20世纪后期美国联邦政府的公共交通政策及其影响

American Federal Transit Policies in the Late 20th Century and Their Effects

19世纪末20世纪初,美国形成了世界上最发达的以有轨电车为主体的城市公共交通体系。然而,此后美国公共交通持续衰落,到20世纪中后期公共交通在美国的城市交通中已经处于无足轻重的地位。为了挽回公共交通持续衰落的局面,自20世纪60年代开始,联邦政府通过了一系列公共交通政策,不断增加公共交通系统的投资,并对其所有制体系和经营方略进行了适当的调整,由此带动了地方政府和州政府发展公共交通的热情,从而在一定程度上遏制了公共交通的衰落,使其呈现出一定程度的复兴局面。

At the beginning of the 20 th century,the United States had the most developed urban transit system in the w orld. But from then on,the transit system of America began to decline,and as of the middle of the 20 th century,the transit system only had a minor status in the w hole American transportation system. In order to stop the declining of the transit system,the federal government passed a series of transit policies from 1960 s,investing more and more money in the transit system,and keeping reforming the ow nership system and operating system. These policies greatly encouraged the enthusiasm of the local governments and state governments in developing transit systems. Therefore the federal transit policies in some extent contained the decline of the American transit system.