My Comments Regarding David Lazarus' Article "U.S. public transit improvements will be a tough sell"

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-lazarus5-2009aug05,0,1206040.column

Mr Lazarus -

You're article hit the problem perfectly, in regards to the conundrum of public transportation. I studied at UCLA for my undergraduate in the Urban Planning Department, so I am very familiar with Brian Taylor's work.

But, while the US Public Transportation system is pretty shameful, there are some glimmers of hope. I live in Washington, DC right now and the subway and bus system is very efficient.

But, of course I lived in California, specifically Los Angeles, for most of my life, and know that public transportation there is a nightmare. I remember reading about Metro being billions of dollars in debt, and having to increase the cost of a day pass, and a month pass in order to cover the costs. This is where the problem that you brought up in the article arises. People are too addicted to their cars, and there needs to be an incentive to drive less and use Public Transportation more. But, people also hate tax increases and high gas prices. So, while many Angelenos want Public Transportation, its mostly because they want it for someone else. One of my professors used used to quote the Onion statistic "96% of Angelenos want Public Transportation for someone else." And, there is also the stigma in Los Angeles that only low income individuals use public transportation because they cannot afford a car. Having a car, and what type of car you own in Los Angeles gives you a certain status. What we have to do is make it so everyone can't afford a car. Instead of putting the extra cost onto those who depend on the cheap cost of public transportation, that cost should go to higher gas taxes or other disincentives for people to drive, and funneled back into current and new transit projects.

I was in Sao Paulo on research at the end of March. While it does not have the variety of transit that Tokyo has, it does have a very efficient bus and subway system. In fact, many of the major urban centers in Brazil are well planned (Curitiba, Sao Paulo, etc.) But, when I got back, I found myself angry and disappointed in the public transit system in LA, more so than I was before when I was studying at UCLA.

Thanks for the read,

-Julian Carmona