Are Californians hypocrites by calling themselves environmental friendly?

Most Californians with the exception of those in san francisco and oakland tend to own automobiles and drive between 30 to 100 miles on a daily basis to get to and from their daily activities(work, grocery shopping, etc). Why isn't much done to promote high speed rail or a better metro system that connects California's cities?



Just look at LA's freeways as an example.

http://images.huffingtonpost.com/2010-01-04-ItOnlyLATraffic_article.jpg

This is every day in Los Angeles. With this many people and a large percentage of them that call themselves "pro-green", why isn't much being done to improve public transportation and "save the environment"? Sure, I see carpool lanes everywhere but is that enough to solve environmental problems?



http://comps.fotosearch.com/comp/GLW/GLW177/traffic-san-diego_~gwp101061.jpg

san diego traffic on a daily basis



san jose traffic on a daily basis

http://sensibletransportation.org/images/merc_040123_1.jpgAre Californians hypocrites by calling themselves environmental friendly?No. On the contrary, California uses less gasoline per capita than any other state. Not only that, but overall, California is the most energy efficient state in the country. When talking about subway systems, the infrastructure cost is huge. They're currently trying to build a high speed rail line in California to connect the north with the south. That project will cost many billions of dollars and will be heavily reliant on federal money, despite the huge amount being raised by bonds in California. The reality is that infrastructure costs money, both to build and maintain. Living in an earthquake zone means that vast amounts of money are being spent to ensure the viability of water resources, buildings, highways and bridges during an earthquake. Consequently, the money simply isn't currently available for massive new projects.Are Californians hypocrites by calling themselves environmental friendly?
I go to L.A. quite a bit for business reasons, and I have to drive through a sheet of plywood just to get into the L.A. Basin. Those people are so busy pointing environmental fingers at everyone else that they have shat where they eat.Are Californians hypocrites by calling themselves environmental friendly?Perhaps you missed the memo, but California is broke. What you want costs money.Are Californians hypocrites by calling themselves environmental friendly?
So people in Cali do work? Wow!Are Californians hypocrites by calling themselves environmental friendly?I ride my bike to work and take public trans. Also, in California the gas used in cars costs more due to our regulations on emission rates and our cars have to pass the most rigorous smog tests in the country. We have carpool lanes to encourage less people driving and more and more people use alternate forms of transportation everyday.



Did you actually look into what we are doing or are you just butt hurt about California for some reason?



EDIT:



Perhaps your lessons in geography need help? California is sitting on the one of the largest and most active fault lines in the world. The San Andres. Putting underground subway systems in an area where earthquakes happen all the time can't work. That's why BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) doesn't run exclusively underground.Are Californians hypocrites by calling themselves environmental friendly?
Actually, a lot of efforts have been made. San Francisco has one of the best public transportation systems in the US, and Los Angeles also has a decent metro system. In November 2008, two major transportation initiatives passed. Los Angeles County voters voted to charge themselves an extra 0.25% sales tax to fund transportation, and the state voters approved $10 billion in bonds for high speed rail.



So you can't say they aren't doing anything. They are actually doing a lot.Are Californians hypocrites by calling themselves environmental friendly?
Uh, high-speed light rail to connect some of our biggest cities HAS been approved and planning begun.



Right now, we're in deep budget deficits, which makes it hard to add lots of public transportation.



How much one drives, especially when there are no other options, isn't the SOLE determinant of how green one lives.



For the record: I've never owned a car. Most of my transportation has been by foot.