New York Has a Streetcar Plan That Isn't Totally Awful

There tend to be three main problems with the way modern streetcars get planned in American cities.

One is related to mobility: when streetcar tracks run in mixed traffic, that leads to conflicts with cars and a glacial service that’s often slower than walking. Another is related to economic development: local leaders spend limited public transportation funding on projects that primarily benefit private real estate interests. A third is that light rail is unnecessarily proposed along a corridor where the good old city bus could do the mobility job and some basic street improvements the economic one.