Comments on: On Airport Congestion and City Congestion

By: MikeOnBike

MikeOnBike — Wed, 12 May 2010 17:32:01 +0000

Is it too much to ask that airport carts travel at pedestrian speeds? The purpose of the carts is to substitute for walking, not to substitute for being on time.

By: Adrian

Adrian — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 23:40:53 +0000

So cars should be restricted to the disabled and elderly. Makes sense. We’d be able to turn over most road space to pedestrians and cyclists and mass transit.

By: Betty Barcode

Betty Barcode — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 22:16:41 +0000

When I was little, I read a book I remember to this day: “If everybody did.” It had gloriously exaggerated illustrations of what the cat would look like if everyone squeezed it in the middle, or what the house would look like if everyone left their toys on the stairs. Still in print, as far as I can tell, and a great introduction to ethics for young readers.

What the average airport would be like if everyone drove electric carts is Los Angeles. Airport traffic is swift and efficient because it is not (yet) captive to carts. This is a great insight, Tom!

So, let’s ask the real question: how practical (not to mention ethical) is it to establish a mandatory system that fails if everyone uses it? Damned if you drive, damned if you don’t. This is the true source of road rage in America.

By: Josh R

Josh R — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 15:38:30 +0000

The point he was trying to make Angela, is that if everyone in the airport wanted to ride in a cart, then the system would break down and nobody would be able to move. Or alternatively they would have to increase the size of the walkways and start regulating where carts could travel and where walkers could walk. Signals would have to be installed, and eventually the airport would grow to resemble a mini-city, dominated by cart traffic with walkers shoved to the edges.

Of course there are actual disabled people using the carts, but as a person with a slight disability who’s worked on disability advocacy, I can assure you that some heathy people are taking advantage of the system. Hopefully not a huge number, but they’re out there.

By: Angela S.

Angela S. — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 17:36:40 +0000

“Fat, slow, or disoriented”? Try handicapped and elderly. I don’t think Jerry Seinfeld’s right to wander around the airport not paying attention to his surroundings trumps the right of disabled people to travel. The horns on the carts are to warn pedestrians so that the cart doesn’t hit them. The idea that the cart operator is trying to make feel inferior is entirely Seinfeld’s neurosis, not reality. And you can’t always tell by looking at someone whether they are disabled.

My point being, the comparison you are making is totally facetious. Cars are indeed a huge factor in slowing buses and trolleys, because they take up the same amount of lane width for only 1-2 people instead of 40-60. There are also millions and millions of them on the roads. Airports have plenty of space in the aisles for both carts and pedestrians to move around, there ratio of carts to peds is far, far lower, and they certainly aren’t responsible for many fatalities.

By: Cap'n Transit

Cap'n Transit — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 13:17:01 +0000

So who does regulate who gets on the airport “courtesy carts”?

By: chrismealy

chrismealy — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 05:50:29 +0000

And also imagine if those little airport carts killed a hundred people every day.