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Abundance Starts with Mobility

abstraction.substack.com

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Re: Abundance Starts with Mobility

#2

Post by linearithmic »

Even if every housing reform went into effect tomorrow, construction timelines mean it could be years before we see meaningful improvements in affordability or availability. To improve quality of life and opportunity in the near term, we need high-leverage, low-friction interventions that reshape how people live and move right now.

Mobility is the highest leverage near-term option we have.

Re: Abundance Starts with Mobility

#4

Post by xnx »

Glad to see practical suggestions that don't call for building new rail lines.

Pricing road use appropriately (which includes everything including: congestion pricing, parking rates, tag violations, automated red light cameras, citizen reports, and tag violations) would go a long way.

Re: Abundance Starts with Mobility

#5

Post by mitchbob »

the_decider wrote: post #3

Interesting to see NYC public transport compared in a less favorable light to the San Francisco where BART can be a nightmare and busses are not a reasonable way to get around. I guess the abundance grass is always greener…

As someone who rode BART for decades, and who just completed an easy, pleasant, and affordable trip via BART and bus from the East Bay to Golden Gate Park, the idea that BART and buses are not a reasonable way to get to and around SF seems just wrong. Are they perfect? Definitely not. Are they better than trying to drive to and in the city, for riders and for everyone else trying to enjoy city life? Hard yes from me.

Re: Abundance Starts with Mobility

#7

Post by thatfunkymunki »

mitchbob wrote: post #5
the_decider wrote: post #3

Interesting to see NYC public transport compared in a less favorable light to the San Francisco where BART can be a nightmare and busses are not a reasonable way to get around. I guess the abundance grass is always greener…

As someone who rode BART for decades, and who just completed an easy, pleasant, and affordable trip via BART and bus from the East Bay to Golden Gate Park, the idea that BART and buses are not a reasonable way to get to and around SF seems just wrong. Are they perfect? Definitely not. Are they better than trying to drive to and in the city, for riders and for everyone else trying to enjoy city life? Hard yes from me.

Completely agree- the coverage of MUNI + BART is actually pretty good (with some notable exceptions) and in my experience (ymmv obviously) less stressful than driving and seeking parking.

Re: Abundance Starts with Mobility

#8

Post by linearithmic »

jaoane wrote: post #6

So the solution to increase mobility is… to make it less practical for people to have cars, ie, to be mobile. Aha aha.

I actually own a car in NYC and think these would make things more practical. I would happily trade time spent looking for parking for a minor fee and would happily trade time spent in traffic for a toll.

Re: Abundance Starts with Mobility

#10

Post by linearithmic »

the_decider wrote: post #3

Interesting to see NYC public transport compared in a less favorable light to the San Francisco where BART can be a nightmare and busses are not a reasonable way to get around. I guess the abundance grass is always greener…

The idea was not that San Francisco does everything perfectly, but instead that there are things they've tried that have been demonstrated to be successful we can learn from in NYC.
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