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[+] 17 points 1 year ago (9 children)
  • [+] -11 points 1 year ago* (8 children)

    Is tragedy of the commons a solved problem? Genuinely wondering, because it seems to be the most obvious reason why free public transit shouldn't be done.

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  • [–] 8 points 1 year ago

    The maximum amount of resources (public transport) one can take is limited. Not everyone wants to take the resource. It is possible to provide more than sufficient resources for everyone.

    I don't think this is a tragedy of the common problem

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  • [–] 6 points 1 year ago

    Tragedy of the Commons is why the roads keep overfilling with commuter cars carrying one person at a time. Public busses and trains would be a more efficient use of funds then building even more roads on the limited ground.

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  • [–] 2 points 1 year ago (1 child)

    Was it ever actually a problem, or some BS made up by “economists” to justify privatization of public resources.

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  • [–] 2 points 1 year ago*

    It was coined by an ecologist (Garrett Hardin), and (answering myself here after finding out) famously rebutted by the economist Elinor Ostrom, who won the Nobel Prize for her work. So tragedy of the commons, while a real phenomenon and can happen, is not inevitable by current understanding.

    Like in a lot of things, the devil is in the details.

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  • [–] 1 point 1 year ago (1 child)

    If free public transit means people use it, that's a good thing.

    I think it extremely unlikely people will abuse it to the point of ruining the service.

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  • [–] 1 point 1 year ago

    I can imagine a few ways it can go sideways:

    1. People start making perfectly walkable or bikable trips by bus

    2. People start making trips they didn't need to make at all

    3. Public transit becomes dependent on public funding, which may fluctuate with economic downturns -- whereas a private company would be more free to compensate

    As a practical example, Tallinn, Estonia introduced free public transit some years back. Oddly enough, it had almost no effect to car usage although public transit use increased.

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