#Public Transportation

[rie-kay]

just hat a lovely encounter on the tram. i saw a lady with a beautifully coloured scarf sitting across. so, i thought i tell her that the scarf and the color is really cool. and she was super happy to hear that.

after that she went back to knitting and i went back to my phone. a few minutes later she tried to contact me again.

i turned—and she offered me said scarf as a present!!! she said she found that compliment so cute that she wanted me to have the scarf.

i was super surprised and equally happy. it was so cute. in the end we both were smiling over both ears.

[amtrak-conductor]

[incognitopolls]

We ask your questions so you don’t have to! Submit your questions to have them posted anonymously as polls.

[writing-with-olive]

So i'm working on a project that involves looking at people's opinions on public transportation, and something that keeps coming up is that a lot of people like the idea of public transportation but ridership is at the same time low, so I wanna figure out what stops people from riding.

If you could reblog this for bigger sample size that would be so so appreciated

[mapsontheweb]

Metro areas in the USA where more than 5% of population uses public transit to get to work.

by u/mexidominicarican8

[typhlonectes]

[sreegs]

never forget that we could have had robust trolley/tram system in many american cities still if it weren't for General Motors (this is not a conspiracy theory it's quite literally an actualized conspiracy that went to court)

[thebreakfastgod]

America's Roads: Dangerous by Design

[transit-fag]

A bill has been proposed by Georgia Congressman Hank Johnson to have the federal government increase subsidies of Public transit by 80 billion dollars in major US cities to help systems recover from the post Covid decline in service and ridership. Allowing for an increase in frequency, and additional funding for passes for low income residents. The bill is called the Stronger Communities Through Better Transit Act

[caesthoffe]

starting my solarpunk-y patch pants off with a banger. invest in public transit.

[itscolossal]

The Adorably Whimsical ‘Deer Train’ Transports Visitors to Japan’s Famed Nara Park

[reasonsforhope]

Paywall-Free Version

"Massachusetts’ so-called “millionaires tax” appears primed to actually deliver billions.

State officials said Monday that the voter-approved surtax on high earners has generated more than $1.8 billion in revenue this fiscal year... meaning state officials could have hundreds of millions of surplus dollars to spend on transportation and education initiatives.

The estimated haul is already $800 million more than what Governor Maura Healey and state lawmakers planned to spend from its revenue in fiscal year 2024, the first full year of its implementation. Most of the additional money raised beyond the $1 billion already budgeted would flow to a reserve account, from which state policymakers can pluck money for one-time investments into projects or programs.

The Department of Revenue won’t certify the official amount raised until later this year. But the estimates immediately buoyed supporters’ claims that the surtax would deliver much-needed revenue for the state despite fears it could drive out some of the state’s wealthiest residents.

“Opponents of the Fair Share Amendment claimed that multi-millionaires would flee Massachusetts rather than pay the new tax, and they are being proven wrong every day,” said Andrew Farnitano, a spokesperson for Raise Up Massachusetts, the union-backed group which pushed the 2022 ballot initiative.

"With this money from the ultra-rich, we can do even more to improve our public schools and colleges, invest in roads, bridges, and public transit, and start building an economy that works for everyone,” Farnitano said.

Voters approved the measure in 2022 to levy an additional 4 percent tax on annual earnings over $1 million. At the time, the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center, a left-leaning think tank, projected it could generate at least $2 billion a year.

State officials last year put their estimates slightly lower at up to $1.7 billion, and lawmakers embraced calls from economists to cap what it initially spends from the surtax, given it may be too volatile to rely upon in its first year.

So far, it’s vastly exceeded those expectations, generating nearly $1.4 billion alone last quarter [aka January to March, 2024 - just three months!], which coincided with a better-than-expected April for tax collections overall...

State Senator Michael Rodrigues, the state’s budget chief, said on the Senate floor Monday that excess revenue from the tax could ultimately come close to $1 billion for this fiscal year. Under language lawmakers passed last year, 85 percent of any “excess” revenue is transferred to an account reserved for one-time projects or spending, such as road maintenance, school building projects, or major public transportation work.

“We will not have any problems identifying those,” Rodrigues said. “As we all know, [transportation and education] are two areas of immense need.”"

-via Boston Globe, May 20, 2024

[amtrak-conductor]

[trolley-problem-memes]

based on real events (me right now, posting this high from the amtrak)