Hello from Berlin, where I chanced to be in town for one of the larger transit meltdowns I’ve seen. And I’ve seen a few!
Author Archive | Jarrett
Berlin: Seen Through a Bus-Wrap
Many transit agencies depend on advertising revenue from wraps, those advertisements that cover the windows of the bus as well as the rest of the side. Berlin has them on some of its double-deckers.
Prague and San Francisco: On Communist vs Capitalist Modernism
In November 1973, a new subway station opened whose walls looked like this:
Just six months later, on the other side of the Iron Curtain, a subway station opened whose walls looked like this:
Is there any essential difference between communist and capitalist modernism?
Vienna: Even Perfect Integration Isn’t Perfect
As part of my Europe tour, I thought I’d give some attention to things that even the best European systems have trouble getting right.
Vienna’s Gentle Glass Boxes
Subway entrances are always a great challenge opportunity for transit architecture. Should you present a consistent systemwide look or blend into the surrounding urban texture? (The same debate happens about lots of other transit infrastructure too, right down to the bus stop sign.)
Vienna: Life Without Loops
Vienna offers a really nice example of the perils of short downtown shuttles in general, and loops in particular.
Vienna and the “Style of Youth”
One of the joys of Vienna’s transit system is that some key pieces of it were built in 1898, mostly designed by Otto Wagner. It was the era of Art Nouveau (called Jugendstil in Vienna) which later grew into full-blown Deco. A few examples are over the top, such as the Karlsplatz station house:
Vienna: Weaving A Total Network
In talking about transit planning I’m constantly stressing the need to think in terms of interconnected two-dimensional networks, not just the one-dimensional “corridors” that are the focus of so many transit studies. It’s a hard point to convey because (a) interconnectedness implies connections, also called “transfers,” which people supposedly hate, and (b) networks are complicated and abstract and hard to think about, which is why I’m always trying to create and promote tools for making them simpler.
What’s more, network effects are really hard to photograph. The closest you can come is a photo of a really smooth cross-platform connection, such as this one I observed in Vienna:
Vienna: Do the Wires Ruin It? (contd.)
Continuing from my last post on the overhead wires of Vienna, here are some additional images. (Click to enlarge.) Decide for yourself when and where they’re unacceptable.
Vienna: Do the Wires Ruin It?
Next time someone tells you that a light rail or streetcar or trolleybus would ruin the beautiful streetscape with their overhead wires, show them a picture of Vienna, where I am now.