Microblog Memes

I can't speak for NY, but...

In Los Angeles I used the busses, subway, and trains for two to three years going to work. For one year it was an hour each way riding 2 trains. After that, it was 2.5 hours each way switching between busses and trains five times.

While I truly appreciated the Metro, it was often not fun. Usually everything and everyone was fine. But, at times I'd be riding with drugged up dangerous acting people. Other times just super annoying people. Sometimes the trains would be packed shoulder to shoulder full of people. And sometimes, in the middle of LA, the train would stop, and say "everybody off" without an explanation, and everyone would exit the train and have to figure out where to go.

Once I was able to drive myself, I no longer had to worry about any of the issues I had before. All I had to deal with was traffic jams. Annoying, but I did feel safer.

I've never almost died on a bus.

Driving is the highest-risk activity that the average person engages in on the average day.

It's dangerous, stressful, time-consuming, and expensive. I also think it is a significant contributing factor to our sedentary lifestyles and expanding waistlines. I'm resentful that the decision to go with automobile-based infrastructure was decided before I was even born and that I've never had a viable opportunity to vote against it.

What I really hate is that driving is a privilege. But not needing to drive (i.e. walkability, bikeability, and good transit) are also privileges. Fucked either way it would seem.