# Ditch coal & nuclear

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ditch-coal-nuclear/585552>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [June 15, 2011, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ditch-coal-nuclear/585552 "2011-06-15T12:59:10Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 2

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\
**Post date:** [June 23, 2011, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ditch-coal-nuclear/585552/21 "2011-06-23T18:58:59Z")

</div>

> [@md2000](#):
>
> Finally, there’s substitution - not just cheaper, lighter, simpler materials for rare and expensive ones; but when people really want to take transit, transit service will improve. In Manhattan, it makes no sense to drive unless you have a reserved parking spot at the other end. Hundreds of thousands use commuter rail rather than freeways already. If the tech to get you A to B is almost as fast and convenient as a car, people will use it.

Transit is a complicated topic all on its own. Yes, in Manhattan transit makes a lot of sense. The infrastructure is in place, and the population density makes automobiles actually a hindrance in a lot of ways. But something like that doesn’t spring up overnight, and many areas do not have that kind of population density, and are not layed out for efficient use of transit. To rework suburban neighborhoods for transit will take a lot more than just building train/subway lines and stations, which is complicated enough. It takes rebuilding neighborhoods to integrate schools, restaurants, shopping centers, etc in accessible manners.

But that doesn’t really invalidate your point, just explains the challenges to implementation.

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ditch-coal-nuclear/585552.md?page=1)