Posted February 10, 201114 yr Here is how U.S. News & World Report ranked them..... According to a U.S. News analysis, the 10 U.S. cities with the best combination of public transportation investment, ridership, and safety are: 1. Portland, OR 2. Salt Lake City 3. New York 4. Boston 5. Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN 6. San Francisco 7. Los Angeles 8. Honolulu 9 (tie). Denver 9 (tie). Austin READ MORE AT: http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2011/02/08/10-best-cities-for-public-transportation "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
February 10, 201114 yr ^I think you had it right when you posted this in the "another dumb list" thread.
February 10, 201114 yr ^I think you had it right when you posted this in the "another dumb list" thread. Tell me why? ;-) "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
February 10, 201114 yr Any list that doesn't put New York at the top of mass transit is just throwing out their credibility. It's not even close. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
February 10, 201114 yr Extensive doesn't equal high quality. It's a part of it, but not all of it. MTA has had its share of problems lately, including horrible overcrowding, breakdowns, service cuts, etc. I suspect that's what influenced their ranking. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
February 10, 201114 yr Any list that doesn't put New York at the top of mass transit is just throwing out their credibility. It's not even close. Agreed. I don't mind being crammed in an overcrowded car when I know I can easily get absolutely anywhere I'd need to go. Beats the hell out of being able to ride my bike onto a streetcar in Portland.
February 11, 201114 yr Extensive doesn't equal high quality. It's a part of it, but not all of it. MTA has had its share of problems lately, including horrible overcrowding, breakdowns, service cuts, etc. I suspect that's what influenced their ranking. No system in this country is high quality save Washington. Certainly not Portland, Salt Lake City, or Austin. But mode share IS a huge factor in deciding how a transit system should be ranked and New York is easily the top in this country. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
February 11, 201114 yr My big WTF on that list is LA. They do have a pretty extensive rail and BRT system that is growing rapidly -- especially considering they had no rail or BRT before 1985.... "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
February 11, 201114 yr Yeah, that was strange. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
February 11, 201114 yr I bet Denver made the list just for the insanely awesome frequency of its free mall shuttle.
February 11, 201114 yr Some of this may also be based on what these cities are building. Both LA and Denver are in rapid expansion mode. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
February 11, 201114 yr Los Angeles' system continues aggressive growth and is well used. It will take decades to catch up to demand. I was surprised to see the distance that the Gold Line travels eastward on my last trip down there. Quite impressive, and the lines make sense for commuting patterns. If they could get rail to the Westside effectively, rather than the Exposition line (a bit south of where it is actually needed to be completely effective for commuting) and a north-south line directly to the Valley following 405, that would be a great step in allivating the horrendous commutes so many face. The bus service has improved dramatically in the past few years as well, and no longer seems to carry a negative social stigma. San Francisco's systems are okay, but need to be integrated into one area-wide network which work together rather than opposing one another. They all seem at odds to grab federal transit dollars and have different agendas. SF Municipal Railway is a complete and utter mess...disfunctional from the top down to the unmotivated and rude transit workers (who make an astounding amount of money). BART is better run, but has an operating board which is out of touch with reality, but the system just sort of runs itself, luckily. Denver and Portland seem like poster children for sytems which work. Maybe they should have included a list of the worst systems in the country.. Columbus would surely have made that list! I am always surprised at how lousy the service is for a city of that size. Astounding really. It was like that 40 years ago, and the last time I was there was not any better. There was talk even back in the 70s of laying a streetcar line or two: connecting OSU with downtown, and connecting the airport to downtown. Some things never change.
February 12, 201114 yr I agree with ColDayMan, any list without NYC on top is not credible in assessing what's important about transit. More than any system in this counrty, or in the Western Hemisphere, the New York subway not only built the city and allowed for it to maintain amazing population densities, it has the most pervasive impact on it's city's way of life (as in the majority of adult citizens do not even own cars; and it has nothing to do with net worth or income level)... btw, I agree that the D.C. Metro has to be on the list: it would be #2 on my list.
February 12, 201114 yr I can't believe I just noticed that Chicago is missing as well (or that nobody else has mentioned it), but that is another glaring omission. The CTA buses are some of the cleanest I have ridden. The system is expansive and has short headways. The rail system is well developed (although not the cleanest). And you can't beat the CTA Bus Tracker. A list without NYC on top and DC and Chicago at least in the top 10 (if not top 5) is a joke.
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