Houston v Berlin: why is Europe’s public transport so much better than America’s?

How does a journey by public transport in Houston compare with one in Berlin? The answer tells us a lot about the different infrastructure in America and Europe. Subscribe to The Guardian on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/user/theguardian?sub_confirmation=1 According to a recent report, the US would need to invest an enormous $4.6tn over the next 20 years to bring its public transit up to “world-class” status, which stands in stark contrast to Europe where most major cities are served by networks that stretch deep into the suburbs. While there are rural regions in Europe that depend on cars, Americans depend heavily on driving and those unable to do so due to age, disability or the rising costs of car ownership routinely face a laborious gauntlet of patchy public transport options. “Essentially you are forced to live like a second-class citizen without a car,” said Kari Watkins, a transit expert at the University of California. To test the limits of the public transport system in Houston, Texas, we sent the Guardian’s environment reporter Oliver Milman on a journey for the same amount of travel time as our European environment correspondent, Ajit Niranjan, in Berlin. Houston has just 16 transit vehicles per 100,000 people via its bus and light rail system. Berlin has 122 transit vehicles per 100,000 residents, according to a report by Transportation for America. Watch to see how the two fared. How does your city stack up against Houston? Let us know in the comments. #publictransit #publictransport #texas #berlin