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essentialtransitnl.bsky.social @essentialtransitnl.bsky.social · Aug 12

One of the most thorough discussions of the pros and cons of free buses in a North American context.

The War on Cars @thewaroncars.bsky.social · Aug 12

NEW EPISODE: "Should the Bus Be Free? With Yonah Freemark."

Zohran Mamdani has promised fast, free buses if he becomes mayor of NYC. It's a big idea, but is it a good one? @yonahfreemark.com walks us through the pros and cons, with examples from around the world.

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s...

Close up of front of bus interior showing digital screen where cards are tapped to collect bus far. Screen says "FARE FREE UNTIL 3/30/2024." On the right is a farebox covered with a sign that also says "FARE FREE."

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Stephen Frost @sfrost.bsky.social · Aug 9

More of this kind of travel writing please.

“On the whole, travel by public bus was a joy.”

“En route to Little Compton in Warwickshire, I found myself the sole passenger on the bus and the driver told me she was happy to drop me anywhere, as long as it was safe to do so”

I travelled by local bus from London to the Cotswolds for under £40

Wending his way from the city to the countryside on the UK’s local bus network, Gabriel Stewart found an authentic slice of Cotswolds life, away from the crowds

www.independent.co.uk

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Miles in Transit @milesintransit.com · Jun 26

And it's done! 6 days, 9 provinces, 6 time zones, and 20 buses later, we've made it to the end of the Trans-Canada Highway!!!!! Thanks so much to everyone who followed along on this insane adventure across this amazing country!

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Stephen Frost @sfrost.bsky.social · Jul 6

Interesting new study from @smfthinktank.bsky.social finds a correlation between car dependency & loneliness, particularly in rural towns.

This might be due to there being “fewer ways to reach others” and space given to cars creating “barriers in what might have been walkable neighbourhoods.”

People lacking good public transport more likely to feel lonely, UK study finds

Research finds correlation between car dependancy and loneliness, particularly in rural towns

www.theguardian.com

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Transport Action Canada @transportaction.ca · Jun 30

This is a brave endeavour considering the current state of bus connectivity between provinces:

Miles in Transit @milesintransit.com · Jun 19

WE ARE CROSSING THE ENTIRETY OF CANADA EXCLUSIVELY BY BUS!!!

We just left Victoria, BC; if all goes according to plan, we'll be arriving in St. John's, NL on Wednesday night after six days, seven bus companies, and nine Canadian provinces - all but PEI!

Miles in Transit @milesintransit.com · Jun 19

Our biggest adventure yet starts tomorrow. Watch this space!

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David Brake @drbrakeyyt.bsky.social · Jun 11

Brighton & Hove where I am currently living just received $29m of capital funding for transit from the UK government, spread over four yearshttps://www.gov.uk/government/p... St John's received almost double that in 2024 - mostly to electrify its network. But... www.stjohns.ca/en/news/fund...

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essentialtransitnl.bsky.social @essentialtransitnl.bsky.social · Jun 2

This sounds very much like St John's Council, most of the Transportation Commission and Metrobus management itself...

Stephen Frost @sfrost.bsky.social · Jun 1

Interesting study from Canada on transport equity.

Finds that “… elected officials have little direct experience with transportation barriers, with few experiencing issues such as unaffordability, disability, or harassment, and evidence that this influences their values related to equity.”

Transportation barriers and equity: Values and experiences of elected officials

Despite the importance of elected officials in shaping transportation policies, there has been little direct research on their values and experiences. Understanding the values of elected officials ...

www.tandfonline.com

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Transport Action Atlantic @transportactionatl.bsky.social · May 30

Transit leaders here in Canada could learn from this - for starters, we should be regularly benchmarking and trying to improve our transit systems' inclusivity too!

Stephen Frost @sfrost.bsky.social · May 30

Evaluation of the DfT's inclusive transport strategy released yesterday.

The strategy's goal is "that disabled people should be able to travel confidently, easily and without extra cost."

Despite some good initiatives, key outcomes didn't improve over this period (although this is complicated)

Inclusive Transport Strategy evaluation

Findings from an evaluation into the Inclusive Transport Strategy that ran from 2020 to 2024 and considered whether the strategy met its objectives.

www.gov.uk

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Transport Action Atlantic @transportactionatl.bsky.social · May 27

Equally applicable to the Canadian federal government and provincial and municipal governments across the country.

Stephen Frost @sfrost.bsky.social · May 27

The UK gov should follow the EU’s lead on this and a) establish a national definition of transport poverty & transport related social exclusion, b) target reducing it, c) embed this in local transport plan guidance and d) put £s in the right place to widen access to decent transport options

Giulio Mattioli @giuliomattioli.bsky.social · May 26

A few years ago "transport poverty" was just a niche academic concept.

Now the EU has published its recommendations on how to tackle it & a helpful data dashboard transport.ec.europa.eu/news-events/...

I have made a thread with my first impressions here: threadreaderapp.com/thread/19270...

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essentialtransitnl.bsky.social @essentialtransitnl.bsky.social · May 26

The draft plan for Metrobus' electrification called for just four fully electric buses this year and 49 by... 2032. And it's clearly not even keeping to that schedule.

Transport Action Atlantic @transportactionatl.bsky.social · May 26

Halifax's full fleet of 60 electric buses are on the road at last! Emissions savings equivalent to taking 650 gas cars off the road - even more if the buses are more popular than the diesel ones they replace. www.ctvnews.ca/atlantic/nov...

Halifax Transit adds 60 electric buses in push toward zero emissions

Halifax Transit announced Tuesday that it has added 60 battery-electric buses to its fleet as part of a $112 million project aimed at cutting carbon emissions and modernizing public transit in the cit...

www.ctvnews.ca

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Transport Action Atlantic @transportactionatl.bsky.social · May 26

We're still big fans of buses, but if you believe it takes light rail to get passengers on board, maybe this lower cost construction technique has a role to play!

Stephen Frost @sfrost.bsky.social · May 26

👀 Coventry’s very light rail pilot.

“Traditional light rail systems can cost between £50 million and £100 million per km, often due to the need for deep excavations and utility diversions. The Coventry VLR team estimates its system could be delivered for around £10 million per km”

Coventry’s low-cost rail test track begins - Cities Today

Construction is under way on the UK’s first Very Light Rail (VLR) test track, part of a pilot project in Coventry that aims to develop a lower-cost, zero-emission alternative to traditional tram syste...

cities-today.com

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Veronica O. Davis @veronicaodavis.bsky.social · Dec 3

Today is International Day of Persons with Disabilities. For those in the transportation ecosystem, drop some coins on fellow @islandpress.bsky.social author @nondriver.bsky.social “When Driving is not an Option”.

islandpress.org/books/when-d...

When Driving Is Not an Option

islandpress.org

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Transport Action Atlantic @transportactionatl.bsky.social · Apr 15

Brampton, ON (pop 700,000) has 226,500 bus riders on an average weekday. How? Simple. The core bus network runs every five minutes and secondary routes run every 30 well into the late evening. Ridership went up 288% (!) between 2004 when they started and 2018 www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

How Did This Suburb Figure Out Mass Transit?

Transit ridership is off the charts in Brampton, Ontario, despite its typical low-density suburban layout. Here’s how the city got residents to get on the bus.

www.bloomberg.com

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essentialtransitnl.bsky.social @essentialtransitnl.bsky.social · Apr 15

It looks sturdier and more comfortable than anything on offer in Newfoundland!

David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · Apr 15

I'm for fruit-themed bus infrastructure.

Two men wait at a bus stop by the sea; one is seated inside a whimsical, fruit-shaped shelter designed to look like a green melon with a leafy stem, while the other sits on a roadside railing. The shelter features a curved entrance and windows.

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essentialtransitnl.bsky.social @essentialtransitnl.bsky.social · Apr 11

Here in St John's it's not even that people fight against these things - many just don't fight for them. The status quo is so poor people need to take an interest in better transit now before they discover they are no longer comfortable driving and don't want to have to nag their friends and family.

American Fietser @americanfietser.bsky.social · Apr 10

You fought against walkable neighborhoods, housing variety, and transit for decades…and now you’re stuck alone in sprawl, no car, no bus, no friends nearby. Who could’ve seen that coming?

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essentialtransitnl.bsky.social @essentialtransitnl.bsky.social · Apr 7

Terrible. But also here in Newfoundland and Labrador a reminder we don't have a publicly supported, scheduled, inter-community bus service at all! (unless you count the meagre local St John's/Mt Pearl/Paradise route)

Transport Action Canada @transportaction.ca · Apr 7

Dozens of intercommunity bus routes across Ontario have been lost as a result of the end of provincial funding this month. This is a severe blow to rural communities and residents. Many of these service were launched in 2020 only really getting known now.

TGO Inter-Community Transit Discontinued

As of April 1st, TGO buses will no longer take people to Woodstock, Ingersoll and other local municipalities.

www.heartfm.ca

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Long Branch Mike (LBM) 🇨🇦 @longbranchmike.bsky.social · Mar 25

@transportaction.ca @transportactionatl.bsky.social

Toula Drimonis @mtltoula.bsky.social · Mar 25

"If Canadians pride themselves on their universal healthcare system, why isn’t it equally important to ensure that people can get to where they need to go, even if they can’t afford a car?" #transit #publictransit #Canada
thephilanthropist.ca/2025/03/good...

Good transit is essential to good cities – we need more people speaking up for it - The Philanthropist Journal

Public transport is an essential service that promotes equity and health and reduces pollution. Non-profits can help mobilize riders and fund research and advocacy to support meaningful change.

thephilanthropist.ca

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Transport Action Atlantic @transportactionatl.bsky.social · Mar 1

As populations across the Atlantic provinces continue to age, we need to make sure that our elderly don't feel they have to keep driving if they want to stay active and independent without avoid forcing friends and family to act as chauffeurs

Hyperlexic @hyperlexic.bsky.social · Mar 1

80+ year old drivers are as dangerous as 16-17 year old ones.

We really need to do something radically different in Berkeley.

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Transport Action Atlantic @transportactionatl.bsky.social · Dec 16

Wow - UK-focused but much will surely be applicable to 🇨🇦 as well - topics include transportation poverty, disabled people's access transport needs, a just transition for transit and more. Downloading now!

Stephen Frost @sfrost.bsky.social · Dec 16

📣 Delighted to launch @ippr.bsky.social's transport issue of Progressive Review today

Many thanks to the authors who have provided such diverse and timely perspectives on transport's impact on our lives, the places we live and the environment

The below 🧵 has the direct links to the articles

The great enabler: Transport’s role in tackling environmental crises and delivering progressive change: IPPR Progressive Review: Vol 31, No 3

Click on the title to browse this issue

onlinelibrary.wiley.com

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Brent Toderian @brenttoderian.bsky.social · Dec 11

In case you needed a city-making smile. A #Christmas metro train in Warsaw, Poland decked out for the holidays, shared by @adambielitz.bsky.social.

How you create a #CityOfSmiles.

A train decked out in Christmas red and white, snowflakes, candy-cane colours etc.

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essentialtransitnl.bsky.social @essentialtransitnl.bsky.social · Dec 10

The city's budget was also passed today. Still no sign of the two-years-overdue Metrobus growth plan. Financial support from the city was raised 2.8% from last year... making it still $837,670 lower than 2023 - a 5.6% decrease inc inflation while the service is suffering from its own success...

essentialtransitnl.bsky.social @essentialtransitnl.bsky.social · Dec 10

It's a 🎄miracle! Metrobus announced a new bus route 33 - an express between the Village Mall, Avalon Mall and Memorial University. Not until the new year, not on weekends or in the evenings but better than a lump of coal! www.metrobus.com/33/33details...

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Transport Action Atlantic @transportactionatl.bsky.social · Dec 10

When NL negotiated in 1988 the shutdown of the railway in exchange for road improvements, we were promised we'd "always have passenger services comparable to those provided in the rest of Canada". Roadcruiser had 25 buses and carried 161,000. Its successor DRL runs two coaches a day, without subsidy

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Clean Energy Canada @cleanenergycanada.org · Dec 9

🍁🔋 Oakville, Ontario, will soon roll out another dozen-plus electric transit buses—putting the municipality on track to electrify 50% of their 135-vehicle fleet by 2026.

"It really is exciting to be a part of the transition," says Oakville's transit director. #onpoli #EV

Oakville bus fleet on track for 50 per cent electrification by 2026

Oakville, Ont.'s electrification plan includes putting 74 electric transit vehicles on the road in two years — out of a bus fleet of 135

electricautonomy.ca

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essentialtransitnl.bsky.social @essentialtransitnl.bsky.social · Dec 9

Halifax Transit's first three electric buses to carry passengers are on the streets today! Metrobus has eight hybrid buses which are just arriving on the roads but it looks like our first four fully electric buses will be four years away...
www.halifax.ca/transportati...

Zero Emission Bus Project

www.halifax.ca

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