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Why New York City Stopped Building Subways (citylab.com)
New York City, which once saw an unprecedented infrastructure boom -- putting together iconic bridges, opulent railway terminals to build the then world's largest underground and rapid transit network in just 20 years -- has not built a single new subway line in more than seven decades. As New York's rapid transit system froze, cities across the globe expanded their networks. A closer inspection reveals that things have actually moved backward -- New York's rapid transit network is actually considerably smaller than it was during the Second World War, and due to this, today's six million daily riders are facing constant delays, infrastructure failures, and alarmingly crowded cars and platforms. This raises two questions: Why did New York abruptly stop building subways after the 1940s? And how did a construction standstill that started nearly 80 years ago lead to the present moment of transit crisis? The Atlantic's CityLab explores: Three broad lines of history provide an explanation. The first is the postwar lure of the suburbs and the automobile -- the embodiment of modernity in its day. The second is the interminable battles of control between the city and the private transit companies, and between the city and the state government. The third is the treadmill created by rising costs and the buildup of deferred maintenance -- an ever-expanding maintenance backlog that eventually consumed any funds made available for expansion.
To see exactly how and why New York's subway went off the rails requires going all the way back to the beginning. What follows is a 113-year timeline of the subway's history, organized by these three narratives (with the caveat that no history is fully complete).
To see exactly how and why New York's subway went off the rails requires going all the way back to the beginning. What follows is a 113-year timeline of the subway's history, organized by these three narratives (with the caveat that no history is fully complete).
Are busy selling flamethrowers than doing any actual work.
There's no way the rampant corruption and cronyism around construction in New York City does not have a massive role to play in all this.
It's a real shame, as other cities now have much nicer metro options and I don't nee NYC getting better at all, anytime soon.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Maybe because they were done. NY and Chicago are the only US cities that have the only 24 hour public transportation systems that cover the entire city as far as I know. Trying to use public transit anywhere else shows you how superior their coverage and system is, even if it is old.
NYC is currently in the middle of its largest subway construction project in history, but don't let facts get in the way of a good narrative!
The statement...
... today's six million daily riders are facing constant delays, infrastructure failures, and alarmingly crowded cars and platforms.
should read...
New Yorkers should visit places like Dubai, Shanghai, St Petersburg in Russia or even Singapore City, to see what a subway should look like and function.
Sadly, Americans still think they have the best and greatest in the world.
Who could have guessed that cramming all those people together in one place would create transportation problems that only a truly enormous amount of (public) money can fix?
It's not like New York City, financial capital of the world, can't afford it. The problems of New York City have historically arisen from the utter chaos that rules its administration.
New York is not a crowded city.
In different words, subways are too expensive to build and maintain and voters are not willing to approve either the fare increases or the tax increases to pay for them. It's unclear what the authors want to "learn" from that. In fact, it's more likely that more subway lines will get closed over time, instead of new ones getting opened.
There's already way too many Subways, just like there's too many Starbucks, too many McDonald's, etc.
#DeleteFacebook
Then how do you explain the recent creation of the 2nd Avenue subway, and the extension of the 7 train from Time Square to 34th Street Hudson Yards???
They may even expand the 2nd Avenue Q train from 96 street further uptown.
How many more lines do we need? Replacement of the switches, more trains, and upkeep of the trains are far more important.
Interestingly, those four places have very strict laws that are ruthlessly enforced which prevents the specter of homeless dudes sleeping and crapping on the trains, muggers, fights, and in general, the usual ShitHole city stuff that happens in New York.
Huh? This is an immutable law, or just what you write when you aren't sure what you wrote won't offend someone?
Gawd, now my American History AND World History teachers are spinning in their graves.
deleting the extra space after periods so i can stay relevant, yeah.
They are already broke ;)
;)
Just my 2 cents
The shmucks decided to make it pretty.
So they built HUGE stations, with ceilings that are 30ft above the tracks. I could see making them wider, but the idiots made them tall. Minimal benefit for massive expenses.
And they build these huge monstrosities deep underground.
The subway stations accounted for most of the cost over runs.
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"Alarmingly crowded cars and platforms?" Are you sure about that?
The Daddy casts sleep on the Baby. The Baby resists!
You haven't seen the bi-directional cattle car that is the Austin metro rail.
Its nothing more than a single ~15 mile stretch of rail that goes from downtown Austin to a couple towns north. 2 cars. 6 stops. 1 hour waits. Imagine a single line between Brooklyn and Manhattan to service all of New York, and you get the idea.
Sadly, Americans still think they have the best and greatest in the world.
sadly, you are still arguing with imaginary straw men, perhaps you are overdue for your meds?
The subways were originally built by private companies but the fare was set by the city. This caused financial problems as costs rose.
After a while these companies went bankrupt and now they along with the commuter railroads who were also originally private companies were all bought out by the state and turned into the MTA. A state sponsored private corporation that the state, the city and other counties control.
In the 80's the private companies who ran the bus system were also integrated into the MTA
There was an attempt to expand the system, but it was never explained why the workers packed their equipment, and just rejoined the crowded surface.
A few nights later, one late night talk show host mentioned something along the lines: There is that awful smell of piss in the subway, and it is never going away
There may be a connection between the two.
WARNING: Smartphones have side effects--most of them undocumented.
Sadly, Americans still think they have the best and greatest in the world.
You mean New Yorkers?
Few other Americans care about subways.
Why not a series of monorails?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
Once NY implemented taxi medallions to restrict the trade organized crime took over the business. Subways compete with taxis so I suspect heavy "lobbying" was done to curtail new projects. And until Uber toppled the medallion cart a single medallion was worth well over a million dollars. They're still selling for about two hundred thousand but a far cry from their former glory.
"A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it." - K
SEPTA, Philadelphia's transit authority hasn't added a new subway line since 1928, despite the obvious need. Moreover, whole sections of the city have developed, declined, and been redeveloped with still no expansion, although the system was build with expansion in mind. There is even a 15mile boulevard built with a future subway in mind, that has gone ignored by the transit agency for about 70 years. The urban legend is that back in the 50's when there was wherewithal to build it and actual cash, the basically white citizenry of the "Northeast" were afraid a new subway would bring undesirables more quickly and easily into the neighborhood and the project was "strangled in the crib." In fact, a petition was started to cede from the city if the subway was built -- and was taken seriously by the city administration. Since only two modest expansions of the last line -- to the sports stadiums, a REAL concern for Philadelphians, were completed. In fact, the aforementioned highway is one of the most dangerous routes in the area, for both motorists and pedestrians. Unfortunately, as with New York, Philadelphia has not new subways in its future, despite a clear need.
I was impressed by Mexico City's subway 15 years ago. It just works, is CHEAP, and oddly clean. It got me everywhere I needed to go quickly and with little Spanish. If you want to read up on it, check out how they named their stations...
It put North Haverbrook on the map!
Sadly, Americans still think they have the best and greatest in the world.
Russia is living the dream for a century now. Nice subway for a city built on the slave labor of your "brothers".
You've never driven in NYC, have you?
Except that 8.5 million people DO live in NYC and probably 50% of the adults don't own a car. Those that want to drive probably won't live in NYC. Also, rubber tired subway tech is both quiet and clean if well-maintained. NYC just has an old system with steel wheels on steel rails and tight curves.
Subways and cities are great, it's you and your ilk that we could do without. Private cars are the problem. If you can't find things of value NYC has over wherever you are, then you just don't have any interests or good taste. You are a pod person.
Fat hobos got too lazy to go down stairs to pee, so more subways not needed.
(-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
The fuckers didn't even put it through to the airport, which would probably quadruple ridership.
When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
New York City is pretty much like a zoo.
There is a reason that Manhattan was the fictional site for a prison in Escape from New York.
And while New York is a Zoo, LA is Lion Country Safari.
Just out of curiosity, how many of those mass-transit systems run 24/7365?
I remember visiting Paris which had a lovely Mass transit system ... and then running through the subway grabbing the last train before being stranded in the city Center with no way (except an expensive cab ride) back to the suburb house of our friends where we staying.
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Is that the opinion of a Morlock?
I looked at a map, I'm not sure the relevance of how they named them, did I miss something?
Wow, sent an e-mail as suggested when clicking on "use classic" banner, and got a fast response that addressed my msg
Trump's sons would LOVE to be fucked by Tyrone, they need all the black supporters they can get now that Omarosa is gona. 1 is plenty!
Sydney, a fairly low density sprawl of some 5m people all trying to get to a single hub (on the east side) made a valiant start on a subway system in the late 1800's and then....stopped pretty much. Some original platforms and entire stations have never been used and some terminals were just meant to be a temporary 'breather'. I envy cities like Tokyo, London and indeed NYC for what seems to me the possibility to pick a destination in the city and 'just got there' pretty quickly in a way that's impossible in Sydney. Here, it's the total self-interest that has permeated both sides of politics. What's the point in a politician sticking their neck out for a 10+ year build when someone else might get the thanks down the line? That said, there is actually a decent new line being constructed now, but it's a drop in the ocean and no more seem to be in the planning, instead stupid light rails that are slower than walking in some cases, and certainly slower than a taxi or driving. Perhaps NYC has gone the same way, but at least you got a good start.
Only big ligs use sigs.
,,,the subway system? I'm assuming that subway rides are subsidized, that the fare does not cover the operation of the subway system. Riders pay $5 for a fare, but the actual cost to provide that fare is more, maybe 1.5-3x more.
What would a fare on the NYC subway cost if it payed to operate the subway?
I'm not opposed to mass transit subsidies, either. Lowering the price to get people into mass transit is a worthwhile goal, but if you let the subsidy get out of control it distorts the economics and you wind up with funding shortfalls because you're dependent on outside support.
Is it possible NYC's subway is approaching the point of being not economically viable? If it takes $20 billion to fix it right, is there a better transportation system that could be bought for that kind of money? $20 billion would put 5000 new electric cabs on the street and pay each driver $50k for the next 26 years. I'm not saying its better, but once the investment sizes are taken into considering it makes sense to think outside the box.
Would people be willing to pay $10 or $20 per fare for a system that self-funded, including upgrades and expansions? I bet a lot would switch to cabs or Uber for that money.
How can anybody building anything in New York with all the regulations and "families" making sure they get a piece of your pie?
You'd have to pay me to get me to ride a subway instead of just driving
And in cities like New York, London, Seoul, Paris, Mexico City, Barcelona, Berlin and others I've visited you'd have to pay me to drive.
I have better things to do in my life than sit in a car in gridlock traffic for two hours when I can get there in 20 minutes on the subway. Life's too short.
New Yorkers should visit places like Dubai, Shanghai, St Petersburg in Russia or even Singapore City, to see what a subway should look like and function. Sadly, Americans still think they have the best and greatest in the world.
Leave those richer countries. Kolkata Metro (new name for Calcutta) India is cleaner than NYC subway. I can't believe it either.
But the mosquitoes in the subway have speciated and they are distinct species from the mosquitoes above ground in New York. Evolution in action. Deny that creationists.
sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
Does anyone really build subways anymore? I mean the sandwich shop sure. But the kind that stick some sort of train underground? I've ridden the Tube in the London area, the MRT in Singapore, and the Metro (yeah, ok, partially above ground) in the Paris area and I had come to the conclusion that all of them were old and in danger of becoming decrepit. I think it just made a difference WHEN they started their project - the newer ones were still in better upkeep than the older ones (so the MRT > the Tube in terms of upkeep). But eventually the weight of maintenance on those things just starts to overtake any new investment because subways are expensive as hell - even in the high people per mile (human warrens) areas where they were built.
Thanks for reminding me why I'm voting for Trump next time.
$20 billion would put 5000 new electric cabs on the street and pay each driver $50k for the next 26 years.
So that's an extra 5000 extra cars on the city roads, inefficiently moving people one at a time through slightly worse traffic than current. I haven't even attempted to do the numbers but I've a feeling this would be a non starter as a replacement for mass transit. I would however say that the future of transport will be a hybrid approach. Trains can still play an important role complimented by medium and mini autonomous vehicles + feet for the last mile.
Only big ligs use sigs.
At this point automated flying passenger drones are going to be the only reasonable infrastructure fix. And with a timeline of about 50-100 years, a much better prospect than getting new subway lines, lol.
My mother was 75 before she took any subway. She had lived in 20 states and 30 different cities. It was a big event for her. After that 1 time, she said she never needed to do it again.
Subways matter to about 15 cities in the USA. No other places care.
The first time I took a subway was in Tokyo at age 35.
I've never taken a train between 2 cities in the USA either.
Same. Smug, condescending, elitist assholes like this guy remind me why Trump must win 2020.
It put North Haverbrook on the map!
If NYC doesn't want it, ok, it's more of a Boston idea.
I was impressed by NYC subway when I visited. Not as retro-cool as the London tube, but it works pretty well at a reasonable price and has enough character to make it fun.
(caveat: I'm into late-Victorian to early-twentieth century stuff. Think lots of steel beams with rivets, eclectic architectural styles, doctor-Frankenstein electrical systems and quirky stuff like the brilliantly/absurdly long spiral staircases on some tube stations. Modern subways may be efficient, but they are also incredibly sterile and mind-numbingly *boring*).
Around 1970 munich created pretty much of its underground network, several hundred km of underground and upper ground networks. Pretty much all work was done within five years for a couple of ten millions.
As early as 1975 there was demand for a second backbone underground line.
And finally after nearly 40 years last month real work began. Thousands of lawsuits later, thousands of archealogical expertises, analysis of rare critters living in the soil, after skyrocking costs of billions and billions... it started....
WTF. An eleven kilometer tunnel took 40 years to realize, costing 300times more than the whole earlier network...
China build a maglev train line of 970km in less than one year after the first discussions for half the price....
"Life is short and in most cases it ends with death." Sir Sinclair
comparing 5000 cars with a subway is wrong because the cars and trains aren't the expensive part, the streets and tunnels and railways are.
comparing 500 miles of street with 500 miles of subway is right.
"Life is short and in most cases it ends with death." Sir Sinclair
Uh, I've never met an American that thought we had the best mass-transit system in the world. In fact, every time I've ever had a discussion it's quite the opposite, how much our transit system sucks.
"Action without philosophy is a lethal weapon; philosophy without action is worthless."
The central concept of mass-transit is fundamentally flawed and this should be factored into decisions for its expansion.
Mass-transit suffers from a major utilization problem in that to be attractive to riders, it must be reasonably fast, but also be easily accessible.
A mass-transit system with a small number of stops can run faster, but many people will refuse to use it due to the lack of accessibility.
The problem is that the more stops that are added to increase the accessibility, the slower overall the speed becomes until it isn't attractive anymore for that reason.
The main problem with mass-transit is inherent to the concept and cannot be solved.
Contrast that with individual transportation: imagine a vehicle similar to an enclosed, 3-wheel motorcycle, seating 1 or 2 people.
It could cost much less than a car, it could take up less space to operate and park, the lower weight would cause less road damage, and the fuel efficiency could be greatly improved beyond what most motorcycles provide now.
The remaining problems with individual transportation are technological, and improvements can be found.
When most people advocate for more mass-transit, the gist of their argument is not about really solving anything. It's mostly about "we've wasted money for this long, we can't stop now!"... Perhaps it is time to take a longer view?
More than they currently do. What would be the cost of driving if it was self funded?
I assume the same reason as everywhere else; because Jared got caught diddling kids and having an HD full of kiddie porn.
It's not likely he's going to even be running, it's hard to conduct an effective campaign from a prison cell.
And that's exactly where he's going as soon as he's impeached next year.
When I was in Dubai, the Metro was out of service half the times I wanted to use it. Escalators and moving walkways would be shut down during off-peak hours and on seemingly random days. Not that impressive.
Earlier this year I read a feature in the NY Times about the current subway construction project and why it is costing such an obscene amount. The cost-per-mile is obscene by historical NYC standards, let alone other US cities and internationally.
The answer is rampant corruption. Auditors found hundreds of "phantom" workers on six-figure salaries and project managers and engineers from other countries who reviewed the project viewed the work practices as completely antiquated, with more than twice the number of workers required on site than standard in other parts of the developed world.
The obscene costs are simply down to labor - overstaffed, underworked and overpaid. Militant trade unions refuse to allow modernised practices because that would curb their membership and power.
And who do unions support politically? Which political party runs the state and the city?
It's like BART in the Bay Area... everything takes forever to happen and costs an obscene amount because of similar issues with labor and lack of work ethic.
Remember the Morlocks eat the Eloi.
New Zealanders are well balanced with a chip on each shoulder. One represents Australia, the other the rest of the world
there's shit everyone on 1/2/3 lines in NYC. No one is cleaning anything and maintenance crew look like they are on drugs.
Uh, I've never met an American that thought we had the best mass-transit system in the world. In fact, every time I've ever had a discussion it's quite the opposite, how much our transit system sucks.
There is the concept of American Exceptionalism which basically states that we define the best of governments which seems to be useful when someone points out that something might be better somewhere else. They basically use the concept, or rather abuse it as an excuse to ignore facts that do not support the current narrative.
I don't know that it applies specifically to subways, but then you seldom hear politicians say they will invest in failing infrastructure.
"Our bridges and roads are in bad shape. Elect me and I'll hike taxes on the rich, increase the gas tax, and fix these problems."
Yah, can't see that flying..
The statement...
... today's six million daily riders are facing constant delays, infrastructure failures, and alarmingly crowded cars and platforms.
should read...
New Yorkers should visit places like Dubai, Shanghai, St Petersburg in Russia or even Singapore City, to see what a subway should look like and function.
Sadly, Americans still think they have the best and greatest in the world.
Those countries have better mass transit than NY because their governments heavily invested in public transportation. Government investments in mass transportation and other urban development projects have been the bane of republicans since the 1970's. NY state legislator was dominated by upstate republicans for a long time so there were no new investments into NYC transit infrastructure. As a matter of fact the NYC MTA was operating with budget deficits because of NY State under funding the agency. However, NYC transit system is not bad when you include city bus services. When you include the city bus system most New Yorkers live at most a couple of blocks from the transit system. Not bad for a city of 9 million and covering 304 square miles.
Why not a series of monorails?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
No one wants an above ground rail system. The feeling is that an above ground rail system brings blight. Should the government attempt such a solution there will be a hard push back from the community affected.
I major factor that stymies expansion is the high cost of construction in NYC due to the labor unions. This has been mentioned elsewhere, it takes twice as much money than it does to build similar tunnels of similar complexity and difficulty in cities such as Paris.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/28/nyregion/new-york-subway-construction-costs.html
World class? Have great train service from the airport to downtown. Took forever for SFO to get BART, was abysmal, now it is great. New York, finally can get into town from Newark or JFK, La Guardia, maybe sometime. Exceedingly stupid for LA Metro to stop a mile away from LAX, now they are finally building a fix. Ever fly into Vegas and wait in that line for a taxi? What monorail?
"...and yet, I blame society" Duke - Repo Man
They are mostly 22/7 , looking at the Rhein Main Verkehr (e.g. rmv.de) there is a pause between 01:40 and 3:40 where there is no SBahn. UBahn is a different beast. I am wagering that some line for the 24/7 of NYC are empty at some time of the night.
C. Sagan : A demon haunted world:
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visit randi.org
,,,the subway system? I'm assuming that subway rides are subsidized, that the fare does not cover the operation of the subway system. Riders pay $5 for a fare, but the actual cost to provide that fare is more, maybe 1.5-3x more.
What would a fare on the NYC subway cost if it payed to operate the subway?
I'm not opposed to mass transit subsidies, either. Lowering the price to get people into mass transit is a worthwhile goal, but if you let the subsidy get out of control it distorts the economics and you wind up with funding shortfalls because you're dependent on outside support.
Is it possible NYC's subway is approaching the point of being not economically viable? If it takes $20 billion to fix it right, is there a better transportation system that could be bought for that kind of money? $20 billion would put 5000 new electric cabs on the street and pay each driver $50k for the next 26 years. I'm not saying its better, but once the investment sizes are taken into considering it makes sense to think outside the box.
Would people be willing to pay $10 or $20 per fare for a system that self-funded, including upgrades and expansions? I bet a lot would switch to cabs or Uber for that money.
In America our physical infrastructure (roads, bridges, power lines, utility lines, etc) are crumbling. NYC subway is no exception to America's crumbling infrastructure problem. NYC subway issue is part of a national problem with our infrastructure that everyone recognizes and agree that something must be done. Good luck fixing America crumbling infrastructure considering the national budget will expand by over 1.5 trillion dollars in a few years because of the recent tax cuts. There is little political will to fix America crumbling infrastructure.
I have. I somehow accidentally ended up in the wrong lane and failed to stay on... 95, IIRC. It reminded me of driving in San Francisco, but with more pedestrians, slower traffic lights, and fewer "oh, sorry, you had to be in the left lane five blocks and three turns ago if you wanted to turn right on that street" events. And an MTA bus cut me off and nearly caused a wreck, so I guess it wasn't all that different from San Francisco in the grand scheme of driving atrocities. The random piece of furniture in the middle of the 95 was a welcome change, though.
Want to know what city I absolutely refuse to drive in (besides San Francisco on any weekday)? Boston, whose motto appears to be, "You can't get there from here." At least New York doesn't shut down critical roads for all of the fourth of July weekend, AFAIK (except roads near Times Square, perhaps).
Anyway, folks generally fall into one of two camps: people who think that dense, city living is a good thing, and consequently think that mass transit is great (or at least a necessary evil), and people who think that living in a cramped, overpriced, one-room apartment that costs more each month than most people's cars cost in a year is a bad idea, and consequently think that mass transit sucks and individual cars are far better. You can probably guess which camp I'm in.
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I think the main problem is the rising costs regarding underground construction, due higher safety standard and expected comfort for the passengers.
If you look at the construction of tunnels the death rate between workers was really high, and of course problems with absestos and dirt produced during the boring process wasn't cosidered. Add to this the fact that nowadays a station not equipped for people on wheelchair or without heating isn't a viable oprion, and of course the costs of building are high.
Simple, just rip up all the tracks and let people drive in the tunnels. I also hear there is this new technology called bridges, you could put them above the existing roads.
Sadly, Americans still think they have the best and greatest in the world.
Yeah, you know who never makes fun of America? Americans.
Only crack the nuts that crack. You don't put the ones that don't crack in the sack.
If it takes $20 billion to fix it right, is there a better transportation system that could be bought for that kind of money? $20 billion would put 5000 new electric cabs on the street and pay each driver $50k for the next 26 years. I'm not saying its better,
I mean, good, because it's very plainly very much worse. Subway trains carry hundreds of passengers each. Tens of thousands per hour at the very least. Adding 5000 cabs, even if they all took several people and ran constantly, is a drop in the ocean. Even if they could travel as fast as trains, which on the congested roads they just can't. Vehicles are nowhere near as efficient as trains.
People take up finite physical space. Unless you want to redefine who travels where, there are a limited number of ways to do that. Thinking outside the box is not magic.
He was a liberal Jew from New York who had a dramatic influence on the development of New York. Like all liberals he was always building for the people and fighting the interests of the moneyed elite (according to him). He also like all liberals really really hated the common unwashed. So what he would build he highways specifically to not accommodate public transportation. This ensured only rich white liberal minded people that could afford cars could get around on his parkways and visit his parks.
Point is when someone is saying they are doing it 'for the people' they are really doing it for people like themselves. Give me an honest despot any day over a feel good think of the children SJW types.
The article didn't go into the reasons why construction costs (even after adjusting for inflation) have gone up so much. A lot of it is that the city is more developed now, so new lines can't be built using the same techniques as the earlier ones. The old subway lines were mostly cut and cover; that is, you dig out the surface, put a subway a few feet under the street, and rebuild the top when you are done. That's not feasible now, so all the new lines involve deep tunneling, a much more expensive process. Another difference is that there is another 100 years worth of infrastructure underground; all those utility lines and pipes have to be rerouted when a new subway tunnel is built. Worker wages (adjusted for inflation) are higher now, as are worker safety standards.
IIRC: More than 50% of Manhattanites carless. But fewer in the outer boroughs and especially Staten Island, much of which is very suburban in character.
Nonaggression works!
Most folks in most urban parts of the U.S. do recognize that our infrastructure is sorely lacking. It's hard not to notice when city streets (e.g., in Cleveland, Ohio) have potholes that have been known to swallow entire cars. Or when old bridges decide to collapse and fall into rivers (e.g., Minneapolis, MN, a few years back). Or 3 significant NJ Transit crashes in the space of a single year. We are very, very good at some things, but infrastructure just isn't one of them.
Nonaggression works!
We heavily invested in roads and bridges instead. It made sense in most places, even most cities except the very largest, because in the U.S. even most cities are not densely populated enough to support cost-effective transit. But now those, too, are falling apart. We spend tons on infrastructure but get very, very little in return for it apart from what was already built generations ago. Mainly just upkeep, and just bare minimum upkeep at that.
Nonaggression works!
And how late were you running to catch the last train? Moscow and Saint Petersburg subways don't run 24/7 b/c there's no need to run 24/7. Last train is around 1:30am, they start up at 5am again. The few hours they are shutdown aren't for maintenance, it's b/c everyone is asleep and you're more likely to get stopped by cops asking for your papers. Even buses don't run during those hours nor does lightrail. Most people who are out partying that late either can afford the expensive cab ride back or have their own rides.
Public transportation isn't popular in America because public transportation is a bad solution. Private cars are better - period.
Try the Hong Kong Mass Transit Railway. Or the equivalent in Shenzhen, Singapore or Taipei. All excellent. Never felt the need to own a car during my 6 year stay in HK.
A well designed and implemented subway system that gets regular maintenance and updates works extremely well.
But a badly maintained system that isn't updated makes people believe that subways don't work.