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How Bankrupt American Cities Stay Alive - Debt [ST04]

Not Just Bikes · explainer · Watch on YouTube

Transit, cities & urban planningMacroeconomics & financial crises

What it is

Not Just Bikes explains how many American suburbs, built all at once rather than incrementally, cannot cover their infrastructure costs and survive on growing debt. It draws on Strong Towns' work on the growth Ponzi scheme.

Why Hacker News recommends it

Recommended as an introduction to the finances of suburban sprawl and its long-term consequences.

  • 7 people recommended it
  • 5 different months
  • 2 strong recommendations
  • first 2021, last 2024

What HN commenters said

  1. “also has an excellent series of videos based on work from Strong Towns”

    Series of videos based on Strong Towns work.

    benrbray, 2021-07 · Strong recommendation · in “The Growth Ponzi Scheme”

  2. “I highly recommend this video on the finances around urban sprawl and their long term consequences”

    Finances of urban sprawl and long term consequences.

    donjoe, 2022-01 · Strong recommendation · in “Charge, Baby, Charge for Parking”

  3. “Great channel for those interested in urbanism.”

    Collaboration with Strong Towns on city finances.

    JBlue42, 2021-05 · Recommendation · in “Strong Towns Has Filed a Lawsuit Against the Minnesota Board of Engineering”

  4. “Not Just Bikes has some excellent content about this”

    Explains cost of sprawl per capita.

    orn688, 2022-01 · Recommendation · in “Tokyo: A big city that is also pleasant to live in”

  5. “Not Just Bikes and their String Towns initiative is really eye-opening.”

    Debt crisis of small cities.

    V__, 2022-01 · Recommendation · in “One gemini battery nearly doubles Tesla Model S range”

  6. “other HN readers may find it interesting as well”

    Channel on car-centric design and alternatives.

    jeofken, 2022-09 · Recommendation · in “A method to promote sleep in crying infants using the transport response [pdf]”

  7. “the following NotJustBikes videos are a good introduction of the subject”

    Good introduction to suburban infrastructure subsidies.

    crote, 2024-06 · Recommendation · in “Rent in Cities Skylines 2 was too high, so the devs removed landlords”

Excerpts from Hacker News comments, linked to the originals. Summaries and labels were written by a language model from those comments.

Topics: strong towns, municipal debt, suburbs, urban planning, growth ponzi scheme

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