Note: this is a repost from an original article in 2012. Last week, guest blogger Ryan O’Connor, wrote a brief analysis on the state of HSR (high speed rail) and the potential implications and lessons cable can learn from China’s recent love affair with rail. If you haven’t been keeping up-to-date with transportation news in...
Public transit and gondolas just never seem to catch a break. And when we thought we’ve seen it all — the Roosevelt Island Tram being attacked by the Punisher, the Sugarloaf Cable Car having its propulsion cable severed by Jaw’s teeth and an LA bus rigged with a ticking time bomb — we find out...
Just when I thought I’ve seen all of the world’s most ingenious and resourceful forms of public transit, Myanmar’s “big belly” Chevy buses comes into the picture and blows my mind. These buses have been operating since 1939! You gotta see it to believe it. Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about...
Most humans are social creatures – we enjoy the company of others (typically) and others enjoy our company. However, anyone who rides public transit on a regular basis knows that chatting it up with a stranger or sitting next to someone on an empty bus are pure violations of an unspoken set of social rules....
Fare collection in transit systems have evolved dramatically in the last decades with many large agencies opting for electronic payment systems such as the Oyster Card (London) and Octopus Card (Hong Kong). However, in many places around the world, many people who are unfamiliar with this form of payment still choose to pay using regular...
Ever increasing urban populations are leading cities to focus more heavily on improving public transit infrastructure through the construction of rail, bus, and even cable lines. With such an extensive road network in North America, many cities and states find it difficult to further invest in additional infrastructure. Still, car congestion ensues — an issue...
How does the trend of increased ridership match up against the local gas prices in Toronto? Stuck between budget cuts and politics no one can ignore the increase in both fuel costs and public transit ridership. So the question is, how many riders will it take to shift attention over to public transit funding, infrastructure...
A recent article in the Globe and Mail discusses the relationship between mass transit and political agendas. It appears that throughout the world high-stakes rail projects worth millions or even billions of dollars are becoming entangled in a struggle that pits the bottom line against local interests. In this age of globalization, companies around the...
Are all three the same thing? Yes and no. Yes in the sense that they all generally describe the same item. No in the sense that different countries throughout the so-called Anglosphere have a clear preference for one term above all the others. Consider this graph: This is from Google Insight and shows the relative...
A couple years back the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) decided to do away with the practice of transit vehicle drivers announcing upcoming stations and stops. It was decided that a GPS-enabled system would instead announce upcoming stations (in the case of subways) and stops (in the case of streetcars and buses) via generic, female, computerized...