Comment Re:No wonder people don't walk! (Score 2, Interesting) 659
I agree. Minneapolis/St. Paul is becoming Atlanta (without any improvements that Atlanta might be implementing that I don't know about). The bus system here *is* confusing (and unreliable on several routes) and, at this point, such a mess that they might as well not even bother having one. They raise fares and yet cut service on multiple lines. Yeah, the state really cares about transit, I can tell. It's also a very bike-unfriendly metropolitan area. Sure, there's lots of nice bike trails but there's also lots of dead ends on those bike trails, forcing you to ride on or cross busy roads. Once you're on a road, you're fair game for all the cars out there that are in such a damn hurry. There's a real anti-bike mentality here. Just walking around can be dangerous for your health around here. Even in a supposed "village" type neighborhood like Highland Park in SW St. Paul the traffic has just gotten insane over the past few years on the major streets and impatient assholes in cars will barely let pedestrians by on the crosswalks without pulling right up to them because they're in such a damn hurry to get to whereever they're going in their precious cars. The lone light rail line is a start but they'll need many more lines to make any kind of difference. I think this metropolitan area will always be a "car town" though. Too many factors against it being anything but a car town. Two separate downtowns, a large low-density area, and a general desire of suburbia to just keep spreading outward forever (Lakeville, for example). Also, there's just a natural inclination toward driving here that's unlikely to really change unless gas becomes like $20 a gallon. $5 a gallon wouldn't even make an impact other than a minute number of commuters grudgingly taking the bus or light rail if it's feasible.
Now why did I bother to even submit a post on this? Because I'm one of the few sorry SOBs who live in the Twin Cities and *can't* drive a car. Ever. Thanks to bad vision. Because of this I have come to abso-fucking-lutely hate living here. I never cared for the weather here. I try to be positive every damn morning I wake up and not think about the no car situation but you can only take so many instances a month of waiting for buses that never show up or are ridiculously late, being harassed at bus stops and on buses or by panhandlers downtown. I managed to find a somewhat decent IT job here. That is the *only* reason I'm still here. I constantly think about packing up and moving. But where can a non-driver even move to in the US where driving isn't practically a requirement? I'm starting to think nowhere. I've thought about Europe too but that's a huge move in more ways than just distance. Portland, OR is probably at the top of my list for cities in this country. Can anyone say if Portland is really that much better this "car town" hell I'm living in right now for someone who can't drive at all?
One thing that gets me is how people that *cannot* physically drive a car legally have just become basically invisible in this country because the number of people that fall into this category is really pretty small. Either a disability or having your license taken away when you're old. I feel sorry for some of these old people I see while riding the bus. It seems like public transit is just for the poor and immigrants who haven't yet gotten a license and a car. But just wait until the DMVs start denying license renewals to the huge number of Baby Boomers. Then we'll definitely start to hear some whining. Someone posted earlier about how Cars = Freedom and they really are right. I know I've missed out on a lot of things in life because I live in a country where cars are a necessity and where people like me don't really count for shit in the general public's eye.
As for the original question, yes and no. I know skinny suburbanites and some real lardasses living in the city. It's not as simple as "sprawl causes lardasses". It's just one factor.
Now why did I bother to even submit a post on this? Because I'm one of the few sorry SOBs who live in the Twin Cities and *can't* drive a car. Ever. Thanks to bad vision. Because of this I have come to abso-fucking-lutely hate living here. I never cared for the weather here. I try to be positive every damn morning I wake up and not think about the no car situation but you can only take so many instances a month of waiting for buses that never show up or are ridiculously late, being harassed at bus stops and on buses or by panhandlers downtown. I managed to find a somewhat decent IT job here. That is the *only* reason I'm still here. I constantly think about packing up and moving. But where can a non-driver even move to in the US where driving isn't practically a requirement? I'm starting to think nowhere. I've thought about Europe too but that's a huge move in more ways than just distance. Portland, OR is probably at the top of my list for cities in this country. Can anyone say if Portland is really that much better this "car town" hell I'm living in right now for someone who can't drive at all?
One thing that gets me is how people that *cannot* physically drive a car legally have just become basically invisible in this country because the number of people that fall into this category is really pretty small. Either a disability or having your license taken away when you're old. I feel sorry for some of these old people I see while riding the bus. It seems like public transit is just for the poor and immigrants who haven't yet gotten a license and a car. But just wait until the DMVs start denying license renewals to the huge number of Baby Boomers. Then we'll definitely start to hear some whining. Someone posted earlier about how Cars = Freedom and they really are right. I know I've missed out on a lot of things in life because I live in a country where cars are a necessity and where people like me don't really count for shit in the general public's eye.
As for the original question, yes and no. I know skinny suburbanites and some real lardasses living in the city. It's not as simple as "sprawl causes lardasses". It's just one factor.
