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Subsidizing Light Rail Is Like Subsidizing The Landline Telephone


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#1 Sloan

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Posted 24 May 2016 - 01:42 PM

 

 

What would happen if your city, in the name of progress, started giving poorer residents vouchers for landline telephones rather than smartphones? Or if, rather than stocking public libraries with computers, so that people could write emails, your city installed fax machines? You would consider these unnecessary expenditures on outdated technologies. Yet when it comes to public transit, many cities splurge on modes designed for a different time and place—namely light rail.

http://www.forbes.co...e/#1bccfa6e432d

 

The writer is using an invalid analogy to make his point.  Rather then debunk his examples, I'll say what all of us on this board know that rail transit is a public service designed to serve the taxpayers.  And of course the writer cites Randal O'Toole who is America's hater of anything rail transit.

 

Sloan



#2 EvergreenRailfan

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Posted 25 May 2016 - 12:34 PM

We've had to align with the sentiments addressed by the author here, to fight to get the Library upgraded. Back when the Libraries for All measure was on the ballot, at some of the public meetings, there were a few suggesting that with computers, the library was obsolete. That was 20 years ago, almost. About the time we were also debating light rail. Sound Move was one of the first things I voted for, in my senior year of high school. Now, I have seen students of my old high school, taking ST services to get there.




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