Are Americans willing to give up their cars for commuting etc. IF

[caledesi]

we had a super-modern TGV (fast trains) like in France that GO everywhere.

Seriously, this has been on my mind for awhile. If any of you have been to Europe, you know what I am talking about. This trains are fabulous. They go everywhere and anwhere any time of the day. We could all hop a train to work.

Now, if we had this HUGE system all across the US, it would create jobs, less reliance on ME oil, less pollution, I could go on.

What do you guys think? I was actually going to propose this to our Dem candidates, but feel a little embarassed that it might not be a good idea.

[lcordero]

1. Probably when

1. the powergrid no longer has a chance of going out.
2. when it is actually affordable. It costs $4 here in NYC to take a roundtrip.

[Boudicea]

3. That still sounds less expensive

than gas for my hour-long drive (each way) and auto upkeep. I'd forego my car in a minute if we had such a transportation system.

[sexybomber]

2. I don't commute since I'm a full time college student...

But if they start using a train that can bring me from college to home in an hour and to Boston in two, I'm all for it!

[BiggJawn]

4. No.

But then, I don't live in a metro area, so I'd just skew the numbers anyway.

Given the ridership from my town to the area where everybody works,(less than 1000) it would probably cost over $100 for the daily fare.

[Kamika]

5. I dont think that will work

Much like guns etc a car is pretty much included in the
"american way of life(tm)" I doubt many would give his/her car up for going in crowded trains everyday

[Cheswick2.0]

16. they would if they were forced to

either by making driving cost prohibitive for people in suburbs and cities or by taxing gas higher in those areas.

[GOPisEvil]

6. I think that a lot of cities in the south and west are not train-friendly.

Meaning: while the train might be useful for trips between cities, once the rider got to the destination, it is likely that they would need a car to get around to multiple locations.

Cities that have a high population density would be more attractive because the rider could walk to many different locations.

Plus, at least here in Texas, people are just ingrained to use their cars to get around. It's a powerful mindset to change.

[Squeech]

7. What will we all do when the oil runs out?

http://www.dieoff.com/ gives us even odds of running out of fuel in ten years.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

8. I live in Freeperville Oklahoma...

AKA drive everywhere USA. We're seriously considering moving to NYC or somewhere, so we literally don't need to own a car. I loved NYC when I visited. A public transportation system not only for the poor people who can't own a car. It was nice not having to worry about parking. Anyway...I'd do it in a second!
Duckie

[mike_c]

9. wait until gasoline is $5.00/gal in the U.S.

Then people will begin to take public transportation more seriously....

[Dogmudgeon]

12. $5 per gallon gas?

I'm thinking, probably around 2007 or 2008.

--bkl
Fahrvergnuegen meine heinie!
(edited to correct the spelling of Fahrvergnuegen)

[skippysmom]

10. I would happily give up my car if I could...

I really like trains. The summer I interned in DC I took the Metro from Arlington to DC everyday and it worked out really well. I could sit and read my paper or just relax instead of fighting traffic.

Currently there's no option for me to take public transport from where I live to where I work. But I would if I could. I hate driving 50 miles each way everyday.

I'm not sure if high speed rail would be feasible in the highly populous Northeast Corridor, though.

[Solly Mack]

11. I would..gladly

[curse10]

13. I already take the train everywhere

I only drive when we go really long distances that have no train access. Or, on occasion, when we have a huge thing to buy, but that hasn't happened yet.

[zizzer]

14. I already did

Don't get me wrong, it took some adjusting and I miss my car sometimes and will probably get another one sometime but I like it.

I live one block from a bus stop that get's me to subway station and I take the train into town to work. I take the bus to get to most desinations and sometimes take a cab home, like from the grocery store.

From what I can tell I save like $200 or more compaired to what my friends pay for transportation.

Zizzer

[catpower2000]

15. I would LOVE to...

one of the huge reasons I am really looking forward to moving back to Philly is parking my car for weeks on end and taking public transit everywhere. Why the hell would anyone want to drive when they could ride??

Cat

[StopTheMorans]

17. just did a few weeks ago:)

used to drive to work, but now I take the commuter rail. It's great, way faster than the T, and I can always find a seat. Cut my commute in half, and the time that I am on the train, I can spend reading. I take public transporation whenever I can, it would be great if more people would utilize public transporation (Europeans are way better at this:)

[Nikia]

18. If lived in a metro area

The thought of driving in a metro area scares me. My husband drives us most of the time. We live in our little town and I drive comfortably there. A few times I had to drive into the nearby small metropolitain area and was sweating the whole time and had a death grip on the wheel. My sister lives in Chicago and used to take the L all the time (Now she has an over protective boy friend with a car). After she got laid off from her airline, she worked temporarily at a store downtown in customer service. Many people would complain about the traffic and parking. My sister said that they should take her mode of transportation.

[jmm]

19. I'd love it if it was affordable.

Of course I'd settle for the MBTA extending its hours. There's no reason buses and trains should stop running hours before bars close.