Advertisement · 728 × 90

Posts by Jonathan McHatton

Preview
Electric bikes can be fast and dangerous. Here's how to stay safe As electric-bike usage has risen, so have e-bike injuries, and regulations in cities and states throughout the country are rapidly changing.

The way to stay safe on or near an ebike is to stay away from people driving cars, who kill nearly 40k people annually in the US, and well over 1 million people worldwide.

2 weeks ago 436 84 11 4

A car driver is orders of magnitude more likely to kill a pedestrian than an e-bike rider

2 weeks ago 442 72 4 1

Yeah I believe all the Amtrak-operated Hartford Line and the Valley Flyer trains are timed to connect with Regionals at New Haven to NYC (aside from the handful of direct trains). And the CTrail Hartford Line usually lines up with Metro North trains to Grand Central.

4 weeks ago 2 0 0 0

Heck yeah, hourly trains between Springfield and NYC! I've preached about it before but with zoning changes to encourage more development around Union Station and lots of PVTA bus service to and fro, more rail service will be transformative!

4 weeks ago 12 1 4 0

Happy Transit Worker Appreciation Day to all our hard working drivers, mechanics, supervisors, and more! They make sure we get where we're going every day 😁

1 month ago 2 0 0 0
Post image

One of my favourite sides of politics/media.

1 month ago 13569 4287 132 178

Something you notice in the winter is that cyclists and pedestrians have to justify maintenance of their infrastructure in a way that drivers never do

1 month ago 376 70 2 7

Springfield is finally making moves to redevelop around Union Station, and PVTA is operating more and more service, so it's a prime opportunity to keep the momentum going!
www.masslive.com/westernmass/...

1 month ago 3 0 0 0
Advertisement

Having multiple high-level platforms supports not only future rail service to/from Boston but additional N/S service to the northern Valley and CT/NYC. There are also awkward track layouts at the station that will be fixed as well as part of this work.

1 month ago 3 0 1 0
Preview
Planned Springfield Station Expansion Anticipates More Amtrak Service in Western Mass. - Streetsblog Massachusetts MassDOT and Amtrak are working on plans for new tracks and platforms at Springfield Union Station in anticipation of a significant increase in passenger rail service between Boston and western Massach...

Another great article from @mass.streetsblog.org about the upcoming work at Springfield Union Station. With three active platforms, only one of which being modern high-level, projects will expand and modernize them all and reactivate a disused platform as well!
mass.streetsblog.org/2026/02/24/p...

1 month ago 14 2 1 1
Post image Post image Post image Post image

Dear business owners,

Please, we're begging you: Stop with the artsy bike racks. We don't want them. They don't work. Thanks but not thanks. Just get those basic, city-issued, blue staple racks from PBOT and we'll love you and spend more money at your store. 🙏🏻

- Your bike riding customers.

1 month ago 123 17 6 2

Not to mention, it stands in stark contrast to the ways other states have regulated micromobility devices, often by being recklessly and carelessly punitive.

1 month ago 0 0 1 0

I am actually pretty impressed by the recommendations here.

It's a really thoughtful, well-rounded approach on how to disentangle terminology and lay out sensible recommendations for regulation, all while recognizing the many ways these devices benefit people and society as a whole!

1 month ago 1 0 1 0
Preview
'Micromobility' Commission Recommends Improved Classification, Regulation of Motorbikes and Scooters - Streetsblog Massachusetts Among other recommendations, the commission supports expanding bikeshare systems and other micromobility options as a safer, less expensive, and more efficient alternative to driving.

‘Micromobility’ Commission Recommends Improved Classification, Regulation of Motorbikes and Scooters - mass.streetsblog.org/2026/02/27/m...

1 month ago 22 7 0 3

same but for bikes. drive to Costco or whatever. bike everywhere else.

2 months ago 132 18 4 1

It is absolutely a choice.

2 months ago 8361 1175 155 32

[frantically raising hand] ooh, ooh. I know. Because Americans have a constitutional right to vote but don't have a right to open a bank account or drive a car.

2 months ago 4511 1037 126 22
Preview
Google Clock 8.5 rolls out ‘swipe to dismiss’ for alarms on Android [U] Version 8.5 of Google Clock for Android was released last week and it’s rolling out the ability to dismiss alarms by swiping.

A recent app update brought back the swipe to dismiss behavior as an option:
9to5google.com/2026/01/22/g...

2 months ago 1 0 0 0
Advertisement
Preview
Mass. Governor Proposes Eliminating Statute of Limitations for Rape When DNA Evidence Exists A WBUR-ProPublica investigation found that no DNA match, testimony or even confession could allow a rape to be prosecuted after the state’s 15-year deadline. The governor aims to “help survivors who h...

NEW: A @wbur.org and ProPublica investigation found that no DNA match, testimony or even confession could help prosecute a rape after Massachusetts’ 15-year deadline.

The governor's proposal aims to “help survivors who have had to wait far too long for justice.”

2 months ago 806 177 12 14
Preview
Link413 Launches Three New Bus Routes Linking North Adams, Pittsfield, Greenfield, and Northampton - Streetsblog Massachusetts The new “Link413” service – named for the western Massachusetts area code – has officially launched its three new long-distance bus routes across the Berkshire Mountains to link three different Region...

Link413 Launches Three New Long-Distance Bus Routes Linking North Adams, Pittsfield, Greenfield, and Northampton - mass.streetsblog.org/2026/01/29/l...

2 months ago 5 2 0 0
A person stands on a snow bank in early evening as a transit bus approaches the stop. The shelter and the adjacent sidewalk are covered in more than a foot of snow. Cars pass by with their headlights on driving on an icy road.

A person stands on a snow bank in early evening as a transit bus approaches the stop. The shelter and the adjacent sidewalk are covered in more than a foot of snow. Cars pass by with their headlights on driving on an icy road.

A massive pile of snow reaches the top of a stone wall with a historic building in the background. Decorative street lamps can be seen and a partially cleared sidewalk is visible leading into the pile of snow. A slightly crooked street sign displays the name:

BENEVOLENT ST

A massive pile of snow reaches the top of a stone wall with a historic building in the background. Decorative street lamps can be seen and a partially cleared sidewalk is visible leading into the pile of snow. A slightly crooked street sign displays the name: BENEVOLENT ST

Bollards protecting a bike lane poke out of a massive untouched snow drift with a brutalist brick building visible in the distance through leafless trees. A completely snow covered bus shelter and a totem with R line branding emerges from the snow on the far side.

Bollards protecting a bike lane poke out of a massive untouched snow drift with a brutalist brick building visible in the distance through leafless trees. A completely snow covered bus shelter and a totem with R line branding emerges from the snow on the far side.

India Point Park pedestrian overpass under a cloudy winter sky, the bridge is completely snow covered with footprints leading across the span. Glass towers emerge from the snowdrift and people can be seen at the far end of the bridge.

India Point Park pedestrian overpass under a cloudy winter sky, the bridge is completely snow covered with footprints leading across the span. Glass towers emerge from the snowdrift and people can be seen at the far end of the bridge.

Snow removal isn’t done until everyone can access the street.
Sidewalks and bus stops are untouched throughout the city. Bus riders are standing in the streets. People are climbing over mountains of snow to cross the street, get to their cars, or get on the bus.

2 months ago 30 7 2 5

One of the goals of this program is to connect underserved rural towns to larger population centers, so that's why they also make intermediate stops in town centers along the way. But if the program is successful and funding is available there is potential for more routes!

2 months ago 0 0 0 0
Post image Post image Post image Post image

Got to see the first Link413 bus leaving out of Northampton this morning!

Link413 is a collaboration between PVTA, BRTA, and FRTA to provide long distance bus service between Hampshire, Berkshire, and Franklin counties.

2 months ago 6 1 2 1
Preview
Rubio Tells Lawmakers Trump Wants to Buy Greenland

We can't have universal healthcare but we can buy a huge foreign landmass...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/06/u...

3 months ago 4 0 0 0

That being said, as long as the bus is not unattended (i.e. the operator is in/at the vehicle), it makes sense to let riders board. It's possible there are other operational considerations that affect this, though.

3 months ago 1 0 0 0
Advertisement
Anti-Idling | Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management

Buses shouldn't be idling for more than 5 minutes anyways, per Rhode Island's anti-idling law, though an exemption allows 15 mins to heat up the bus for riders when temps below 50°F: dem.ri.gov/environmenta...

Though if the bus has been in service, it's likely warm enough and can be turned off.

3 months ago 1 0 1 0
Were there moments that you missed? Anything that happened that’s on the cutting room floor?
I don’t think there’s anything I missed that I wish I’d gotten. I’ll give you a little anecdote: Stephen Miller was perhaps the most concerned about the portrait session. He asked me, “Should I smile or not smile?” and I said, “How would you want to be portrayed?” We agreed that we would do a bit of both. And then when we were finished, he comes up to me to shake my hand and say goodbye. And he says to me, “You know, you have a lot of power in the discretion you use to be kind to people.” And I looked at him and I said, “You know, you do, too.”

Were there moments that you missed? Anything that happened that’s on the cutting room floor? I don’t think there’s anything I missed that I wish I’d gotten. I’ll give you a little anecdote: Stephen Miller was perhaps the most concerned about the portrait session. He asked me, “Should I smile or not smile?” and I said, “How would you want to be portrayed?” We agreed that we would do a bit of both. And then when we were finished, he comes up to me to shake my hand and say goodbye. And he says to me, “You know, you have a lot of power in the discretion you use to be kind to people.” And I looked at him and I said, “You know, you do, too.”

The Vanity Fair photographer from the Susie Wiles story.

Holy. Shit.

www.washingtonpost.com/style/power/...

4 months ago 26349 5788 542 530

America is the place where your kids might die at home because of unaffordable health care, outside because they might get run over by someone with an SUV, or at school because they might get shot by someone with an AR-15.

4 months ago 232 48 9 6
white text on black
no bike lanes no crosswalks no stop signs no sidewalks no maintenance no reliable transit no investment no political will
road violence is no accident

white text on black no bike lanes no crosswalks no stop signs no sidewalks no maintenance no reliable transit no investment no political will road violence is no accident

results not accidents

4 months ago 147 39 2 4

Merriam-Webster’s human editors have chosen ‘slop’ as the 2025 Word of the Year.

4 months ago 24001 7262 360 936