http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2008/10/14/elevated-blogging Comments On: Elevated Blogging by Dan Savage en-us Copyright 2009 The Stranger. All rights reserved. This RSS file is offered to individuals, The Stranger readers, and non-commercial organizations only. Any commercial websites wishing to use this RSS file, please contact The Stranger. webmaster@thestranger.com (The Stranger Webmaster) Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:00:01 -0800 Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:30:00 -0800 Foundation http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss
there's not much portland did right in terms of planning since the 1970s, so i just had to boast a little. we have a mildly bitter relationship with vancouver (washington) over their voting down our light-rail proposal over the river. perhaps i unfairly conveyed some of that to the seattle scene, thinking, what is it with washingtonians and their unreasonable fear of light-rail?

so let me sell it to your compatriots:

light rail really *is* magic. just do it, you'll be glad you did. it does solve problems. it doesn't solve the problem of crap-ass traffic on freeways, because no matter how many lanes you build, there will always be people to drive on them until they are uncomfortably packed and then immobilized. it's the feeling of having *no choice* but to waste so much time in these wretched conditions that makes drivers unreasonable and dangerous.

folks used to bitch *constantly* here about the sunset highway and the banfield before the light rail went in, and now? there's still some bitching, but it's not the furious, aggressive bitching of people who are trapped in a cage and can't get out. it's the mild bitching of people who choose to drive in light of all available options and want something to bitch about.

now people gripe about I-5 and 205, because it's the next place we need light rail. good. the people of milwaukie got their gripe in first and attended the planning meetings, so it looks like they're next on the list after the 205 line goes in. hopefully the I-5 corridor will be next.

the only people still bitching about the light rail we already invested in are angry redneck suburbanites who don't ride it. every time a new proposal arrives, a few lunatics in the far-outlying areas vent some self-serving bullshit about how their statistics about light rail *prove unconditionally* what a waste of money it is, and the people of portland (apparently) roll their eyes and vote for it anyway. which is why we have the world-class transportation system we have today.

there will always be people who want instant gratification - in so very many things - but there is no instant solution to traffic. the arrival of people will always outpace the capacity to transport them. rail has much better potential to transport people in volume than roads have. invest in rail. it is safer, cheaper, it requires less money to maintain, and it is a better use of resources than roads. and it's also a hell of a lot more rewarding to spend your commute reading the paper, sipping your coffee, cuddling your kid, making phone calls, and listening to music than snarling at the car in front of you. we all know drivers do all those things are more, much more, when they shouldn't be. on the train, you may annoy some people, but you're not annoying them *and* endangering their lives.

don't be scared, washington residents. embrace the future and vote that shit in. you'll be glad you did.
Posted by happy hedonist]]> Wed, 15 Oct 2008 09:06:35 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Dan Savage]]> Wed, 15 Oct 2008 08:11:23 -0700 The Stranger Posted by bill]]> Wed, 15 Oct 2008 06:59:52 -0700 The Stranger Posted by eclexia]]> Wed, 15 Oct 2008 00:10:34 -0700 The Stranger Posted by joykiller]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 22:21:48 -0700 The Stranger Posted by 4f...sake]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 20:32:45 -0700 The Stranger
and we live in a COW TOWN.

take that! bwa ha ha ha.
Posted by happy hedonist]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 20:09:09 -0700 The Stranger Posted by left coast]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 17:05:53 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Greg]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 16:34:28 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Sir Learnsalot]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 16:00:58 -0700 The Stranger Posted by PA]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:51:42 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Will in Seattle]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:51:20 -0700 The Stranger Posted by kanzleramt]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:51:10 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Greg]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:39:05 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Cascadia Sucks]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:29:58 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Chris]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:25:36 -0700 The Stranger Posted by chicago]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:24:08 -0700 The Stranger Posted by michael strangeways]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:20:50 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Ben Schiendelman]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:17:47 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Julie in Chicago]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:00:40 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Chicago]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:53:15 -0700 The Stranger Posted by chicago]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:51:59 -0700 The Stranger Posted by eric sic]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:49:52 -0700 The Stranger Posted by JW]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:42:53 -0700 The Stranger Posted by Cato the Younger Younger]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:33:20 -0700 The Stranger