[www.latimes.com]

This has been the same old story since the end of WWII: a shift to automobiles and away from transit. And if self-driving cars do materialize it could worsen with current non-drivers able to take advantage of self-driving vehicles.

A terrible development for the environment, especially in urban areas, with growing pressure for more highways and parking and lack of political motivation to fund transit.

The transit ops will have to upgrade - like civil works on SMART to lock in its survival. Plus fare stability(control of payroll) and security on board and in stations. If low-lifes take over the trains the decline will only accelerate.

It is hard to get a grasp on how bad this trend will play out but those of us who are old enough remember all too well the postwar electric rail massacre.