alt Hacker News> very little that’s unique about NYC’s ability to build a great public transit system
Have you been to New York?
We’re uniquely dense, rich and collectivist. We have a long and proud history of public transit and a culture that doesn’t put social cachet on vehicle ownership. That’s entirely different from the rest of America.
> if somehow NYC could do it, what’s everyone else’s reasoning for not?
New York’s government is larger, and has a larger remit, than many countries. More practically: they haven’t.
> obscene amount of lobbying from your local car dealer baron, if you’re in Nashville (for example)
This isn’t being launched in Nashville.
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> uniquely dense, rich and collectivist
And yet on the list of North America transit systems by ridership[0], while New York City takes the top spot, every other city in America loses first to Mexico, then to Canada.
I can't speak on Mexico with any authority, but telling me multiple cities in Canada are more dense and financially well-off than every other city in America is more than a little shocking.
Telling me the (allegedly, but very publicly and loudly) Christian country is more collectivist than both Canada and Mexico is odd, unless we take a very cynical view of what it means to be Christian in America
> doesn’t put social cachet on vehicle ownership
> This isn’t being launched in Nashville
Yes, the point is that the social cachet around vehicle ownership is marketing, pushed by car dealerships (among other institutions)
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_North_American_rapid_t...
>Have you been to New York?
Rude. I'm a lifelong New Yorker and nothing about your posts seem reasonable or made apparent by anything that's just "obvious" about being in new york. There's also great bus transit in Queens... but you don't mention that. You just continuously suggest all your points are self evident.
Ya and it’s also granite on swamp, with significant cost multipliers to get anything built. Latter is a literal statement, engineering bids have geoloc multipliers for costs.
To your later point, I’d love to see some data on why modern city states are the only ones able to build public transit.
As a Ny’er, I stand by my point that it’s crooked as heck. Not sure how you could spend any time under an Adams or Giuliani admin and think otherwise, to barely scratch the surface. Tammany hall anyone?
Lastly - you’re a NYer and saying pub transit is untenably uncomfortable Metronorth isn’t too bad and has new cars within the last decade. Amtrak is similar.