Hayden Clarkin

The only two places I can think of that could feasibly need a high-capacity ferry line in the United States are D.C.–Alexandria and Miami–South Beach. Can you think of others?

Does the 3rd Phase of second Avenue subway need to bore to a portal or the most expensive tail tracks on earth lol

Rhode Island leaders are going ahead with plans to relocate and build a new $77 million transit hub for the state. It’s a bad idea. My thoughts: thetransitguy.substack.com/p/they-mappe...

I NEED to understand how the O’Hare flyer got an agreement to run service every 15 mins with the Class I freight railroads.

Three innocent babies and their teacher were slaughtered in their elementary school yesterday in Oregon, and call me crazy, I think this country should do something about this.

When we worked for a state DOT many years ago, we helped dissuade them from pursuing hyperloop because it was dumb then and it’s dumb now. 🧵 (Image credit @thetransitguy.com)

If you're wondering why LA should have a BART-like heavy metro system instead of a mostly light rail one, the A Line is 57.7 miles long and takes 2 hours and 12 minutes. Here it is at scale with the entirety of the Paris Metro system!

Democrats, routinely called “communists” and “socialists” are now being lambasted for not wanting to send $5,000 handouts to every American adult.

The absurdity of modern America cul-de-sac design: an 84-minute walk separates the front doors of two homes that literally share at a backyard fence. (Johns Creek, GA)

The Marco is a proposed 143-acre, Venice-inspired project slated in Prosper, TX. While the renderings are AI slop, the plan is legit. It calls for 4,400 homes and 1.1 million SF of mixed-use space. It’s an project that raises a BIG question: Is walkable, faux-urbanism better than nothing at all?

I love the street in Atlanta. I did a quick dive into the spatial data and zoning code, and by my rough estimate, only ~1.45% of the city’s zoned area actually permits this kind of built environment. We need to legalize this everywhere.

It’s hilarious that Texas has no problem carving out over 1,000 miles for a new interstate (I-14), yet a 240-mile high-speed rail line had ranchers up in arms and was a "land grab". Sure, okay.

A city block in Barcelona was transformed from a busy street into a lush, car-free park. This could happen in North America too, btw. (2018 -> 2025)

The building footprints within a one-mile radius of Louisville, KY, and Bordeaux, FR, show that American cities are built at a larger scale with far more surface parking, rather than the dense, compact urban fabric and fewer freeways seen in Europe. (Same Scale)

We should build up and make the most of the infrastructure we already have, so the nature and greenbelts around our communities stay preserved.

St. Augustine offers a fascinating glimpse into what Florida might look like had it remained under Spanish rule, especially when comparing these two corridors located just 3,500 feet apart.

What’s the most car dependent and/or unwalkable tourism hot spot in the country?

What if the USA connected with Mexico via rail at Nogales, AZ and Laredo, TX? Let’s talk about it! thetransitguy.substack.com/p/the-insane...

SPAIN WINSS

The local grocery chain here in RI/MA had a local artist paint its Fourth of July flyer, and I think in a world of AI slop, stuff like this is awesome. Happy fourth!

Can someone who works in rolling stock explain to me why European subway systems don’t have AC? Is there a hidden cost to converting a line to AC that I’m unfamiliar with?

Did you know that we subsidize roads even more than we subsidize rail in Wisconsin? H/T @thetransitguy.com

How much of Boston can fit within the parking lot of the Gillette Stadium complex:

ON YOUR BEST DAY YOUR CITY IS NOT AS INCREDIBLE AS NYC IS AT ITS WORST

My train from Providence to New York took 6.5 hours due to a downed power line. At Chinese HSR speeds, I would've been in Miami in the same amount of time. This country desperately needs to invest in its infrastructure.

Two Washington bound Amtrak trains are sitting at Kingston and passengers are walking up and down the platform as we wait for overhead wires to be fixed in New Haven. Current estimate is 90 minutes until the catenaries are fixed.

Imagine hating me while I’m sat here trying to figure out if Jurassic Park could conform to any zoning laws in Collin County, TX

The MBTA Providence Line frustrates me the most, as we are running push pull diesel trains on tracks that are rated for high speed rail with wires above. My latest: open.substack.com/pub/thetrans...

If you overlaid the freeways of Dallas's urban core onto Paris:

“No one takes transit in Rhode Island!” Transit in Rhode Island:

In Rochester, the sunken Inner Loop freeway is slowly being removed, allowing homes and cafes to reclaim its place.

An abandoned factory in Williamsburg becomes a public park. (2012 -> Today)

When you travel on the 0.028% of tracks in the USA capable of supporting 160 mph, it feels good to see what train travel was like in Japan in 1964.

What city or metropolitan area in the world is most hampered by its weather and climate? In other words, what city would be exponentially better if it had the weather of Southern California?

I am trying to find freight rail train movements for certain rail lines in Canada. Does anyone know where I can find that info? Thanks!

Lancaster, PA has the fifth most Amtrak riders per capita, and I believe its success is a model for what rail should look like in mid-sized cities everywhere. I talk about it in my latest piece, "What Amish Country Can Teach Us About the Future of Rail." thetransitguy.substack.com/p/what-amish...

Maybe I haven’t been paying attention but when did NEC trains starting terminating in Philly from Boston? Is this new?

So what are your predictions for what happens to slots/terminals that are Spirit’s?

Will be spending most of my summer in Providence while traveling to/from NYC intermittently. Hoping to see a lot of you beautiful people ❤️

That’s 82 years of Amtrak funding, but we don’t have money for trains!

The island of Lindau, Germany (pop. 3,000), sees 115 train departures per day. The entire state of Texas and all of its cities combined, by comparison, sees 56 daily Amtrak departures.

Objectively, the highest-impact use case for AI is automating code compliance and permitting. You should be able to propose a townhome development and find out if it’s code and zoning compliant within 60 seconds, with a human giving final approval.