Sixty-Four: Budget Cuts (05-17-2024)
Not on substack this week too lazy to ctrl-c it over
This week, Philadelphia's newly elected mayor, Cherelle Parker, announced her first budget proposal. Most media outlets called it "historic", though no proposed changes are beyond the realm of belief within Philadelphia's political climate. Parker also authorized the messy cleanup of Kensington Ave homeless encampments, pushing drug users onto back streets for a photo op. The beginning of Parker's administration has been, for most, a welcome change of pace from her perpetual lame-duck predecessor's mayoral style. A photo op is something, and when the guy before you did nothing, people will take anything as good news.
Included in Parker's proposal is a drastic reduction of funding for Vision Zero, a program to implement targetted improvements to Philadelphia streets with the goal of reducing pedestrian fatalities to zero. In 2024, 57 pedestrians were killed by automobiles and 10 bicyclists. 43 of these incidents were hit and runs, where the Philadelphia Police Department has a less than 10% chance of making an arrest, and under the Krasner DA regime, an essential near zero change of convicting. Why Parker would propose (and in Philadelphia, a mayoral proposal is essentially a guarantee) to reduce funding to a program that is clearly desperately needed, is bizarre.
I'd love to dive into Parker's past and her sometimes apparent cronyism, and I'd love to suggest that she, like many mayors before her, is using the office of mayor to enrich herself and her friends by diverting funds to specific, personally beneficial projects and organizations, but I won't make that suggestion.
Philadelphia's bicycle network lags behind in quality and breadth in comparison to other cities, despite Philadelphia having a higher share of bicycle users as commuters. New York City, often a standard for urban design (for no good reason) has more protected bike lanes, and a lower share of New Yorkers bike to work or for transportation than in Philadelphia. This shows that Philadelphia's large scale urban layout is more conducive to cycling- its tight street grid, smaller scale, and relatively well-diversified neighborhoods (as well as abysmal transit options and frequent [good] automobile traffic delays), push people to cycle. It's said that to reduce personal automobile use, cities, states, and federally, the process of driving must be made more inconvenient and expensive than the alternatives: walking, public transit, and cycling (substitute cycling for e-bikes, scooters, hoverboards, etc. based on ability).
Suggesting that any restrictions should be imposed on driving multi-ton Greenhouse Gas emitting living rooms on narrow city streets where people live, work, and sleep, is tantamount to imposing martial law to most Americans. As someone who lives in the city without a car, the difference between rural living, where a vehicle is a necessity, and urban living where a vehicle is a hindrance, is obvious, but most Americans have become so dependent on their automobile that it is a mental extension of their self, a symbol of their industriousness and freedom, and without it they are both physically trapped in their home and single-use neighborhood, and mentally trapped from envisioning any other way of getting around. They're "car-brained".
I live 2.2 miles from the office I work in. By foot, that's a 40 minute walk (for me), by bus about 40 minutes or longer including walk to and from stops and waiting for the bus itself, about 30 minutes by subway, including a transfer (with the added externality of a dirty and dangerous subway system in Philadelphia), or 15 minutes flat by bicycle (1), using one or two separated but unprotected bike lanes, the longer of which is on a 4-lane stroad. I'm not particularly fond of how quickly this route gets me to work but I love how fast it gets me home from work.
The moment I first arrived to work by bike, it became a bit of a talking point in the office (2). Sharing the elevator with a folding bicycle is a great way to get people talking. One of my coworkers is also looking into buying a bike- he usually takes the subway. Most of my coworkers drive to work- some from Jersey, most from the suburbs, and one from only 2 miles north of the office, bizarrely. All of them bemoan the traffic, the parking costs, and the additional costs of owning a car (3). However, the inconveniences do not outweigh the inconveniences of public transit, despite the reduced costs. I know for certain that most of these people could bike to a train station, ride that train to the city, and either bike or transfer to a bus or subway line, and be at work in about an hour. This is an increase to their morning commute, but very much a decrease to their evening commute. With improvements to rail service, and bike infrastructure, this hour could theoretically be reduced to 45 minutes. Further- these improvements would also motivate these people to live in the city, and put their commute at the same 15-minute threshold as mine.
But funding to do so is getting cut. Cyclists will die, pedestrians will die, and more people will drive. This is a positive feedback loop with very negative effects. On this trajectory, Philadelphia will become another car-dependent city, and like all car-dependent cities, it will suffer economically. There's discussion ad nauseum about attracting workers and businesses to Philadelphia, especially Center City where office vacancy rates are high, but the focus too often falls on improving (read: shifting in favor of business and not people) tax codes, providing office amenities, and reduce petty crime (good), but never on improving an already pretty good urban design to make people want to, not just work, but live in the city.
I want to be optimistic about Philadelphia's future. I do see business improving, and I see more businesses already opening. Our zoning is okay in most of the city, and crime is going down. I talk to a lot of people from a lot of places here who see past the media frenzy to the heart of the city, and they often talk about walkability and ease of transit as an attractive feature for Philadelphia- often ahead of personal opportunity. Imagine if it was even easier to get around- less cars, more bike lanes that are actually protected, and more frequent bus and rail service. Even more people would want to live here, and if they live here, they'll work here and pay taxes here. It's a win-win.
Programs like Vision Zero are some of the cheapest for the city- nowhere near the ineffective Police Department's budget, and has multiple levels of externality in improving life in the city. Slowing cars down saves lives and makes streets more pleasant, before it even sets in to residents that these changes make cycling and walking not just more convenient- but possible at all. It's a shame the mayor is being short-sited with this program, it'll cost her city greatly, in lives and dollars.
(1) Zizzo Liberte. I have a small apartment. It's a whippy little bike, definitely worth the increased price tag for convenience.
(2) The aforementioned shortened commute also means I'm now regularly on time. This is as well a point of discussion.
(3) My bike was $340 on Facebook Marketplace. I got very bright bike lights for $30 on Amazon, a very loud bell for $14 on Amazon, and a helmet (or handlebar) mounted camera for $65 on Amazon, and I already owned a helmet, though a very good helmet can be had for ~$60. A hand pump at target was $20. I'm likely going to buy a rear rack, mirror, carrying bag, and replacement parts that will drive the cost up another $100 or so. Total this is $630, a one time expense that is less than most's monthly auto expenses.