Why It Sucks Being a Transit Planner

January 22, 2008 - It could be cause I'm been having a bad month, but lately, I've been thinking how and why my chosen profession, urban planning, often gets no respect from the majority of the public. When you think about the great professions that are out there, most people would automatically think about doctors, lawyers, dentists, and heck, even accountants. But do people think about planners? nope. Sure, we have a professional organization and planning programs at most universities are considered "professional" ones, but really, do most people know what planners do? do most people know what urban planning is?

This gets especially difficult when we talk about transit. Now that my job does not deal with transit anymore (don't get me started on why), I guess I can freely discuss why it sucks being a transit planner. Sure, it's cool and it's exciting and it's hip. Transit is on the verge of a comeback after decades of neglect after all. But really, does a transit planner get the respect he/she deserves? Nope.

To me, the public doesn't acknowledge nor recognize transit planners because EVERYONE IS A TRANSIT PLANNER. That's everyone who rides transit that is. Why? because everyone who rides transit has his/her own views/opinions on how and why transit should be planned and operated in a certain way. That's fine - everyone is entitled their own opinion, except that the majority of the public does not know the real facts and issues about transit. We (myself included) complain about the TTC being slow, unreliable, and overcrowded, but how many of us know that the TTC is strapped for cash because it receives no operation funding from the province? or we often compare our subway system to that of Madrid or Hong Kong or even the ones in China, but yet, many of us don't know that projects in these places have little to no Environmental Assessment criteria? or yeah, we can have MoveOntario 2020, but without operation funding, the TTC may not even be able to run it's Transit City LRTs or that subway to Richmond Hill.

What makes me mad is when I read on forums, blogs, and editorials, people complain about transit, yet they know so little about it. As a planner, it makes me feel like my profession doesn't matter, because you have all these idiots that think they can do a better job. Some of these people (some of my friends included), don't even know that there are different levels of government (for the record, I am not responsible for the the potholes on your street, nor the tree that's dying in your front yard). Try asking your friends who our Prime Minister, Premier and Mayor is - I bet you half of them would not know.

So yeah, being a planner sucks. We get no respect, no acknowledgment. Remind me why I went to planning school again?