Iannelli

Gen Z is politically outspoken, including on urban planning. Grayson Eklund discusses obstacles to expanding public transit, such as politicians prioritizing electric vehicles over transit. Michigan, a Democratic state, hasn't applied for rail corridor funding, while red states like Ohio have. Opposition from Republicans isn't a major obstacle, but willingness to spend political capital is. Americans want better accessibility in cities, and driving may become optional in the future. Gen Z is known for being one of the most politically outspoken generations, especially when it comes to issues such as climate change and LGBTQ rights. But one issue that has recently amassed quite a following is urban planning, an issue in the United States that has frequently stayed in the background. The United States is often criticized due to its efficient use of zoning, reliance on automobiles, and lack of efficient and accessible public transit. Today we are speaking with Grayson Eklund. Grayson Eklund is a sophomore at Lansing Community College and is an intern for Representative Cara Hope. He hopes to one day be in politics to be able to expand Michigan's public transit. So Grayson, what would you say is the biggest obstacle when it comes to expanding public transit right now, either culturally or politically? It's a lot of things. And it's not only is a lot of things, but it's a combination of things. So for example, part of the issue is politicians not wanting to spend the political capital that it takes to say, you know, kind of change our trajectory towards electric vehicles. Because right now, you know, if you look at, you know, Gretchen Whitmer's proposals for the climate and for, you know, transportation in general, they almost all have to do with electric vehicles and subsequently giving, you know, tax credits or rebates to these big companies that create these cars. So GM, Ford, et cetera, et cetera. So I think one of the big obstacles from primarily, like the democratic lens, like coming at it from like a democratic lawmaker lens, I would say the biggest issue is kind of not necessarily sway away, but also prioritize transit and electric vehicles and not just electric vehicles. Because right now, you know, we have like, for example, the corridor ID program that the federal government is using to identify new passenger rail corridors that need to be funded. And so for example, Ohio, which is a red state, I think we can pretty clearly call it a red state at this point. They're a red state, but they signed up for three routes to be studied. They signed up for the Columbus, Cincinnati, and I forgot the other city, sorry, but there's that one. Then there's the Toledo to Detroit. And then there's one other route in Ohio that I forgot, but they applied for three routes to get studied. Michigan applied for zero. And we have a democratic supermajority. And so it's like, it's, you know, we have the votes to get those and we have the political priority to get those things done. But the issue is that a lot of people from the left side of things are looking at like, okay, well, electric vehicles, electric vehicles, electric vehicles, instead of maybe we should look at trains. And so just kind of like, I don't know, putting the idea that like, this could be a thing that like, we could have trains, I would say that's another thing. Honestly, I think the opposition from Republicans and more right side is not a huge obstacle towards public transportation, because like I said, it's like North Carolina, Ohio, even Florida have had some of the best public transportation expansions in the last 10 years, even five years. I mean, you look at Bright Line, the newest high speed rail line happened in the state where the governor is DeSantis, right? So it's like, it's not necessarily a red or blue thing, but more of a willing to spend political capital kind of thing. And finding politicians that are willing to spend that political capital on expanding public transportation. It's clear that many Americans are dissatisfied when it comes to the lack of accessibility in our cities. After all, you can only build so many golf courses and parking lots before people get fed up. However, with the demand for it becoming higher and higher, it's likely that one day, many cities in the United States will make driving optional.