Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Mo Money For Mo Of The Same

I'm getting a series of press releases about money released for Pennsylvania transportation projects. Aside from new bus purchases, stuff in Philly is basically about maintenance. The thing about living in an old city with an old transit system is that while you actually have one - good! - the system needs a lot of very expensive maintenance due in part to the fact that so much maintenance was deferred over the years. So, stations need to be fully rebuilt, for example. And while a rebuilt station might have somewhat better functionality and accessibility, including handicapped accessibility, it isn't exactly transforming your transit system either. It's necessary, and it will improve things, but it isn't sexy or exciting.