Posts by Kurt Raschke — Guest Contributor
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Station names are about usability, not neighborhood identity
Metrorail station names are long. Long enough, in fact, that they’re a source of frequent debate, whether it’s comparing Metrorail station names to those of similar systems, or proposing new station names. The consensus among many transit advocates is that the long station names do little to aid wayfinding, and if anything are probably harmful to the usability… Keep reading…
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More weekend closures, less single-tracking for Metrorail
To save time and money, Metro is revising the way they do some track work. Instead of single-tracking through work zones, Metro will now close whole line segments more often. When BART was being designed, a 1971 article in the IEEE Transactions on Industry and General Applications described its system for avoiding shutdowns by single-tracking: The BART system will provide… Keep reading…
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WMATA can learn from the New York MTA’s tweeting
Early on the morning of May 17, the New York subway experienced a derailment which snarled service in Brooklyn. Instead of trying to cover up the incident, the MTA tweeted about it, including photos of the re-railing: .bbpBox70690254549561344 {background:url(http://a0.twimg.com/profile_background_images/127784203/Twitter_NYCTSubwayScoop2010.JPG) #000000;padding:20px;}… Keep reading…