Tags: infrastructure
The U.S. could learn a thing or two from the Netherlands
Every time I come to the Netherlands, I can't help think that the United States could learn a thing or two from the Dutch. Over the last week I've watched their incredible capacity to move people using their mass transit system while at the same time reaping the results of their investment into an infrastructure which encourages people to use human-energy-propulsion methods (i.e. the bicycle).
They employ a version of the “hub system” similar to what the top airlines have been forced to embrace as a cost cutting philosophy to become more efficient. The hub system develops hubs to which all feeder routes converge and connect. The Dutch do this so effectively with their cities as the natural hub where everyone wants to go. And I mean everyone.
In Amsterdam for example, there is an incredible array of choices for the commuter to get from the outer suburbs into the incredible city of Amsterdam. And all of the various forms of mass transit have been developed to feed off of and take advantage of the Dutch people's love affair with the bicycle.
The mass transit systems are well thought out and well maintained. For the commuters, this means that you get incredibly efficient, incredibly clean, safe, and very cheap mass transit to the hub city of Amsterdam, and once you are there, you can continue to rely on their mass transit system in and around the city as well. Or you can do as the natives do and grab a bike.
And when you examine the system closer, the bicycle is the key that sets Holland's system apart from any other big city with a subway or commuter trains system. One of the first things visitors to Amsterdam notice are the thousands of bikes locked everywhere they are allowed, but even more impressive to someone from the United States are the huge bicycle parking lots.
U.S. Mayors join the federal soup line
Over the last few months, the halls of Capitol Hill resemble a soup kitchen more than the Congress of the United States. Day after day, suffering millionaires are appearing before Congress with their hands out begging for billions. CEO’s flying to Washington in private jets with “Will Work for Food” signs scrawled on worthless stock certificates. We’ve heard sob stories about cut-backs on executive perks such as entertainment and travel costs, and even corporate jets being sold. They’ve all been in on it, the banks, the insurance industry, the auto industry, the governors, and now the mayors have joined in.
Obama calls for a huge investment in our future
In the Democratic Party’s weekly radio address this morning, President-elect Barack Obama focused on the economy stating “We need action -- and action now.” He said, “We won’t just throw money at the problem, -- We’ll measure progress by the reforms we make and the results we achieve -- by the jobs we create, by the energy we save, by whether America is more competitive in the world.”
XML Feeds
