Mass Transit

Republicans of the Scott Walker breed have dissed the few moderates left in their increasingly wingnut party on any number of issues, but among the most breath-taking among these assaults in Wisconsin has been the party's increasing disdain for mass transit. Because, apparently, mass transit isn't necessary, it's wasteful, no one uses it, and -- perhaps most important == too many of the many people who do use it are, ah, you know, people of ... another persuasion.

Future MKE streetcar

The City of Milwaukee continues to fight for the right to use federal funds awarded to it for a new downtown streetcar loop, but remains stymied by conservative and corporate opposition. It's as when Gov. Scott Walker rejected the $810 million federal grant to build a high-speed passenger train route between Madison and Milwaukee; now, other Republicans are still trying to kill the city's streetcar. Walker started that fight as Milwaukee County executive and then moved on to the statehouse, leaving his pals behind to keep impeding progress. They've joined already to destroy the proposed KRM intercity commuter rail service linking Milwaukee with Chicago.

In an article for Salon.com, Philadelphia journalist Daniel Denvir examines recent US Census data and reports that on a scale of 1 to 100 where 100 is complete segregation, Milwaukee's number is highest among all larger US urban areas, with a tally of 81.52. And former Milwaukee County Executive Walker is one of the factors, according to a UWM professor interviewed for the piece.

Excerpt:

 

Nationwide, blacks have been concentrated in the inner city, far away from where new jobs are created. Yet the case of Milwaukee is extreme: 90 percent of the metro area's black population lives in the city. Making matters worse, suburban whites are notably hostile to building any form of public transit to connect city people to suburban jobs, further exacerbating segregation's ill effects.

Dutch Gets a D

Professor Stephen Dutch appeared on the scene in a flash with an essay explaining why "we" Americans do not ride transit. While he reports transit that he has experienced, and he is not shy about his personal preferences - don't crowd me, please - he tends to generalize about the rest of us.

A geologist - a fascinating field as a platform for public transportation. I'd prefer a facilities management specialist; but we transit advocates take whatever we get. Everyone is an authority on transit. Everyone knows how to run a transit system.

The real experts of course are bus riders, but specialists? Naw, we have interesting lives, jobs, families, and hobbies. But the bus? Heck, if a professor cares about bus schedules and seat width, we are glad that worry is being taken care of by, well, someone.