Thoughts About Cities

Super excited to see where this Streetsblog series goes!

Planning vs Strategy, Tips for riding a Sh*tty Bus & Trail Oriented Development — I Hope This Helps 👍🏽 Happy Black History Month ✊🏾. Commentary on race in planning, a slow light rail line, the difference between plan and strategy, and the Swamp Rabbit Trail in this edition of I Hope This Helps!

In this edition of I hope this helps 👍🏾:

1️⃣The Finch West LRT (it's very slow 🐢)
2️⃣Commentary on race in Planning
3️⃣Why you should take a sh*tty bus
4️⃣Somebody that actually took a sh*tty bus
5️⃣Plans vs Strategies
6️⃣The Swamp Rabbit Trail

Hopefully you'll find something here that resonates!

A Love Letter to the Articulated Bus An ode to the the bendy boys, by far the wackiest of the specialized vehicles you might find at a transit authority.

Honestly, who doesn't love a bendy boy?

What's in and What's Out: 2026 Edition 2026 is on the mainline🎉! In 2026, reading, asking why, learning, unlearning and relearning, and Youtube are in ✅. Playing with tax dollars, blame and having an opinion on everything are out 🚫.

2026 is on the mainline 🥂. Here's what's in, and what's out (per me)

In
✅Reading
✅Asking Why
✅Learning, unlearning and relearning
✅YouTube (and Substack)

Out
❌ Playing with Tax Dollars
❌Blame
❌Having an Opinion On Everything

Trees🌳, Birds🐦‍⬛ and the Uselessness of Blame 🫵🏽 — I Hope This Helps The unique(ly successful) way Montreal governs itself, the value of meaningful regulation, the importance of trees, the uselessness of blame (again), and birds in this edition of I Hope This Helps!

Blame is useless. It doesn’t move us any closer to a solution, and more often than not, it actively distracts from the work of listening, learning and building mutual understanding. Learn about the follies of blame, the importance of trees and the Merlin Bird ID app in my latest article!

Here's A Bunch of Cool Transit Projects That Just Started Service. Hope This Helps 👍🏽 A streetcar in Kanas City, a true BRT line in Miami, and rail extensions in Dallas and Honolulu. A lot of cool transit projects just opened, and I'm going to talk about them. I Hope This Helps👍🏽

October was a big month for transit projects across the US. Here's a rundown of some of the major lines that started revenue service last month, with commentary by me. Check it out and let me know if you have any experience with any of these projects!
thoughtsaboutcities.substack.com/p/heres-a-bu...

😈The Corruption Track: Understanding Power in a Time of Political Sepsis After nearly a decade working in urban planning, I've surmised power, more than policy, lies at the heart of our deepest dysfunctions. Let's talk about it

"Some level of institutional power is necessary for any institution to carry out its core functions. However, institutional power is ultimately administered by people, and people are subject their own incentives and agendas"

Yesterday was Halloween, and today I'm driving a trolley in a Veterans Day Parade. Life comes at you fast

Y'all got a favorite seat on the bus? This is mine

Went for a bike ride on the day of the Chicago Marathon. I fear a may never make it back across the race and to my home

One thing about me. I'ma throw back some hors d'oeuvres at a cocktail hour

Why Public Sector Consulting Isn’t Evil, and How to Keep It Honest At its best, public sector consulting builds knowledge and delivers value for taxpayers. At its worst, it entrenches dependence and wastes resources. A code of ethics for keeping consulting ethical.

Check out my latest discussing about my last five years working as a public sector consultant.

accessiblyurban.substack.com/p/why-public...

This includes routes on the Frequent Network that CTA is actively adding service to. This city is exhausting 🙃

www.transitchicago.com/frequent/

I Hope This Helps👍🏽: Blame is Useless, but the Housing Ready Toolkit Isn't The Strong Towns Housing Ready Toolkit, Transit Planning 101 and a transportation data resource drop in this edition of I Hope This Helps👍🏽!

Focusing on assigning blame (or offloading liability) distracts us from the real work of problem solving. I think this has applications for life generally, as well as politics specifically.

I Hope This Helps 👍🏽: Autonomous Public Transit 🚐 and Zoning (abolition) The first US Autonomous Public Transit System just launched in Florida. This, zoning abolition and trains in this edition of I Hope This Helps👍🏽!

Autonomous Transit just launched in Jacksonville. This and zoning (spoiler: we don't need it) in my latest!

Tales from the Driver's Seat Driving a bus has taught me so much about life. Here are some of my favorite stories from behind the wheel! 🚌

Driving a bus is where I'm most happy. Check out my latest post where I talk about my experience behind the wheel!

Lately, life has been teaching me what it means to self sustain in a place where I'm valued for my labor, not my talent. This book has been helpful. Here's an excerpt for your morning!

I Hope This Helps 👍🏽: Desire Paths, Bike Lanes and Boterismo ‼️Parking reform is on deck in Chicago‼️ Also, several articles from the In Practice Substack in this edition of I Hope This Helps👍🏽!

‼️Parking reform is in the Zoning Committee in Chicago today‼️. Email your alderman and express your support

Also, in I Hope This Helps 👍🏽:
1️⃣The Wisdom of Desire Paths
2️⃣The Importance of Clear Policy
3️⃣Bike Lanes (they're actually really good)
4️⃣Politicians Rarely Lie from the In Practice Substack

Dear Committee on Zoning, Landmarks & Building Standards, I am a resident of the 32nd Ward writing to voice my support for a new ordinance that has been referred to this committee, O2025-0015577, which would eliminate parking mandates in developments that are served by rail and bus transit in Chicago. We face a major housing shortage in Chicago, with an estimated shortage of over 100,000 units1. Rents in my neighborhood, Lakeview, have increased from $1,700 for a two-bedroom apartment in June 2019 to $2,798 in June 2025, a 65% increase in 6 years2. Lines of people wrap around the block for vacant rental showings3. When these people can’t find the housing they want here, they go looking in other neighborhoods, which drives up the rent there, displacing lower income residents. The solution to this is simple: just allow more housing to be built where people want to live. Especially around transit, where they can live car-lite or car-free lifestyles. Parking mandates are a hidden—but massive—driver of the cost to build new housing. Each structured parking stall runs $25,000–$35,000 to build and adds roughly $200 to monthly rent, even when tenants don’t own cars4. The elimination of parking mandates is the single-highest impact policy available to policymakers to increase housing production in their jurisdictions. A recent study in Colorado found that parking reform alone increased housing production by 41% in urban areas5. This ordinance would not ban parking around transit, it would simply give developers more flexibility to build the amount that makes sense in a transit-rich city like Chicago. Please consider voting Yes on this important legislation. Sincerely, Michael McLean Member, Abundant Housing Illinois 1 https://www.axios.com/2025/03/12/axios-event-chicago-zoomin-affordable-housing 2 https://www.renthop.com/average-rent-in/lakeview-chicago-il

On Tuesday June 17th, an ordinance will be introduced to the zoning committee in Chicago that would remove parking mandates around transit.

Here's the letter of support I sent to the committee, and my alderman.

Send your own letter to the committee (mail to Nicole.Wellhausen@cityofchicago.org)

The Illinois Legislature Failed to Pass Transit Funding. Are We Headed for a Death Spiral? We can bank on last minute deals in Springfield to save transit, or we can focus on preserving a core network that averts a "death spiral" and provides a sound foundation to rebuild upon.

Without additional funding support, the Chicago Transit Authority (and Chicagoland transit generally) has to start planning for a 40% reduction in service. Check out my take on how we can do that without triggering a "death spiral"

What Is Good Transit? Good Transit is Frequent🚉. Good Transit is reliable🕑. Good Transit is (reasonably) fast🏎️. Good Transit feels safe🔒

Check out my article on the elements of Good Transit and let me know what you think!