Submitted by Not Just A Commuter, Mar 7, 2008 17:40

While I personally am not certain that the advantages of congestion pricing would outweigh its disadvantages, one thing I am certain about is that the title of Mr. Wolf's opinion piece belies a fundamental misunderstanding of how subways and transit are utilized, especially in New York City. The subway is certainly not just for commuting, or "going to work" as Mr. Wolf says. It is utilized by New Yorkers for everything from going out to dinner and a movie to going to visit friends and relatives on the weekends, in addition to going to work. It is essentially our set of "wheels" and functions just like the family car. This is why the use of unlimited ride MetroCards has skyrocketed, Mr. Wolf, to the point that the majority of subway riders use them. People no longer buy a ten pack of tokens and use the transit system for the Monday-to-Friday, 9-to-5 early 20th century anachronism that you clearly have in your head.

In fact, the use of the subway has increased recently in spite of the ability to work from anywhere in the internet age. Many people I know still feel they need to be located near people in a similar industry or line of work, and the face-to-face meeting to "seal the deal" is still a valuable tool. And you get there - or to your social events, or the museum, or a myriad other non-work-related events - on the subway. This is why cities around the world are still building new electric rail systems, while we putter away contending with the argument that the ability to skype someone means we don't need a Second Avenue Subway. Get real!

Thank you for the ability to comment, and I really do enjoy reading your columns.

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