The glory that was Trans Europ Express...

As an ambivalent member of the PMC I really enjoyed this diatribe against the class that doesn’t think it‘s a class and acts accordingly. American in flavour though relevant to the UK. It revels in the ‘pleasure of hating’ as Hazlitt said of a good polemic. lareviewofbooks.org/article/cour...

Transport campaigning 1970s style...

The kids are alright. Many mainland European railways have specific family zones. In Switzerland some trains even have a mini-playground (with a slide)! With some exceptions (eg LNER family lounges) a family focus on trains/stations is one for our nationalised railway to play catch up on.

Viva the #fietsstraat where cars can’t overtake cyclists. They add a whole new, subtle and less absolutist dimension to what you can do with streets in urban centres and suburbs. They are mainstream in transport thinking in places like Flanders and should be here too. www.bbc.com/news/article...

The latest podcast from @freewheeling.info on which we policy riff about the future of the #suburbs. Featuring cool stuff from mainland Europe - but more importantly the culture, the thinking and the 'civic imperative' that got them there. www.freewheeling.info/the-freewhee...

Cute marketing campaign from Finnish Railways Put the remote down and head for the remote...

Tech billionaires should not be able to tilt British democracy from Silicon Valley boardrooms. Here’s how we could legislate to stop social media platforms amplifying the Far Right for profit or political influence. 🧵

Conspiracy fantasies are participative and immersive - they are a form of enchantment in a dead end world. The cosmic right loves them. The left / centre double down on truth and reason. It used to be the left that brought the magic - can it loosen up and rediscover its inner ‘Luther Blissett’?

A quote to live your public and professional life by. From the most dynamic Transport Minister the UK has ever had. #barbaracastle

'Classic semi-detached #suburbs are turning from green to grey as gardens are paved over to make way for more and bigger cars. At the same time the volume builders continue to kill off bus services by churning out new suburbs predicated on car dependency.' My latest for @passtrans.bsky.social...

If you want to really understand #Manchesterism then you need to read this excellent, well researched and well argued long view… themeteor.org/2024/04/07/b...

Perhaps we should just talk to people? Nobody came to the city transport plan meeting so they went out on the streets in a low-fi way inc people writing their views on boards on their backs. They were semi-mobbed #ljubljana #renewdemocracy #doingconsultationdifferently

It looks cool and it is cool 🚊 ✅ 🚲 ✅ 🚶🏾‍♀️ ✅ 🚘 ❌ One for the #Helsinki geekcation ‘to do’ list Still haven’t got over the Copenhagen ‘snake’ bridge! zagdaily.com/urban/helsin...

Being bold on #bus cuts through. It worked for Ken Livingstone and it worked for Andy Burnham. It's universal, visible, quick and relatively cheap, it addresses wider unease about the decline of the civic, and it's a mandate- building proof of intent. So why don't more pols do it? Too vulgar?

The clamour for a more strategic approach from UK gov to #lightrail is growing. Burnham owes a big chunk of his rep to action on pubic transport. If he gets to be PM will DfT be told to be more proactive on getting more light rail done quicker and cheaper? www.keolis.co.uk/2026/why-we-...

It's the cost of living stupid! One factor in the current Westminster administration's unpopularity is that the early focus on 'growth' missed the point as far as the voters were concerned. Biden made a similar mistake. But Starmer copied it anyway. www.ippr.org/articles/its...

Corporate mission statements Frank Pick style CEO of the London Passenger Transport Board (1933 - 1940)

Going beyond scattergun emergency responses to fuel crises - France is trying ‘social leasing’ to reduce the cost of expensive green kit for lower income households.

The @iea.org says we are looking at the biggest oil supply disruption in history. Recovery could take as long as two years. Here’s five ways this will change transport in the UK. jonathan-bray.com/energy-crisi...

(1/3) Demand responsive bus services have become marmite. Some say they are the future - others argue they cost a fortune and usually flop. My new #suburbs report makes the case for Skilful Demand Responsive Transport which takes as read the pros/cons and then looks for any skilful applications.

It’s the 🌏 first public transport day today so here’s the 🌏 first transport report with a playlist 🎵🎧 (probably)! Launched yesterday it‘s the soundtrack for my new report on ways of thinking and acting on decarbonising suburban transport. Report: jonathan-bray.com/decarbonisin... Playlist 👇

Suburbs. Most people live in them. Most transport policy isn’t about them. Strange isn’t it? I spent a year exploring (from Berlin to Barking) reading and thinking about suburban transport The report is out today - with thinking frames and examples of how 'next level cities' do suburbs #suburbs