Kristian
@kristianblais.bsky.social
Transportation Economist and Research Fellow at Harvard Business School. Studying transit, cities, and the economics of innovation. Canadian 🇨🇦
Reposted by Kristian
Inspired by this thread, I calculated the distance from every US streetcar/light rail/heavy rail stop* to the nearest highway. Check it out here!
rpubs.com/bensh3/dist_...
*does not include St. Louis Metrolink because mode was missing in the NTAD
rpubs.com/bensh3/dist_...
*does not include St. Louis Metrolink because mode was missing in the NTAD
January 8, 2026 at 7:19 PM
Inspired by this thread, I calculated the distance from every US streetcar/light rail/heavy rail stop* to the nearest highway. Check it out here!
rpubs.com/bensh3/dist_...
*does not include St. Louis Metrolink because mode was missing in the NTAD
rpubs.com/bensh3/dist_...
*does not include St. Louis Metrolink because mode was missing in the NTAD
Decided to start a thread keeping track of all the transit systems I end up riding in 2026 because why not🧵
Starting off the year strong with my hometown system, ETS and the north americas original LRT in Edmonton, Alberta!
Starting off the year strong with my hometown system, ETS and the north americas original LRT in Edmonton, Alberta!
January 8, 2026 at 7:25 PM
Decided to start a thread keeping track of all the transit systems I end up riding in 2026 because why not🧵
Starting off the year strong with my hometown system, ETS and the north americas original LRT in Edmonton, Alberta!
Starting off the year strong with my hometown system, ETS and the north americas original LRT in Edmonton, Alberta!
Just visited the new NAIT/Blatchford Market LRT station in Edmonton, and it’s so funny how desolate it feels despite being in the centre of the city.
I know once it fills out with development it will be a great station, but at the moment if feels almost rural. It’s all field!
I know once it fills out with development it will be a great station, but at the moment if feels almost rural. It’s all field!
January 5, 2026 at 9:34 PM
Just visited the new NAIT/Blatchford Market LRT station in Edmonton, and it’s so funny how desolate it feels despite being in the centre of the city.
I know once it fills out with development it will be a great station, but at the moment if feels almost rural. It’s all field!
I know once it fills out with development it will be a great station, but at the moment if feels almost rural. It’s all field!
Reposted by Kristian
My favorite evidence that congestion pricing in New York has reshaped peoples’ behavior: we can see a surge of people trying to enter the zone before the price kicks up at 5 a.m., and after it decreases at 9 p.m.
January 5, 2026 at 5:12 PM
My favorite evidence that congestion pricing in New York has reshaped peoples’ behavior: we can see a surge of people trying to enter the zone before the price kicks up at 5 a.m., and after it decreases at 9 p.m.
I have come to realize the creepiness of fog is highly dependent on where you are geographically:
Coastal fog: Not very creepy, calm, maybe even peaceful
Forest fog: Regular amount of creepy, standard fog for horror movies
Prairie fog: deeply unsettling, bone chilling, embodiment of the wendigo
Coastal fog: Not very creepy, calm, maybe even peaceful
Forest fog: Regular amount of creepy, standard fog for horror movies
Prairie fog: deeply unsettling, bone chilling, embodiment of the wendigo
December 31, 2025 at 4:53 PM
I have come to realize the creepiness of fog is highly dependent on where you are geographically:
Coastal fog: Not very creepy, calm, maybe even peaceful
Forest fog: Regular amount of creepy, standard fog for horror movies
Prairie fog: deeply unsettling, bone chilling, embodiment of the wendigo
Coastal fog: Not very creepy, calm, maybe even peaceful
Forest fog: Regular amount of creepy, standard fog for horror movies
Prairie fog: deeply unsettling, bone chilling, embodiment of the wendigo
Reposted by Kristian
also bored. here's the canadian cities (from apta)
vancouver = 0.507
calgary = 0.410
victoria = 0.278
edmonton = 0.264
winnipeg = 0.259
have to dig around for more ridership data for these two given all the agencies in the metro area, but they're at least this much:
toronto >0.539
montreal >0.424
vancouver = 0.507
calgary = 0.410
victoria = 0.278
edmonton = 0.264
winnipeg = 0.259
have to dig around for more ridership data for these two given all the agencies in the metro area, but they're at least this much:
toronto >0.539
montreal >0.424
December 31, 2025 at 5:57 AM
also bored. here's the canadian cities (from apta)
vancouver = 0.507
calgary = 0.410
victoria = 0.278
edmonton = 0.264
winnipeg = 0.259
have to dig around for more ridership data for these two given all the agencies in the metro area, but they're at least this much:
toronto >0.539
montreal >0.424
vancouver = 0.507
calgary = 0.410
victoria = 0.278
edmonton = 0.264
winnipeg = 0.259
have to dig around for more ridership data for these two given all the agencies in the metro area, but they're at least this much:
toronto >0.539
montreal >0.424
Jumping on the bandwagon. Which cities I would and wouldn’t live as a Canadian currently living in America.
Apologies to New Brunswick, I am reluctant to move to you as I know very little about Moncton or St John.
Apologies to New Brunswick, I am reluctant to move to you as I know very little about Moncton or St John.
December 31, 2025 at 5:06 AM
Jumping on the bandwagon. Which cities I would and wouldn’t live as a Canadian currently living in America.
Apologies to New Brunswick, I am reluctant to move to you as I know very little about Moncton or St John.
Apologies to New Brunswick, I am reluctant to move to you as I know very little about Moncton or St John.
Reposted by Kristian
Chapters 2-4 of the late, great UCLA Professor Donald Shoup’s book The High Cost of Free Parking exposed modern parking planning as pseudoscientific nonsense so thoroughly that many states and major cities have thrown out parking requirements entirely.
December 27, 2025 at 4:20 AM
Chapters 2-4 of the late, great UCLA Professor Donald Shoup’s book The High Cost of Free Parking exposed modern parking planning as pseudoscientific nonsense so thoroughly that many states and major cities have thrown out parking requirements entirely.
Reposted by Kristian
Reposted by Kristian
YOU GUYS WANNA SEE SOMETHING CURSED???? HOW ABOUT NEON GENESIS LEHIGH VALLEY PHANTOMS HOCKEY?????
November 16, 2025 at 11:25 PM
YOU GUYS WANNA SEE SOMETHING CURSED???? HOW ABOUT NEON GENESIS LEHIGH VALLEY PHANTOMS HOCKEY?????
Reposted by Kristian
Reposted by Kristian
A Redditor made a graph of the percent of population of US and Canada metro areas over 1 million that live in a given density. When they ordered them by average density the lowest ranked Canadian metro area, Edmonton, was ranked 14th between Miami and Washington. 6 of the top 15 were Canadian metros
October 11, 2025 at 11:24 PM
A Redditor made a graph of the percent of population of US and Canada metro areas over 1 million that live in a given density. When they ordered them by average density the lowest ranked Canadian metro area, Edmonton, was ranked 14th between Miami and Washington. 6 of the top 15 were Canadian metros
Vaughan, Ontario: 2011 -> 2023
The level of urban, transit-oriented development that happened within a decade is absolutely insane. Went from an empty field, to having a subway station, a median running BRT line, and multiple high-rise developments.
The level of urban, transit-oriented development that happened within a decade is absolutely insane. Went from an empty field, to having a subway station, a median running BRT line, and multiple high-rise developments.
October 8, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Vaughan, Ontario: 2011 -> 2023
The level of urban, transit-oriented development that happened within a decade is absolutely insane. Went from an empty field, to having a subway station, a median running BRT line, and multiple high-rise developments.
The level of urban, transit-oriented development that happened within a decade is absolutely insane. Went from an empty field, to having a subway station, a median running BRT line, and multiple high-rise developments.
Tbh, the fact that the left one is getting sent to my boss/coworkers and the other is being sent to my friends is perfect.
The left one says: “Got it!”
The right one says: “I will follow you into the depths of hell. I would die for you in battle. No mountain too high, no valley too low.”
The left one says: “Got it!”
The right one says: “I will follow you into the depths of hell. I would die for you in battle. No mountain too high, no valley too low.”
The vibe difference between these guys is so stark, they simply cannot be considered the same emoji
August 22, 2025 at 5:29 PM
Tbh, the fact that the left one is getting sent to my boss/coworkers and the other is being sent to my friends is perfect.
The left one says: “Got it!”
The right one says: “I will follow you into the depths of hell. I would die for you in battle. No mountain too high, no valley too low.”
The left one says: “Got it!”
The right one says: “I will follow you into the depths of hell. I would die for you in battle. No mountain too high, no valley too low.”
If I had a nickel for every time a North American LRT system had two high-floor lines that share a common trunk through downtown, coloured Red and Blue, with a planned/constructed low-floor line that is coloured Green, I would have 15 cents. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened 3 times
August 21, 2025 at 6:42 AM
If I had a nickel for every time a North American LRT system had two high-floor lines that share a common trunk through downtown, coloured Red and Blue, with a planned/constructed low-floor line that is coloured Green, I would have 15 cents. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened 3 times
Reposted by Kristian
We spent the morning hanging out with the bison, herd in Riding Mountain National Park. These wild bison are pretty used to people and if you’re lucky, you can hang out with the herd for breakfast. The voice you hear in the background was the bison expert in the park for decades. 🦊🌿🦬
August 14, 2025 at 3:07 AM
We spent the morning hanging out with the bison, herd in Riding Mountain National Park. These wild bison are pretty used to people and if you’re lucky, you can hang out with the herd for breakfast. The voice you hear in the background was the bison expert in the park for decades. 🦊🌿🦬
Why did no one tell me that Claude Code was this good? It’s integration and workflow is better than any ai coding tool I’ve used by far
August 15, 2025 at 1:05 AM
Why did no one tell me that Claude Code was this good? It’s integration and workflow is better than any ai coding tool I’ve used by far
Reposted by Kristian
Bro put the US zoning system under control of the Squamish Nation
The entire substance of the Senakw zoning bylaw is less than half a page
partii-partiii.fng.ca/fng-gpn-ii-i...
partii-partiii.fng.ca/fng-gpn-ii-i...
August 7, 2025 at 6:26 PM
Bro put the US zoning system under control of the Squamish Nation
Real proud of my home province 🙃
Some doctors in Alberta have criticized officials there for not declaring a health emergency.
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/30/w...
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/30/w...
Canada’s Measles Outbreak Exceeds Cases in the U.S.
www.nytimes.com
July 31, 2025 at 6:41 PM
Real proud of my home province 🙃
Reposted by Kristian
inside you there are four wolves
July 30, 2025 at 8:32 PM
inside you there are four wolves
Is there any running bet on what Eglington Crosstown LRT station will have the lowest ridership once it finally opens? It has to be Aga Khan station right? I mean this is some of the worst land use I have seen adjacent to a station, and it'll only be 300m from the actually useful Don Valley station.
July 28, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Is there any running bet on what Eglington Crosstown LRT station will have the lowest ridership once it finally opens? It has to be Aga Khan station right? I mean this is some of the worst land use I have seen adjacent to a station, and it'll only be 300m from the actually useful Don Valley station.
I’ve never been, but is there a meaningful difference between Long Beach and Los Angeles? Is there a coherent reason republicans are neutral about the former but hate the latter?
July 26, 2025 at 1:50 PM
I’ve never been, but is there a meaningful difference between Long Beach and Los Angeles? Is there a coherent reason republicans are neutral about the former but hate the latter?
I'm actually dying at what someone put on the Rogers Stadium Wikipedia page
July 24, 2025 at 3:35 PM
I'm actually dying at what someone put on the Rogers Stadium Wikipedia page
Reposted by Kristian
City of Burnaby has now switched to height-based building policies, abandoning FAR/FSR density limits.
It's one of the first cities in North America to do so.
Intended to simplify processes & avoid unpredictable building heights/forms. #vanpoli #vanre
dailyhive.com/vancouver/bu...
It's one of the first cities in North America to do so.
Intended to simplify processes & avoid unpredictable building heights/forms. #vanpoli #vanre
dailyhive.com/vancouver/bu...
Burnaby switches to height-based building policies, abandons density limits | Urbanized
Moving way from floor area ratio (FAR) density calculations, the City of Burnaby has adopted the new Height-Based Development Framework.
dailyhive.com
July 23, 2025 at 5:47 PM
City of Burnaby has now switched to height-based building policies, abandoning FAR/FSR density limits.
It's one of the first cities in North America to do so.
Intended to simplify processes & avoid unpredictable building heights/forms. #vanpoli #vanre
dailyhive.com/vancouver/bu...
It's one of the first cities in North America to do so.
Intended to simplify processes & avoid unpredictable building heights/forms. #vanpoli #vanre
dailyhive.com/vancouver/bu...