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For decades, Joe Biden took the train back and forth to Washington every day. This begs the question: why not drive? Joe Biden is a certified car guy. ( https://www.autoblog.com/2020/08/05/joe-biden-corvette-twitter-video/)
Why not take is 'Vette down to DC from Wilmington like a real, red-blooded American.
Why not take is 'Vette down to DC from Wilmington like a real, red-blooded American.
Most people in his situation would drive. He has a car, an a free spot at work. He's in the prime driving demographic: white, well-off, powerful, male. So why did Joe Biden buck the trend and take the train? ( https://usa.streetsblog.org/2014/11/24/congress-gives-itself-more-free-parking-than-its-own-rules-allow/)
It may have less to do with his character and more to do with the fact that he had one of very few commutes in the country where taking the train is appreciably faster than driving.
Without traffic, Wilmington to DC is 2 hours. With traffic, it's probably closer to 3.
Without traffic, Wilmington to DC is 2 hours. With traffic, it's probably closer to 3.
The Metroliners, which came online in the late 1960s, were far from perfect, but were the first step towards high speed rail in the United States. Nonstop trips from NYC to DC were as fast as 2:30 (faster than Acela today). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metroliner_(train)
For the trip from Wilmington to DC, it cut travel time from 1:40 to about 1:20. Here's a page from Amtrak's schedule in 1972, a year after the railroad was created and effective when Biden was elected. ( http://www.timetables.org/full.php?group=19721029&item=0020)
In 50 years, the schedule has been improved slightly: the fastest Acela trains make the trip in 1:11, covering 109 miles, at an average speed of 92 mph. That's hard to do in a Corvette, even without traffic. For Joe Biden, the faster train meant making it home to his family.
Does this mean we should built high speed railroads all over the country? Sure.
But it also means that we should improve other transit systems: electrifying rail lines which disproportionately pollute the inner city and providing bus rapid transit which is faster than driving.
But it also means that we should improve other transit systems: electrifying rail lines which disproportionately pollute the inner city and providing bus rapid transit which is faster than driving.
Biden's transit platform is decent ( https://joebiden.com/clean-energy/ ) but as Streetsblog points out, it lacks an equity component, and could wind up being a giveaway for suburban commuters as the expense of transit-dependent ridership. https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2020/07/14/four-things-to-know-about-joe-bidens-big-energy-plan/
High quality transit is good as a talking point, but we should be clearer: transit should be faster, easier and safer than driving. Not a bus every 30 minutes that gets stuck in traffic, not a train which only serves 9-to-5 commuters.
It turns out, given the a better option, even car guys will take public transit. We just need to give people that choice.
Just ask @JoeBiden.
Just ask @JoeBiden.
