"The American Dream: Visit Us At Our New Location"
Jennifer L. Dorn, administrator of the Federal Transit Administration, invokes transit as the driving force behind the "American Dream" in a recent editorial in the The Arizona Republic. The article itself says nothing new -- it pushes transit-oriented development, something we here at LFTTR are very much in favor of. But she cases it in a rather flowerly language that seems designed to invoke deep emotional responses from people...something transit has never done (excluding train buffs and transit nerds, of course). Her article, of which she's written a number of variations, concludes:
It is about the development of a new American Dream for all Phoenix residents in the 21st century: those who are transplants from transit-oriented cities; those from freeway communities; those who are young, seeking new job opportunities; and those who are seniors, seeking an active retirement.
Transit-oriented development supports the timeless essence of the American dream of owning a home, of living in an attractive, vital community, of setting down roots and feeling part of a community, of enjoying a more leisurely pace of life.
It supports that dream with smart investments in public transportation that reduce dependence on the automobile and encourage housing development around transit hubs.
When it is done well, transit-oriented development lets a community hang a figurative sign on suburban sprawl that says, "The American Dream: Visit us at our New Location."
It's beautiful imagery, but it's not the way to convince people that transit is the way to go. "Dream" speaches work when they appeal to basic emotional responses in people -- the right to life, liberty, and property, as they say. It's going to take a lot more than flowerly language to convince people that transit is clearly tied into any of those three.
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amg | 9:54 AM |
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I found Secretary Dorn's article admirable. I'm surprised that anyone in the Bush administration should be so well-versed in the principles of New Urbanism and able to convey these principles without sounding like a blithering idiot or a conniving opportunist.
