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Commuter Rail Proposals For Wisconsin. Did someone say RDC's?
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[quote]QUOTE: <i>Originally posted by Paul Milenkovic</i> <br /><br />[quote]QUOTE: <br />I wonder if concentrating on faster trip time is really the most effective course of action. <br />. . . <br /> <br />Maybe there could be activities made available during the trip that would make the time spent on the train more attractive, be it treadmills, poker, or what <br />[/quote] <br /> <br />I guess the traditional commuter train version of that is a club car where people can drink on the way home from work. <br /> <br />A person has to wonder why people put up with such long automobile commutes, lumping through traffic, etc. Most people on this forum think that trains are the answer and feel sorry for the people stuck in traffic, but I think it is important to get inside the heads of people who rather like their cars. <br /> <br />The Wall Street Journal had an article about Chicago Southsiders who have left their cars for the commuter trains on account of the Dan Ryan Expressway construction mess but long for their cars and would pay whatever money in gas in parking. <br /> <br />The way I see it that for a lot of people, the ride, by themselves (the horror, the horror!) inside their cars is probably the only solitude and personal time they get all day, between the husband/wife, the kids, the boss, and the coworkers. Yes, they have to sit in traffic, and stop-and-go driving is stressful to many people (although just because you find it stressful doesn't mean there are a lot of people adapted to it). You have your own little personal chamber, customized to your taste in terms of clutter or lack thereof, you can listen to your favorite radio station or music tape or just turn the sound off. <br /> <br />Compare that with a packed gallery car -- with 150 people plus in there you are not talking about a Superliner deluxe bedroom as a travel experience. Trains are kind of neat, and I love trains, but I have commuted on gallery cars to work during my summer internships and to class when in college, and well, it gets old after while. You are packed in with everyone with their colds and sneezes and whatnot, and nowadays, you have people on cell phones. <br />[/quote] <br /> <br />Another big problem for a lot of people who commute the farthest is the lack of express trains or for that matter any service at all, during non-rush hours. Miss the last express train, and the all too common extra hour at work or a late meeting can mean not getting home until 9 p.m. Bailing out of late meetings early a few times too many, can become a career limiting move. The Chicago area does have a lot of rush hour traffic and congestion, but it does generally clear up after 6 p.m. so the drive home from a late meeting is relatively quick and pain free. Some commuter lines and suburban feeder bus schedules are better at dealing with this than others, but running largely empty express service is a money loosing proposition and one of the first targets for cuts when budgets are tight.
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