Everyone should be able to enjoy art—focus on the word enjoy. Some art museums started banning photography in the late 2000s when smartphones started having quality cameras to boost gift shop revenue and protect delicate works from automatic flashes, but the decision has been reversed in the mid-2010s partly from Read more…
Between 2017 and 2019, the Swiss Federal Railways, SBB, managed an average of 97% of trains calling at their stations within 3 minutes of the advertised time. When compared to other European rail operators using a similar method of calculation, Swiss trains come out at the top for punctuality. However, Read more…
Those who know me well will know that I like to find very good deals on the Internet so I can get maximum enjoyment out of a meagre budget. In February 2020, when everything was still normal in Europe, I thought it was a good time to buy a car Read more…
On a recent ICE trip from Berlin to Bremen, I read in the Süddeutsche Zeitung that the German government will cut VAT for train tickets in 2020 to just 7% (about 10% off ticket price at present 19.5% VAT rates) and consider raising taxes for flights. I am in total Read more…
Recently, I’ve been averaging about 6000km by rail a month and have been reflecting on my levels of carbon emissions. One of my longest journeys took me from Geneva through Bern, Basel, and Frankfurt to reach Berlin on an overnight journey. While I was pondering on how much carbon I Read more…
Most of what I express here will be directed towards North America’s path dependency on the private vehicle although some of it will also be relevant to policy incentives in East Asia. As my father always used to tell me: “You have to think in systems, you can’t expect everything Read more…
Public transportation systems from Vancouver to Berlin to Hong Kong have some sort of priority seat initiative to label seats near the doorways of trams, trains, and buses for use by those in need. Vancouver has blue TransLink labels, Berlin has yellow labels in line with BVG livery, and Hong Read more…
In the past decade, Vancouver has been increasingly transit friendly with the mayor promoting cycling combined with public transportation as an environmentally friendly alternative to driving. The West Coast Express (WCE) is a commuter rail link serving eight stations between Waterfront in downtown Vancouver all the way to Mission City Read more…