Anyone have any good sources on the crafting of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (a.k.a. PRIIA, a.k.a. the law that governs much of intercity pax rail planning) and/or on federal politics around Amtrak more generally in the 2000s?

There's probably a story to be told here about American railroads not really caring a whole lot for suburban operations which create the very high train volumes you might try to design a station around specifically.

Anyone have any good sources on the crafting of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (a.k.a. PRIIA, a.k.a. the law that governs much of intercity pax rail planning) and/or on federal politics around Amtrak more generally in the 2000s?

One of my favorite people to work with is in need of financial support after a horrific incident. If you've been an Amtrak employee or customer, and have ridden the cardinal, you likely know Heather. If you can, please donate to help her recover. www.gofundme.com/f/rally-for-...

Sunday evening reminder: I'm hiring! Job posting closes Christmas Eve, so if you're interested, get your application in now. I promise the work is meaningful and mostly fun :-)

No disrespect to Balko and his work against the militarized policing, but this is backwards. It’s otherwise progressive people who drop their principles to defend our system of auto dependence and backfill equity or anti-carceral justifications for it.

Such an elemental yet overlooked reality of planning. If you don't: - Design a new route to add value to the network overall - Make changes to the existing network to incorporate the new asset ...you're kneecapping yourself. A key part of transit hist: homesignalblog.wordpress.com/2024/07/12/t...

I think it's shameful that during a second Trump administration, and after NYC voters rejected a return to moderate, conciliatory governance, that a Democrat would tout the entirety of the Council's Republican caucus as her supporters.

Back in spring, I made final images of some of the buildings slated for demolition along the path of the Red Line Extension. These were captured over a monthlong span when demolition permits were getting greenlit, wrecking crews finally dispatching after asbestos remediation and utility shutoffs.

The US Steel Edgar Thomson Works plant is a fantastic photo subject, and I was lucky enough to catch a Union Railroad movement with nice backlighting when I visited there recently. www.flickr.com/gp/traing33k...

I've had zero to do with it other than watching as an Orange Line rider, but rapid implementation of dropbacks on the OL is one of the coolest things I've seen in my time at the MBTA. From a process improvement exploration project to full-bore implementation in just a few months.

very cool system, but it’s always seemed a bizarre choice that the rem is not identified as part of the metro system, even moreso now that it’s expanded. i know that rem is legally, technically its own thing but come on: it’s really just more metro!

I am continually impressed by Alissa's coverage of LA transportation and also how insane LA's transportation spending is.

For decades, everyone has been wondering: would the Pittsburgh Skybus actually have worked? 50 years after the project was canceled, we have the tools* (Subway Builder) to find out. (*This is, at best, half-serious.)

New Haven’s fascinating parkitecture, part 2

hakeem jeffries sees his highest political calling as sniping on brooklyn democratic factional battles and new yorkers should have the opportunity to vote to free up his calendar so he can devote more time to that

RAN after this driver to take a picture of his incredible vest!!! I want one so bad but he said they’re only available for MTA workers 🏆🚍🏆

there was a time when Seoul Metro management and local politicians balked at the idea of installing platform screen doors because of its cost. they pointed to the New York City MTA as an example as to why NOT install platform screen doors

Read this eloquent and pained thread from my good friend and colleague @zagush.bsky.social. The pain caused by short-sighted decisions about transit in our society is immense. And as he says, in many cases choices to weaken transit make achieving policy goals literally impossible.

7) Pittsburgh: the second rail tunnel should connect the East and West Busways via Liberty Ave/former Wabash bridge alignment. Also capturing South Hills branch and a new one to Oakland/Hazelwood @struthious.bsky.social www.google.com/maps/d/edit?...

A lot has happened to PATH in the past 25 years -- 9/11, major construction work, COVID, etc. But consistent across all of these events have been ensuing reductions in off-pk service levels: since 2005, the number of PATH trips crossing the Hudson on Saturdays has fallen by *50%*

Free bus proponents have this default resignation over any possible efficiencies from buses in subway deserts, stemming from a general distrust of the transit agency. A mentality driven from austerity and not abundance. As someone who works in transit to make it better, this is hugely depressing!

the republican party is a modern day Slave Power and the only way forward for this country is to sweep it into the ash heap of history

Sigh. Transit advocates have been asking for *years* for more resources to make buses better: Countdown clocks, car cameras, more service, accessibility training, sheltered bus stops, TPS, and so on. Free fares was never it and we're no closer to getting what we've BEEN asking for w/ this attitude.

“A mayor who sucks shit” was a four-year sociological experiment conducted by CUNY. The study has now concluded. Thank you for your participation.

We at the Daily News have been working without a contract for three years. Haven't had raises in more than five. We have no newsroom. No parental leave. We were issued laptops that can't hold a charge. All this while our owners at Alden Global Capital continue to turn a profit.

It's interesting to contrast South Wales Metro Project's priorities (electrification and basic stations accessibility) with Ottawa's Trillium line modernization (faregates and architectural features).

new S(ubstack)-Bahn post: in the 1960s, Paris saw major ridership drops in its Metro and buses and rising deficits. so did every major French city. the head urban planner of Paris warned of a transit "catastrophe." how did France rescue its public transit? www.substack-bahn.net/p/how-france...

Did the Federal DOT just accidentally file a letter containing legal advice from the DOJ, instead of a letter addressed to the Judge, in the MTA v Duffy case?

"Down with the BRT, long live the bus." I've just published an unusually polemical, argumentative post on my Substack explaining why I think Bus Rapid Transit is a failed planning concept. open.substack.com/pub/marcochi...

Pittsburgh’s transit system is stronger than you might expect—it powers a >10% transit mode share that outperforms many bigger cities with lots more infrastructure. Cuts like this are a huge, totally needless step backward. And transit systems often struggle to recover from these kinds of events.

My new interview in NY Mag about rising pedestrian deaths in the US—and potential ways to try to reduce the death toll: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2023/06/why-pedestrian-deaths-are-skyrocketing-in-america.html

The most photogenic side of the Pirelli Tire Building / 1968 / Architect – Marcel Breuer and Robert F. Gatje /r/brutalism

ok let’s start things off here with nyc’s premier urban canyon