Why Carmaggedon never comes – Seattle edition
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Why Carmaggedon never comes – Seattle edition
1–10 of 78 posts
Re: Why Carmaggedon never comes – Seattle edition
#2I don't think we should underestimate the lost value these transportation arteries normally provide, but we also shouldn't overestimate it.
I often wonder why new highways / lanes of highway don't get assessed in economic terms, but I suspect much of the day-to-day work would not be justifiable in such terms.
Re: Why Carmaggedon never comes – Seattle edition
#3I don't think we should underestimate the lost value these transportation arteries normally provide, but we also shouldn't overestimate it. I often wonder why new highways / lanes of highway don't get assessed in economic terms, but I suspect much of the day-to-day work would not be justifiable in such terms.
> I often wonder why new highways / lanes of highway don't get assessed in economic terms, but I suspect much of the day-to-day work would not be justifiable in such terms.
This is so frustrating. It feels like debate around a mile of bus lanes or rail can drag on forever, but spending billions of dollars on highways just happens.
Re: Why Carmaggedon never comes – Seattle edition
#4> If Seattle can survive for a couple of weeks without a major chunk of its freeway system, that’s a powerful indication that more modest steps to alter road capacity don’t really mean the end of the world.
It's a little bit of a stretch. The problems people are facing due to road closures are not measured by images of Google maps. Just because complete gridlock doesn't happen doesn't mean that people aren't having significant problems because of it. People adapt but this article provides no real way to measure the cost.
Re: Why Carmaggedon never comes – Seattle edition
#5I don't think we should underestimate the lost value these transportation arteries normally provide, but we also shouldn't overestimate it. I often wonder why new highways / lanes of highway don't get assessed in economic terms, but I suspect much of the day-to-day work would not be justifiable in such terms.
People engage with roads at a purely emotional level. They don't want new highway lanes because the cost-benefit is strong and it will boost economic activity in their area. They want new lanes because they hate traffic with a fiery passion.
Re: Why Carmaggedon never comes – Seattle edition
#6> If Seattle can survive for a couple of weeks without a major chunk of its freeway system, that’s a powerful indication that more modest steps to alter road capacity don’t really mean the end of the world. It's a little bit of a stretch. The problems people are facing due to road closures are not measured by images of Google maps. Just because complete gridlock doesn't happen doesn't mean that people aren't having s…
The point of this article is that people say "complete gridlock will happen", and it doesn't. (Not even close)
Re: Why Carmaggedon never comes – Seattle edition
#7I don't think we should underestimate the lost value these transportation arteries normally provide, but we also shouldn't overestimate it. I often wonder why new highways / lanes of highway don't get assessed in economic terms, but I suspect much of the day-to-day work would not be justifiable in such terms.
> I often wonder why new highways / lanes of highway don't get assessed in economic terms, but I suspect much of the day-to-day work would not be justifiable in such terms. This is so frustrating. It feels like debate around a mile of bus lanes or rail can drag on forever, but spending billions of dollars on highways just happens .
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Re: Why Carmaggedon never comes – Seattle edition
#8Seattle is a bad example because it's always had peak congestion since 1978. It's just been bumping along for forty years at peak congestion.
Re: Why Carmaggedon never comes – Seattle edition
#9Traffic is induced demand. Traffic is induced demand. Traffic is induced demand.
Re: Why Carmaggedon never comes – Seattle edition
#10Yes, people can adapt to having less mobility. That doesn’t mean mobility is useless or that removing it is without harm.
People deciding to stay home because getting around is too much hassle isn’t a victory condition.