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Comment by bearmf | Hacker News Reader

Good public transportation by itself is not enough. Driving a car is still a "high status" marker in most of the world, especially in developing countries. People need to show off, the world is not all populated by Japanese.

For example, Moscow has a decent public transportation system, but is also famous for its traffic jams. There are people who prefer 1.5 hour one way commute in a car to 40 minute commute by metro. There are lots of complaints about public transportation, but I don't believe it is the main reason. Trains are also crowded in Tokyo (there is a popular video on YouTube where station workers push commuters onto the train).

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> Trains are also crowded in Tokyo (there is a popular video on YouTube where station workers push commuters onto the train).

This is mostly just a case of making the exceptional seem commonplace. Having actually spent time in Tokyo, I've never seen workers pushing commuters onto the train, even at the busiest station in the city during the morning rush hour.

I believe the trains are still very crowded at rush hour. People get used to that because driving is not an option and it is socially acceptable for everyone to take the subway.

Of course the trains are crowded at rush hour - that's why it's called rush hour. However, it is nowhere near unbearable, and certainly not any worse, in my experience, than NYC. But there's one huge advantage over NYC - you don't have to worry about pickpockets, so you can relax while riding the train and take a nap, read a book, or play some games on your phone (which is what most of the commuters do).

I am sure most people in New York do it too (read a book, play games, not worry about pickpockets). Most New York trains are not really crowded at rush hour, with the exception of Lexington avenue line.

> I am sure most people in New York do it too (read a book, play games, not worry about pickpockets).

So you would sleep on an MTA train during rush hour with your bag just sitting on your lap? Most people I know wouldn't.

> Most New York trains are not really crowded at rush hour, with the exception of Lexington avenue line.

And neither are most lines in Tokyo. There are 2 or 3 trunk lines that are really crowded. The rest have only moderate occupancy. Each month, I was probably on a train where I didn't have room to move only once or twice a month.

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