Ahoy,
There's nothing that makes you appreciate NYC Subway more than navigating other places. For its faults and rat population, it is the best public transit system in the States. So how am I ever supposed to lower my standards? I've come to realize it takes a long time to get anywhere in LA. Traffic conditions play far too critical a factor in mobility, which really makes me appreciate the Metro.
One of the most blatant differences is the kind of people and interactions on the systems. Everybody rides the Subway in NY, but in LA nobody rides the Metro if they don't have to (but I really think a lot of people would be a lot happier with their life if they rode the Metro rather than drove). And in NY there's this unspoken policy that you don't talk to other people. Ever. You don't even make eye contact. And if you talk to other people - clearly you're not from here. But people talk to me so much in LA. It interrupts my reading time. And the wandering eyes are nothing like the alone-ness of riding the Subway.
No light rail system could ever compare to the size and coverage of MTA's. The Metro reaches everywhere important in a reliable manner. It has real-time schedules that have been mostly accurate and consistent, which I can't necessarily say for MTA. Metro doesn't allow food which is accountable for why it's so much cleaner. One thing the MTA is is dirty - the tracks are littered with debris and bags of garbage that catch on fire sometimes. Great grub for the Subway rats. And all this I'm sure is a significant portion of the budget to handle - which one would think would be covered by the $2.25 fare (but it isn't). The $1.50 fare doesn't cover much either, but looking at my salary I'll take what I can get.
So even though the Metro doesn't run 24 hours or every 2-5 minutes or leave me alone, it is less expensive, runs when it says it does, is cleaner and there's no traffic. No traffic!
despairingly impatient,
jt
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