Why Aesthetics Do Sadly Matter

So I'll start by saying that my default orientation is that when we spend money on urbanist issues, the money should go to doing as much as possible: more bike lane, more transit, more parks, etc.Thus my default would be to say that spending that same money to make things pretty is a waste: that decoration could be used to have another few miles of track, or another exit on a station, or something.But I have had to grapple with the fact that this is fundamentally short-sighted, and indeed counterproductive, for the following reasons:1. People Gotta Feel Comfortable Using ItThis is really all the reasons rolled into one, if you interpret it correctly, but for these purposes I'll define it a bit more narrowly than that: people need to want to use the service, system, or project, and to not be repeled by its appearance either aesthetically or in terms of cleanliness or repair. Look at this ramp in Chicago. It's technically perfectly functional, but it is very worn, and doesn't induce…

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