Along for the Ride?

By: Megan McLaughlin

Public transportation; the most underused, underrated form of transportation? In some cities, public transportation seems to be lacking. For example, according to Wikitravel, “Residents of Los Angeles County spend an estimated 4 days of each year stuck in traffic.” Although public transportation may not be lacking in every city, you may wonder why it is not used more frequently. In the United States alone, “The vast majority of passenger travel occurs by automobile for shorter distances.” However, thanks to the rising cost of fuel (if that’s something to be thankful for), more people are turning to public transportation as a way to save. Fortunately, sites like http://www.publictransportation.org/ and organizations like APTA (American Public Transportation Association) are looking to encourage and support a wider use of public transportation in the U.S.

Not all of the news about public transportation is bad news. According to PublicTransportation.org, “In 2007, Americans took 10.3 billion trips on public transportation – the highest ridership level in 50 years.” Perhaps people are starting to face the facts; “Each year, public transportation use in the U.S. saves 1.4 billion gallons of gasoline.”

In an article found on APTA’s website, according to the National Business Coalition for Rapid Transit, “The public clearly values public transit: in the last five years, transit use has risen 21 percent.” The benefits of public transportation have become clear to the American people and with gas costs, it has become a necessity.

We can only hope that organizations like APTA and public information presented by sites like PublicTransportation.org will continue to aid in the overall encouragement to use public transportation in the United States. For now, it seems as though widespread use of public transportation is on the rise and most Americans can find a reason to ride instead of drive.