Gas prices have led America down many difficult paths. The first was economic; rising gas prices led to an American recession. The second was political; the government for years denied the gravity of increasing gas prices, ting the problem is only temporary. The third was nationalism; since the government denied the petroleum trouble, anyone who suggested otherwise were seen as unpatriotic, un-American, and non-believers in the capitalist system. The fourth is now a mass transit issue.
Because of the recession, operating costs have risen. With these economic handicaps, transit systems cannot keep up with the demand. In the article found at , “Cal Marsella, the head of Denver, Colorado’s transit system, calls it the ‘paradox of public transportation.’” Marsella further comments that “Just when our demand is highest, our ability to provide is being undermined by the whole crunch [and that the] last thing we want to do is curtail service but there is not a lot you can do when revenues are down and fuel prices are up.”
This, as “Dr. Robert Lang, an expert on urban affairs and planning at Virginia Tech University” states that this predicament can lead to a turning point in city development. By emphasizing rails in congested areas, cities will prove more efficiency.
The irony is that this “turning point” is costly. So why does it seem so likely to happen? Dr. Lang continues that American tax payers have a misconception on the source of high gas prices. Thinking that international affairs, and not just domestic ones, much like Hurricane Katrina, are the cause for recession-like costs, domestic improvements are constantly being approved—it doesn’t sound like the problem, so it just might be the solution. Actually it’s both—it truly is a problem, and at the same time a true solution possibility.