Simple, but Far-Flung

[kevin_standlee]

I think I've mentioned this before, but following a link from debgeisler and following on from it led me to a site showing various subway systems at the same scale. I had forgotten that the BART system, while nowhere near as complicated as the New York Subway or London Underground, and therefore having far fewer total track-miles, is huge as far as the area it covers. (When you look at the BART map, remember that when I take BART to SFO, I'm riding from the point on the lower right corner around the inverted U shape and down to the lower left corner's right branch.) In a way, it shows one of the big problems of BART -- it's trying to be an urban metro and a suburban electric commuter railroad at the same time.

Comments

[gerisullivan.livejournal.com]

That's an interesting link; thanks!

Do you have Mike Ovenden's Transit Maps of the World? Alice Lewis bought it for her parents last winter and it's been on my wish list since Tony told me about it.

[gerisullivan.livejournal.com]

That's an interesting link; thanks!

Do you have Mark Ovenden's Transit Maps of the World? Alice Lewis bought it for her parents last winter and it's been on my wish list since Tony told me about it.

[kevin-standlee.livejournal.com]

Yes, we do have a copy, although I've not had a chance to look though it completely on account of Lisa has it up in Oregon -- I bought it for her as a present.

[howeird]

BART, as I see it, is a suburban commuter train which happens to make a few stops in a couple of mid-sized cities. Like the Long Island Railway. The amount of track of course is a result of having a big pond between the city and suburbs and only one way across it.

SF isn't really big enough to justify a metro-style system. That kind of thing needs a higher population density.

[kevin-standlee.livejournal.com]

The San Francisco-Oakland core has sufficient density for a small metro, but the suburban outliers do not. BART, for instance, would have probably have worked better if they'd built the Geary line that appears on some of the early maps.

[twilight2000.livejournal.com]

I found it very amusing that BART and the MTA look so much alike -- until I realized it was the LA MTA ;>. Still amused -- but not nearly so much...

SEPTA

[mrshirt.livejournal.com]

The map for SEPTA/PATCO is only showing the subway lines; not showing the Regional Rail Lines. Would be much big and more lines if it did. Septa Map

Re: SEPTA

[kevin-standlee.livejournal.com]

Sure, but the map for BART doesn't show the Caltrain or Capitol Corridor lines either; they'd be much larger if they did. It is only showing metro-type subway systems and things like Muni's streetcar/subway lines. I don't think any of the maps include conventional standard rail lines.