The Great American Transit Disaster

“American transit agencies are standing on the brink of a devastating fiscal cliff. . . . Dire though the present situation is, this is hardly the first time that transit officials have been locked in a Sisyphean struggle to maintain service levels with shrinking funding and ridership. As Bloom, a professor of urban policy and planning at Hunter College, describes in his new book, The Great American Transit Disaster, US public transportation has lurched from one crisis to the next throughout the past century.” * Bloomberg CityLab *
“In this excellent socioeconomic history, Bloom offers a comprehensive and thought-provoking account of the rise and fall of US mass transit, skillfully assessing successes and stumbles so that we may learn from them and correct course.” * Booklist *
“Serves as a powerful introduction for urban scholars, practitioners, and students interested in American public transit policy. Offering extensive historical hindsight, the book nicely prefaces any consideration of current trends related to public transit.” * Journal of Urban Affairs *
“A timely exploration of America’s experience with transit.” * Journal of the American Planning Association *
“Bloom begins The Great American Transit Disaster by debunking the popular historical conspiracy that big auto and tire manufacturers destroyed a robust urban streetcar system in the United States. But if it wasn’t an elaborate and nefarious plot on the part of the automobile industry to destroy a dense network of public urban transportation, what did? . . . This question sits at the center of Bloom’s extensively researched and expertly argued exploration of the demise of urban public transit in the United States. And, as in the best historical research and writing, his answer is layered and multifaceted.” * Pacific Historical Review *
“Bloom’s discussion of the centrality of white supremacy to post–World War II transit planning is a major contribution. . . . Everyone interested in the future of American cities and suburbs should consult this fine book.” * Journal of American History *
“A worthy addition to Chicago’s Historical Studies of Urban America series.” * Technology and Culture *
“Bloom makes a compelling case that Americans did this to themselves by demanding better streets for cars at the expense of transit, and favoring low-density, suburban living that makes cars indispensable and transit hard to justify. . . . The book’s greatest strength is its hard look at how racism helped ruin US transit.” * Newcity *
“The Great American Transit Disaster presents a thoughtful and thorough history of public transit development in a number of major American cities. As in his previous books, Bloom makes a significant contribution to the history of twentieth-century urban America.” * Jon C. Teaford, author of The American Suburb: The Basics *
“Bloom is a distinguished and prolific scholar of American urban politics. In this cogent and deeply researched book, he seeks to explain why leaders in cities such as Atlanta, Detroit, and Chicago chose to invest in highways and airways rather than mass transit. Bloom, wisely and perceptively, avoids discredited anti-bus and anti-streetcar ideas, focusing instead on pay-as-you-go transit, auto-centric planning, and white flight. Nick Bloom, as always, is readable, assignable, and compelling.” -- Mark H. Rose, coauthor of A Good Place to Do Business: The Politics of Downtown Renewal since 1945