Ray Oldenburg introduced the term "third place" in 1989, and it's now ubiquitous. Property developers, museum planners, and shared workspace companies use it - sometimes accurately and sometimes not. This phone conversation took place on Ray's 88th birthday, in April 2020. Karen Christensen, who is writing the new coauthored edition of The Great Good Place, [...]
Today's Train Time conversation with Massachusetts State Representative Christina Minicucci ranges widely. We talked about issues that affect the travel choices of people in Rep Minicucci's district, and in fact pretty much everywhere: frequency, reliability, and cost. We talked about trains, of course, but also about bike and hiking trails and safe streets. These other [...]
On this episode of Train Time we're talking to Rep William (Smitty) Pignatelli about his advocacy for new connections for western Massachusetts. Host Karen Christensen explains, "I'm delighted to welcome my own representative, Smitty Pignatelli of Lenox, to Train Time. Rep Pignatelli has been a great advocate for regional equity, in transportation as well as [...]
Tom Sexton On this episode of Train Time, Tom Sexton, NE Regional Director for the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, explains the growing movement to combine passenger rail service and multi-use trails. While many people think that trails mean no trains, the reality is that the two forms of transportation work well together, and offer benefits to both [...]
Wayne Davis is renowned for his success in building support for the Downeaster, an exemplary passenger train service that runs from Boston to Maine. He's also known for his continued efforts to strengthen the coalition of rail advocates across New England. In this podcast, Wayne tells his story along with his colleague Bruce Sleeper, who [...]
Ben Heckscher sees transparency as one of the keys to building back better At Union Station in Springfield, Massachusetts you can buy a ticket to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. But you cannot buy a ticket to get you to Fenway Park in Boston. With the Infrastructure Bill finally passed by Congress, we turn to [...]
An Amtrak trip from Vermont to New York made Kevin Ellis angry. But not in the way a difficult flight or terrible traffic can make us angry. A trip that could have been, that should be, a pleasure was instead deeply annoying. And he was embarrassed to think that this was the best America has [...]
This episode of Train Time takes us to the borders region of Scotland, an area with storied history and dramatic scenery. Simon Walton tells the story of how, over the course of two decades, the Campaign for Borders Rail has made a case for the reconstruction of 35 miles of a passenger rail line that [...]
One of Pittsfield young leaders explains how the city is getting ready for rail In this episode of Train Time, we spoke to Ricardo Morales, the Commissioner of Public Services and Utilities for the City of Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Like many US cities, Pittsfield has faced challenges in recent decades, especially after the departure of GE [...]
In this episode of Train Time, we spoke to Mayor Luke Bronin of Hartford, Connecticut, who has become a leader in regional efforts to promote passenger rail for economic development, social and environmental justice, and climate stewardship. Bronin is also the co-chair of the bold proposal that was first called Rebooting New England and is [...]
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