GAS PRICES AREN'T FILLING BUSES
The high price of gasoline is causing an increase in public transit ridership in some places, but the benefits to transit aren't as great as you might imagine. That's because for middle-class commuters, transit is more of a lifestyle choice than an economic one. For example, ridership is up on Los Angeles' urban buses and rail--but by less than 10 percent over last year. Even if commuters can manage the inconvenience, it turns out that cost isn't a great motivator for transit ridership. One regional agency did a customer survey two years ago and found that only 10 percent of its new riders thought of commuter trains as a good way of saving money. There are reasons for transit's inability to take advantage of high energy prices. Some people can't use transit because their jobs demand they use their cars during the day. Others adjust to high gasoline prices by trading their SUVs for compact cars. Mostly, though, people assume that gasoline prices will decline in time, so they hope to ride out the higher prices.
SPENDING THE AIRLINES' MONEY
You'd think, given the delicate state of airline finances, that this would be a time of great restraint among officials looking to expand airports. But you'd be wrong. Take Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, which is adding a runway and terminal space. Clearly there's a need to expand Sea-Tac. According to a study commissioned by the airport authority, Sea-Tac can comfortably accommodate 25 million passengers a year and is already handling 28 million. Still, say the experts, smart airport officials pinch pennies and bring on new terminals and runways just before they're needed. Otherwise, the airlines, which pay for these expansions, can't afford them. That's not what Sea-Tac is doing, according to the Seattle Times, which took a close look at its construction budget and reported that the airport is spending more than the airlines can afford. A symbol of the lavish spending, the Times said, is a $4 million glass wall that Sea-Tac recently installed in its central terminal, a beautiful addition that passengers seem drawn to. Unfortunately, the wall's beauty is lost on the airlines, which see it as an example of how free the airport has become with what is, in the end, their money.
ADVENTURES IN ARCHITECTURE
The most reviled building in America is 2 Columbus Circle in New York City. Funny, then, that after 40 years, the building is attracting admirers, including writer Tom Wolfe. Built in 1964, it's a 12-story slab of a building that appears to be sitting on lollipops. There are no windows; rather, there's an odd fringe of portholes along the sides and top. Near the top is a row of arches for no apparent reason. This strange building started out as an art museum before being sold multiple times. Now another museum wants to locate there but not until the building is thoroughly redesigned. The plans have set off a firestorm because some preservationists view it as architecturally significant. Wolfe, a critic of modern architecture, considers 2 Columbus Circle to be the first significant revolt against the austere glass boxes of the 1960s and praises its "extraordinary interplay of positive and negative space." But as writer Timothy Noah has pointed out, Wolfe can't bring himself to call 2 Columbus Circle beautiful. Still, as the renovation of the ugly duckling draws near, more people are speaking up for it. Vincent Scully, a retired Yale professor, urged the New York Landmarks Preservation Commission to consider saving it. Scully wrote in a letter to the commission that 2 Columbus Circle, "rarely anyone's favorite in the past, is looking better every day.
