Tag: Public Transportation

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How and Where to Catch a Ride on Chicago's Annual Holiday Train

December 1, 2011 at 11:45 AM | by | Comment (1)

When you think of the holiday season and big cities you probably think of New York City and its window displays and oversized Christmas tree. Well it’s time to consider Chicago as well, because they certainly get into the holiday spirit in their own Midwesterny ways. Especially since every season they totally remodel the inside and outside of an El train with lights, decorations, and more.

The Chicago Transit Authority has done this for a few years now, and the trains even come complete with Santa and his elves, on hand to pass out candy canes and other treats. In additional to the holiday treats, the train is decked out with lights from top to bottom along with projections and other displays. It doesn’t stop there either, as the inside of the train also gets a holly jolly makeover that can put a smile on the face of even the biggest Grinch.

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The Musts of Bangkok: Hopping the Chao Phraya River Boat Bus

October 6, 2011 at 3:31 PM | by | Comment (1)

These days, when you think of Bangkok, does the "Hangover 2" phrase "Holla, city of squalor" pop into mind? It did ours, until we freaking went there and got tangled in its web of awesomeness. Bangkok is truly a world metropolis to be experienced over more than a few days, but we'll be detailing several places and things that simply can't be left undone. Join us, but watch where you step.

You MUST hop the river's bus boats to get where you're going.

If you think there's a ton of ways to get around a metropolis like New York City, then you need to spend some time in Bangkok, which may just take the cake for variety of public transportation options. There's taxis, tuk-tuks, motorbike taxis, buses, songthaews, longboats, the subway, the Skytrain, commuter and hotel boats and the Chao Phraya Express Boat. The latter, if you can't yet tell from the topic of this story, is our favorite by far.

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Paris Loves the Romance of Gum Chewing, the Resulting Mess on Sidewalks Not So Much

Where: Paris, France
June 17, 2011 at 11:00 AM | by | Comments (0)

This sign might not have been charming if it was in New York’s subway system, but when we spotted this traveling around Paris we thought it was something pretty special. We’re hardly experts when it comes to French—our knowledge is based purely on those old infomercials for Muzzy—but we kind of knew what they were talking about when we spotted the sign.

It doesn’t take much to understand that the city doesn’t want chewing gum left behind on the trains, but it’s the way in which it was written that we found charming. Even without too much mastery of the French language it was pretty easily to see that the whole thing rhymes—kind of like a public service sonnet.

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London's Underground Stations to Get WiFi Just in Time for the Olympics

March 30, 2011 at 8:31 AM | by | Comments (0)

We still need to get through the Royal Wedding before finalizing our plans for the 2012 Olympics, but if need be, we might be able to plan things on the fly when the fun rolls around next year. London is moving full-speed ahead in preparation for next year’s games, and it looks like Tube stations will also be getting some spit polishing.

Unfortunately the upgrade doesn’t include air conditioning, but they do involve a little bit of technology. The city is attempting to bring WiFi to the London Underground before the 2012 Olympics, which means no more dropped signals on your smartphone when you’re forced to head below street level.

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San Francisco's BART Enters the World of Augmented Reality iPhone Apps

March 12, 2010 at 5:41 PM | by | Comments (2)

Today is officially the first day of pre-orders for Apple's new iPad, and in honor of the day, we thought it appropriate to talk up another great iPhone Travel App, especially now that augmented reality is becoming more and more embraced.

The latest to make use of augmented reality with the iPhone 3GS is, to our delight, San Francisco's BART system. They've just released their app in conjunction with Junaio, to locate the closest BART station to you, and even see what and when is the next train is arriving. It works like most other augmented reality applications; you turn on the app, which opens up the phone's camera and utilizing the GPS to lay direction and transportation information over the scene you see around you, but on your screen.

But it's features go further. More, after the jump.

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Let's Go For a Ride! How to Take a Train Across the Strait of Messina

Where: Messina, Italy
February 19, 2010 at 4:25 PM | by | Comment (1)

If you're planning on taking a trip to Italy and haven't yet experienced the unique event of crossing the Strait of Messina by train, you must add it to your bucket list. We've done it six times, and each time we discover something new between the boot of Italy and the island of Messina. For one, when you take a train, your train is loaded into the belly of a ferry to make the crossing, and you're free to wander the ship and sightsee during those 35 minutes of open water.

Doing this is very easy, can be very cheap, and will yield you some of the best photographs and stories of your trip. That is, unless you sleep through the whole thing, it's that seamless a transportation transition! The video above is filmed from the front of a train car as it goes into the ferry of the "Ferrovie dello Stato"—or Italian railway—and then sits on the tracks inside for the crossing.

The Guide to Taking the Train across the Strait of Messina, after the jump

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Let's Go For a Ride! How to Take a San Francisco Cable Car

February 18, 2010 at 10:30 AM | by | Comment (1)

First off, it's important to understand the difference between the the iconic vintage cars that run on three routes in San Francisco and the trolleys on Market Street. They are easily and frequently confused, but what we're discussing is the former—the cable cars like the pretty open-air ones featured in Rice-A-Roni commercials.

Of course TV shows like Full House helped too, since the cable cars were only restored to safe operating conditions in the late 1980s. These days, you won't find the Olsen twins on one, but you will join a load of tourists all jostling for the best photo position as the cars climb the hills and go from Chinatown to Fisherman's Wharf.

The Guide to Taking the SF Cable Cars, after the jump

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Let's Go For a Ride! How to Take the Hong Kong Star Ferry

February 17, 2010 at 10:50 AM | by | Comment (1)

Hong Kong is a truly magical place, with all of its technology and modern skyscrapers mixed with the historical and local aspects of the teeming city, and one little boat in the middle of it all has become a symbol of the city. It's the Star Ferry, a line of small ferries that takes locals and tourists across Victoria Harbour from Kowloon to Hong Kong Island and back.

The Star Ferry is one of the cheapest, easiest and most scenic ways to get out in Hong Kong, and who doesn't love a 7-minute boat ride for less than 50 cents? You'll be able to make your own postcards with the photos you take from the deck, and it's just too darn easy to do.

The Guide to Taking the Star Ferry, after the jump

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Let's Go For a Ride! How to Take the Staten Island Ferry

February 15, 2010 at 11:35 AM | by | Comment (1)

When tourists come to New York City for the first time, they want to see everything—the Empire State building, Times Square, Brooklyn Bridge, the World Trade Center site, Wall Street, and the Statue of Liberty. Thankfully, most of these landmarks are free to look at, but one stands out as being an especially great deal: the Staten Island Ferry.

Now, thanks to our guide to riding the Staten Island Ferry after the jump, you won't have any excuse not to trek down to the tip of Manhattan for the free ferry ride; not even motion sickness is a problem on the short crossing, and you'll get unparalleled free views of the Statue of Liberty. Just don't think that right off the boat in Staten Island will be tons of stuff to do; most tourists ride the ferry out and right back in, because there's not even a Starbucks nearby the ferry docks in SI.

The Guide to Riding the Staten Island Ferry, after the jump

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When Bridges Attack: SF's Bay Bridge Closes Indefinitely

October 28, 2009 at 8:49 AM | by | Comments (0)

Where you perhaps planning on driving over to Oakland from San Francisco to check out why we named Oakland as one of the Five Cities With A Bad Rap worth visiting? It's too bad you'll be cut off from the goodness for who knows how long, after steel cables snapped last night, hitting three cars on the roadway below and stopping up traffic for over two hours.

There were no injuries when the bridge cracked its metal whip, but repairs and general safety issues will keep the region's busiest bridge shut down at least through tonight. Granted, the pieces that snapped were themselves an emergency repair made over Labor Day weekend, but now we're generally worried about bridge fatigue; perhaps we should be putting pennies into boxes for "Save The Steel Bridges" instead of Ronald McDonald House?

Public transporation options, after the jump.

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Dubai's First Subway Opens, And Not Of The Cold Cut Combo Variety

September 21, 2009 at 1:43 PM | by | Comments (0)

Dubai is a city of many superlatives, and as a result of their trying to build for themselves a great entertaining metropolis, the city seems constantly under construction. At least one major product was finished this month however, as the Arabian Gulf's first metro system opened on 09/09/09, transporting more than 366,968 in its first week and some 60,000 people this last Friday alone.

The metro is comprised of 11 trains and two lines, green and red, and is already seeing congestion with passengers more than eager to leave their cars at home. The five busiest stations even have attendants wearing "ask me" buttons; they are: Al Rashidya station, City Center, Union Square, Mall of Emirates and Nakheel Harbour and Tower. According to PSFK, "Dubai has been attempting to diversify its oil-dependent economy for some time... [and] has come to be seen by many as a leader in forging the Gulf’s way to more sustainable infrastructural development."

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London's Underground Expected to Come to a Halt as Strike Begins

June 9, 2009 at 4:37 PM | by | Comments (0)

If you're in London, you won't need to "Mind the Gap." You'll need to mind the underground strike that's threatening the city tonight. Thousands of London's unionized underground workers are expected to stay away from their posts for the next 48 hours as part of a protest over pay and disciplinary issues. And the timing couldn't be worse.

About 3.5 million people use the subway system, colloquially known as 'The Tube,' every weekday, and its closure is expected to cause disruption across the capital. It's also expected to cause problems for the thousands of fans coming to north London's Wembley Stadium for England's World Cup qualifying soccer match against Andorra on Wednesday.

Backup plans have been put into place such as extra buses, taxi-sharing at major rail stations and free river shuttle services. And of course, walking and cycling are encouraged.

Related Stories:
· London faces travel chaos as subway workers strike [AP]
· Underground strike begins as talks collapse [Times Uk]

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