[A comment on Streets Blog:]
I grew up in Baltimore and have lived in NYC for two years, and thus feel inclined to comment on my observations.
Baltimore ranks number 6 in the nation for car-free households, with 35.89% car-free. The public transportation in Baltimore is so bad that when I visit my friends or family for the weekend (all of whom live within the central urban core), I have to bring my bike down with me (and of course spend no less than three hours throughout the course of the weekend explaining to my parents why I am politely turning down their friendly offer to borrow an automobile – "So what if you’re drinking? You only need to drive a few miles!"). I’m sorry, did I say Public Transportation? I meant to say Poverty Transportation. Allow me to explain.
From the same country that brought you intensified class divisions based on access to health care and education comes a way to keep poor people poor through transportation! The bus system (and random rail lines that are rarely useful) is not meant to be a comfortable and convenient way to get around town. It is meant to serve as a bare minimum to allow those who cannot afford a car to get around town. After all, if only poor people are using the system, and poor people have little to no political clout, then where is the incentive to invest public money for improving the system? Obviously it’s more important for suburbanites to pay less taxes, therefore enabling them to purchase more flat-screen televisions. So in other words, in order to have comparable access to employment and education opportunities to the privileged class, one must purchase an automobile.
Yes, that’s right: People who can barely afford to feed and clothe their children are required to purchase a multi-thousand dollar product from a private vendor, and then spend hundreds of dollars per month insuring and maintaining said product. A family starts to get back on their feet financially? Oops! Timing belt broke! That will be $1000, please! In other words, the cycle of poverty continues. Economically disadvantaged individuals cannot participate in mainstream society by purchasing a $89 Metro Card as they can in more functional cities (further subsidized based on need) once a month, enabling them to use the rest of their income to feed and clothe their children, and pursue educational opportunities in order to climb out of poverty. In New York, automobile culture hurts our quality of life. In places like Baltimore, automobile culture flat-out ruins lives.
