Comments on Cap'n Transit Rides Again: Cities are Born in Moments of Transition

Small cities usually exist because some big city n...

2008-08-28T02:54:00.000-04:00

Small cities usually exist because some big city needs them. For example, Croton-Harmon was the northern limit of electrification on the New York Central's Hudson Line, so it spawned a railyard with extensive repair shops, creating a strong-looking local economy. When the NYC folded, the city went to shit, and now its development is strictly as a New York City suburb.

It's true that

Alon, it's quite possible that large urban areas l...

2008-08-27T22:36:00.000-04:00

Alon, it's quite possible that large urban areas like the ones you discuss behave differently. They've already got economies that thrive on "knowledge work," which doesn't require heavy shipping. They also all still maintain significant working rail infrastructure, and the "edge cities" you mention are all at the intersections of major railroads and major highways.

I know I used New

Going back to the post's subject of highway bypass...

2008-08-26T00:20:00.000-04:00

Going back to the post's subject of highway bypasses, I decided to take a look at some cities in the US and compare highway bypasses to edge city development.

First, in the New York area, let's look at where the edge cities are. The three biggest are White Plains, Stamford, and Edison/Woodbridge. Of these, Edison predates the highway system and even much of the rail system; Thomas Edison

I guess it's a stretch to call it urban planning, ...

2008-08-25T15:40:00.000-04:00

I guess it's a stretch to call it urban planning, since it only involved building a mall and a parking garage downtown. To the Scranton locals it was a success because it reduced the number of empty storefronts. It was the best that could be done under the circumstances, until there is significant new residential/commercial construction downtown or the passenger railroad is revived.

I'm not sure I'd present Scranton as an example of...

2008-08-25T13:38:00.000-04:00

I'm not sure I'd present Scranton as an example of urban planning success.

I immediately thought of the Hitchhiker's Guide to...

2008-08-25T11:24:00.000-04:00

I immediately thought of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, where, of course, the Earth was destroyed to make way for an Intergalactic Bypass.

What happened when the highways and bypasses were built is entirely natural and supports your theory of travelers having to slow down in certain places. The resulting sprawl is not some abnormality; it is the effect of wide roads and fast cars.

It's accepted, but transportation advocates often ...

2008-08-25T02:16:00.000-04:00

It's accepted, but transportation advocates often carry it too far. Transportation offers an opportunity for a city, but it doesn't create it by itself. It definitely doesn't sustain it. The problem with transportation is that it's like oil: it's a resource that can't go anywhere. It doesn't promote any economic activity, except those that are associated with it as a resource. When that

Thanks for your response, Alon. New York has a be...

2008-08-24T01:13:00.000-04:00

Thanks for your response, Alon. New York has a better harbor than Old Saybrook, Broad Channel and Atlantic City. The Port of South Louisiana is commuting distance from both New Orleans and Baton Rouge, just like Elizabeth and Red Hook are from Manhattan.

L.A. and Houston may be counterexamples, and there's no question that cities do create demand for transportation. But that's not

It's not the transportation that creates the citie...

2008-08-23T20:22:00.000-04:00

It's not the transportation that creates the cities, but the cities that create the transportation.

New York is an ocean port, but so are Old Saybrook, Broad Channel, and Atlantic City. Right now the biggest port in the US is the Port of South Louisiana, which doesn't even have a city; it lies between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, which have their own ports. Conversely, Los Angeles and