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Ahasan

@ef63.bsky.social
56 followers 71 following 57 posts

Engineering Student Transportation Researcher @movementyvr.bsky.social 🚇/🚍/🚋/🚠 📍Vancouver Opinions are my own

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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Getting groceries from there is such a hassle on transit. Either ride the train further west to Commercial Dr and beyond, or pay a 2-zone fare to get to Metrotown.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
It would be nice if they found a way to continue some stripes on the side at least, rather than leave it completely bare
Tokyo Metro 10000 series by MaedaAkihiko / CC BY-SA 4.0
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
I'm reading some 2010s Vancouver documents on underground infill station construction, and it's unfortunate that so much research doesn't look beyond the Anglosphere
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
The purple creature is staring into my soul 😭
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
Not really. The Canada Line has a few planned infills (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada_...), with an additional elevated one for the airport, if it gets a new terminal, being the most likely. The underground ones in Vancouver are likely far more expensive and complex than originally envisioned, sadly.
en.wikipedia.org
Canada Line - Wikipedia
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Movement: Metro Vancouver Transit Riders @movementyvr.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
This summer, volunteer organizers Angela Kim and Ahasan Bhuiyan have been out talking with riders across South Vancouver to shape our advocacy priorities. Their report (think Surrey Transit Future) is coming soon! 📸: Michael Hall
Ahasan shares a graph showing how bus speeds have slowed every year due to traffic.Workshop participants engaged in a mapping activity.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
It's a bit funny that so much housing was built (and continues to be built!) near Victoria Dr and Boundary Road on the Expo Line, where there are no stations. Meanwhile, the nearby stations of Nanaimo and 29th Avenue have remained largely unchanged for 40 years!
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
You could probably get away with shutting down Lake City Way without anyone noticing for a few months 😝
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Part-time subway, mixed-traffic tram, and mountain railway en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keihan_...
en.wikipedia.org
Keihan Keishin Line - Wikipedia
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Brian Doucet @briandoucet.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
The Glasgow Subway, opened in 1896, will be fully automated early next year. Some stations already have their platform doors in place (pictures 1 & 2) For the rest, the days of being able to take these photos (3 & 4) are numbered. Photos from July 2026.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
@jedwinmok.com @chittimarco.bsky.social Glad to see Victoria, BC, looking internationally for inspiration from the... Brisbane "Metro" and trackless trams... oh... 🙃 www.bctransit.com/wp-content/u...
A page from the Draft Victoria Regional Transit Plan that lists "rapid transit" options as rapidbus, trackless trams, and rail transit.

Source: https://www.bctransit.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/9.1-Draft-Victoria-Regional-Transit-Plan.pdf
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
78,000 trips on average per weekday. IIRC, the latest expectation is about 125k/weekday when the entire network opens. cdpqinfra.com/en/news/pres...
cdpqinfra.com
West Island now connected by the REM
Service on the new Anse-à-l’Orme branch begins May 18, bringing 64 km of the network’s total 67 km into operation.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
Or a hotel/tourism tax that also provides visitors with a transit pass!
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Jens von Bergmann @jensvb.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Give a nerd a chart or a map and they will waste a day. Teach a nerd how to make charts and maps and they will waste the rest of their life.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 06/06/2026
"when was the last time you flossed?" "why are you asking me, you were there when it happened"
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John Munro @johnmunro.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
Having just visited Vienna for the first time, I found it impossible not to notice how much public space it reserves for car owners. Really confirms that if you don't reduce car lanes and parking spots at scale, your public space will continue to suffer, no matter how good your public transit.
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Jedwin Mok @jedwinmok.com · 27/05/2026
Toronto’s transit cost disease has hit… metal fences. Just a reminder that $2M CAD is about the cost of half height PSGs for one platform in Hong Kong. Then we use NYC to justify our wild cost estimates for actual screen doors. The incuriosity and Anglo echo-chamber here is astounding.
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Denis Agar (he/him) @denisagar.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Of all the North American cities studied, Vancouver's buses have the second highest variation in travel time throughout the day. This should set off alarm bells that we have a lot of work to do when it comes to making buses reliable.
Here is the verbatim text from the image, followed by a detailed description of the bar chart.

Verbatim Text
"However, the speed variation throughout the day is not as pronounced across all jurisdictions. The following chart illustrates the Median Absolute Deviation (MAD) of the half-hourly rolling average for each city between 7 am and 8 pm. The MAD is a measure of statistical dispersion that indicates how much the half-hourly rolling average deviates from the median for each city. The value is expressed as a percentage of a city's median speed to control for differences in baseline speeds across cities. This measure is a synthetic indicator of the daily variability of transit running times during the core of a weekday, excluding the early morning and late evening service hours which tend to have much faster service.

Munich, Vienna, Zurich, Bologna, and Eindhoven exhibit the lowest relative MAD, indicating that their scheduled speeds are more consistent throughout the day, suggesting that surface transit in these cities is less affected by recurrent sources of delay, such as longer boarding times and congestion during peak hours. In contrast, cities like Birmingham, Boston, Auckland, and Vancouver exhibit higher MAD values, indicating greater variability in average speed throughout the day and suggesting that their surface transit is more sensitive to factors that cause delays and increase running times (and thus reduce speed) during peak hours."

Bar Chart Description
The image features a horizontal bar chart titled "North America" that ranks 13 cities based on their relative Median Absolute Deviation (MAD). The bars represent the level of transit speed variability; a longer bar indicates higher variability (less consistent service), while a shorter bar indicates lower variability (more consistent service).

The cities are ranked from highest variability to lowest variability as follows:
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Christopher Cheung @bychrischeung.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
Love Richmond's Asian malls? You can catch the new doc "The Golden Village" on YouTube, with lovely scenes of mall life and how migrants made them home. Directed by Karen Cho of "Big Fight in Little Chinatown", feat. me chiming in over pork chop rice! www.youtube.com/watch?v=tba1...
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Jonathan English @englishrail.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Infrastructure projects routinely spend billions of dollars to avoid difficult conversations. I wrote a new piece on Infrastory on how we need to be better at recognizing the problems that can be solved with a phone call rather than big infrastructure. open.substack.com/pub/infrasto...
open.substack.com
Engineering Problems and Phone Call Problems
Perhaps sometimes we really should just phone it in
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Denis Agar (he/him) @denisagar.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
“The best-used euro is not to reduce the price but to increase the offer,” says Kehrer. “Because what’s the use of a cheap ticket if I still can’t travel when I want to?”
theguardian.com
Vienna’s public transport is the envy of the world – so why can’t it ditch cars?
Austrian capital mulls expanding tram network and park-and-ride car parks in effort to reduce private vehicle use
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Neighbourhood transit mode share might take a tumble this census 🥲
media.tenor.com
squidward from spongebob squarepants looks out a window
Alt: Squidward from Spongebob Squarepants looks out a window.
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Better Columbia @bettercolumbia.ca · 05/05/2026
Building bike lanes at the same time as roadwork was supposed to save money, expand the network and reduce opposition. The reality is more complicated, argues Ruofan 🚎
bettercolumbia.ca
Should sewers dictate where bike lanes go? - Better Columbia
Bike lanes tied to road resurfacing opportunities aren’t delivering on their promise.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
The Mid V could never 🫣 Sorry, not sorry.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
Dreams in Granville St BRT...
A Google Maps screenshot of Shaughnessy, a mansion district located mere kilometres from downtown Vancouver.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
This looks like so much fun! www.postalmuseum.org/visit-us/wha...
postalmuseum.org
Mail Rail - The Postal Museum
Journey back in time on a specially-made train through the original tunnels and station platforms under Mount Pleasant.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Ultimately, cities like Vienna see more people choosing transit over driving because of deliberate choices to prioritize the sustainable movement of people, not vehicles. Vancouver has the same tools available, should it choose to act on its claim of being “the world’s greenest city.”
2024 Vienna modal share, with transit (and walking!) being more popular than personal vehicles.2024 Vancouver Transportation Survey results, showcasing a stagnant transit modal share.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Vienna’s tram line D is the first line to be accelerated since this motion was initiated in February. Improvements include adding TSP, but also turning restrictions from minor streets, and removing on-street parking. Such changes are also applicable to Vancouver’s 3rd busiest bus route, the 49.
Tram Line D © Simon Wöhrer/Wiener Linien
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
75% of traffic lights used by public transport in Vienna already have Transit Signal Priority (TSP), switching green for buses/trains. 40 such priority systems have been added since 2024. A similar rolling signal upgrade program in Vancouver could reduce travel times by up to 18% (TransLink).
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
While Vancouver drags its feet on improving four measly bus routes, a true world-class city, Vienna, is looking to speed up 29 tram lines and 135 bus routes, basically its entire surface transit network. The city will invest 2 million Euros annually until 2030 on transit acceleration measures.
Announcement for Vienna's „Mehr Tempo für Bus und Bim“ (More Speed ​​for Buses and Trams) campaign © Stadt Wien/David Bohmann
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Denis Agar (he/him) @denisagar.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
This is a great opportunity for a lesson about the importance of picking a terminal when designing a transit route. This proposed ferry to Gibsons and Bowen Island will terminate in Coal Harbour near the foot of Bute Street. Here's how that performs: 1/3
dailyhive.com
New Coal Harbour dock eyed for passenger ferries to Bowen Island, Sunshine Coast | Daily Hive | Urbanized
CIRQL Ferries could build a new Harbour Green Dock for its new ferry service linking downtown Vancouver with Bowen Island and Sunshine Coast.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 11/04/2026
Also, shoutout to Southbound Ioco Rd @ Suter Brook Way, a bus stop so close to Inlet Centre station that the passenger information display inside the bus has no time to show the name of the next stop, a SkyTrain station, before the bus passes it. Yes, it happened to me.
The bus stop at Southbound Ioco Rd @ Suter Brook Way, which is 100 m away from Inlet Centre station.A scathing Google Review of the bus stop.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 11/04/2026
The data is getting a bit old (and I could improve a lot nowadays), but the same trends are present within Metro Vancouver.
A graph of average scheduled speed vs. average stop distance for buses within Metro Vancouver. Generally, buses with stops placed further apart are faster.A table listing Metro Vancouver bus routes, their average scheduled speed, and their average stop distance. Again, routes with smaller distances between stops tend to be slower.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
Route 8 used to have twice as many trips during the busiest hours of the day. Longer wait times not only reduce the convenience of public transportation but also have very real impacts on people's lives (e.g., having to choose between arriving extra early or extra late to work/school).
A comparison of southbound trips on route 8 leaving Main Street-Science World Station from 2020 January and 2026 January.
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Garry Keenor @25kv.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
From now on this is the only way i will travel
A Swiss electric-steam locomotive with a pantograph. Shortage of coal during World War 2 drove Swiss Federal Railways to fit two such engines, hydro-electric power being plentiful in the region. The locos used traction current from the 15kV 16.6Hz OLE to boil water using an electric heating element, creating steam pressure to move the locomotive. Pressure was sufficient to run off the wires for around 20 minutes before returning to recharge.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 26/03/2026
The ability for the rapid service to overtake the local service at stops (particularly those only served by the local) can help a lot. E.g., pull-out stops for the local and in-lane stops for the rapid, though it does require a lot of space.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
What are the biggest ways to improve the 20, besides restoring the frequency?
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 11/03/2026
Nah, you're 💯
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🦆 Enterich mit C wie cocodrilo (🐊). @enterich.bsky.social · 07/03/2026
Dresden's tram museum took its MAN tram from 1913 for a spin today while the police demonstrated how the transitway helps them get faster to where they need to be. The #tram was converted and modernised into a single-ended tram in 1966. It was last used in regular service in 1975. 🚋🚍 🤝 🚓🚑🚒
A vintage cream-colored tram stands on tracks in front of a modern yellow tram. A door is open and a person in a yellow vest is about to get off.
Buildings and a church spire are visible in the background under a clear blue sky.
A police car with flashing lights passes a vintage cream colored tram on a dedicated transitway. Dresden's Kulturpalast, other buildings and a bright blue sky are in the background.A vintage tram with the number 734 is shown on a sunny day in front of a modern building (Dresden's Kulturpalast). The tram is cream colored with dark red trim and a green base.
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
Or this example from Melbourne. Definitely would've loved some similar architectural prowess on the Broadway subway, given the rather high price tag youtu.be/HPMKW1JWiTw?...
youtu.be
This Melbourne's new train platform looks like a cathedral!
YouTube video by Uncover Urban Stories | Herman Luk
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
Reminded of this post! bsky.app/profile/chit...
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
It's interesting to compare Aberdeen station in Richmond which has no mezzanine and a single elevator ride up to the platforms with some of the new SLS stations which do have mezzanines and require two separate elevator rides. Probably quite cumbersome if you have a mobility device/stroller
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Jonathan English @englishrail.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
Very happy to have collaborated with CSA Group on this report examining successes and challenges in transit project construction in Canada and the lessons we can learn for future projects. www.csagroup.org/article/publ...
csagroup.org
Making the Grade: Recommendations for Addressing the High Cost of Canada’s Transit Infrastructure
Making the Grade examines why Canada’s rail and transit infrastructure costs are significantly higher than global benchmarks and offers recommendations to improve planning, decision-making, political ...
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Brendan Dawe @dawe.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
So it’s broadly recognized that Vancouver needs more hotel rooms, that high room rates driven by high occupancy are a drag on the local economy, that the city needs to facilitate the construction of more hotels. All of this is true I want speak to the human importance of hotels
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Michael Hall @michaelhall.bsky.social · 22/01/2026
It's been almost 1,000 days since @sarahkirby.bsky.social brought forward an excellent motion the bring in some bus lanes where they're needed most. TransLink even agreed to fund it all. So where are they? 🧐🤷 @movementyvr.bsky.social dailyhive.com/vancouver/va...
dailyhive.com
Opinion: What's red and takes 1,000 days to create? Vancouver bus lanes, apparently | Urbanized
Why is the City of Vancouver taking so long to implement long-promised bus lanes that only requiring paint and signage?
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 06/01/2026
Fascinating read, thanks for sharing!
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 02/01/2026
Are you starting off the year right at Peaked Pies?
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 23/12/2025
@jrurbanenetwork.bsky.social do you know?
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Ahasan @ef63.bsky.social · 21/11/2025
With some stops on Douglas serving well over 20 different bus routes, even a full conversion to a busway may face similar transit congestion as seen in the downtown Transitway in Ottawa prior to their O-Train (whose downtown rail tunnel was built relatively cheaply)
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Better Columbia @bettercolumbia.ca · 14/11/2025
Without fanfare, the BC Ministry of Transportation released a report that makes a strong case for a Westshore to Victoria rail line, writes Sam Holland
bettercolumbia.ca
New Study Makes Strong Case for Getting Westshore Rail on Track - Better Columbia
The province quietly updated the 2011 Westshore Rapid Transit Study. They determined that we need transit investment, now more than ever.
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