Instead of screaming into the ever-expanding void of Twitter, I bring you a weekly highlight reel of what it’s like going places in Greater Hartford when one is gloriously car-free. These posts are on a slight time delay because nobody needs to know exactly where I am when I am there.
You know, I was just talking about how construction sites plunk warning signs all over the sidewalk and bike lane to warn motorists that a little bump is going to happen up ahead. For whatever reason, it’s rare for pedestrians to get thoughtful warnings. Last week, the sidewalk was being redone at one corner of Capitol and Laurel, and this meant no access to the beg button. There was just a fatal crash at this intersection, which was not surprising seeing all the antics on the regular here, but that made the danger feel more real. What happens days after that crash? Making pedestrians either trample across a construction zone to press the button or asking us to walk into traffic. If you needed another example of windshield bias, file this one away.
IN THIS HOUSE THERE IS NO GOTH SHAMING
As expected, there were a whole bunch of pleas issued for individual responsibility in the shape of “OMG people wear light colors and reflective clothing if you’re walking at night so the automobilists can see, you” but . . .
…not a damn peep demanding people only drive light-colored vehicles at night, or even reminders to use their lights. You hear how stupid that sounds when put that way, right?
If you can see the dark vehicle, you can see the pedestrian or cyclist in dark clothing. And if you can’t see them, you’re driving too fast for conditions.
Motorists have killed seven (7) pedestrians from November 1-8, 2022 in Connecticut.
This was not the result of the time change as most of these happened before the change. We should ask why so many fatal collisions are happening after dark and think about this in a way that does not demand special clothing of pedestrians.
There have been 60 pedestrian/cyclist fatalities in Connecticut, so far, this year.
Candidates were asked how they would address traffic violence, and about half who responded to the survey had exceptionally disappointed responses. It’s likely some with ignorant takes will be (re)elected. Go read about who needs to be better educated, and if you are in their district, get to work.
UNIMPRESSED
GO card machines have arrived at the CTfastrak stations.
What’s the problem?
This is basically a sure sign that the free bus fare really is going away soon.
I’m interested how they think the transition back to paying is going to go after the bus has been free for so long.
Dear Public Transit Providers (CTtransit, CTrail, et al.),
Kindly stop fucking with my sad attempts at having some kind of social life. And just to be clear, I don’t blame you for all my problems. Just a handful of very specific ones.
It started when a well-meaning friend who is very much not like me suggested I “go to New Haven to find a normal guy,” and I don’t have any interest in the “normal” part, but that’s fine to call me out on exhausting the supply of possible dates in the village of Hartford.
I know you’re thinking “there are towns which people live in between Hartford and New Haven,” to which I would reply “but barely.”
Plus, if someone chooses to live in a town without decent public transportation connecting to other cities, that says we do not share the same values. Totally fine (not really. I’m just trying to sound nice) if they have a different value system from me, but that’s a compatibility issue. If people can have preferences about height and weight and someone’s astrological sign, I can been selective about their decision whether or not to live physically networked to the rest of humanity.
In theory, it shouldn’t really be a big deal to meet up with someone in Connecticut’s lesser capital city. Get on the train, use the ride to meditate or text all my four friends about my plans while begging them to remind me of my redeeming characteristics, do some shitposting on Twitter, reflect on mortality, and then, boom, I’d be there.
But we all know (if you ride the rails or have been following along closely) the first flaw with this plan: The Saturday Night Train Curfew. The last train leaves New Haven at 7:33 PM:
What this schedule demands is that one hit the Early Bird specials and get the hell out, OR, spend the night with someone I just met. All the rest of society is telling me not to walk home alone at night or alone ever or do anything fun, but my transit provider is whispering to me “you know you want to make bad choices. let us help you. of course you didn’t realize the last train left at 7:33. who would? that’s bonkers. i’m sure this will turn out fine.”
I realize there are other days of the week when one could meet a total stranger, ask them frightening questions, and leave, but who wants to be limited? Do you all have any idea how small the dating pool is if you’re over 35 in Connecticut and have standards that weed out those whose profile pics are of them shirtless or driving a car? Now, I’ve reduced it more by eliminating those whose one night off each week happened to be Saturday. Thanks bunches.
Besides the Train Curfew and all the nonsense of last summer, train riders faced another obstacle:
YOU KNOW WE CHANGE THE CLOCKS TWICE EACH YEAR, RIGHT?! AND WHEN DOES NOT REVEAL ITSELF WITH ONLY FIVE MINUTES NOTICE.
That alert went out before the time change.
What even is happening over there?
The whole point of boards, to me, is to serve passengers who either don’t have smartphones or who ran out their battery panic texting friends on the ride down and are now at a train station (not on Saturday night) trying to figure out how to leave. Every time I click around on my phone, I’m wearing down the battery, and am now wondering what happens if my phone dies and I board the train but can’t access my ticket that’s on the phone because dead battery because I was checking the schedule and the alerts a thousand times, and yeah, some trains have outlets but do you know how slow those are? You might gain 5% on the entire trip. No ticket, what happens? Well, they don’t check until the train is in motion so if I got kicked off I would not be hanging out in New Haven overnight. No. I’d be removed in Wallingford. WALLINGFORD!
Fix this broken system.
Smooches.
Car-Free Diaries: Week 49
Instead of screaming into the ever-expanding void of Twitter, I bring you a weekly highlight reel of what it’s like going places in Greater Hartford when one is gloriously car-free. These posts are on a slight time delay because nobody needs to know exactly where I am when I am there.
You know, I was just talking about how construction sites plunk warning signs all over the sidewalk and bike lane to warn motorists that a little bump is going to happen up ahead. For whatever reason, it’s rare for pedestrians to get thoughtful warnings. Last week, the sidewalk was being redone at one corner of Capitol and Laurel, and this meant no access to the beg button. There was just a fatal crash at this intersection, which was not surprising seeing all the antics on the regular here, but that made the danger feel more real. What happens days after that crash? Making pedestrians either trample across a construction zone to press the button or asking us to walk into traffic. If you needed another example of windshield bias, file this one away.
IN THIS HOUSE THERE IS NO GOTH SHAMING
As expected, there were a whole bunch of pleas issued for individual responsibility in the shape of “OMG people wear light colors and reflective clothing if you’re walking at night so the automobilists can see, you” but . . .
…not a damn peep demanding people only drive light-colored vehicles at night, or even reminders to use their lights. You hear how stupid that sounds when put that way, right?
If you can see the dark vehicle, you can see the pedestrian or cyclist in dark clothing. And if you can’t see them, you’re driving too fast for conditions.
Motorists have killed seven (7) pedestrians from November 1-8, 2022 in Connecticut.
This was not the result of the time change as most of these happened before the change. We should ask why so many fatal collisions are happening after dark and think about this in a way that does not demand special clothing of pedestrians.
There have been 60 pedestrian/cyclist fatalities in Connecticut, so far, this year.
Candidates were asked how they would address traffic violence, and about half who responded to the survey had exceptionally disappointed responses. It’s likely some with ignorant takes will be (re)elected. Go read about who needs to be better educated, and if you are in their district, get to work.
UNIMPRESSED
GO card machines have arrived at the CTfastrak stations.
What’s the problem?
This is basically a sure sign that the free bus fare really is going away soon.
I’m interested how they think the transition back to paying is going to go after the bus has been free for so long.
Dear Public Transit Providers (CTtransit, CTrail, et al.),
Kindly stop fucking with my sad attempts at having some kind of social life. And just to be clear, I don’t blame you for all my problems. Just a handful of very specific ones.
It started when a well-meaning friend who is very much not like me suggested I “go to New Haven to find a normal guy,” and I don’t have any interest in the “normal” part, but that’s fine to call me out on exhausting the supply of possible dates in the village of Hartford.
I know you’re thinking “there are towns which people live in between Hartford and New Haven,” to which I would reply “but barely.”
Plus, if someone chooses to live in a town without decent public transportation connecting to other cities, that says we do not share the same values. Totally fine (not really. I’m just trying to sound nice) if they have a different value system from me, but that’s a compatibility issue. If people can have preferences about height and weight and someone’s astrological sign, I can been selective about their decision whether or not to live physically networked to the rest of humanity.
In theory, it shouldn’t really be a big deal to meet up with someone in Connecticut’s lesser capital city. Get on the train, use the ride to meditate or text all my four friends about my plans while begging them to remind me of my redeeming characteristics, do some shitposting on Twitter, reflect on mortality, and then, boom, I’d be there.
But we all know (if you ride the rails or have been following along closely) the first flaw with this plan: The Saturday Night Train Curfew. The last train leaves New Haven at 7:33 PM:
What this schedule demands is that one hit the Early Bird specials and get the hell out, OR, spend the night with someone I just met. All the rest of society is telling me not to walk home alone at night or alone ever or do anything fun, but my transit provider is whispering to me “you know you want to make bad choices. let us help you. of course you didn’t realize the last train left at 7:33. who would? that’s bonkers. i’m sure this will turn out fine.”
I realize there are other days of the week when one could meet a total stranger, ask them frightening questions, and leave, but who wants to be limited? Do you all have any idea how small the dating pool is if you’re over 35 in Connecticut and have standards that weed out those whose profile pics are of them shirtless or driving a car? Now, I’ve reduced it more by eliminating those whose one night off each week happened to be Saturday. Thanks bunches.
Besides the Train Curfew and all the nonsense of last summer, train riders faced another obstacle:
YOU KNOW WE CHANGE THE CLOCKS TWICE EACH YEAR, RIGHT?! AND WHEN DOES NOT REVEAL ITSELF WITH ONLY FIVE MINUTES NOTICE.
That alert went out before the time change.
What even is happening over there?
The whole point of boards, to me, is to serve passengers who either don’t have smartphones or who ran out their battery panic texting friends on the ride down and are now at a train station (not on Saturday night) trying to figure out how to leave. Every time I click around on my phone, I’m wearing down the battery, and am now wondering what happens if my phone dies and I board the train but can’t access my ticket that’s on the phone because dead battery because I was checking the schedule and the alerts a thousand times, and yeah, some trains have outlets but do you know how slow those are? You might gain 5% on the entire trip. No ticket, what happens? Well, they don’t check until the train is in motion so if I got kicked off I would not be hanging out in New Haven overnight. No. I’d be removed in Wallingford. WALLINGFORD!
Fix this broken system.
Smooches.
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