Nostalgia for Detroit's Public Transit History

Five historic projects encapsulate a transit-oriented version of Southeastern Michigan that almost could have been.

1 minute read

April 30, 2020, 12:00 PM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Detroit Public Transit

Detroit, Michigan / Shutterstock

"Detroit went from having one of the largest public transit systems in the world to a fragmented one composed of several independently operated transit agencies: DDOT, SMART, the Detroit People Mover, and the QLine."

David Gifford writes about what Detroit sacrificed over the years as a result of "disease, labor issues, political agendas, franchise disputes, competition from automobiles and buses, maintenance issues, lack of funding, lack of regional cooperation, and urban sprawl."

The list of historical evidence cited by Gifford includes both never built plans, like the 1919 Detroit Subway Plan and the 2016 RTA Plan, as well as systems and organizations that are no longer around, like the PCC Streetcar System and the Southeastern Michigan Transportation Authority.


Monday, April 20, 2020 in Curbed Detroit

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