What a Difference an Ocean Makes

[nativeomahan]

Having spent the past 2 weeks visiting 4 countries in Europe, it has been a reminder of how things could be back in Omaha. Traveling via a mix of bus, taxi, subway, boat, trams and on foot, here are a few observations, in no particular order:
1. I saw/ experienced not a single pothole on any street in any of the 4 countries I spent time in. Not a single pothole. Not even one.
2. The sidewalks were in equally perfect condition. Many were constructed of granite or cobblestones which had been meticulously fit to ensure a smooth surface. I actually watched one crew of Spanish immigrants work their magic yesterday installing new cobblestone streets and sidewalks in Switzerland. Photos will be added later on.
3. I saw 5 significant road construction projects in all of my travels. Three were on rural stretches of freeways in Germany. The other two were in French cities. That’s it, just 5 projects.
4. Cities big and small run efficient, inexpensive to use mass transit systems. The ones we rode today in Switzerland cost the equivalent of 10 dollars per person for unlimited rides throughout Zürich and its inner suburbs in a 24 hour period. That’s an area of about 1 million people.
5. Trams and subways were clean. The systems operated in multiple communities were spotlessly clean. Not so much as a gum wrapper to be found anywhere inside the cars or at the stations. I will say that many Paris subway stations are old and without elevators or working escalators. They aren’t shiny clean, and are often crowded. But they get you where you need to go efficiently. Purchasing a multi-day pass is a great way for tourists to use the system very economically. Or you can purchase single rides (which include unlimited transfers on the same system) for €2.55 per ride. This can take you all the way from Charles DeGaulle airport out in the boondocks to the Eiffel Tower and beyond for €2.55. Lots of people do this.
6. We were told by our guide today that over 3,000 trains and trams pass through the massive Zurich railway station area each day. Those trains and trams carry 450,000 passengers each day,
7. Approximately 250,000 non residents of Zürich enter the city each work day, Many are not Swiss citizens.
8. Approximately 400,000 non citizens commute to work in Luxembourg on an average workday.
9. Even small cities of under 150,000 residents operate efficient tram/ trolly/ bus systems. The system in Reims, France, a town of 177,000 residents, has trolleys that run lines with over 20 stops along their routes.
10. Automobiles certainly exist in Europe, but few city residents own a car. In Zürich, motor vehicles are banned from large portions of the center city after 12:00 Noon each day. Delivery vehicles are allowed between 6 am and Noon. Electric scooters and bicycles are allowed on the streets 24/7.
11. amount of bicycles and motorbikes definitely outnumber cars and trucks in Paris.
12. In two full weeks I have yet to see a single pickup truck of any kind. They aren’t sold here, and they would be impossible to park.
13. Virtually every single taxi in Paris, Zürich, Basel and other large cities are black Mercedes Benz autos. No yellow cabs anywhere.
14. France and Germany, and to a lesser extent elsewhere, are covered with highway graffiti. It’s everywhere, particularly in rural and suburban areas. Less so in cities. Much worse than in the U.S.
15. Autobahns and freeways are everywhere in rural areas, connecting cities and towns of even 10-20,000 residents. The only 2 lane roads we were on took us through mountainous terrain.
16.There are virtually no “at grade” railroad crossings that intersect roadways anywhere in Western Europe.
17. Almost no one is overweight. Which might explain the relative lack of gyms. People just lead healthy lifestyles. Except for the French, who still seem to have a love affair with cigarettes.
18. Lovers of great architecture need to spend time here. The cities are dazzling in their historic beauty, and most new construction projects are built to inspire. We even passed by an electric generating plant today that looked like it belonged in a high end office park…except for the tall smokestack.
19. Not much is less expensive in Europe than in the U.S. (well, other than bread, medical care, education, and public transportation). But beer and wine are less expensive. Especially wine. The drinking age most places is 16 for beer, sometimes higher for wine and liquor.
20. Summers have become miserably hot. Zürich is experiencing its hottest summer since records began being kept several hundred years ago.

[WorldStreet]

Interesting points. I have a similar experience across the other ocean, including the lower drinking age, but without the graffiti. I also noticed years ago in Germany that so many of the train cars were marked with graffiti. Both Europe and northeast Asia (China, Korea, Japan) have many amazing public transportation options (high speed rail and extensive modern clean subways systems). Both have amazing historical buildings, but I give the edge to Europe for beauty of buildings. Shanghai does earn a point though for having so many EV cars and buses on the streets and highways.

[remline]

17. Almost no one is overweight. Which might explain the relative lack of gyms. People just lead healthy lifestyles.

Thanks for the detailed and interesting trip report!

#17 is something I likewise noticed in Japan. I assumed that a significant factor was that everyone had to walk a decent way to get to/from the train/subway stations. Great exercise, that! But also, I heard that obesity is a shameful thing in their culture.

[Big E]

Yeah but do they have fReEdOmZ?!?!!??11!?

[ita]

Yeah but do they have fReEdOmZ?!?!!??11!?

This made me lol. Thanks!

[Louie]

Yeah, I would have enjoyed europe more when i was there if i had my .357 magnum on my waist because im a big ole scaredy cat.

[stadsborgare]

Having spent the past 2 weeks visiting 4 countries in Europe, it has been a reminder of how things could be back in Omaha. Traveling via a mix of bus, taxi, subway, boat, trams and on foot, here are a few observations, in no particular order:
1. I saw/ experienced not a single pothole on any street in any of the 4 countries I spent time in. Not a single pothole. Not even one.

The climate in Omaha is unlike any in Europe, not only because of the temperature extremes we have, but more importantly, the number of freeze-thaw cycles we have in winter, which is quite a lot, and prime conditions for forming potholes. Therefore it's practically unavoidable.

Every time water freezes it expands, and when it unfreezes it leaves a void, and the weight of traffic collapses the void, and then when it freezes again, it expands again further weakening the pavement and when it unfreezes the voids get bigger and the pavement is further weakened under the weight of traffic. And so on. No pavement can take this abuse, which is our weather.

Also the colder it gets, like the sub-zero weather we often get here, that European cities don't experience unless you go to Russia, the pavement is made ever more brittle and thus weakens the pavement moreso.

The only way to prevent potholes in Omaha is to keep the water out, and that's why the streetcar people are taking pains to create subdrains and making sure the tracks are slightly elevated above the street so water won't stay there. It will run off and do its expanding somewhere else.

[nativeomahan]

I’m sorry but blaming Omaha’s weather for the terrible design and construction of our streets and sidewalks just doesn’t cut it. European cities don’t exist inside a snow globe. They get exposed to subfreezing weather from Britain and France and Iberia all the way east to Asia. My previous trip to Paris featured a 6” snowstorm in March. I’ve also been in London when snow blanketed the city. I think the problem lies deeper. A few weeks ago it was 106f in Paris, so they experience extreme heat just like we do.
Here we tend to award contracts to the lowest bidder, and the tendency is to cut corners in order to lowball bids. Street curbs in Europe are not concrete, they are made of stone. The same is often true with sidewalks, and sometimes streets. Our guides repeatedly pointed out sidewalks in our tours that were over 500 years old and still functioning and safe to use. Even in Omaha many of our oldest streets seem to be in much better condition compared with streets less than 20 years old.

[Busguy2010]

No reason why we couldnt do it. Omaha was built on brick roads. Would have been extra cool if they paved the streetcar lanes with brick.