Farther, faster? Not anymore

Farther, faster? Not anymore
Progress in transportation is stalling as technology lags and suburban sprawl ties things up.
By Paul Nussbaum
Inquirer Staff Writer



This is progress?

The morning train ride from Chestnut Hill to Center City takes 34 minutes today. Fifty years ago, it took 28 minutes.

Today, a United Airlines flight from Philadelphia to Los Angeles takes 6 hours, 1 minute. Forty years ago, the trip took 5 hours, 5 minutes.

In 1990, the average travel time to work for a Chester County resident was 23.1 minutes; a decade later, it was 27.5 minutes. In Burlington County, the travel time went from 23.6 minutes to 28.2 minutes.

After centuries of ever-faster travel, the triumph of technology over time seems to have stalled. The expectation that each generation will be not only more upwardly mobile, but also more rapidly mobile, has died, apparently of congestion of the arteries.

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/home_top_left_story/20070423_Farther__faster__Not_anymore.html

When you do not invest in capital improvements in infrastructure. This is also why you have regulations on businesses.

Another name for regulations is "laws".