Example of a Car-Free Life - "They Live"

Starting in a freight yard full of moving trains, John Carpenter's "They Live" is a told from the point of view of people who live without a car. From the beginning of the film when a policeman gets out of a car to silence a street preacher, cars are connected with oppression and with power. In fact, the one working class hero of the film who owns a car loses it in the process of learning the truth. Nada, the film's hero, walks throughout the film.

Jonathem Lethem recently put together a slide show analysis of "They Live" on Salon.com based on his book. In it he notes that the movie obviously takes place in Los Angeles, but that L.A.'s car culture is absent. Mr. Lethem may not realize that 25% of Angeleno households are car-free. In fact, the transportation profile of Los Angeles makes it an ideal setting for a movie based on class-conflict as most households that are car-free because the people who live in them are too poor to afford a car. This is different from many other large US cities where many people choose to use transit even though they can afford to buy a car.

And now I have made this movie sound like a serious exploration of Marxism or something when in fact it is a kick-ass action movie. With cheesy aliens. Watch the clip below for one of the best lines in movie history. (WARNING: SPOILERS)



"They Live" is available through Netflix and is showing on AMC on Friday, December 10 at 11 pm.

ColoRail Member Meeting

The Colorado Department of Transportation has a new Rail and Transit Division, and of course that division has a new director, Mark Imhoff, who was instrumental in getting Denver's first light rail line built.

Mr. Imhoff is coming to the next Colorado Rail Passenger Association Member Meeting. Yay! We might even have the chance to give him suggestions.

We are meeting on Saturday, November 20 at 10:30 at the Englewood Community Center and Library. Mr. Imhoff's section starts at 10:45. At 11:45 the Board will ask the members what they would like us to be working on.

The Englewood Community Center is on light rail line D. Bus routes 0, 12, and 27 come right next to the center.

Comments on the plans for I-70.

It looks like the plan for I-70 is to build a monorail/maglev on a raised track from Eagle County Airport In Gypsum near Glenwood Springs to the intersection of I-70 and C-470 in Morrison and to widen sections of the highway and some highway intersections. No mention of buses. No mention of possible ways to get people out of the I-70 corridor.

At the public meeting that I attended, fourteen peoplespoke. A majority spoke in favor of improved bus service. I believe only two people supported widening the road in any section.

I am concerned that the raised structure that will be carrying the monorail/maglev is being referred to as an "Advanced Guideway System" when in fact there is nothing inherently advanced it.

Here is the comment that I submitted to the I-70 team:

I am concerned that the rail portion of the I-70 project is being designed for looks rather than usability or even modernity. What makes a train modern is not necessarily the track (rail on steel vs. maglev). A modern train has modern signals. A modern train has a modern dispatch system. A modern train has operators, both on the train, and in the operations offices, who are both well-trained and well-paid. In the last ten years, we have seen new kinds of engines and new kinds of wheels. There are trains that look exactly like the trains of fifty years ago that are wonders of modern engineering. And there are trains that look very modern that in fact don’t work very well and are in fact quite primitive.

As rail systems across the USA are being modernized, Colorado is falling behind. People in Colorado are still being forced to drive as train ridership across the country increases every year. We need a rail system that connects into the nation’s system, and we need a system that serves Colorado’s citizens.

Today is the last day to submit comments.