Wednesday, June 15, 2005
Commuter rail may be the right track for future developments
Colleague Darren Glaude in his column this week basically asserts that commuter rail will be a flop with residents of the central Florida counties it is supposed to serve, and he could very well be right. But Darren does not address one of the arguments that speaks most in favor of laying the track necessary to run the train from Volusia County through Orlando to Osceola.
Naysayers contend that mass transit only succeeds in areas where it is part of the "culture" of the area in which it exists. Since the Northeast has had mass transit for years, the argument goes, it is something with which residents are familiar for their entire lives, making them more apt to include it as part of their lifestyle.
Putting mass transit in areas without such tradition, the theory goes, is why it never achieves ridership levels high enough to allow it to become a profitable, or even near-profitable, venture.
This view is somewhat reinforced by the current approach taken by those seeking to build the commuter rail that will include Seminole on the trek from Volusia to Osceola. Government funds are being promised to subsidize the effort through its first few years, when, we are told, ridership will be low due to the train's newness and unfamiliarity to local residents, who will need some time to "take" to it.
But what if we are placing the wrong focus on what determines the success of commuter rail in central Florida? If we think people will abandon their personal autos in great numbers within the next few years so they can hop aboard, then Darren is most likely correct: the train will be a miserable failure.
It seems wholly unrealistic to expect the current adult population to leave their cars behind and replace them with the train for their daily commute. But what about the current youth? If their years of childhood and adolescence include commuter rail as a viable option for them to get around central Florida, might they not develop using it as a habit that will carry into their adult years?
It seems we are making the wrong argument in gauging short-term ridership levels as the measure of success for commuter rail. Perhaps a more realistic and productive view is one that projects a generation into the future, when roads and traffic congestion will surely be as vexing a problem as it is today, if not more so.
Even if we cannot get today's adult population to change their habits and forsake their autos for commuter rail, it seems it still holds merit for the future. To change tomorrow's habits, however, means changing circumstances today,
Who knows, maybe this could be the start of a return to American society of "deferred gratification." It would do us all well to recognize that benefits do not always have to accrue to those whose actions initiate their coming into being. Instead, we can worry about our kids and giving them a better future.
On that basis, Slats, as SCW's senior columnist, overrides Darren and says building the commuter rail definitely puts us on the right track!
Naysayers contend that mass transit only succeeds in areas where it is part of the "culture" of the area in which it exists. Since the Northeast has had mass transit for years, the argument goes, it is something with which residents are familiar for their entire lives, making them more apt to include it as part of their lifestyle.
Putting mass transit in areas without such tradition, the theory goes, is why it never achieves ridership levels high enough to allow it to become a profitable, or even near-profitable, venture.
This view is somewhat reinforced by the current approach taken by those seeking to build the commuter rail that will include Seminole on the trek from Volusia to Osceola. Government funds are being promised to subsidize the effort through its first few years, when, we are told, ridership will be low due to the train's newness and unfamiliarity to local residents, who will need some time to "take" to it.
But what if we are placing the wrong focus on what determines the success of commuter rail in central Florida? If we think people will abandon their personal autos in great numbers within the next few years so they can hop aboard, then Darren is most likely correct: the train will be a miserable failure.
It seems wholly unrealistic to expect the current adult population to leave their cars behind and replace them with the train for their daily commute. But what about the current youth? If their years of childhood and adolescence include commuter rail as a viable option for them to get around central Florida, might they not develop using it as a habit that will carry into their adult years?
It seems we are making the wrong argument in gauging short-term ridership levels as the measure of success for commuter rail. Perhaps a more realistic and productive view is one that projects a generation into the future, when roads and traffic congestion will surely be as vexing a problem as it is today, if not more so.
Even if we cannot get today's adult population to change their habits and forsake their autos for commuter rail, it seems it still holds merit for the future. To change tomorrow's habits, however, means changing circumstances today,
Who knows, maybe this could be the start of a return to American society of "deferred gratification." It would do us all well to recognize that benefits do not always have to accrue to those whose actions initiate their coming into being. Instead, we can worry about our kids and giving them a better future.
On that basis, Slats, as SCW's senior columnist, overrides Darren and says building the commuter rail definitely puts us on the right track!
hy