Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Flexcar Merges With Zipcar

I think car sharing is important to transit orientation. Because automobiles will always be a useful tool in the transportation toolchest, having available cars for people who need to run an errand or go out of town to an area not served by transit is great. It also cuts down on needed parking spaces and creates an environment for using transit as a main mode of transport. I'm not quite sure what the merger means but other folks have been covering it so I'll let them do the commentary.

Orphan Road
Rebuilding Place in the Urban Space
Portland Transport
Xing Columbus

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Rail~Volution, Earthquakes, and Hurricanes

I'm headed to Rail~Volution tomorrow to be on a panel about transit and blogging. Should be a lot of fun except there is a pending storm headed to Miami where the conference is being held. So there should be a lot of rain and perhaps some thunder and lightning which is one thing i miss about Austin. There isn't a lot of thunder in San Francisco but there are earthquakes. In fact there was a 5.6 earthquake tonight that I didn't feel because i was driving home from my Gramma's house. So as my mom always says, move anywhere in the United States, just pick your natural disaster.

Monday, October 29, 2007

TOD Reduces Auto Trips by 50%

This is pretty awesome research via Planetizen. The folks at PB Placemaking and Dr. Robert Cervero have done a study which shows that when built right, TOD does reduce auto trips by 50% compared to suburban development which is the basis for the ITE trip generation tables. Now we need to start calculating the reduction in carbon emissions and we'll be in business.

Developers Looking Down The Rails

An article in the Seattle PI Saturday was about developers and light rail. In some situations they aren't waiting for the line to come to build big projects because the market is already there for compact living. But what is interesting is that most of these guys have been snooping around the future station areas looking for other possibly plays. I'm not going to lie and say that these light rail lines don't help developers, but transit opponents complain that its a handout for developers I have to laugh. Mostly because isn't that what their precious roads are for? So that sprawl developers can build on the periphery? Yes.

But the first real surge in activity would come only after voter approval and could be restrained even then because of the transportation project's long timeline, he said. "I'm not necessarily in a position today to buy land I'm going to sit on for seven to 10 years while some massive public works project validates my assumption."

It just costs too much to buy land and hold it for a decade, until light rail comes along, Shapiro said. "Most people have to see that it's really happening. When the construction starts, then everyone takes it more seriously."

Once a light-rail route and station sites are finalized, Johnson said, property values would "really take off."

Transportation leads to access which leads to development. So the argument that its just for developers is really a non-starter because opponents development of choice is just not the development that is environmentally sustainable. And right now with the awareness of climate change, they are losing the war. Haven't you noticed the noise machine turning its volume up to 11? They are getting scared and like a caged animal are attacking with their backs against the wall. Thats when they are most dangerous. Thats also when they get ridiculous and start proposing toll tunnels under cities and super freeway expansions.

So when we are talking about light rail or streetcars and development, don't let anyone get away with the argument that its just a ploy for developers. There are always going to be good developers and bad ones on both sides of the coin. And yes they make a good amount of money, and they take a sizable amount of risk to make it. But if it is between sprawl and compact transit oriented development, I'm in favor of the access transit provides to build the compact stuff. Just don't forget to lower the parking requirements.

Sunday, October 28, 2007

Kansas City's Big LRT Expose

In an attempt to jump start the discussion about where light rail should run after the Mayor declared Clay Chastain's voter approved line dead, the Kansas City Star is running a number of small vignettes in the paper today. It's a pretty good job of covering many of the issues and has a cool map to boot. A good links page is located here. I will make a note that if they want to use streetcars for this plan they should have dedicated lanes. It's fine to use the modern streetcar vehicles, but this is a transit spine not a circulator.

And if you haven't been paying attention to KC since the vote passed last fall, go check out KCLightRail.com.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

France's Conservative President on Expansion of Transit

What is wrong with conservatives in the United States? Even French President Sarkozy is getting in on the transit revolution calling for a reduction in transport emissions and . When are the ostriches in this country going to get their heads out of the sand?

Outlining the measures, Sarkozy said he was in favor of a moratorium on all new highways and airports as well as shifting trucks off highways and onto railroads. Road transport accounts for a quarter of French emissions.

Earlier, Jean-Louis Borloo also announced a freeze on the building of new roads and airports while consumers will be steered away from gas-guzzling cars through bonuses and penalties. Sarkozy also wants to extend France's tram and high-speed TGV train network.

Friday, October 26, 2007

Why The Decision in Houston is a Big Deal for Everyone

While the decision to go with Light Rail for 5 corridors caught a lot of people by surprise in Houston, it might have opened up a floodgate for cities to get funding for new transit projects. I can't stress enough how big this network effect is to cities who want to build new rail transit networks. Because the federal funding process is getting tighter, cities that want to build rail networks are going to have to get creative and Denver, Houston, and Salt Lake City have so far done that in their quest for funding.

It's interesting to note that some folks around the country might have been paying attention. Mayor Funkhouser in Kansas City believes that its a regional plan or nothing for his area. Some have thought it was a bit heavy handed of him to declare Clay Chastain's plan dead, but if he's thinking about really getting federal funding for a new transit system, he needs to lead the region towards a solution that will eventually get funding. Through the current rules, it looks like a high ridership starter line that can pass the current administration's cost effectiveness test (which Chastain's plan might not have) is how it should start. The other reason is that you'll need this first line to fund an extended network later.

But because the current rules are geared towards low end BRT projects, (The Orange Line and Euclid BRT projects would have not passed the required Medium cost-effectiveness rating rule the administration wants) Houston's recent deal might breathe new life into the application process for new expansion lines in cities that want to drastically expand their systems. Currently cities like Minneapolis are building a line every 10 years, meaning a simple 6 line network could take 40 more years. A problem might arise however with cities that don't have a starter line so that the rail bias can be attained for ridership measures.

It's been pretty easy to get extensions funded by the FTA in the past and they are generally the best modeled in terms of ridership. But the FTA has been making projects cut down their costs to make the rating. The Central Corridor has had a cap on how much it can cost meaning the locals don't have complete control over some of the decisions including a tunnel under the university because of that cost. This is a project that should have been built about 30 years ago but people are just starting to get it. But Minneapolis has plans for two more lines, the Southwest Corridor and the Northwest Corridor. So if cities are going to get serious about building expansive transit networks, Houston has shown the way to go for the time being. With a new administration who knows what could happen, but if you have to dance with who brung ya, it seems like Houston has opened the door to the ball.

Thursday, October 25, 2007

Waiting for Austin...

I'm going to wait to hear more before I make an assessment of the Austin rail announcement that was made this morning. I will say however, that if M1ek is right about just an extension of the streetcar plan on 51st street, I will say NO NO NO and more NO! Do I have to repeat it? NO!

Train Splits

Nick over at 295bus asks, why can't we split trains? Well it seems as if the Sprinter in Oceanside will do it. I've heard a lot of people marvel at how trains split to go in different directions once they get to a certain station, mostly in Europe, but often wondered why we couldn't do that here.

Visualize Sprawl

This is a really cool simulation of uncool sprawl. I suggest a look. HT to Transit Miami.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Tram System Logos

More fun from the Europe Trip. Here are some photos of Transit Authority Logos. I thought it was interesting the other day when ColumbusING and Xing Columbus brought us MOTO. Here are some from Graz, Budapest, Prague, and Vienna.

Graz

GrazLogo

Budapest

Budapest_TransitAgency

Budapest Metro

Budapest_MetroSign

Prague Metro

Prague_TransitAgency

Vienna

Vienna_Metro_Logo

Monday, October 22, 2007

Can Transit Cause a Loss of Morals?

File this under: I'm not making this up.

According to a newspaper article dug up by TwoBells (Joe Lacey) on the SFMuni history list and confirmed by other list members, Cable Cars apparently caused one San Francisco woman to become a nymphomaniac. A few weeks after coming to San Francisco in 1964, she was involved in a terrible Cable Car crash which she claims made her go against her Lutheran morals. This in turn made the cable cars more popular (3rd Article). For the whole story you have to read the articles from the San Francisco Chronicle in their entirety below. It's quite hilarious and shows that you never know what could happen on transit or in the court of law.

Desire #1

Desire #3

Desire  #2

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Six New Subway Lines to Start Construction By End of Year

Some of you might have thought 'awesome!' when you saw the title but I'm sorry to be a downer because no its not LA or San Francisco but rather Beijing which has the luck. From China View via Live from the Third Rail.

Beijing's urban planning authorities have approved planning permission for six new subway lines on which work is scheduled to begin by the end of the year.

The six new lines - the No. 6, 8 and 9 lines, the second phase of the No. 10 line, and the Yizhuang and Daxing lines, have a total length of 152 kilometers, according to the Beijing Municipal Commission of Urban Planning. They will be completed in 2012.

Beijing currently has five subway lines in operation, with a total length of 142 kilometers.

"The city aims to raise the proportion of citizens choosing public transport from the current 30 percent to 45 percent by 2015,and the subway passenger volume will increase to eight million a day from the current 2.2 million," said the commission's Zhou Nansen.

8 million a day is huge. New York City gets about 6.2 million a day. But what is interesting is that they set a goal to reach in terms of percentage of total and figure out what they need to do to reach it. It certainly would be exciting if a major city in the United States was building 6 new lines and LA comes to mind as a city that might want to do that.

Saturday, October 20, 2007

LA Rockin The Transit Space Race

After the lift of the consent decree, the LACMTA has been busy planning the next wave of rail lines. Currently under construction are two lines, the Gold Line East Side and the Expo Line Phase 1. But slowly creeping up are the following lines...

The Crenshaw Corridor
Gold Line Foothill Extension
Expo Line Phase 2
Downtown Connector
Subway to the Sea

It's getting busy down there in LA, now if only they could speed it up and build them all at once like Denver, Houston, and Salt Lake City.

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Finally a Trips Comparison!

Finally someone points out something I've been thinking for a long time about the hits on the Seattle light rail plan. The anti-transit faction has gotten away with their comparison of all regional trips to a specific corridor(s). This means they are comparing trips you take to get ice cream at 2am to trips taken on the freeway at rush hour. Obviously those 2am trips don't cause congestion, and capacity isn't an issue either. But as Diamajin points out, Mr. Westneat at the Seattle Times gets it too:

Project A, the no-brainer, will carry an additional 110,000 people daily over its 30 miles by the year 2030, according to its planners.

Project B, the wasteful one, will carry an additional 180,000 people per day over its 50 miles by the year 2030.

So ... the boondoggle will transport more people? For the same construction cost?

So it goes in the upside-down world of our transportation debate, circa 2007.

Project A is the widening of the Eastside's Interstate 405. The plan is to spend $10.9 billion (in 2002 dollars) laying four new freeway lanes and a bus rapid-transit route.

When done, the road will be 67 percent wider and carry 110,000 more trips than now. In some parts it will flow more freely. In others — such as the evening rush hour between Bellevue and Renton — it will be as jammed as it is today. (All this is from the state's studies.)

Project B is Sound Transit's light-rail plan. For $10.2 billion (in 2006 dollars), it would extend rail north to Lynnwood, east to Bellevue and south to Tacoma. The whole system, including the line being built now, is projected to carry 300,000 riders daily by 2030.

So the Times does some stuff right with Mr. Westneat, but allows Mr. Niles to parrot one of the anti-transit factions favorite comparisons without proper analysis of his claim. Regional trips to a specific corridor. As has been said before, the Big Dig only takes less than 2% of regional passenger miles. And before the cost escalations the road warriors loved that project. Some still love it and hope to repeat it in Atlanta among other places. But, as we know from the previous comparison: 180,000 > 110,000. But is it just 180,000?

What I would like to see is these 311,000 transit trips plus the calculation of walking trips generated from smarter development, specifically the trips that won't be taken by car. This is what the folks in Portland are referring to as the trip not taken.

In a 1994 travel survey, it was shown that areas with good transit and mixed use development got 9.8 VMT per capita. In outlying areas of the city, that number went up to 21.7 per capita. So if we look at the 7,200 housing units that were built in the vicinity of the streetcar, this means an annual reduction of 31 million VMT! This suggests that people don't have to drive as far (good for carbon reduction) and take trips using other means such as bikes and walking (even better).

So it seems to me that in this instance, if this light rail and streetcar network in Seattle generates smarter growth patterns for the next 1 million people, you can count on significant VMT reduction and more alternative trips. Now compare that to adding another freeway which will just add more VMT due to the extra trips you need to take in a auto-centric environment. I wish someone would discuss these issues rather than taking the bait and talking about that dumb region to corridor comparison.

All Rails in Space City

This afternoon the Metro board finally approved rail on Richmond putting the best line forward they could even if it wasn't the best line (Thanks Afton Oaks!). In a shocker that I don't think anyone expected, they also voted for light rail on all 5 lines! But after reading Christof's blog I was wondering if what he said about funding and the FTA was true? I haven't noticed any change in the funding mechanisms so what is going on down there? Is it possible that because Tom Delay is gone they have better support from their legislators (sans "I don't like rail" Culbertson)?

This was made possible by the other surprise of the day — the Southeast Line on Scott, along with all the other 2012 lines, will be light rail, thanks to new FTA funding rules. Thus, the Southeast Line and University Line will be able to share track on Scott. And that amended idea carried.
Perhaps they have been behind the scenes like Salt Lake City working out a deal with the feds to pay for their lines in bulk since they have a master plan. I think that might be the wave of the future so other cities might want to look close at how to plan a system then get funding for it rather than going line by line. We'll probably hear about it more in the coming days. From the Chronicle:

"We now feel we can pass federal muster (to obtain 50 percent funding) by going to light rail on all five lines at once," board chairman David Wolff said. "We can't help but believe that people will be thrilled by it."

In 2005, residents and elected officials along the planned North, East End, Southeast and Uptown lines were dismayed to learn that Metro analysis showed cost and ridership on them would be too low to justify federal funding for rail.

Check out the link to Christof for a new system map.

The Integration of Transit & Land Use

There is a Salon article that discusses how real this video is. Amazing!

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Pay Now or Pay Later

That's what the Seattle PI is saying. And you know what, they are right. Costs and materials are always going to escalate and unless you get started its always going to cost more.

Speaking of the future ...It is coming, regardless of how you vote for this proposition. You could vote no and leave us in the transportation "Groundhog's Day" situation we're in. Or you could vote yes -- and we implore you to -- and free this region from its gridlocked thinking.

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Really Freakin Fast

So if you go to Budapest watch out for the killer escalators. They are faster than any others I've ever seen. My mom almost ate it a number of times getting on. They are so fast they get videos on YouTube. AND they have bike races on them!

Monday, October 15, 2007

Utah Nimby's Have a Good Thing

Some just don't get it. They could have the best situation in the world but they wouldn't know it. Transit in Utah has the story.

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Vienna's Ringstrasse

In addition to the ring system in Budapest, Vienna has the Ringstrasse. Interestingly enough, there isn’t a single line that completes the loop however many lines come into town and turn around next to the loop leaving the downtown walking city to be accessed only by the Metro system. There are several lines which use the Ringstrasse but all lines link to specific metro stations on the Ringstrasse with the Strassenbahn (Tram) filling in the accessibility gaps between Metro stations and regional rail. The central city is completely walkable, mostly cobbled and in some instances closed off to cars.

Vienna_TramLoop18

What is the history of this tram ring that allows the circulation of this signature street? Initially the ring was the city fortifications. However Franz Joseph, the King of the Austrio-Hungarian Empire decided that it wasn’t needed anymore and wanted to create a signature street. And create a meaningful place he did. The street is very wide and accommodates automobiles, streetcars, as well as a wide tree lined pedestrian and bike space.

The most interesting piece related to transit is not really the loop itself, although its an important part of both Vienna and Budapest transport, but rather the multimodal connections that are made at certain nodes along the Ringstrasse. At one node, there are four tram stops on the surface, a tram turnaround just beneath the surface and a connection to the M2 Metro which follows its own ring around half of the downtown. In the photos below you can kind of see how this works.

Vienna_TramLoop6

Vienna_TramLoop7

Vienna_TramLoop9

Vienna_TramLoop

Vienna_Bikeshare

In another node, there are loops for trams, buses and the Metro connected by tunnels which allow citizens to not cross the Ringstrasse on the surface. Underneath the surface its like a mini-mall with eateries and the infamous Tabak shops where you can buy cigarettes and your metro pass.

So why do these systems work? Well first off they are the circulators for all modal connections with in the central city. Their operation is dependent on the interface of faster Metro lines and slower tram and bus connections (the photo below is a tram and bus stop). In Vienna specifically the buses sometimes are even using the tram right of way and stops of the trams. They also all connect to the intercity trains on the edges of town allowing anyone living in town to get around effortlessly without a car.

Vienna_TramROW10


This means that its incredible affordable to live in the old parts of Vienna. I was told that inside the ring is expensive, but just outside of the ring you can get a nice flat for $600 per month. I will warn folks that there are lots of good restaurants there so food could get expensive.

And if you're worried about the environment, there are people there to remind you.

Vienna_Karntnerstrasse_C02x

Charlotte Sans Train

I went out on Friday and took some pictures along Charlotte's light rail line. In the neighborhoods along the line, there are many signs in windows displaying "Vote no" on the repeal of the transit tax.

P1000967

P1000950

P1000957

P1000953

P1000963

P1000959

I was however annoyed with the waste of space for the electric substation, basically taking up a prime parcel of property close to the tracks for one use that could have been integrated into a larger development. They might be able to salvage it, but it seems unlikely that they will try. The substation is the brick box in the center of the property below(cut off a bit by blogger). Notice how the other development builds to the line.

P1000980

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Flying Drone & Obama's Enviro Tone

I can't seem to stay put in San Francisco. I feel like the airplane is my second home and my body doesn't know what time it is. Right now I'm in Charlotte so hopefully I'll be able to get some light rail pictures for folks, or at least some good TOD pictures. So I won't be getting to the Ringstrasse today.

There is some news that i'd like to share even if I can't cover it as adequately as i'd like. Obama let loose on his plan to take on climate change. Hill Heat covers it pretty well but here is my favorite part...

Sustainable communities
  • Reform federal transportation funding to take into account smart growth considerations
  • Require states to plan for energy conservation for the expenditure of federal transportation funds
  • Reform the tax code to make benefits for driving and public transit or ridesharing equal
Carless in Seattle also has some of the scoop. I dunno what anyone else thinks, but this seems like a big deal. Here is some of the policy speech he gave.

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

Streetcars & Philanthropists

Michael Cudahy, a Milwaukie philanthropist, is sick of the leadership there not getting along on transit issues. So what does he do? He proposes his own streetcar line and suggests that developers pay for parts of it. If only developers paid for all of them, then we'd be in business.

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Ringing the Hub & Spoke

In all of the cities that I visited this past week, there were at least 3 metro lines each, yet only two of them had distributive ring tram systems that supplement those systems. Budapest and Vienna were very interesting in how their systems worked a bit differently from the typical hub and spoke system found in most cities. They might be interesting case studies to look at when you compare them to cities in the United States thinking about ring systems such as Boston, Chicago, and Atlanta.

Budapest and the Caterpillars

In Budapest, the ring routes do some heavy crosstown lifting, specifically, the 4 and 6 routes which run on one minute headways and carry 10,000 riders per hour per direction during rush hours (I think there might be more). It seemed at times that the Combino Supras had many more people riding them than the subways with multi-car consists.

Budapest_CombinoNight2

You'll notice in the map below that the subway system operates in the traditional spoke system but if you look closer at the Pest side of the city (That's East since Buda and Pest were initially different cities) there are yellow tram rings that connect the subway stations. The 1,4,6 and 47,49 routes make crosstown connections easy. We stayed on the 4,6 lines and took them to connect with the Metro on many occasions and were always completely packed into the cars, especially in the evenings and even at 9pm at night when students and young folks were out at night.

The benefit of these rings is that with their one minute headways combined with the subway's 3 minute headways, you can get anywhere in the city faster than in a car.



Budapest_North2

The benefits of these ring routes are many. They are fast ways to get between metro stations as well as distribute people to the places in between. You'll also notice that they connect to the suburban railways as well (in green). There are also two routes that go north and south on the river connecting the top and bottom of the ring. This is where I saw the most tourists.

Budapest_BudaROW

The trams were also designed not for commutes but urban transportation. The interiors were chair sparse and able to fit many more people for short trips.

Budapest_TramInterior

Budapest_CombinoInterior

Next i'll talk about Vienna's Ringstrasse and the above and underground tram transfers in the Strassenbahn.

Vienna_TramStop

Saturday, October 6, 2007

Trains, Planes, and Funiculars

All of my travel with the exception of my cab ride to the airport at 4:30 am on the last day was done by walking, intercity train, riverboat or public transit. I've got about 7 different transit cards and photos from the different systems. Here are some of the transit modes. I apologize for the lighting but I didn't really have a choice in that matter :)

Vienna Metro

Vienna Metro

Vienna Tram

Vienna_TramLoop5

Vienna Modern Tram

Vienna_TramLoop8

Budapest Metro

Budapest_Metro2

Budapest Metro M1

Budapest_M1Station9

Budapest Tram

Budapest_Line30

Budapest Tram

Budapest_Citadel3

Budapest Combino Supra

Budapest_Combino3

Budapest Funicular - Second Oldest in Europe

Budapest_Funicular3

Budapest Bus

Budapest_Bus

Budapest Trolleybus

Budapest_Trolleybus

Prague Metro

Prague_Metro

Prague Tram

Prague_Tramline2

Friday, October 5, 2007

Collapse & Civilizations

I don't even know where to begin to talk about my trip. First there are the ring systems of Vienna and Budapest that I want to write about, I've got about 200 pictures to share and as I hopped on BART today to get home from the SF Airport I was more than just a little bit disappointed about transit efforts in the United States. As I get my bearings and overcome some jet lag I'll try to write up some of my experiences. Sitting at a bar with an Austrian named Mike, almost dieing on the faster than American laws would allow escalators on the Budapest Metro, and the legacy of eastern bloc communism in Budapest and Prague.

I would however like to share something I wrote up on the plane ride over to Vienna...

I’m sitting here on a KLM flight to Amsterdam then to Vienna Austria for vacation with my family in Eastern Europe. The seat to my left is empty and the movie Oceans 13 just finished but I noticed something so true. Earlier there was a man sitting next to me from Visalia. It’s a small town in Central California where agriculture is the lifeblood of the community. Earlier I overheard him talking to the man on his left from Stockton, which is quickly becoming a bedroom community for the Bay Area. He asked what he did for a living and the man replied “I’m a developer”.

Now I’m not usually one to listen in but of course being an urban planner I had to hear what was coming next. The man from Visalia was uncomfortable in his seat being about 6’4” or so. Of course these planes are more like cattle cars than luxurious transportation but his knees were sitting in the cracks of the seats in front of us and his elbow was in my ribs. But he continued cheerily talking asking the developer, if there was any more room to build in Stockton because of the disappearance of farmland. The man from Visalia asked, “Why don’t you build up instead of out?” The developer replied, “There is plenty of land left to build on.” Under my breath I said “Yeah right” realizing what kind of developer he was.

The man from Visalia kept going on about resources and conservation and even ended up discussing taking vegetable oil from fast food restaurants for reuse. He then moved on to me asking what I did. I said “I’m an urban planner.” He seemed surprised. “That guy next to me is a developer.” I nodded and said “Yes I heard.” He asked what I did specifically and I told him. He then went on to discuss his former job as a parole officer and the travesty of the red car. “The Mayor was a crook” he said. “Ripping out all those streetcars.” People I talk to always seem launch into the benefits of transit without provocation. I never prodded him or even told him about my thoughts on the subject but he told me about it anyways. He was around for the red car and seemed specifically upset about their demise. “You’d never be able to build it back today” he said. I told him they were trying.

Throughout the flight he kept getting hit in the knees by the lady in front of us who tried to lean her seat back. He had to protest each time which led him to ask to move seats. The flight attendant was more than happy to help him out so he was out of there leaving me and the developer an empty seat between us. As we both put our stuff on the tray table where the man from Visalia was sitting I noticed the book he put down juxtaposed with the one that I put down. His was a hardcover deep crimson red book titled “Empire”. Mine was a softcover book by Jared Diamond called Collapse about the collapse of several civilizations throughout history by climate change among a number of other factors including war and societal suicide (ie: Easter Island). It really stuck in my head the difference between the two sets of warring factions in the sprawl fight. The ones who think there are endless spoils to be had and a never ending supply of resources, and those who are looking to avoid a collapse. I’ve never seen the fight in such black/white or good/evil terms and probably will never again because of course it is never so simple. I’m not a hardcore environmentalist or anything but for a moment there I realized why I do what I do.

Monday, October 1, 2007

Photos From Half Way

Budapest Tram

Here are some photos from my trip to Eastern Europe. I'll describe more when I have time. I've taken about 200 photos so far so i'll get them up eventually.

Budapest Subway Entrance 1

Entrance to the oldest subway in mainland Europe.

Budapest Combino Interior

The interior of the Combino Supra streetcar. Always packed.

Vienna Metro 2

The Vienna Metro. Comes every 5 minutes no matter what time of day. Even on Saturday and Sundays!!!

Vienna Streetcar

A newer Vienna Tram. Very Cool.

Still going to be slow on the posting. I'll try.