In-town, the buses take passengers to real places, such as major employment centers, rather than dropping them off in some isolated station next to a highway. The typical resident rides transit regularly yet also has a car on which he or she spends nine times as much money. An extensive system of trains underground in the urban center, rolling out at grade levels beyond the city constitute the core of a system in which buses and trams do the small circulator work and connect to trains. One fare fits all. And, in a climate not nearly as hospitable to bicycling as South Florida's, Munich's 600 kilometers of protected paths make it an intensely bike-friendly place.
Critics say it has been devouring more countryside than any metropolis in world history.
The new Greater Atlanta Regional Transportation Authority has unprecedented power to build new transit lines and halt sprawling development. A mere decade ago, suggesting light rail as a Texas-sized choice for Dallas would have guaranteed letters to newspaper editors belittling your basic intelligence. Yet, by decade's end the first line was built and ridership rose beyond anyone's expectations. Car-happy Texans are clamoring for the next line to be built.