Gavin Newsom’s widely-mockedhigh-speed railisn’t the only “train to nowhere” in California. In fact, the Golden State is a virtual graveyard of near-empty “ghost” trains and buses.
That hasn’t stopped an aggressive push for more federal dollars forpublic transit dollarsin California, as Congress prepares a new five-year surface transportation bill, with billions of dollars more slated for urban transit programs.
Nearly every special-interest group, from big-city mayors and regional planning agencies to construction firms, transit unions, and even the Chamber of Commerce, is lobbying for moretransit funding.
Yet the evidence shows clearly that decades ofmassive transit spendingin California have not improved urban mobility.
A newUnleash Prosperitystudy examining the latest Census mobility data through 2024 finds that in nearly every major metro area in the country, public transit market share has dropped sharply even as spending has soared.
Adjusted for inflation, transit spending nationally is up nearly sixfold since 1960, but the percentage of commuters who actually ride buses and trains has fallen by roughly two-thirds.
California is no exception, despite spending more per capita on transit than almost any state. This is the very definition of negative efficiency.
The next time you see a bus or light-rail train pass by, notice how few passengers, if any, are aboard. Today, only about one out of every 25 commuters uses mass transit.
The latest fad among urban planners is the “15-minute city.” It’s a nice idea: a city in which public transit is just a short walk away.
But outside of very high-density urban cores, transit simply does not and cannot come close to achieving that goal.
Source: California Post – Breaking California News, Photos & Videos
