Informed but opinionated commentary and analysis on urban transportation topics from the Secret Worldwide Transit Cabal. Names have been omitted to protect the guilty.

Our Mission: Monkeywrench the Anti-Transit Forces

 
OTHER TRANSIT BLOGS - 10

Home of So Few Transit Links Than You can Possibly Check(tm), Unless you have no life other than websurfing

Great spirits have often encountered violent opposition from weak minds. Einstein

IMPORTANT NOTE: FOC's ("Friends of the Cabal") (you know, like "FOB's"--"Friends of Bill" [Clinton]) have now all been promoted to "Adjuct Scholars" of The Secret Worldwide Transit Cabal, that is "CAS's" "Cabal Adjunct Scholars." Congrats, Dudes!

From the Cabalmaster:

Continuing our coverage of other transit-oriented blogs:

www.publictransit.us presents "original fact-based, 'in context' research and analysis of public transit operations, technical, and financial issues." Contents are arranged by topic: "Articles & Links on Energy and Oil," "Articles/Critiques of Bus Rapid Transit," "Details on New Transit Proposals," "The Economics of Transit," "Motor Vehicles & Their Impacts," "New & Improved Transit Systems," "Opinion essays on transit topics," "Protecting What America Is About," "Transit Supply and Service Consumption" and "Urban and transit advocates vs. skeptics."

This site has many technical and statistical resources, including tabulations of urban rail openings in the USA from 1980 here and of peak-hour passenger volumes carried by various urban bus and rail systems in the USA and Canada here.

Your Favorite Transit Pundits get tickled pink every time we take a look at this comparison of various light rail systems by annual traffic density here. Imagine: Portland and San Diego light rail systems carry roughly the same number of people as Zurich over each mile of line – and Los Angeles carries MORE!

(We’d love to hear how certain self-appointed and "Sappy(tm)" experts . . . "The Bearded Blow-Hard of Bandon," for example . . . or well, you know, Mr. Fudge – would spin those facts away!

(However, we wouldn’t suggest holding your breath while waiting for Randal’s or Wendell’s commentary . . .

(. . . with respect to this particular topic, as the late Argentine boxer Oscar Bonavena would say, we think "dese guys" and other "Sappy(tm)" sages are chicken!!

(. . . Cheep!!! Cheep!!! Cheep!!!)

(Not clear on what “annual traffic density” means? Check out this page: TrafficDensityPrimer.)

Many but not all pages posted on www.publictransit.us may be viewed in html or .pdf format. Also, you can register for free so you can log on and post comments. (Unlike the grumpy – and Sappy(tm) – Vic Vreeland, webmaster of the flashy but wasted "Railroading America" site, publictransit.us does not seem aversive to criticism.)

We’re opinionated (. . . but that’s why you keep checking out our blog . . . ), so we do have one "bone to pick" with this site: it is colorless . . . no 'tude (attitude) . . . and, worst of all, HUMORLESS! Check out some of the thorough de-bunking of various bunk by leading bunkmeisters (Randal and Wendell, of course) – and note the glaring lack of anything resembling riposte and ridicule!!

No crude attempts at comedy, no invective, no insults . . . think of the fun they could have!

For example:

Note the "counterpoint" to a Wendell "point" – a photo in Zurich, taken from the same location where Wendell stood, but facing the opposite direction. Clear evidence that Wendell took "his" photo with his back turned to the main railway station.

That opens up all sorts of comedic opportunities . . .

. . . imagine the headline:

Ultimate Show of Contempt for Rail:
WENDELL COX POINTS HIS AR-- AT ZURICH HAUPTBAHNHOF!

Intrepid Websurfers interested in various technical issues related to public transport planning and analysis will find much useful information at www.publictransit.us. But, alas, you won’t find much in the way of “entertainment.”

C’mon, chaps, lighten up! Mankind does not live by statistics alone!!
posted by The Cabalmaster, Master of All Transit-dom 2/17/2005 12:48:00 PM