Hey, streetcar critics: Stop making perfect the enemy of good
Photo by drum118 on Flickr.
American streetcar projects have gotten some tough love recently. Writers who advocate for walkable, transit-oriented urban neighborhoods are questioning whether streetcar investments really enhance mobility, and whether they’re worth the money, if, as is often the case in the US, a new line has no dedicated lane or runs infrequently.
While streetcar projects can and should be better, many of these articles go further and either imply or outright state that a streetcar without every desirable feature is worse than nothing.
That’s not right. Perfect transit is absolutely a goal, but the perfect must not be the enemy of the good. There are plenty of reasons why a streetcar might be worth supporting, even if it isn’t as long, frequent, or speedy as we might like:
- Imperfect transit can still be good for cities.
- An imperfect streetcar might be all your city can afford—for now.
- Funding won’t get redirected towards a “better” transit project.
- Streetcars can outperform buses, even without dedicated lanes.
- Your city can make it better later, and may even plan to.
Read more in my latest article on CityLab.