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Comment by JumpCrisscross

14 hours ago

> haven't done the math, but I wouldn't be surprised if cost/passenger over useful lifetime still shakes out better for the trains

In Manhattan? I honestly would. If it were a nation, it would be the 22nd-largest economy. Any disruption to that system is massively expensive.

I'm not saying we shouldn't do the math. But we also shouldn't be reaching conclusions without attempting it.

People disrupt Manhattan for novelty (eg. marathon) and civic/political (eg. no car zones) purposes all the time. Manhattan is hardly a purely reasonable place, in fact it's far from it. All kinds of nonsense takes place in nyc all the time. If nyc was driven by cold economic reason it would be boring and lame compared to what it is today.

  • > People disrupt Manhattan for novelty (eg. marathon) and civic/political (eg. no car zones) purposes all the time

    This isn’t in the same category as burying a new train line. I lived around just the Hudson Yard water and electric expansions when those happened. It was years of increased noise, traffic and litigation.