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[ Read Responses | Post a New Response | Return to the Index ] Posted by Uncle Chester on Fri Jul 23 21:27:33 2004, in response to Re: What did Robert Moses Do Right?, I find very little praise in this thread about Moses but I do find a good ongoing debate about the pros and cons of his actions. A great topic since his decisions directly influenced the development of NYC's transit system. Most railfans here seem to view him as the devil but I find the things he did quite beneficial to NYC. Moses was one of many planners (Washington DC, Chicago, LA, SF, etc...)of that generation that rode the wave of the auto's popularity to push through plans to extend road systems at the expense of other modes of transportation. Before that, the pendulum was at the other extreme. There was lots of rail building late in the nineteenth century and early twentieth century. Especially in NYC. There were tracks going everywhere. Els covering just about every major artery in the city. Always with the complaint of "not enough" but they came down and the auto became prevalent. Planners like Moses had their own visions and views of the future which they saw the auto, not the train, as the centerpiece. That hindered development of rail systems but did not end them altogether. Bureaucratic red tape is a much more bigger culprit than he could ever be. His curse and blessing was that he could cut through that tape better than anyone before or since. Just think what NYC transit system would be like if he was on the bandwagon. We'd have a full second system (and probably a third), service to Staten Island and all existing lines extended to the city lines. Responses
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