My experience with
transportation has been really varied, and honestly, until this moment, I’ve
never really thought about it. I grew up
in upstate New York where we had to get everywhere by car. At 16, I had my first car and drove to
school, friend’s houses, and everywhere in between. Other than your parents driving you, it was
the only way to get around. For college,
I was in a small town in New Hampshire without much public transportation
either, so again, it was mostly by car or by bike if it was just around
town. After college, I spent two years
in China where I mostly relied on walking or public transportation. The city had a terribly crowded and
inefficient but readily available bus system.
The buses were old and often filled with black exhaust smoke, so even
just being on the bus at times made you feel sick. After that, I live in New York City for many
years during which I mostly relied on walking and New York’s great public
transportation system. I took the subway
daily and buses less frequently. Coming
here to San Francisco where I do have my car, but I live in a very walkable
neighborhood with lots of things close by.
My car mostly sits in a parking garage, but I do drive to class and on
weekend trips, etc. I do travel
regularly for work, so I am constantly on airplanes going places around the
country usually several days per week.
Hi Doug,
ReplyDeleteI also grew up in an area where you had to get everywhere by car. I lived up in the hills about 20 minutes away from my high school and all of my friends. My parents are big environmentalists and my dad wouldn't let me come home after school if I was going to go out with friends later that night to save on gas. His motto was "once you go down the hill you stay down" Even when I switched to driving a Prius to school this was still the rule. So it's been on my radar at least to some extent since I was a kid. Your stories about China are crazy! It sounds awful to be in a crowded bus filled with exhaust. It's a good reminder to feel grateful for the system we have in San Francisco, even though I am often cursing Muni in my head for all the delays.
Malena
I also grew up being in and around cars. Before my mother knew how to drive we would catch the bus here and there but car was our mode of transportation. NYC does have in my opinion the best transportation system in the world. Their subway cars might be old but you are able to get from one area to another easily with no hassle. Makes me miss NYC.
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