What Lies Beneath: The Second Avenue Subway Construction
Thanks to the American Planning Association’s Student Representatives Council (APA-SRC) in partnership with the MTA Capital Construction program, I had the opportunity to take a tour of the 63rd Street...
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Old and New (and Hidden) in a Brooklyn Heights MTA Substation
This is the second time I’ve taken an MTA substation tour with Robert W. Lobenstein, the retired General Superintendent of New York City Transit. Tours with Robert are always fascinating because he’s...
View ArticlePublic Art and Durable Legacy: Interview with Sandra Bloodworth, Director of...
Sandra Bloodworth has been the Director of the Metropolitan Transit Authority’s Arts for Transit program since 1996. She graciously sat down with me to talk about Arts for Transit’s role and mission,...
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Spotlight on the Orange Line, LA’s Bus Rapid Transit
The Los Angeles County Metro Authority (or LA Metro) debuted a new 14-mile bus rapid transit (BRT) system in the San Fernando Valley in October 2005, using a former rail right-of-way. The LA Metro...
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Biking in LA, the City of Motorists
LADOT bike racks Bikes are few in the city of Los Angeles. It is hard to believe that an initiative such as the California Cycleway even included a place like Los Angeles at one point in history. Much...
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Portland Oregon: A Mecca for Bicycling
“Rush hour” on Hawthorne Bridge as Portlanders cross on their everday way to work, school, and play Entering into the mouth of the Hawthorne Bridge, travelers will find a herd of bicyclists young and...
View ArticleThe Art of Style by Kit Mills 014: Brevity
Welcome to Friday, Untapped Citizens. I’ll be brief this week. This surly-looking woman was sitting across from me on the subway the other day and I just really liked the color pairing she chose to...
View ArticleTransit Talk: Trivia at the New York Transit Museum
How many minutes must elapse before you re-swipe your unlimited Metrocard at the same station? What is the highest subway station in the world, at 87 feet above ground? If you know the answers to...
View ArticleTransit Talk: The Future of Fulton Center
It’s doubtful that any Untapped readers need to be reminded about the importance of historic preservation and the unique layers of history hidden throughout New York, but if anyone needs a refresher...
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Transit Talk: A Day on the J Train
I started my Sunday morning far from home. I was milling about on a subway platform, with around thirty other people, trying to stay warm. We had all convened for a daylong tour of the neighborhoods...
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Untapped Cities: A Treehouse in the Upper East Side & Millenials in Paris
This is a round-up of our favorite links this week curated by the Untapped Cities’ staff includes a bonus treehouse which comes with the sale of an Upper East Side home and the fastest growing group...
View ArticleYour Week Untapped: Best Events for March 25-31
Our curated events picks for this week: Underground Eats’ Mexican Passover Fiesta, urban exploration talk with Moses Gates, Game of Thrones exhibit. MONDAY, MARCH 25: Chef Patricia Clark + The Equus...
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Daily What?!: PortNYC Stress Relievers
Today’s urban transit nerd Daily What?! comes to us from Untapped Cities contributor Danielle Dowler, who works at NYC’s Economic Development Corporation (EDC). These adorable stress relievers that...
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Lego Maps Mark London Tube’s 150th Anniversary
A London Underground spokesman said the maps aim to “inspire young engineers of the future.” Source: CNN. From steam carriages to sleek subway cars… and now to plastic bricks? LEGO‘s seem best suited...
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Daily What?! NYC Department of Transportation Presents Curbside Haiku
One of our readers spotted this innovative safety initiative last week. The New York City Department of Transportation, in conjunction with Safe Streets Fund, has been running Curbside Haiku since...
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Cities 101: New York City’s Subway Maintenance Cars De-Ice, Suck Up Trash
A retired revenue collection car on display at the New York Transit Museum. Source: NY Transit Museum. The New York City subway system is one of the largest and most-frequently used urban public...
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Cities 101: What Are Those Numbers on Top of Buses For?
Runaway bus scene from the 1994 movie Speed. What are those numbers for? (Screenshot from Speed trailer, 20th Century Fox) In the movie Speed (1994), Keanu Reaves parades through Los Angeles on a...
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What If the Roosevelt Island Tram Went All the Way to Central Park?
Image via Flickr user scarlatti2004 While the Roosevelt Island Tramway only takes about 3 minutes to travel to and from Manhattan, it’s probably the most pleasant commute in the city. Even the...
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Cities 101: Traffic Circles vs. Roundabouts – What’s the difference?
Columbus Circle (a traffic circle, as shown by the walkways to access the center) viewed from inside the Time Warner Cable Building. (Image via Wikimedia) This week we’ll celebrate Pi-Day on 3/14, so...
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A Subterranean Expedition Shows Progress in NYC’s Second Avenue Subway Tunnels
Over the past four years we have steadily documented the progress of the Second Avenue Subway. On our annual pilgrimage into these surreal caverns, we once again descend into the “Thunderdome” 200...
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