I love talking about what cities are doing *right* and also about transformative (but achievable) ideas for the future. This month's video on the channel is all about those two things for Salt Lake City, a city that you probably wouldn't expect to have decently good transit. youtu.be/q_JkMeELV5g?...
Exciting news! We're hosting a virtual panel with Thom de Boo, @carfreekeith.bsky.social, and @alanthefisher.bsky.social on Friday, April 24 @ noon CDT to talk trains, vlogging, and advocacy.
We hope to see you there š
Chicago made the Strongest Town Final Four but weāre up against a Wisconsin trio!
Our 2025 highlights:
š ADU legalization + ending parking mandates near transit
š Improv that helped save CTA funding
š§° Data tools for civic engagement
š¶ Neighborhood walking tours
Vote by Fri at strongesttown.com
Tired of waiting for the ever-delayed Monon Corridor to open? Here's a first look for you! The line seems like it's finally going to open on March 31st, but here's a sneak peek/deep dive into the new branch to Dyer. youtu.be/XhETDX2X77M?...
Disappointed to see @nickforillinois.bsky.social come up just a little bit short tonight but that kid is going places, canāt wait to see what he decides to do next
I am incredibly lucky that there are folks like @carfreekeith.bsky.social out there who are very skilled at doing short-form video about Chicagoland transit history and policy (and who is kind enough to include #BuildTheTunnel content from time to time)
Making a NITA video that will come out in June after NITA gets activated. From initial conversations with folks who know more than me about what's really important here -- seems like focusing on the importance of board assignments will be key. Wanted to ask, what else would you like to see covered?
Thanks for the kind words! I just genuinely can get behind the Build the Tunnel plan so it's hard not to talk about it when talking about basically *anything* Chicago transit!
Time to write Scott a letter, got a few gripes to bring up
I love living in Ward 32 š«©
My meal prep this week is a pot roast from a 1954 united airlines cookbook
Hopefully it doesnāt give me any unnatural thoughts about bulldozing neighborhoods for new expressways
Really glad CFK highlighted one of Chicago transitās āoriginal sinsā: we privatized the āLā and the surface lines in the 1940s but waited until the 80s to privatize the commuter lines, so the CTA spent 40 years trying to āexpandā into the South Side rather than leveraging a regional network vision
It was actually really good š
New video! The rise, fall, and potential rebirth of what was once arguably Chicagoās best commuter rail line.
youtu.be/VGgqoqLlOFs?...
youtu.be/smeVnani6-E?...
Two deep dish pizzas on a stovetop
I made deep dish tonight and it turned out better than I ever couldāve possibly imagined. It wasnāt looking good when I put the dough in the pan
All this & we were also building high rise apartments on the lakefront like crazy!
I heard Iowa is trying to pass a bill to get the bears to go there š«© get outta here. Nobody wants the Iowa Bears
Thatās still a cool experience to have had. Iād be interested in picking your brain sometime!
Iām in Texas this week & it really is wild how much their cities have grown. Itās just a shame theyāve done it in the sprawliest way possible. But even with that itās easy to see how high speed rail would be insanely successful in the TX Triangle
Iāll play board games for the vibes but am generally not a huge board game guyā¦this game is the exception. I love it so much
I donāt believe there are any cta stations that have exclusively full height turnstiles at all entrances, unless there are some one off exceptions. It also seems like thereās not a ton of data about cta fare evasion, but anecdotally Iāve always *heard* that itās not as big an issue here
Bad Bunnyās halftime show was amazing & I hope the TPUSA show got less than 0 viewers
A YouTube thumbnail showing a map of Chicago with the cta āLā lines in bright pink and a circular animated image of an orange train with an arrow pointing to the Metra Electric South Chicago Branch on the map.
New video about the rise, fall, and (hopefully someday) rebirth of the Metra Electric South Chicago Branch is out now on Patreon and in a week on YouTube
www.patreon.com/posts/150216...
Kansas City, 1929. Assertions to the effect that āpeople preferred to driveā are guesses in the guise of explanations.
In cities a minority of motorists degraded streetcar service for the majority. KCPSC: āPractically the only cause of delay ... is ... motorists who block [streetcarsā] progress.ā
NJ Transit but instead itās IL Transit
And they seem to be implying that busiest = bestā¦could be fun to see how much that statement holds up
Itās important to create stuff right now. Real stuff. That you make. And thereās nothing else like it. And it wouldnāt exist if you didnāt make it. It might be cringe or not good or whatever, but youāre creating and not just consuming.
People who donāt live *right* next to the project area should still get a say. Weāre all affected by rents going up because weāre not building enough
