←back to thread

US cities pay too much for buses

(www.bloomberg.com)
355 points pavel_lishin | 2 comments | 26 Sep 25 13:57 UTC | HN request time: 0.54s | source
Show context
myrmidon ◴[26 Sep 25 14:24 UTC] No.45386847[source]▶
I think this shows one of the downsides of trade barriers very well: You get stuck with undesirable industries (diesel bus manufacturing), binding capital and labor better used elsewhere (and you easily end up with underperforming, overpriced solutions, too).

But I'm curious how much this actually affects transport costs. If such a bus is used 12h/day, then even overpaying 100% for the vehicle should get outscaled by labor + maintenance pretty quickly, long before the vehicle is replaced...

replies(4): >>45386958 #>>45387972 #>>45389020 #>>45392335 #
mrits ◴[26 Sep 25 14:33 UTC] No.45386958[source]▶
What is wrong with diesel bus manufacturing? Just the exhaust pedestrians have to breath in? It seems near the bottom of the list for things we'd need to solve for carbon emissions.
replies(6): >>45386985 #>>45386995 #>>45387028 #>>45387049 #>>45387060 #>>45387142 #
1. melling ◴[26 Sep 25 14:41 UTC] No.45387060[source]▶
Yes, the exhaust that people have to breathe.

I realize they have improved but aren’t natural gas buses better?

replies(1): >>45389350 #
2. Symbiote ◴[26 Sep 25 18:11 UTC] No.45389350[source]▶
Yes, walking close to the exhaust of a CNG bus is like walking a bit too close to a gas grill/barbecue — hot and a rather chemical, but not noxious and choking like a diesel bus.