By: Cadence Wright
One thing that makes living in the city great are the many ways to get around in the city. Sometimes, people have to drive a long way from where they live to where they work. By the time they pay for gas at the end of the week, they learn they spend a lot of money just trying to get around the city. In the big cities, they even have to have toll passes to get from one part of the city to the other part of the city. If they don’t have a pass they have to pay a toll just to use the highway. It can be frustrating if you’re not used to it.
Uber and Lyft have helped many people get around their city. In big cities, people hate traffic jams. If they are in an Uber or a Lyft car at least they don’t have to deal with the traffic headache because someone else is driving. It can be good money too. If you’re going from the airport to downtown you can get almost $30 for one ride. If you live in large cities like Los Angeles and New York, I’m sure it’s even more to ride Uber and Lyft. There are people who make a living just driving for Uber and Lyft. They even deliver food too.
Last week, I was in Baltimore for a convention. I saw people renting scooters. They have those in New Orleans too. You can pay for a certain amount of time and ride scooters all over the city to avoid traffic and keep from buying gas. I don’t see this much in most cities but they do have bike lanes everywhere now. It’s funny how bikes have become so popular that they made a special lane for bikers to ride in just like they are driving a car.
In some cities like New Orleans and San Francisco, they have Street Cars. In some places, they call them Trollies. They look like trains but they ride on the street right with the cars. In New Orleans, the streetcars run right in the middle of the road. They have to obey the red lights and stop signs just like cars have to. The streetcars and the bus line are run by the same company.
Some people like to ride the bus because they are faster. Others like the Street Car because they have more stops, meaning they can get you closer to the exact place you’re trying to go.
Cars will never go out of style. However, the kind of cars we drive will change. A lot of people are starting to switch to electric cars now. They don’t take gas. My dad has a Tesla. We charge it at the Tesla Supercharger for free. Some people even have a charger at their house. They now have electric Audis, BMWs, and Ford has a new electric F150 coming out. In the Tesla, you can add “Auto Pilot” in your car. That means the car will drive for you for 45 minutes without you having to steer it at all. Electric cars are definitely the future and more people are starting to get on it.
In New York, it is way different because they barely drive. When I went to New York for the summer trip all I saw was people walking. Some people take the subway to their jobs and they take the subway home. They can buy a pass that lets them ride the subway all month without having to buy passes every time they get on it. The only time I saw somebody get in a car is when they got a taxi. People in New York do it all. They ride bikes, Uber, Subway, and Buses. Most of all they walk. Things are changing so fast by the time I get in college they will probably have hover cars. Hopefully, they will have them by my 16th birthday!
