Streetcars are the latest urban planning fad, stimulated partly
by the Obama administration’s preference for funding
transportation projects that promote “livability” (meaning
living without automobiles) rather than mobility or cost-
effective transportation. Toward that end, the administration
wants to eliminate cost-effectiveness requirements for federal
transportation grants, instead allowing non-cost-effective
grants for projects promoting so-called livability. In
anticipation of this change, numerous cities are preparing to
apply for federal funds to build streetcar lines.... Rail
transit proponents rely heavily on a myth that many people will
ride railcars who won’t ride buses. They use the term “quality
transit” as a euphemism for rail transit, implying that buses
are not quality transit. Apparently, “livability” not only means
you don’t have to have a car, but you don’t have to lower
yourself by taking a bus either. Taxpayers are supposed to cater
to such snobs by providing them with rail alternatives