Influence of Passenger Rail on the BosWash Megalopolis Corridor ...

<strong>Influence</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Passenger</strong> <strong>Rail</strong> on the BosWash Megalopolis Corridor
Figure 14- Revisited Megalopolis Map (Morrill, 2006)
As depicted on the revisited map, the growth <strong>of</strong> the Megalopolis corridor continued to be based
on the highway mobility in and around the centralized cities rather than limited by the original
fixed passenger rail lines.
In addition to congestion and urban sprawl, the decline <strong>of</strong> the passenger rail system in
Megalopolis affected the social and economic structure <strong>of</strong> the corridor. Once the automobile
was established as the new form <strong>of</strong> mobility, those that could afford a vehicle were able to live
outside the city. However, those that couldn’t afford to buy a car were forced to remain within a
close distance <strong>of</strong> their workplace, typically located in the urban districts, and relied heavily on
the passenger train for mobility between cities (Hanlon et al., 2006). This relationship is still
apparent today where the suffering passenger rail system provides service (mass transit) to riders
that simply cannot afford personal vehicles (Todorovich and Vallabhajosyula, 2007). Due to the
economic influence on transportation mobility, a formation <strong>of</strong> urban clusters within the
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