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alexblock.bsky.social
alex block 🥌
@alexblock.bsky.social
2K followers 1K following 4.7K posts
cities, transportation, transit, and other intermittent discussion.
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alexblock.bsky.social
CURLING QUADBOX 🥌🥌🥌🥌
Picture of my TV, showing the GoldZone feed with four simultaneous mixed doubles curling matches…
February 7, 2026 at 1:44 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
Screenshot of Kirk Cousins posting a picture of… something? on his grill; and the commenter asking “are those rocks?”
February 5, 2026 at 7:42 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
This is a particular shame. My favorite Post photo, captured by Ricky Carioti

www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-an...
Man in an untucked dress shirt holding an ice cream cone, against driving snow while crossing a downtown street.
February 4, 2026 at 9:28 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
eg Lenox Ave is locked in place from
Phase 2; St Nicholas could move a bit shallower, but not much; and the grade is already steep to get to Broadway.
125th st subway vertical profile showing depth of planned stations.
February 3, 2026 at 9:30 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
In terms of building stuff? Yes. But not for operating the actual service. The cost operating bus service is 2x that of subways per vehicle mile.

Cities build subways for a reason - it’s much more efficient to move people that way.

www.transit.dot.gov/sites/fta.do...
Chart showing operating expenses for NYCT, both per revenue mile and per passenger mile for the MTA, showing bus consistently 2x more expensive to operate.
February 3, 2026 at 3:22 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
It’s also worth noting how small the scope of the system is. It’s not going to be the thing for any sort of residential neighborhood.
Map of heated sidewalks in Holland, MI. 4.9 miles total, all focused on downtown shopping streets.
February 3, 2026 at 12:23 AM
alexblock.bsky.social
Also, shout out to the midwesterners, who’d normally have grounds to complain about Mid-Atlantic snow preparedness, but know this was a truly exceptional storm.
slacprofessor • 1h I'm a born and raised Minnesotan and this snowcrete here in DC is nothing like anything I've ever seen in MN. It's not something you can even shovel or plow. It takes seriously heavy chiseling with pic axes to break it up. DC is using bobcats and construction equipment. Regular plows aren't cutting it. • •• Vote Minnesotan here, we could give you guys some tips when it snows but we've been a little busy lately. ... 个 64 ₴ rajeansh • 1h Minnesotan living in NoVA here- this is nothing like anything I've seen growing up in MN (and all of the other snowy places I've lived btwn then and now. The sleet did a number on the snow and the cold just keeps beating us down. Not much we can do until it warms up, unfortunately. ... 个 Vote 少 Bright-Hat-6405 • 1h Same. Born in Minnesota, living in NOVA. We have to wait for it to warm up for the ice to melt... Sledding is so much fun until you literally cannot stop yourself from sliding into a creek 个 Vote
February 1, 2026 at 12:32 AM
alexblock.bsky.social
From a different Reddit thread: if you want to say it’s not good enough, that’s your call.

But get out with this “not much of a storm” BS.
ProfaneRabbitFriend OP • 39m That's exactly right. It's not good enough. This wasn't even that much of a storm by DC standards and this lack of snow removal is pathetic. Why don't you make your own post about how great a job the cities is doing
January 31, 2026 at 10:57 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
Not to get back on this hobby horse, but keep seeing comments like this that are simply not true.

You can’t instantly clear all the ice and sleet once it stops. It was going to freeze - this was inevitable.

Any city or country had little choice but to prioritize the main roads.
tux1138 • 6m If we had year-round school (as in additional instructional days, not just the ~180 days spread out over more time), there wouldn't be the same pressure to keep the schools open. The counties dropped the ball, missing their window to actually clear the roads before the first freeze. Deep freezes here are very rare, but this one was decently forecast. This was avoidable. Excuses from the county are just noise. Our teachers were working on Friday. Maybe they should consider opening the schools for those that can get there, even if they don't send the busses out, but for unstructured learning /art / music / indoor sports, etc., and then kids that can't make it won't miss anything, but those needing a warm building with warmth, food, and friends will have it. Maybe it doesn't have to be all or nothing.
January 31, 2026 at 10:37 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
It’s worth comparing how big of a space surrounds the Arc de Triomphe (a mere 162’ tall) to even the most generous space available at Memorial Circle.
Google earth measurement of the outermost parts of Memorial Circle, showing 500 feet in diameter Google earth measurement of the building to building space around the arc de triomphe: 900 feet.
January 31, 2026 at 2:33 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
Oh no…
Leigh suggested a compromise location that could allow Trump his large monument without imposing on other structures. "If you're going to build an arch that big, you should build it in another part of town and one possible site that comes to mind is Barney Circle," Leigh said, referencing a site in Southeast Washington next to Congressional Cemetery, overlooking the Anacostia River. "There's nothing around it competing with it."
January 31, 2026 at 2:12 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
The Plaza de Castilla one has 4 underground levels, with 4 bus boarding islands with 53 bus bays, plus retail space, and connections to Metro lines 1, 9, and 10
Cutaway view of level -1 Cutaway view of level -2 Cutaway view of level -3 Cutaway view of level -4
January 30, 2026 at 8:41 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
The interchanges are all arranged around the central city, connecting to suburban bus services via expressways and offering a seamless transfer to the Metro.

All but Plaza de Castilla are located on the Circular Line 6.
January 30, 2026 at 8:27 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
never a doubt
game flow chart showing a horrendous first half for UW with just 17 points; then 50 in the 2nd half
January 29, 2026 at 4:11 AM
alexblock.bsky.social
From the Capital Weather Gang - it was as much moisture as the biggest storms of the last few decades, just most of it was ice and sleet

www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2026...
The inches of wintry accumulation tell only part of the story. The 6.9 inches of frozen mix in D.C. would melt down to the equivalent of 1.99 inches of rain, a record for Jan. 25. Once the snow melts, this amount of water will put a dent in the severe drought affecting the area. The amount of precipitation from this storm was comparable or even in excess of some of the recent great storms like Snowzilla, "Snowmageddon" in February 2010 and "Snowpocalypse" in December 2009. The 2 to 4 inches of sleet was particularly unusual. The most recent storm to produce substantial sleet occurred in February 2007. While it produced more freezing rain, it was not as big as this storm. The amount of sleet that fell Sunday was the equivalent of 7 to 14 inches of snow by
January 29, 2026 at 2:18 AM
alexblock.bsky.social
Frank Sobotka stares off into the distance…
January 27, 2026 at 2:03 AM
alexblock.bsky.social
Darren Rovell tweet from 2016: “I feel bad for our country. but this is tremendous content”
January 25, 2026 at 10:56 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
oh no it’s slowly creeping left by the minute
6:52… I can no longer see the left side of the 6 7:10… new photo, but can I tell this is a seven?
January 24, 2026 at 12:12 AM
alexblock.bsky.social
so my phone finally updated to iOS 26 and now my lock screen clock is constantly askew for some reason?
Screenshot of my phone lock screen, with the time time (6:11 pm) somehow aligned to the left for some reason
January 23, 2026 at 11:12 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
Found the pic. Jan. 20, 2016…
Onions, without the onions. 🧅
January 23, 2026 at 10:16 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
A sharp drop in the Cheese Availability Index means a big storm is coming
Reddit screenshot of r/nova showing a grocery store refrigerator of cheese, completely empty. Caption: No Cheese
January 22, 2026 at 9:52 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
Beyond just American soft power, it’s worth noting how we got here. It’s been a long time coming:
“Researchers have shown that public research universities around the country have turned to full-paying international students to make up for state funding cuts. At more than 50 American universities, international students make up at least 10 percent of the undergraduate class. The University of Wisconsin began to ramp up that enrollment after the double whammy of the 2008 financial crisis and Gov. Scott Walker's decision in 2015 to freeze tuition and cut educational spending.”
January 21, 2026 at 10:37 PM
alexblock.bsky.social
Post a car picture you took
Back of a Chevy SUV with a Death Star window decal and vanity plates “no moon”
January 21, 2026 at 4:04 AM
alexblock.bsky.social
Post a car picture you took
An old Mercedes with vanity license plates: PLZ CLP. Jeb, is that you?
January 21, 2026 at 3:55 AM
alexblock.bsky.social
The official summary: marylandmatters.org/2025/09/18/d...
. Team owner Josh Harris signed a memorandum of understanding with Moore and Prince George's Acting County Executive Tara H. Jackson in December that said the team would begin demolition of the Landover stadium within 90 days of playing its first game at a new stadium. After demolition, the agreement calls on the team to work with state and county agencies to transform the 200-acre site into "a vibrant mixed-use development," to include residential, retail "and other allowable uses."
January 19, 2026 at 3:26 PM