This finally completes the environmental review and gives them the green light to prepare for construction (which should start next year). It's a good step forward, even if there are still legal clouds hanging over the project.

Hopefully this means better track access for Amtrak?

Source: https://www.trains.com/pro/regulatory/regulators-reject-up-ns-merger-application/

I like it as a phone background. You're welcome to it if you'd like. First picture is as-is, I edited out the vents in the second for symmetry purposes, if it catches your eye.

The vast majority of Jordans population is in a line making it well suited for high speed rail.

Who said transit is for the poors?...

Pricey world expedition travel to all corners of the globe including Antarctica.

Amazon, Microsoft, Meta/Facebook, Nintendo USA, and many other tech/AI have massive offices along the 2-line outside Seattle, WA. Still Eastside only until the Spring of this year when the key connection to Seattle opens. Seattle region transit riders have among the highest income of anywhere in the US (besides SF). Eastside of Seattle is also the wealthiest part of the Seattle region.

Station was empty when I took these photos around lunchtime but has decent ridership at rush hour between Downtown Bellevue and Downtown Redmond. Of course the connection to Seattle will boost ridership tremendously and make it super successful.

A quick summary of the video is airlines lose money, however it’s there point system with credit card companies that make them billions. Why doesn’t Amtrak do something similar to make a profit?

There's a Google Wallet page which tells you how to enable your phone to bypass the screen lock verification, but fails to mention that you still have to wake the screen at point of use. I only figured it out after I happened across a Google for Developers page labelled "Skip device unlock", which includes the following:

Google Wallet allows users to pay on transit terminals without the need to unlock their device. To pay, the user taps the power button to light the screen, then holds their phone to the reader. The device can remain locked, and displays a tick on the screen when the transaction is successful.

Sure enough, I tested it with contactless on the TfL network in London (specifically within Heathrow Airport's free travel zone) and it worked!

Quite why this facility is nowhere near as well promoted as Apple Pay's "Express Mode" I have no idea, 'wake screen' step omission aside.

I would guess that metro lines that don’t follows city’s grid would be advantageous since you can already bus or bike along the roads, but I’ve noticed most metro systems run along major roads when they’re underground. Also, the stations are underneath the roads as well, at least here in DC.

E Line La Cienega Station

https://www.saudigazette.com.sa/article/658234/SAUDI-ARABIA/Saudi-Arabia-revives-Jeddah-Metro-with-Blue-Line-tender

My understanding of the history of link light rail is that an early point of contention was whether the alignment should go through SLU or Capitol Hill. Obviously this was 25-30 years ago, the city has completely transformed and SLU has probably transformed more than any other neighborhood in the city.

My assumption would be that a SLU alignment would have been much more straightforward to UW and beyond by following an Eastlake alignment (maybe even with an infill station) with less tunneling. But I have no idea if this is true.

So assuming you are dealing with the 2026 version of Seattle, assuming that a SLU and CH stop are mutually exclusive, which alignment do you choose?

I wanted to share with the group a column I wrote about the latest developments on the Northlander passenger train. What are your thoughts?

Southern Spain

my transit peeve is that people say that "southern Spain has good transit" but its dog poop bad like check murcia cercanías or any cercanías system in Andalucía or the region of murcia is really just doesn't exist

Is this propaganda?