Quote:
Originally Posted by PDXDENSITY
That's an obfuscation; living close in begets a lifestyle of low-car use. Development along the line allows that. Having tons of transit helps too.
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These are fine points, and I should clarify that I
like the streetcar and want to see it expanded. It makes sense for providing service and 'spurring development' along the denser corridors of Portland's former streetcar suburbs. But also I think the streetcar can be made too much of by its boosters; and I particularly object if the corollary of fetishing the streetcar is the implication there's something wrong with the bus. The streetcar's existence should not be an alibi for shitty bus service, you and I can probably agree.
There are benefits to running a fixed route, but is the experience of riding the streetcar
magical? I don't think there's anything particularly special about riding streetcars in Berlin or Rome or Vienna (other cities in which they don't, for the most part, enjoy dedicated lanes), or the Docklands Light Rail line in London. I suspect the reason why certain people find the Portland Streetcar so preferable is that it runs through the parts of our city that these people find most vibrant and iconic and that they're the most proud of. Also, people who live downtown are probably joined by more of their neighbors and coworkers on their daily commute than people who commute from Woodlawn, say. Or at least by people of their own social class.
And finally, the route through downtown isn't that long, so it doesn't have time to get tedious.
Streetcars also have far more attractive windows than the cheap, darkened plastic windows of Tri-Met's bus fleet, if my memory serves, which is an aspect of the experience that should hardly be overlooked. The front-row seats on the upper story of London's buses have marvelous panoramic windows through which to enjoy the spectacle of the city while you're stuck in traffic. 2oh1, I really am interested in knowing how you think buses can be made more like streetcars.
In any case, though. There are plenty of lovely things about bicycling, too. But these don't obviate the need for buses.