Sprinting down the sidewalk, out of breath, the bus turns the corner and very quickly it vanishes. It might be thirty minutes until the next bus. That is, if it’s on time.

The U.S. has focused their attention on a car-centric infrastructure, preventing opportunities for interstate rail to be a primary form of transit for its citizens. The closest we have is Amtrak, but even that feels more like a luxury than a necessity, with its seemingly outrageous prices for out of state travel. 

Our history with public transportation goes way back to 1861. Before World War II, suburbs were flooded with streetcar stops for the citizens who wanted to live outside of highly populated urban areas. It wasn’t until post WWII that the country shifted into what we know now: without a car you can’t get anywhere.

Chico had its own story with streetcar transit. In 1904, the Chico Electric Railway created a streetcar system that eventually continued all the way to San Francisco. But in 1947, the system was stopped after it was sold to a railroad company. 

It’s no mystery as to why this happened either. The government hasn’t supported public transit companies when they need funding to stay afloat. 

The U.S. also has an extreme number of abandoned railroads ranging from city-wide to cross-country lines. 

The problem is Democrats and Republicans can’t seem to agree on how to approach the issue. A lot of Republicans oppose expanding public transit because they believe the people they represent would not use the service. This shouldn’t be a partisan issue.

In an interview, Jake Hoffman, an Arizona State Senator, said people love having a personal automobile.

I’m sure people do, but what about the people that can’t afford them? We shouldn’t punish our citizens for not being able to buy a car, we should provide them with ample services to succeed. 

The annual cost of owning a car in the United States is $12,296, according to the Bureau of Transportation. That doesn’t even include the cost of making a car purchase. Kelley Blue Book stated that the cost of purchasing a new car in January 2025 was $48,641, whereas purchasing a used car was averaged at $25,721.

Transit is known to work best in urban areas, but even they don’t get enough funding to keep their services clean and open for the people that need it. Even a city like Chicago is facing multi million dollar budget cuts, which would cause the closure of multiple transit lines. 

With the affordability of cars becoming a thing of the past, it’s time for our government to put in the work and money to support its citizens. Create the infrastructure and make it affordable for people to get to the places they need. 

Marianne Akre can be reached at [email protected]