to be pretty happy about it. I will say that for public transit to work it has to be MORE efficient than driving yourself, tho.
So, why is it than in the US public transit is inefficient or even non-existant?
My worst experience was with Amtrak. I had to go to Chicago for a interview (Chicago's about four hours from where I live). The people I was interviewing with recommended taking the train then transferring to Metra (Chicago's commuter rail) to get to the suburb I was going to. Well, I got on-line, checked out Amtrak, checked out Metra, and got everything organized. The trip TO Chicago went OK, I was a little late getting in to downtown, but I still had time to walk to the Metra station and catch a train there. So it went OK. the interview was a disaster, but that's another story.
The trip HOME, however-- what a mess! I got downtown about 2-3 hours before my Amtrak train was due to leave -- which meant I had to wait around in the train terminal for that time. It wasn't too bad, actually, at least people were more friendly and less tense than at an airport.
But once I got on the train - things went downhill, fast. The train was due to leave Chicago at like 5:20pm or something. Well, because of other traffic (read bloody freight trains, which have right of way for some stupid reason!!!) we didn't get out of Metro Chicago/Gary, Indiana for an extra hour or more. Then, later on once the train had finally started moving, we came to a dead stop, again. Apparently, the rails had been damaged and had to be fixed. I was supposed to get in to my town at 10:20pm (which was late as it was). I didn't get in til just after midnight. It was a disaster. And, of course, no food on the train (well, there were a few "snacks", expensive muffins and such, but no real food.) It was awful!
--Olivia
So, why is it than in the US public transit is inefficient or even non-existant?
My worst experience was with Amtrak. I had to go to Chicago for a interview (Chicago's about four hours from where I live). The people I was interviewing with recommended taking the train then transferring to Metra (Chicago's commuter rail) to get to the suburb I was going to. Well, I got on-line, checked out Amtrak, checked out Metra, and got everything organized. The trip TO Chicago went OK, I was a little late getting in to downtown, but I still had time to walk to the Metra station and catch a train there. So it went OK. the interview was a disaster, but that's another story.
The trip HOME, however-- what a mess! I got downtown about 2-3 hours before my Amtrak train was due to leave -- which meant I had to wait around in the train terminal for that time. It wasn't too bad, actually, at least people were more friendly and less tense than at an airport.
But once I got on the train - things went downhill, fast. The train was due to leave Chicago at like 5:20pm or something. Well, because of other traffic (read bloody freight trains, which have right of way for some stupid reason!!!) we didn't get out of Metro Chicago/Gary, Indiana for an extra hour or more. Then, later on once the train had finally started moving, we came to a dead stop, again. Apparently, the rails had been damaged and had to be fixed. I was supposed to get in to my town at 10:20pm (which was late as it was). I didn't get in til just after midnight. It was a disaster. And, of course, no food on the train (well, there were a few "snacks", expensive muffins and such, but no real food.) It was awful!
--Olivia
