Public input and influence is an important part of our country's democratic process but sometimes it hinders necessary progress and yields stagnation. Nate Berg makes the case that when it comes to developing alternative public transportation systems maybe a little less democracy and a little more leadership may be needed.
Excerpt:
"Of the 225 metropolitan areas in the U.S. with populations above 100,000, those that show the most progress being made toward the widespread adoption of a multi-modal transportation diet are those located in states where comprehensive transportation planning is mandated. By looking at how transportation patterns changed between 1980 and 2008 in all these areas, Ohio State University researcher Anna McCreery found the most positive change in the places with top-down planning requirements."
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