#straphanger — Public Fediverse posts

I could tell the #train was on the #platform from the people coming up the stairs, but its doors had closed (the #express) & it departed.
Before I could get to my end of the platform, the local E arrived but I let it go bc the sign said an A (express) was coming.
I boarded it as the E departed & before we pulled out, another #local (C) was arriving ( #TimesSquare).
We passed the E & I made it to the 2nd car for perfect positioning at my favorite set of stairs out of #Chambers.
#NYC #straphanger

#SubwayStories #StrapHanger #chronicles #today
>Grown man in baseball cap, no backpack. Carrying only an unmounted head, a deer, by its antlers
>Woman coming out of #turnstiles blowing nose into her T-shirt
>Express (at #TimesSquare) was supposed to be 5 minutes behind; caught up to us at West 4th
>Construction at #WorldTradeCenter leaves tight #sidewalk for #commuters
#7WTC #HighRise #BigLaw #LawFirm #Manhattan #MTA

SHUTTLE INFO WITHIN- LIRR STRIKE BEGINS Article sez biggest commuter rail in USA, elsewhere I read biggest in N America!
275,000-350,000 commuters affected, shuttle buses to cost up to $550,000/ day (starts Mon)! Union sez "We're far apart" but won't discuss details, average salary's $136,000/ year.
State Comptroller sez strike could cost in lost income ~ $61M per day, ouch!
#NY #LIRR #NewYorkCity #LongIsland #commuter #rail #straphanger #train #rider #union #strike
https://gothamist.com/news/lirr-workers-go-on-strike-shut-down-nations-busiest-commuter-train-line

Long Island Railroad (LIRR) will likely shut down Saturday night/ Sunday morning, as a strike begins.
People were told to work remotely next week - shuttle buses are intended for essential workers to get in to NYC.
Hocul, conservative that she is, called the unions greedy, for wanting their wages to keep up with inflation.
MTA knows it will cave, so why not cave now, says article.
#LIRR #straphanger #commuter #NYC #LongIsland #subway #train #bus #bike #car #NewYorkCity
https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/deadline-near-lirr-commuter-rail-faces-potential-shutdown-worker-strike/6502147/

It took fifteen (15) minutes for me to get a solo elevator to the top of seven (7) world trade #today. Twelve (12) elevators, not even close to my record, 23 to go up solo and 8 to go down.
Was just in time for my meeting.
#Happy #Monday #NewYorkCity #decaf #coffee #subway #straphanger #commute #TimesSquare #WorldTradeCenter #7WTC #NYC #elevator #BigLaw #lawyer #attorney #LawFirm #meeting #MaskUp #respirator #FaceShield

"A passionately argued and important book." —The Guardian

My book #Straphanger, in which I travel world looking at best (+ worst) in transportation + urbanism, is now available as an e-book—at a nice price.

(NEW: I'm now the publisher, as well as the author! Buying here directly funds my writing—and my new project, about the passenger rail revival.)

https://shorturl.at/oJpZu

"A passionately argued and important book." —The Guardian

My book #Straphanger, in which I travel world looking at best (+ worst) in transportation + urbanism, is now available as an e-book—at a nice price.

(NEW: I'm now the publisher, as well as the author! Buying here directly funds my writing—and my new project, about the passenger rail revival.)

https://shorturl.at/oJpZu

3rd glass of water, plenty of decaf,
Happy Monday - happy Spring! Something showers bring something flowers ~
(I got the local from Times Square and still made it to work early this morning.)
#NYC #WTC #WorldTrade #7WTC #BigLaw #highrise #NewYorkCity #TimesSquare #straphanger #stories

ME - I love your scarf set!
HER - Thank you
ME - Did you crochet it yourself?
HER - Yes, Maam - uh - Yes, Sir
ME - You can call me what you want LOL
HER - Alright
ME - Well, congratulations, it's very well done
HER - Thank you
#straphanger #stories #NYC #subway #local #train #NewYorkCity #crochet #knitting #grey #ruffled #scarf & #matching #striped #headband

Men spitting off the subway platform. Morning, New York!
Let the E go, waited a minute for the A.
We caught up with the C ahead of the E, by Canal.
Now it's decaf and ice water, repeat. Happily the winds aren't strong enough to sway us today... I don't like the creaking.
#straphanger #stories #express #subway #NYC #NewYorkCity #WorldTradeCenter #7WTC

Guy on the #express, amusing himself - and me - with a kind of growly #trombone-ish chat. Wasn’t sure if he meant it. Then he answered himself almost, this time in a jumpy #whistle wah-wah. And I realized it was a #conversation between #grownups on #CharlieBrown.
Wasn’t sure if it was the guy next to me on the crowded A until he did another soft whistle sequence. Very tall old white guy like me but short white hair, #glasses, #reading the Times, folded, like you do.
#straphanger #stories #NYC

“Lowest ‘feels like’ temperature of -1 was at 7:00 am” — stay warm out there, New York!
#NYC #below #freezing #subway #straphanger #NewYorkCity #commuter in #LongJohns #long #johns

RE: https://masto.nyc/@GetMisch/109451431740066652

My first self-BOOST of my pinned post. I've been in I.T. at Big Law for decades, but you might see me in syndication on TV. I still live in the theatre district - most I did were six auditions in one day - but now I post NYC things, political/ human rights, flower pics... Looking to connect w/ other progressives, I joined Mastodon three years ago, stopped using Xitter & Meta.
(New moon Sun 18th; spring in 9 wks)
#actor #writer #tech #BigLaw #songwriter #arranger #straphanger #activist

I got a private tour of the Old City Hall station, opened in 1904, when I was writing #Straphanger. It's amazing.

More here:

https://www.highspeed.blog/how-the-subway-changed-nyc/

I got a private tour of the Old City Hall station, opened in 1904, when I was writing #Straphanger. It's amazing.

More here:

https://www.highspeed.blog/how-the-subway-changed-nyc/

Be still my beating heart!

Zohran Mamdani just made every railfan, trainspotter, and #straphanger in the world swoon.

Next he's going to tell us he's re-building the Beach Pneumatic Transit line.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/29/nyregion/mamdani-subway-sworn-in-mayor.html?utm_social_handle_id=did%3Aplc%3Aeclio37ymobqex2ncko63h4r&smtyp=cur&smid=bsky-nytimes&utm_social_post_id=637118843

Be still my beating heart!

Zohran Mamdani just made every railfan, trainspotter, and #straphanger in the world swoon.

Next he's going to tell us he's re-building the Beach Pneumatic Transit line.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/29/nyregion/mamdani-subway-sworn-in-mayor.html?utm_social_handle_id=did%3Aplc%3Aeclio37ymobqex2ncko63h4r&smtyp=cur&smid=bsky-nytimes&utm_social_post_id=637118843

I finally got around to reading #Straphanger by Taras Grescoe (@straphanger) and I'm almost mad at myself for taking so long to start it. Beautifully written, with a real love for cities and the human interactions they foment, this is the book I would recommend before even Life After Cars.

It was written in 2012, an interesting time capsule of hope and governmental innaction. But if you need updates, Grescoe's current writing acts as an informal update.

I finally got around to reading #Straphanger by Taras Grescoe (@straphanger) and I'm almost mad at myself for taking so long to start it. Beautifully written, with a real love for cities and the human interactions they foment, this is the book I would recommend before even Life After Cars.

It was written in 2012, an interesting time capsule of hope and governmental innaction. But if you need updates, Grescoe's current writing acts as an informal update.

Last night I picked the C because it was there. Turns out the E decided to come along too, and without any announcement at the next stop its doors closed before I could switch. Went back to the C and THEN they announce they're going to be held to let the E go ahead.

Lucked out and got the express at 14th, caught up with the E by 42nd Times Square.
#bastards #announce #held in #station #maintain #proper #train #spacing #NYC #MTA #ETA #unknown #straphanger #NewYorkCity #commuter #subway #rider

...though I sure am happy that NYC has a #straphanger mayor, not one that rolls around in a white Bronco.

...though I sure am happy that NYC has a #straphanger mayor, not one that rolls around in a white Bronco.

I'm likin' the vibe in Gotham!

Zohran Mamdani, #Straphanger Mayor of #NYC.

The latest @newyorker.com cover by Edel Rodriguez.

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cover-story/cover-story-2025-11-17

I'm likin' the vibe in Gotham!

Zohran Mamdani, #Straphanger Mayor of #NYC.

The latest @newyorker.com cover by Edel Rodriguez.

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cover-story/cover-story-2025-11-17

Should have taken the E.
Had a choice at Times Square so took the express. But they went like a Gramma and the E pulled ahead. Finally a C caught up with us and I took it to Chambers; faster than the A #today.
#slow #express #NYC #subway #straphanger #WTC #7WorldTrade #TimesSquare

The SWEETEST #fag EVER chatted me up on the #express #train #home #yesterday from #work. He complimented my ring, then wanted to know what the other #rings were (Tanzanite), then he showed me his rings and we decided we both like #geniune #gemstones, not glass. I complimented his #necklace and moved to the front of the train with a smile, from car to #car.
#subway #share a #smile #ILNY #compliment #NYC #NewYorkCity #commuter #MTA #transit #fare #ride #straphanger #snaps #props #sweetness

A #straphanger in the Rocky Mountains!

I’m getting around #Banff by bus and bicycle. Roam Transit offers an excellent service, with rides to hot springs and gondolas for just one toonie…

A #straphanger in the Rocky Mountains!

I’m getting around #Banff by bus and bicycle. Roam Transit offers an excellent service, with rides to hot springs and gondolas for just one toonie…

Join me for a #straphanger 's tour of bygone streetcars, locomotives, and sleeper cars.

Here's a walk-through of #Montreal Park and Island Railway No 1046, built in 1900...

🚋🧵

Join me for a #straphanger 's tour of bygone streetcars, locomotives, and sleeper cars.

Here's a walk-through of #Montreal Park and Island Railway No 1046, built in 1900...

🚋🧵

In addition to being a #straphanger, Pope Francis was a #railfan.

Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, he was the son of a railway worker in #Argentina.

"In 2015, one of #Italy’s railway unions made him a member – an honour he quietly renewed each year."

#trains #railsky

https://www.railtech.com/all/2025/04/23/pope-of-the-people-man-of-the-rails-the-quiet-power-of-franciss-love-for-trains/?gdpr=accept

In addition to being a #straphanger, Pope Francis was a #railfan.

Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, he was the son of a railway worker in #Argentina.

"In 2015, one of #Italy’s railway unions made him a member – an honour he quietly renewed each year."

#trains #railsky

https://www.railtech.com/all/2025/04/23/pope-of-the-people-man-of-the-rails-the-quiet-power-of-franciss-love-for-trains/?gdpr=accept

On the way home from work yesterday this nice young man in ear buds offered his seat on the express to Times Square. I tapped my face shield twice as I said through my respirator "I won't sit." and nodded a thanks, though...
#NewYorkers #are #nice #standing #straphanger #old #man #grey #hair #express #train #young #man in #ear #buds #TimesSquare #subway #mask #up #MaskUp #NYC

That's from William Fulton, in his urbanist classic The Reluctant Metropolis. I got to meet him in LA when I was researching #Straphanger.

Here's Bill's heartfelt tribute to another city-thinker, his friend Donald Shoup:

https://www.cp-dr.com/articles/donald-shoup-wasn039t-just-about-parking-he-was-about

That's from William Fulton, in his urbanist classic The Reluctant Metropolis. I got to meet him in LA when I was researching #Straphanger.

Here's Bill's heartfelt tribute to another city-thinker, his friend Donald Shoup:

https://www.cp-dr.com/articles/donald-shoup-wasn039t-just-about-parking-he-was-about

I write about the history of congestion-relief pricing, which began in Europe, in this #Straphanger dispatch:

https://www.straphanger.blog/getting-into-the-zone/

I write about the history of congestion-relief pricing, which began in Europe, in this #Straphanger dispatch:

https://www.straphanger.blog/getting-into-the-zone/

In this #Straphanger dispatch, In Praise of the Tiny Truck:

https://www.straphanger.blog/in-praise-of-the-tiny-truck/

In this #Straphanger dispatch, In Praise of the Tiny Truck:

https://www.straphanger.blog/in-praise-of-the-tiny-truck/

On Dec 20, 2024, the non-profit responsible for the century-old route announced it was ending the service.

My son and I got to ride the train in its last season. I write about the experience—now a historic one!—in my latest #Straphanger dispatch:

https://www.straphanger.blog/a-ride-on-the-105-year-old-train-de-charlevoix-2/

On Dec 20, 2024, the non-profit responsible for the century-old route announced it was ending the service.

My son and I got to ride the train in its last season. I write about the experience—now a historic one!—in my latest #Straphanger dispatch:

https://www.straphanger.blog/a-ride-on-the-105-year-old-train-de-charlevoix-2/

the #otrain to the airport has "new train smell". i love it.

pulling into the station at #yow made me feel like i live in a real city.

#ottawa #straphanger

the #otrain to the airport has "new train smell". i love it.

pulling into the station at #yow made me feel like i live in a real city.

#ottawa #straphanger

My New Year's Resolution: Keep my #Straphanger newsletter going in 2025!

Please consider signing up—free is great, paid even better. Your contribution helps get my boots on the ground, to share stories about the best (+ worst) in transport + urbanism.

www.straphanger.blog

Take a stroll through what I've come to think of as "The National Museum of Railway Joy," in the latest #Straphanger
dispatch:

#trains #transit

https://www.straphanger.blog/the-national-museum-of-railway-joy/

Join me for a walk-through (with videos!) of the Rail Transport pavilion of #Switzerland's Verkehershaus, one of the world's great transport museums, in my latest #Straphanger dispatch:

https://www.straphanger.blog/the-national-museum-of-railway-joy/

I explore the past and future of urban transport in my #Straphanger essay, "The Inventor of Transit," here:

https://www.straphanger.blog/the-inventor-of-transit/

If you find a wooden-looking round earring (french wire) on the E train, it's mine. I was wearing it when I put on my face shield & respirator to leave for work...
#lost #earring #today #commuter #NYC #subway #jewelry #NewYorkCity #MTA #straphanger #TimesSquare #WorldTrade #7WTC #times #square #world #trade #center #Chambers too

And here's one of my #Straphanger dispatches, in which I make the case for #Switzerland being the world's best transit (as well as railway) nation:

https://www.straphanger.blog/which-country-has-the-best-transit/

I write about Doug Ford's "War on Bikes" in this #Straphanger dispatch:

https://www.straphanger.blog/the-war-on-bikes/

I dig deeper in my latest #Straphanger dispatch, The War on Bikes:

https://www.straphanger.blog/the-war-on-bikes/

Do we need high speed-rail in North America?

We sure do. Passenger rail in Canada and the US is in a sorry state (though it's improving). I take a closer look in this #Straphanger dispatch:

https://www.straphanger.blog/a-ride-on-via-rail-train-65/

I dig deeper in my latest #Straphanger dispatch, "The War on Bikes."

https://www.straphanger.blog/the-war-on-bikes/

The English-language original is here, on my #Straphanger blog.

#Switzerland #Suisse #Schweiz

https://www.straphanger.blog/villages-without-cars/

Tu peux lire plus dans ma chronique #Straphanger dans @lactualite aujourd'hui.

https://lactualite.com/societe/des-villages-sans-voitures/

Want to know more? I dig deeper in this #Straphanger dispatch:

https://www.straphanger.blog/which-country-has-the-best-transit/

In this #Straphanger dispatch, In Praise of the Tiny Truck:

https://www.straphanger.blog/in-praise-of-the-tiny-truck/

I take a look at how Bettmeralp and other car-free villages make it work in this #Straphanger dispatch:

https://www.straphanger.blog/villages-without-cars/