will the US military power dominate the world

In article t,
Tank Fixer wrote:

However my city has extended that policy to converting road lanes to
bicycle lanes. Now we have unused portions of road and the traffic goes
even slower, producing even more polution.

Bike lanes are interesting. I saw a study a while back that suggests a
net *increase* in car/bike accidents when bike lanes are present.

Of course, I live in Orlando, the most dangerous US city for bikes and
pedestrians, so it's a fairly moot point...

--
cirby at cfl.rr.com

Remember: Objects in rearview mirror may be hallucinations.
Slam on brakes accordingly.

(Regnirps) wrote in message ...
car is a wonderful gadget, but it is responsible for a lot of social
destruction in the US IMHO. Never mind pollution concerns, just the social
ones. Suburbia, destruction of city centers, traffic congestion,
depersonalization and even fostering of anti-social behavior.

Yeah, freedom is a terrible thing. We need more public transport. Doesn't it
make you feel good to rob Peter so Paul can ride the bus (monorail/light
rail/cable car/ferry/underground)?

-- Charlie Springer


You need to rob someone in order to be able to go from point A to
point B?
Geez... things are apparently even worse than I thought.

I have a good idea though, which might decrease the need for robberies
in the future. You could raise the tax on gas and use that revenue to
improve the transportation system. Everyone benefits. I mean, who can
be against a tax which is completely voluntary to pay? And why not
lower the income tax at the same time as you increase the gas tax?

You need to rob someone in order to be able to go from point A to
point B?
Geez... things are apparently even worse than I thought.


Come down off you narrow minded Euro-centric high horse........

I have a good idea though, which might decrease the need for robberies
in the future. You could raise the tax on gas and use that revenue to
improve the transportation system. Everyone benefits. I mean, who can
be against a tax which is completely voluntary to pay? And why not
lower the income tax at the same time as you increase the gas tax?


It has been suggested, however our transportation system is used extensively by
corporations in moving their goods. Any hike in gas prices, either for taxes
or market increase will mean an increase in prices.


BUFDRVR

"Stay on the bomb run boys, I'm gonna get those bomb doors open if it harelips
everyone on Bear Creek"

Transport is one area I'd say we Americans have missed the boat on.

Every time I'm in Europe, I grow to love the public transport system
more and more, and wish we Americans hadn't destroyed our public transport
infrastructure.

Not me. The example I gave of sitting next to the chain smoker while a child
screams the entire trip that seemed like it was on a train that stopped every
block was my experience coming back from Oktoberfest two weeks ago. I love the
independance and freedom my car gives me. I could take a metro (train) to work
everyday, but it would increase my commute from 20 minutes to 60 minutes. I
sit in my car, listen to the radio at whatever level I'm in the mood for. I
stop-and-go often due to the traffic, but when I do, no one is pushing me to
get in or out of my car. On the way home, I put my sun glasses on, crank up
some music or listen to a sports talk radio program and wind down. Public
transportation? Not for me.


BUFDRVR

"Stay on the bomb run boys, I'm gonna get those bomb doors open if it harelips
everyone on Bear Creek"

(BUFDRVR) schrieb:

Not me. The example I gave of sitting next to the chain smoker while a child
screams the entire trip that seemed like it was on a train that stopped every
block was my experience coming back from Oktoberfest two weeks ago.

Mmmh. In most german "S-Bahn" systems (commuters train) smoking is
prohibited, you should have called in a chap at the next station to
catch the smoker. Smoking is prohibited in any train station by now,
as it is in most train wagons. Just check the cigarette decal on the
window. Simple, isn´t it?

Your having a problem with children? Too bad for for you.

some music or listen to a sports talk radio program and wind down. Public
transportation? Not for me.

I enjoy it everytime I visit a foreign city. Rome is great by bus or
by metro, as is London, Berlin or any major german city. Personally, I
commuted 10 years (for high school/Gymnasium( - it was affordable,
comfortable, easy to relay. In the morning train I slept, on the train
back I made my homework, read or fooled around with my friends.

I wish I could do this again...

BUFDRVR

Gruss, Roman

BUFDRVR wrote:

Transport is one area I'd say we Americans have missed the boat on.

Every time I'm in Europe, I grow to love the public transport system
more and more, and wish we Americans hadn't destroyed our public transport
infrastructure.

Not me. The example I gave of sitting next to the chain smoker while a child
screams the entire trip that seemed like it was on a train that stopped every
block was my experience coming back from Oktoberfest two weeks ago. I love the
independance and freedom my car gives me. I could take a metro (train) to work
everyday, but it would increase my commute from 20 minutes to 60 minutes. I

That's pretty typical of American thinking. But increasingly, we're going to
find that car is making demands on us that we aren't going to like. In some
areas, that's already the case.

There are people spending 4 hours or more in their cars for round trip commutes
to work! That's by no means typical, but as the numbers of cars proliferate,
the congestion increases.

It is not unusual now for me to be able to ride my bike to work in the exact
same time it takes to drive, due to congestion on the main road. In many
communities, you MUST have a car to get around and it's not a particularly
people friendly experience getting out and about. Given American's propensity
for obesity, heavy car use isn't especially healthy either.

Socially, I note in Europe how much more people friendly cities and towns are
than American ones. That's because European centers are set up for people, while
American ones are for the convenience of cars. Some American city centers have
undergone renovation that are quite nice, but those renovations have tended to
be more restrictive of car movement in them.

sit in my car, listen to the radio at whatever level I'm in the mood for. I
stop-and-go often due to the traffic, but when I do, no one is pushing me to
get in or out of my car. On the way home, I put my sun glasses on, crank up
some music or listen to a sports talk radio program and wind down. Public
transportation? Not for me.

Sure it's great. I love my truck, and I have no problem driving miles and miles
and miles. But for me, it's not a great driving experience just going to work.
In fact it can be a source of irritation and annoyance, and becoming moreso in
many places.

I'll save my enjoyable driving experiences as you describe above for a genuine
trip/vacation/excursion rather than the work commute. For that, I actually
prefer my bicycle, and besides a great mental state such as you describe coming
from its use, I also gain some health benefits, and restrict my contribution to
pollution as well. Not too shabby.


SMH

From: Stephen Harding

snip

There are people spending 4 hours or more in their cars for round trip
commutes
to work!

snip

It never ceases to amaze me how some people would rather spend hours in their
own vehicle rather that 30 minutes in public transport. A rather extreme
example of this lunacy was seen after the last Los Angeles earthquake. The
trains were used almost to capacity for a few days then usage dropped rapidly
to near prequake level. People living outside the city simply preferred sitting
in their own vehicles for hours.

There are areas in the U.S. where the infrastructure MUST be built to the point
where the majority of travel is done by public transport. Southern California,
NYC etc come to mind. The pollution, damage to the environment etc is un
healthy. The time spent commuting could be spent with family. The net reduction
of petroleum products import would more than enough to justify realignment.

I am not saying confiscation of vehicles is the way to go, but putting major
parts of metropolitan areas off limits to noncommercial and nonpuplic transport
shout work nicelly.

The hard part is getting politicians willing to be voted out of office.

Dan, U. S. Air Force, retired

In article ,
(B2431) wrote:

It never ceases to amaze me how some people would rather spend hours in their
own vehicle rather that 30 minutes in public transport.

Would that I had that choice.

I have a 43mi each way commute. (I started out 7mi from the office, made
one move to 25mi from the office, and successive site moves by companies
[2] I've worked for for the past 25 years has increased the distance to
the current value.)

I carpool, and the ride is 45 minutes, each way. 1.5 hours total.

If I take transit, the trip is 1:20, not counting waiting for the
shuttle connection to/from the office, another 20 minutes each way.
(And $55/wk in tickets, or $145.75 for a monthly pass.)

So 3:20 spent traveling to/from work, and I don't count walking to/from
the train station, about a mile from my house. No thanks. (I suppose I
could take the bus, instead of CalTrain, but that would mean about 3:30
each way, and four transfers.)

A rather extreme
example of this lunacy was seen after the last Los Angeles earthquake. The
trains were used almost to capacity for a few days then usage dropped rapidly
to near prequake level. People living outside the city simply preferred
sitting in their own vehicles for hours.

B2431 wrote:

I am not saying confiscation of vehicles is the way to go, but putting major
parts of metropolitan areas off limits to noncommercial and nonpuplic transport
shout work nicelly.

The hard part is getting politicians willing to be voted out of office.

I think all of what you say is true. The problem is that much of the cost
of automobile usage is hidden. Environmental and health damage, cost of
foreign policies to promote cheaper oil, etc., don't get placed on the
private motor vehicle.

But you've got to admit, the personal freedom of private transport, and
all the infrastructure that supports it, is highly addictive.

In fact, it's gained "rights" status, and is one of the characteristics
that defines us as Americans!


SMH

In article , B2431
writes
From: Stephen Harding

snip

There are people spending 4 hours or more in their cars for round trip
commutes
to work!

snip

It never ceases to amaze me how some people would rather spend hours in their
own vehicle rather that 30 minutes in public transport. A rather extreme
example of this lunacy was seen after the last Los Angeles earthquake. The
trains were used almost to capacity for a few days then usage dropped rapidly
to near prequake level. People living outside the city simply preferred sitting
in their own vehicles for hours.

The opposite also applies. I live outside London, and used to use public
transport to get to work. The trip took 80 minutes on a good day,
including 10 minutes walk to my local station. I had to change trains
twice, which meant standing on a freezing cold platform in wintertime,
and sweating unbelievably on the underground in summer. Overcrowding was
a daily occurrence all year round. Any train problems meant
unpredictable delays.
Add to that the fact that I had to pay around GBP 1000 for the privilege
(we are talking the late 80's here), plus being 6'6" and 18 stone (250
pounds) meant comfort wasn't something I found too often.

I changed jobs and drove 35 miles each way every day, which took 40
minutes on average, as I was going the opposite way to the London-bound
traffic. No more colds, no more cracking vertebrae from sitting on
unsuitable seats, no more standing with a crick in my neck. And the
company paid the petrol (there was a tax liability, though).

It just goes to show how false generalisations can be.

There are areas in the U.S. where the infrastructure MUST be built to the point
where the majority of travel is done by public transport. Southern California,
NYC etc come to mind. The pollution, damage to the environment etc is un
healthy. The time spent commuting could be spent with family. The net reduction
of petroleum products import would more than enough to justify realignment.

I am not saying confiscation of vehicles is the way to go, but putting major
parts of metropolitan areas off limits to noncommercial and nonpuplic transport
shout work nicelly.

The hard part is getting politicians willing to be voted out of office.

Dan, U. S. Air Force, retired

--
Peter

Ying tong iddle-i po!