Comments on: Public Transportation: The Kid-Factor

By: Decatur Metro

Decatur Metro — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 19:02:59 +0000

Good point. Cost is the other primary motivator for the vast population. Ease and cost. For most people, threats of apocalypse just can’t compete with everyday influences.

By: fifi

fifi — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 18:38:07 +0000

Unless government ( or market factors) make the prices of petroleum products, gas guzzling automobiles and parking much higher than they are now. I don’t see this happening but it would force people to change behavior – even if they don’t perceive fuel efficient transport to be easier.

By: Decatur Metro

Decatur Metro — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 18:23:56 +0000

If we have a shot in hell of gaining majority support on more fuel-efficient transportation options, we better make it easier. The “reducing dependence” argument isn’t going to work with a large majority of the population.

By: JoeBlow

JoeBlow — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 18:03:20 +0000

The underlying principle is this:

What is more important to you? Reducing dependence on vehicles/oil, or having an “easier” commute?

By: Dan Reuter

Dan Reuter — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 18:16:43 +0000

You need to define the age of a “kid” as used in your title. Certainly young children anywhere add difficulty to travel including in cars. I would not put my kid on a MARTA train by themselves. But there are many “kids”, some from private schools, riding MARTA trains. I ride MARTA as a personal conviction against dependence on oil, and also because I am too cheap and don’t want to pay for parking in downtown Atlanta. I rode public transit in middle-school as my mother had a job until 5:00. So if kids of a certain age can ride by themselves apparently they can also ride with adults. Portland and many other cities are much better supporting transit use. While we are making progress in many areas, Georgia is still near the bottom.

By: poplar

poplar — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 00:42:35 +0000

It’s really quite easy with a baby if you leave the stroller at home. Don’t use a Bjorn; invest in an Ergo. An Ergo is really comfortable for parent and for baby and should be useable until the child is 2-4 years old. I have a 9 month old and taking her is easy. Taking my 4 year old is a little bit less easy because she does walk on her own and she’s slower than I am. I admit that taking them both by myself is where I usually draw the line. Now my idea of a good time.

By: chira

chira — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 23:50:07 +0000

My grandson LOVES trains and buses and subways and airplanes, and thinks nothing of the logistics of getting on and off. No, we don’t HAVE to take these modes of transportation, we choose to do so. But MANY families have NO OTHER WAY to go where they need to go, and they seem stalwart and determined to make whatever trips they need to make, even with multiple kids, strollers, backpacks, etc. I say THANK YOU to MARTA for making that possible, both for my/our fun and appreciation of the availability of public transportation in Atlanta, and for helping all people in the metro area go to the places they need and want to go.

By: Rick

Rick — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 20:14:11 +0000

While I’d agree that there are challenges taking mass transit with a very young child, I do see a lot of parents with children of all ages on MARTA. My daughter, who is three years old, loves taking the train and was always asking to ride the bus to work with me. If we take MARTA we get to talk more, look at books, and see different views than she gets snuggled down in a car seat, struggling to peek out the window.

Of course she is also an easy traveler, having logged more miles on airplanes in three years than most adults in a lifetime. And wherever we go, there are airport people movers, subways, buses and trains getting us around in these new places. She finds it fun.

I’m not discounting the negatives so much as saying that there are some positives as well.