Quote:
Originally Posted by Quixote
Conversely, SF, DC, and Boston: A) have more obviously car-oriented design features, B) are far wealthier cities, and C) have more de-centralized employment centers. Yet, all three have lower car ownership rates and much higher percentages of non-car commuters.
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Size matters.
SF, DC, and Boston are all cute little boutique cities with around 50 sq. miles of land area, and not a ton of outer neighborhood streetcar suburbia "fluff", at least not on a relative basis.
Philly is a regular old big city with about 135 sq. miles of land area.
If you carved out the most urban 50 sq. miles of inner Philly, I'd wager a fair sum that the gap in some of those stats you're talking about would significantly narrow.