Tag Archives: railways

A scenic day trip on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad

On Saturday, April 15th, we embarked on a day trip aboard the Durango & Silverton Railroad, a historic narrow gauge railway that has been running since 1882 in Southwest Colorado. Despite the snow-capped peaks and canyons, the weather was stunning, … Continue reading

Posted in art, business, cities, culture, economic development, engineering, entertainment, fun, geography, Geology, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, Mining, mountains, nature, Passenger rail, pictures, placemaking, planning, rail, Railroads, Statistics, third places, topography, tourism, Trade, transportation, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Riding the rails of interstellar discovery at the Very Large Array

It’s hard to fathom that a mere 39 miles of railway track could deliver the entire galaxy to astronomers around the globe. But, when the cargo is limited to 230 ton radio telescopes being moved into position, then such a … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, aerospace, Astronomy, distribution, education, engineering, fun, geography, history, infrastructure, land use, logistics, Maps, Outer Space, planning, Radio, rail, Railroads, Science, shipping, Skies, spatial design, Statistics, technology, tourism, transportation, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

“All aboard”: Ten planning lessons from riding USA railways

Moonlight over Fort Madison, Iowa After completing a long-distance trip across much of the United States this week, it seemed appropriate to list those planning lessons learned from this and previous rail travel experiences. While much of my ridership has … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, advertising, air travel, Alternative transportation, art, books, Canada, Cars, cities, commerce, downtown, economic development, engineering, entertainment, environment, Europe, fun, geography, government, highways, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, Passenger rail, pictures, placemaking, planning, product design, rail, Railroads, spatial design, technology, topography, tourism, Trade, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, visual pollution | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Great Ore Docks of the Great Lakes – Updated

Iron ore docks are one of the most iconic symbols of the northern Great Lakes. From the last quarter of the 19th-century to the mid-20th century these enormous timber or steel/concrete structures dominated the skylines of places like Ashland, Duluth, … Continue reading

Posted in adaptive reuse, archaeology, architecture, Canada, cities, economics, geography, Geology, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, Mining, placemaking, planning, rail, Railroads, shipping, topography, transportation, urban planning | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

DIA – Denver’s incredible airport

I have had the pleasure of flying through Denver International Airport (DIA) three times now. Each visit  to Denver I am more and more impressed by this enormous 35,000 acre facility. Not only is the airport  designed to be functional, … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, aerospace, air travel, airport planning, airports, architecture, art, aviation, branding, cities, civics, civility, commerce, Communications, culture, downtown, economic development, Economy, geography, history, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, logistics, Maps, North America, Passenger rail, pictures, placemaking, planning, product design, rail, spatial design, Statistics, tourism, Trade, transit, transportation, Travel, urban planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

India railway map/Nations with most railway miles

Above is a cool 2013 railway map of India. For a little end of the year statistical trivia, below is a list of the 50 nations with the most railway mileage. United   States 224,792 (2011) China 98,000 (2012) Russia … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, Asia, commerce, Communications, economic development, fun, geography, government, history, India, infrastructure, land use, logistics, Maps, Passenger rail, planning, rail, spatial design, Statistics, technology, tourism, transportation, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Geography of AMTRAK’s 2013 ridership

Below are fiscal year 2013 ridership data from AMTRAK for the 20 leading states. As can be seen, passenger rail is no longer just a Northeast Corridor phenomenon. All three states along the Pacific Coast placed in the Top 20; as … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, Advocacy, cities, commerce, environment, fun, geography, infrastructure, land use, logistics, Passenger rail, planning, rail, spatial design, States, Statistics, sustainability, technology, tourism, transportation, Travel, urban planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Shush! – you’ve entered a railroad quiet zone

Following yesterday’s list of the states with the most and least number of railroad quiet zones, at the end of this blogpost is a list of those metropolitan areas in the United States with the most quiet zones. Texas has four metropolitan areas … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, cities, civility, commerce, Communications, environment, geography, health, humanity, infrastructure, land use, logistics, nature, North America, Passenger rail, peace, planning, pollution, rail, spatial design, Statistics, sustainability, technology, Trade, transportation, Travel, urban planning, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Railroad quiet zones – state leaders and laggards

At the end of this post are lists of the leading and lagging states, based on the number of railroad quiet zones that have been established. At the present time there are a total of 570 quiet zones designated in … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, cities, civility, commerce, environment, geography, health, infrastructure, land use, logistics, Passenger rail, placemaking, planning, pollution, product design, rail, States, Statistics, sustainability, technology, transportation, Travel, urban planning, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Applying smart commute to travel

We were very pleased and proud to utilize forms of smart commuting for our entire trip to/in/from Ireland last week. The following is a breakdown of our smart commute trips during our eight days of travel: Commuter rail – 4 … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, Advocacy, air travel, aviation, bicycling, bike sharing, Biking, Bus transportation, Cars, cities, civics, civility, climate change, culture, energy, environment, Europe, fitness, fun, geography, health, hiking, infrastructure, Ireland, land use, new urbanism, product design, rail, Renewable Energy, spatial design, sustainability, technology, tourism, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, urban planning, walking | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment