Today I Learned
What did you learn today? Share it with us!
We learn something new every day. This is a community dedicated to informing each other and helping to spread knowledge.
The rules for posting and commenting, besides the rules defined here for lemmy.world, are as follows:
Rules (interactive)
Rule 1- All posts must begin with TIL. Linking to a source of info is optional, but highly recommended as it helps to spark discussion.
** Posts must be about an actual fact that you have learned, but it doesn't matter if you learned it today. See Rule 6 for all exceptions.**
Rule 2- Your post subject cannot be illegal or NSFW material.
Your post subject cannot be illegal or NSFW material. You will be warned first, banned second.
Rule 3- Do not seek mental, medical and professional help here.
Do not seek mental, medical and professional help here. Breaking this rule will not get you or your post removed, but it will put you at risk, and possibly in danger.
Rule 4- No self promotion or upvote-farming of any kind.
That's it.
Rule 5- No baiting or sealioning or promoting an agenda.
Posts and comments which, instead of being of an innocuous nature, are specifically intended (based on reports and in the opinion of our crack moderation team) to bait users into ideological wars on charged political topics will be removed and the authors warned - or banned - depending on severity.
Rule 6- Regarding non-TIL posts.
Provided it is about the community itself, you may post non-TIL posts using the [META] tag on your post title.
Rule 7- You can't harass or disturb other members.
If you vocally harass or discriminate against any individual member, you will be removed.
Likewise, if you are a member, sympathiser or a resemblant of a movement that is known to largely hate, mock, discriminate against, and/or want to take lives of a group of people, and you were provably vocal about your hate, then you will be banned on sight.
For further explanation, clarification and feedback about this rule, you may follow this link.
Rule 8- All comments should try to stay relevant to their parent content.
Rule 9- Reposts from other platforms are not allowed.
Let everyone have their own content.
Rule 10- Majority of bots aren't allowed to participate here.
Unless included in our Whitelist for Bots, your bot will not be allowed to participate in this community. To have your bot whitelisted, please contact the moderators for a short review.
Partnered Communities
You can view our partnered communities list by following this link. To partner with our community and be included, you are free to message the moderators or comment on a pinned post.
Community Moderation
For inquiry on becoming a moderator of this community, you may comment on the pinned post of the time, or simply shoot a message to the current moderators.
view the rest of the comments
Growing up nearby, sometimes my school would have class trips into the city. Being on the buses and seeing the traffic from within was enough for me to decide, "I never want to drive in NYC."
I've only driven inside the city proper twice in my life, and it was as awful as I expected it to be. Trains are the way to go, no question. Stations that go there are abundant in the nearby areas, and the subway can get you almost anywhere you need to within the city, with walking for the rest. Pedestrians dominate crosswalks, traffic lights be damned, like roving herds migrating to the next watering hole. The light turns green for the vehicles, but there's still two dozen people stepping off the curb - traffic waits for them to pass.
I can't imagine living there and owning a car at all. Even if parking weren't an issue, it just doesn't make sense. You need incredible situational awareness, abundant patience, but also the ability to make merges and turns within tight spaces while surrounded by drivers who see your emerging presence as a threat. Both times I've driven there included near-accidents from other drivers.
If you're thinking of visiting NYC, for your safety and sanity, do not drive there. If you're traveling by car from somewhere farther away, do yourself a favor and find long term parking by a train station outside the city. This is not hyperbole, driving in the city is a miserable experience that you do not need. It's one of the few places in the US where pedestrians rule the roads - embrace it and get your steps in, and take the subway for longer distances. Your legs might feel sore by the end, but it's worth it, I promise.
So a tourist who only went to Manhattan (20 years ago probably) has a relevant opinion.
I also grew up nearby. My first and only time driving in NYC was for work. I was 19 and my boss was having a bunch of us go renovate his wife's apartment in Brooklyn so he could rent it out. So we all meet at the shop and proceed to follow him to the city.
This fucking asshole starts driving like he's in a race in his brand new jeep suv, I'm in an old ass work van. I managed to keep sight of him till we got to the Lincoln tunnel before he just disappeared. When I finally got through the tunnel I had no fucking idea where to go. It was the early days of smartphones and Google maps was just useless inside the city. It took me a few hours to get to this guy's apartment. Trying to figure out the city with all the traffic was stressful as fuck. Finally somehow find my way to the apartment and this asshole starts berating me.
I should have called him a stupid asshole but being a shy anxious 19 year old I just apologized and took it.
The few times I have had to drive in NYC - just drive like you're playing Mario cart, the rules only exist for people who follow them, and from my experience, no one does.
Counterpoint:
I live in a suburb to the north. This week I drove in for a concert at Radio City. There was traffic and crowds. Those are expected in a city. An app provided a method to secure a parking spot before I left home. At the show, we met several folks that had traveled large distances to attend. After, the street crowds were celebrating the Knicks' win with enthusiasm. We grabbed some street food and drove home on empty streets.
I find it nice to know that I am so close to so many of the world's best museums and other cultural highlights.
Driving has trade-offs. The ability to come and go as you please vs. carefree travel. Taking what you want or being limited to what you can carry. Commuting is best by transit. Special or occasional trips are best by car.
I disagree, but respectfully. I'm glad driving in the city has been less stressful for you, but even for special occasions, I always opt for the train. I usually bring a bag/backpack full of water bottles, and maybe sunscreen at this time of year.
The only downside I can see is if mobility is an issue. If walking for long amounts of time is a problem, I can see preferring your own car. Otherwise, I don't mind walking multiple blocks to get to each of the museums. Though, I do wish the museums had longer hours. Every time I've gone to the Museum of Natural History, I've felt rushed along, because it closes at 5:30 for some reason. There's just so much cool stuff to see, and never enough time to see it all.