Stranded with a car

 

 

 

"If I listened to the Met Council, this is how I would treat my car..."

This is a milestone year for my wife and I. First off, we celebrated our 40th anniversary this month. Next month will mark our 30th anniversary in our house and living in the town we do. At the end of the year, I become an official "senior citizen" and will be covered by Medicare (hopefully not ObamaCare).

What I have been thinking about as of late is the 30 years we have lived in this town. I was a long distance commuter for a good part of that 30 years. Traveling to Bloomington, to Fridley, to Minneapolis and to St. Paul. All places I needed to go to earn a paycheck. Then I think back on how our little town has grown up. The population is now over 30,000, and it is the quintessential "bedroom community".

Everything has changed and evolved in our town except for one thing - transportation. If I was still working, my primary and only mode of transportation would be my car. Period. Now I can drive to a neighboring community that has a "Park and Ride" and use mass transit - however, if I did not own a car, I would be out of luck in getting there.

The Met Council, who has hijacked every part of community life from sewers, to water, to transportation, to housing, to "groupthink", receives a "classic fail" for how they have not infused mass transit in our community. Oh, years ago I head the rumors this was punishment for our sleepy little village not allowing more high density housing to be built. When I first heard that, I thought it was utter nonsense. However, the more I learn about how the unelected, unregulated Met Council works, it surprises me not.

So here we sit, in the middle of Shangri-La, except for transportation. Heck, we don't even have bike trails up where we live. I always chuckle when once or twice a year we hear "Leave your car at home day. Use a bus, run, walk or bike to work." Most places I worked would have been a one or two day journey by foot. We are stranded, stranded with a car.

When we sell this house and move somewhere else, my bet is the transportation will still be the same. It is okay with me however, as I like driving my car or truck. I just don't want to be harassed by Big Brother as I have had, and still have, no other options.