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Reader comment on:
The Planner Behind Bloomberg's PlaNYC
in response to reader comment: PlaNYC Should Not Prefer 6 miles of Subway to 60 miles of Light Rail Without Further Study

Submitted by Vasos Panagiotopoulos, Jun 4, 2007 23:40

We already have too many different standards, which prevents us from exploiting scale economies. What we need is a twenty year plan to make all the rail standards converge (platform distance, tube height, car length). The late Seymour Melman agreed with me, a few years ago, when I asked this to a disagreeing former Chicago transit chief then at CUNY. If you can do light rail within this standardisation framework, I would have no problem, but if you only propogate too many incompatible standards, it is not wise. The silly Roosevelt Island tram experience, repleat with snapping cables, and separate repair crewsand facilities, proves my point. If you have "one standard, one city" you can then redeploy existing tracks to create enw routes as needed.

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Other reader comments on this article

Comment	By	Date
I have heard much mockery regarding the mayors idea of planting one million trees in manhattan, but why? There is... [MORE]	Robert Oldaker	Jun 15, 2007 01:21
LIRR's peak/off pricing is congestion pricing. This plan is a car hater's vendetta. If you were genuinely anti-congestion instead of anti-car,... [MORE]	Vasos Panagiotopoulos	Jun 4, 2007 23:53
Is there any definitive plan for the 60 miles of light rail which allegedly would be "preferred" to the Second... [MORE]	Robert Schiemel	May 29, 2007 23:02
Rohit Aggarwala, the technocrat who crafted Mayor Bloomberg's PlaNYC, allegedly "shares a passion for high-speed trains." But there is apparently... [MORE]	George N. Spitz	May 29, 2007 05:10
Light rail where appropriate can make a difference. As a replacement for the Second Avenue Subway line to relieve the... [MORE]	Alexander Medwedew	May 30, 2007 15:36
We already have too many different standards, which prevents us from exploiting scale economies. What we need is a twenty year...	Vasos Panagiotopoulos	Jun 4, 2007 23:40

Reader comment on:The Planner Behind Bloomberg's PlaNYCin response to reader comment: PlaNYC Should Not Prefer 6 miles of Subway to 60 miles of Light Rail Without Further Study

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Reader comment on:
The Planner Behind Bloomberg's PlaNYC
in response to reader comment: PlaNYC Should Not Prefer 6 miles of Subway to 60 miles of Light Rail Without Further Study