Last week as part of our commuting series, Drive and Ambition, commentator Herbert Pence argued that the state should subsidize mass transit as a way to reduce traffic delays for people who drive. His suggestion drew some feedback. NHPR's Dean of Commuting, Jon Greenberg, has a summary, plus a touch of what others have posted on our web site.
Bill Gargan of Madison doesn't like the idea of state money going directly to bus and train companies, but he isn't dead set against subsidies across the board. Bill wrote ...
"The idea of a general subsidy to any form of mass transit gives me the holy horrors.
Perhaps we should subsidize the traveling person. For example, we could have the state rebate a percentage of the tickets that our residents use on mass transit. It would encourage folks to use such means without fattening the pockets of those that are expected to be entrepreneurial."
But on our listener line, Ann Oehschlager said subsidies of any sort were fine with her. Ann thought a little state money in exchange for better bus service could help her a lot.
TAPE: I live in Laconia and Laconia lost its bus to Concord a few years ago and it makes it hard. I'm retired and driving any distance is something I try not to do. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you. Thanks. Bye.
John in Claremont commutes every day to Londonderry. He says the traffic converging on Manchester has gotten worse over the past four years. He says "we are at a cross roads in NH, we have an opportunity to allow for economic growth without paving the entire state over. I hope law makers get more progressive about public transit; particularly between the major centers of NH."
The ideas and stories posted on the Drive and Ambition web site go way beyond mass transit. We've seen some colorful comments, like this one from Steve in Center Harbor. Steve wrote at length about this personal epiphany:
The other day I discovered a switch on the steering column in my car that, when shifted to an ‘up’ position, causes a little light on the right-front and right-back corner of my car to blink.
“How curious.†I said.
I looked this up in the owner’s manual and apparently it’s called a ‘turn signal’.
“This really is fascinating stuff! I should have read this years ago!†I shouted.
I sat down and did some very extensive research. I did a search on Nexus/Lexus, consulted with AAA, and even put in a call to Click and Clack at ‘Car Talk’.
Woodchucks could chuck wood, and sometimes they live in highway cloverleafs. Photo courtesy David Tyner.
I asked them, “Do you mean that I don’t have to just guess what the guy in the car in front of me is up to?â€
“That’s right!†they said.
“Let me get this straight; there is a system in place to allow a car in front of me to telegraph, if you will, his or her intentions through this system of blinking lights?†“Indeed!†They replied.
“Incredible!†I raved. “It truly is a great time to be alive!â€
You can read more about Steve's miraculous discovery. Or in another commuter tale, find out about the family of woodchucks that live in the cloverleaf at Exit 12 in Concord.
With this installment of Drive and Ambition, I'm Jon Greenberg
