I came across this awhile ago, and I always just found it simultaneously bizarre and impressive. It's Australia's Funicular railway in the Blue Mountains. This is the steepest railway in the world, and to me it literally looks more like an amusement park ride in a way than a method of transit. Here's a 30 second clip where you can see it starting. Notice at the end how the cars all just sort of drop off the steep incline once it gets rolling (sort of like a rollercoaster, no?).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVLe8NthLnY
It has one of the world's steepest inclines for a railcar, as it descends with an angle of 52 degrees or a gradient of 122%. It also has a section during which it goes through a pitch black tunnel!
Thursday, March 13, 2014
Lane Splitting
{Side note: I have done terribly with updating this blog regularly. I have a bunch of links saved or little items typed up that I saved as drafts, but I just never actually posted them. I apologize to anyone who logs on today to see just a myriad of new posts. I'll make sure to post them in the future to the site rather than just save as drafts for weeks a a time.}
When I lived in San Francisco, one thing that never ever ceased to terrify me was lane splitting by motorcyclists. I know that the first day I drove into the city upon moving there, I flinched every single time a motorcycle suddenly edged between myself and another car in what seemed to be rather narrow traffic lanes; this happened dozens of times every hour. You'd be sitting there stopped at a light or cruising slowly in heavy traffic only to watch a blur outside your driver's side window suddenly fly by you. Sometimes when the traffic was really tight or the cars were close together, the motorcyclists would literally extend an arm out and push off against my car to help keep themselves centered between vehicles. I'd hear a gentle "thud" as an arm nudged against my car and then accelerated away.
I was thinking about this earlier and decided to try to find what the actual rules on lane splitting in California are; I don't know that anyone follows them, because based on personal experience it seemed pretty haphazard from where I stood, but nonetheless I thought maybe if rules existed and were followed, this practice would be a little less risky. Here are the guidelines outlined on the California Highway Patrol site:
http://www.chp.ca.gov/programs/lanesplitguide.html
Most of the suggestions or guidelines seem valid enough, but in my mind it is still daunting.
I'm planning on trying to find some academic resources that have statistics on accidents relevant to lane splitting, and when I muddle through some of those I'll likely write a separate post on that topic, but I figured for now I'd just see if anyone had thoughts on the practice or the fact that it is currently only legal in California in the US (though it is common in other countries).
When I lived in San Francisco, one thing that never ever ceased to terrify me was lane splitting by motorcyclists. I know that the first day I drove into the city upon moving there, I flinched every single time a motorcycle suddenly edged between myself and another car in what seemed to be rather narrow traffic lanes; this happened dozens of times every hour. You'd be sitting there stopped at a light or cruising slowly in heavy traffic only to watch a blur outside your driver's side window suddenly fly by you. Sometimes when the traffic was really tight or the cars were close together, the motorcyclists would literally extend an arm out and push off against my car to help keep themselves centered between vehicles. I'd hear a gentle "thud" as an arm nudged against my car and then accelerated away.
I was thinking about this earlier and decided to try to find what the actual rules on lane splitting in California are; I don't know that anyone follows them, because based on personal experience it seemed pretty haphazard from where I stood, but nonetheless I thought maybe if rules existed and were followed, this practice would be a little less risky. Here are the guidelines outlined on the California Highway Patrol site:
http://www.chp.ca.gov/programs/lanesplitguide.html
Most of the suggestions or guidelines seem valid enough, but in my mind it is still daunting.
I'm planning on trying to find some academic resources that have statistics on accidents relevant to lane splitting, and when I muddle through some of those I'll likely write a separate post on that topic, but I figured for now I'd just see if anyone had thoughts on the practice or the fact that it is currently only legal in California in the US (though it is common in other countries).
People for Bikes - Bike Lanes Funded in 6 US Cities
http://archinect.com/news/article/95482582/green-lane-project-brings-protected-bike-lanes-to-six-u-s-cities
I am on Archinect somewhat regularly, so I was pretty pumped to see in the last day this article that was totally transit related! Yay! As most of you know I'm a fan of walking and biking over taking a car, so it's nice to see funding being allotted for bike lanes in several cities to make that method of travel easier. Unfortunately I don't have any first-hand knowledge about traveling via bike in Pittsburgh, Atlanta, or any of the other cities set to receive funding for such lanes this year, so I can't say how bad traveling by bike sans bike lane in these places might presently be, but really I'm one of those riders who finds it mildly terrifying to ride anywhere that's got a reasonable amount of traffic when there's no designated lane, so for people like me in those places I imagine this might be exciting news. I just wonder if and how long biking as a trend may take to catch on in some of the cities...
I am on Archinect somewhat regularly, so I was pretty pumped to see in the last day this article that was totally transit related! Yay! As most of you know I'm a fan of walking and biking over taking a car, so it's nice to see funding being allotted for bike lanes in several cities to make that method of travel easier. Unfortunately I don't have any first-hand knowledge about traveling via bike in Pittsburgh, Atlanta, or any of the other cities set to receive funding for such lanes this year, so I can't say how bad traveling by bike sans bike lane in these places might presently be, but really I'm one of those riders who finds it mildly terrifying to ride anywhere that's got a reasonable amount of traffic when there's no designated lane, so for people like me in those places I imagine this might be exciting news. I just wonder if and how long biking as a trend may take to catch on in some of the cities...
Thursday, February 13, 2014
Overloaded Bikes in China's Cities
I studied abroad in China a few summers ago, and one thing that always astounded me was how people managed to travel miles across the city carting an incredible amount of people or cargo on a bicycle. You cannot fathom how frequently you see people like those in the photographs in the link below attempting to dart in and out of chaotic traffic at what are really pretty impressive speeds considering the loads they carry. After seeing this, it makes me pretty committed to biking as a method of transportation, because if these people can carry as much as they do, I feel like I can handle a bag of groceries or two for a couple miles.
World's Worst Public Transit
I came across this the other day, and while it's far from scientific, it is a reminder that even on the worst of days, even in the least public-transit friendly of America's large cities, it still could be worse.
Furthermore, I think it provided a nice summary of some transit systems with which I was not familiar. I also thought it rather interesting how there are some common problem themes with the major complaints people had about transit systems, those being:
1. Doesn't run far enough out or connect to destination locations
2. Doesn't have extensive hours
3. Problems with drivers or bureaucracy
This contrast the international systems highlighted, most of which seem to have problems with excessive crowds and unsafe systems.
Above all else, this article just made me really nostalgic and thankful for the Chicago L system.
Monday, February 3, 2014
Atlanta Shuts Down
I realize I'm a little late in posting this before the blog discussion day tomorrow, but I want to talk about the problems that Atlanta has recently faced with the inclement weather. Since Atlanta has a pretty sprawling metropolis and cars are a primary method of transportation without a mass transit system, the city has been hit especially hard by the recent winter weather. Here is an article detailing some of the problems:
http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/30/us/atlanta-ice-how-it-happened/
I thought it was interesting to note that perhaps if the mayor had more say-so some of the problems could have been avoided. Personally, I still am a bit confused as to how exactly two inches of snow could cause as much strife as it did in this instance, even in the south. However, as is implied in this article, better communication or organization could only help.
http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/30/us/atlanta-ice-how-it-happened/
I thought it was interesting to note that perhaps if the mayor had more say-so some of the problems could have been avoided. Personally, I still am a bit confused as to how exactly two inches of snow could cause as much strife as it did in this instance, even in the south. However, as is implied in this article, better communication or organization could only help.
Thursday, January 23, 2014
San Francisco's MUNI Problems
So, I'm going to start off with the disclaimer that I have never taken a course or really studied transportation or land use. That being said, I think it's quite interesting, but what I know as of right now is generally based on personal experience or the occasional reading I've done on urban planning.
For this blog, I think I'm going to focus on issues, articles, or commentary about various means of transport in very urban areas. I find public transportation and the benefits and problems with which it walks hand-in-hand to be interesting. I have lived in multiple large cities across the US, and the public transportation (or sometimes lack thereof) is something often noted and discussed by almost everyone within the general public.
Today, I'm going to comment on an article I read about San Francisco's MUNI system. The article I read can be found here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/28/muni-delays_n_3348793.html
Basically, the report comments on how the MUNI has a tremendously negative impact on the economy and wastes the time of countless commuters. It was actually published back in May, but as someone who was in San Francisco for almost four months this summer, I'm going to say the points they made are probably just as relevant now.
I took the MUNI to and from work almost every day. I lived in the Haight and had to commute to a pier on the eastern bay of the city, which is about a 3.5 or 4 mile commute. In total, between riding the bus and the walk from my stop to my office, my commute was 45 minutes. While I accepted it for what it was, it is a bit astounding. On occasion I would walk to or from work, and I could accomplish that in just over an hour. Now, the great cause for such a cumbersome commute via public transit I think is due to the high traffic volumes and high density of people, the very frequent stops of the buses, and the fact that buses must weave in and out of lanes around cars at times. It's a bit daunting really.
However, the regular delay of MUNI buses is one problem that, if it could be resolved, I think would save substantial time. I know personally my commute could have been up to 6 or 7 minutes shorter most days if the MUNI were to be more punctual. Many days one or more buses would catch up with ones ahead of them. San Francisco's MUNI system has not been substantially updated in some time, so I hope that perhaps through examining stop placement, or having fewer buses all convene at the same intersection on Market Street, or changing the routes such that for some the buses do not visibly and audibly struggle on the steepest of slopes and slow down commutes, some of the severe delays could be better prevented or avoided.
For this blog, I think I'm going to focus on issues, articles, or commentary about various means of transport in very urban areas. I find public transportation and the benefits and problems with which it walks hand-in-hand to be interesting. I have lived in multiple large cities across the US, and the public transportation (or sometimes lack thereof) is something often noted and discussed by almost everyone within the general public.
Today, I'm going to comment on an article I read about San Francisco's MUNI system. The article I read can be found here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/28/muni-delays_n_3348793.html
Basically, the report comments on how the MUNI has a tremendously negative impact on the economy and wastes the time of countless commuters. It was actually published back in May, but as someone who was in San Francisco for almost four months this summer, I'm going to say the points they made are probably just as relevant now.
I took the MUNI to and from work almost every day. I lived in the Haight and had to commute to a pier on the eastern bay of the city, which is about a 3.5 or 4 mile commute. In total, between riding the bus and the walk from my stop to my office, my commute was 45 minutes. While I accepted it for what it was, it is a bit astounding. On occasion I would walk to or from work, and I could accomplish that in just over an hour. Now, the great cause for such a cumbersome commute via public transit I think is due to the high traffic volumes and high density of people, the very frequent stops of the buses, and the fact that buses must weave in and out of lanes around cars at times. It's a bit daunting really.
However, the regular delay of MUNI buses is one problem that, if it could be resolved, I think would save substantial time. I know personally my commute could have been up to 6 or 7 minutes shorter most days if the MUNI were to be more punctual. Many days one or more buses would catch up with ones ahead of them. San Francisco's MUNI system has not been substantially updated in some time, so I hope that perhaps through examining stop placement, or having fewer buses all convene at the same intersection on Market Street, or changing the routes such that for some the buses do not visibly and audibly struggle on the steepest of slopes and slow down commutes, some of the severe delays could be better prevented or avoided.
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