I recently had the pleasure of traveling to Washington, D.C., New York and Chicago. As someone who spends most of his time in Detroit, it's only natural I make some comparisons between these big cities and our state's own urban cornerstone. While there are many ways of comparing and contrasting these cities, as a traveler without a car, one thing stood out above all other points of comparison: transportation.
After flying in to Washington, I had several options of how to get to my friend's house in Virginia, including trains, subways, buses and taxis. In fact, a casual glance at a regional transportation map shows the entire area surrounding the nation's capital is interconnected through a variety of transportation systems. These systems seem to work in harmony with one another, allowing people to get almost anywhere without a car.
I was in the capital to volunteer at an event that required me to be in various places in the city throughout the day, often with little time for travel between appointments. Because of the number of options for getting from place to place, I was not late for a single event. I couldn't help but think of how difficult it would be if I had to traverse the same distances in metro Detroit without a car.
Two weeks later, I flew to LaGuardia Airport in New York with the intention of visiting some friends who live in Upper Manhattan and meeting a director at a nonprofit organization headquartered on Wall Street, in Lower Manhattan. From the airport, I was able to skip the expensive taxi and take a bus and subway to where my friends live for about $4.
That evening we took subways and buses to a variety of attractions across the island for little money. If we wanted, we could have taken these same buses and trains to see sights in New Jersey and other surrounding states. The next morning, I was able to travel 140 blocks south on a subway in about 25 minutes for only $2, arriving at my appointment on time.
I visited Chicago last week. This time, however, I did not fly, nor did I drive my own car. Instead, I took the Megabus, a low-cost, nonstop service connecting Detroit and Chicago.
The Megabus drops you off at Chicago Union Station, the hub of transportation in the Chicago area. From there, you can take a train out to the furthest suburbs or any major area in the city and buses to all types of other locations in the region.
What does a visitor to Detroit do if they wish to see something in Ann Arbor or Lansing? Without a car, one only has limited options on expensive, infrequent and inconvenient train and bus routes to travel between these cities.
The transportation situations within these cities aren't much better, with bus services being one of few options available. Unfortunately, the Detroit People Mover does not count as a viable option - unless you only wish to see the city's central business district.
I am lucky I am able to afford a car that allows me to work in Detroit, attend MSU and visit friends who live all across the state. But with rising gas prices and an increased sense of urgency about global warming and our environmental responsibilities, how viable is this system?
I would love if I could take a bus from my job to a train station and visit friends in Lansing or Ann Arbor for the evening at an affordable price. But for these visions to be realized, more people who have cars must demand these options exist. We are lucky we have the option to drive our own cars. Many people don't have this choice and must rely on inadequate transportation systems.
How important is mass transit for people without cars? It is absolutely necessary if one wishes to have access to education and employment opportunities, healthy food, social services, quality childcare and countless amenities. Unfortunately, there has not been a lot of support for such transit options in Michigan.
Some blame the culture of the area and its history with the auto industry, but I think it goes deeper than this. If we, as citizens, are as committed to the environment as we say, and if we really do wish for all people to have access to the amenities necessary, we absolutely must make mass transit a priority as we move forward.
In difficult economic times, it is easy to suggest funding for these projects be cut, but it is at these critical junctures where we have the greatest opportunity to make a lasting, positive change in our communities. Quality, affordable mass transit benefits everyone, from the individual owner of five cars in Okemos to the family who has never owned one in southwest Detroit.
Ryan Dinkgrave is an MSU public relations graduate student and a State News columnist. Reach him at dinkgra2@msu.edu.
