试论20世纪60年代以前美国城市公共交通的兴衰

The Rise and Fall of Urban Public Transportation in the United States before 1960s

20世纪60年代以前,美国城市公共交通大体经历了兴起、繁荣和衰落三个阶段。1830-1890年为"马拉街车"时代,是公共交通起步阶段,同一时期,地铁、缆车和通勤铁路也发展起来;1890-1920年为"有轨电车"时代,是公共交通的繁荣阶段,有轨电车成为这一时期城市最主要的交通工具;而进入20世纪20年代后,由于公交行业各种内部和外部因素的影响,以有轨电车为代表的公共交通开始衰落,美国逐步进入"汽车时代"。

Urban Public Transportation in the United States basically experienced rise, prosperity and fall before 1960s. 1830s- 1890s is an era of horse-drawn streetcar, which is the beginning of public transportation, subways, cable cars and commuter trains developed as well in this period. 1890s - 1920s is an era of electric streetcar, which is the prosperous period of public transportation, the electric streetcar became the main transport in American cities. However, since 1920s, the transit industry began to decline, influenced by different factors inside and outside of transit industry. And the United States stepped into an era of automobiles and suburbanization.