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Comment by Steltek | Hacker News Reader

I think you're drastically underestimating the health impact of of driving. Public transit incorporates walking and you can relax on the train, read a book or stream something. Driving usually means stressful traffic, road rage, and overall lost exercise.

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40 minutes standing or even sitting on a hard plastic seat is not my idea of relaxing. I admit that you'll get more exercise, but no thanks; I'll walk somewhere a bit more pleasurable then downtown.

I find being in close quarters with that many people way more stressful then driving.

Driving excessive amounts or in high traffic situations is worse than public transit.

Sorry, I was unclear. Yes, I totally agree: I believe driving is substantially worse for your physical and mental health than transit.

In personal terms, I sought a new job where I could take the T or bike to avoid driving as the extreme antisocial behavior of other Boston drivers was taking a serious toll on me.

I don’t know about you, but my WMATA rage (raging at the fact that the ride is super jerky because they used all their maintenance funds for hookers and cocaine and thus had to turn off automatic train control; raging at sitting stopped because some switch broke down again, etc.) raises my blood as much as toad rage ever did.

>hookers and cocaine

You misspelled "creating previously non-existent middle manager positions for powerful people to place people in as political favors"

No, the corruption at WMATA is among the rank and file, who get paid too much and don’t do their jobs. The vast majority of WMATA’s employees are in operations.

"Relax on the train" - My experience is that it's very difficult to relax on public transit due mostly to the homeless. Whether it's the smell, begging, or just general unstable behavior, it's not exactly a relaxing environment.

This is a side product if there being lots of homeless and not enough commuters using public transport.

In European cities the most common unpleasantness is drunk people late at night coming back from clubbing, at all other times it is as pleasant as it can be. It was certainly a shock to discover the reason for empty Muni carriages during rush hour so after moving to SF. To give people from outside the bay area an idea, elevators on the stations now have a person in them at all times to avoid them turning into public bathrooms. The area of the city all the underground lines go through have historically been the congregation area for the homeless, and there are a lot of homeless here.

No, you can definitely not relax with one arm extended over your head, the other on your backpack, several strangers’ bodies touching yours, and dramatic change in acceleration every few seconds.

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