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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 17/09/2026

If you're wondering why LA should have a BART-like heavy metro system instead of a mostly light rail one, the A Line is 57.7 miles long and takes 2 hours and 12 minutes. Here it is at scale with the entirety of the Paris Metro system!

A line (Black) compared to the Paris Metro system (Red)

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 07/09/2026

The absurdity of modern America cul-de-sac design: an 84-minute walk separates the front doors of two homes that literally share at a backyard fence. (Johns Creek, GA)

Zoom out of the entire 84 minute journey

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 26/08/2026

The Marco is a proposed 143-acre, Venice-inspired project slated in Prosper, TX. While the renderings are AI slop, the plan is legit. It calls for 4,400 homes and 1.1 million SF of mixed-use space. It’s an project that raises a BIG question: Is walkable, faux-urbanism better than nothing at all?

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 25/08/2026

I love the street in Atlanta. I did a quick dive into the spatial data and zoning code, and by my rough estimate, only ~1.45% of the city’s zoned area actually permits this kind of built environment. We need to legalize this everywhere.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 22/08/2026

What was once an elevated freeway in downtown Providence has been transformed into 26 acres of new development, complemented by a 7-acre waterfront park and a pedestrian bridge.

Before and after of the I-195 highway bridge which turned an elevated freeway bridge into a pedestrian bridge. 2010 -> 2025

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 14/08/2026

It’s hilarious that Texas has no problem carving out over 1,000 miles for a new interstate (I-14), yet a 240-mile high-speed rail line had ranchers up in arms and was a "land grab". Sure, okay.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 14/08/2026

A city block in Barcelona was transformed from a busy street into a lush, car-free park. This could happen in North America too, btw. (2018 -> 2025)

Before and after of the Barcelona superblock transformation

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 12/08/2026

The building footprints within a one-mile radius of Louisville, KY, and Bordeaux, FR, show that American cities are built at a larger scale with far more surface parking, rather than the dense, compact urban fabric and fewer freeways seen in Europe. (Same Scale)

Comparing Louisville and Bordeaux at same scale

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 11/08/2026

We should build up and make the most of the infrastructure we already have, so the nature and greenbelts around our communities stay preserved.

Before and after showing farm turned into cul-de-sacs

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 10/08/2026

St. Augustine offers a fascinating glimpse into what Florida might look like had it remained under Spanish rule, especially when comparing these two corridors located just 3,500 feet apart.

Walkable versus less walkable and dense urbanism

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 04/07/2026

The local grocery chain here in RI/MA had a local artist paint its Fourth of July flyer, and I think in a world of AI slop, stuff like this is awesome. Happy fourth!

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 21/06/2026

How much of Boston can fit within the parking lot of the Gillette Stadium complex:

The backbay neighborhood of Boston superimposed over the gillette stadium parking lot multiple times over.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 14/06/2026

ON YOUR BEST DAY YOUR CITY IS NOT AS INCREDIBLE AS NYC IS AT ITS WORST

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 13/06/2026

Two Washington bound Amtrak trains are sitting at Kingston and passengers are walking up and down the platform as we wait for overhead wires to be fixed in New Haven. Current estimate is 90 minutes until the catenaries are fixed.

People walking on Kingston, RI train station

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 10/06/2026

If you overlaid the freeways of Dallas's urban core onto Paris:

Freeway alignment of Dallas urban core overlaid on Paris at same scale

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 08/06/2026

“No one takes transit in Rhode Island!” Transit in Rhode Island:

Transit directions showing 4 hour travel time versus 38 min drive time

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 23/05/2026

In Rochester, the sunken Inner Loop freeway is slowly being removed, allowing homes and cafes to reclaim its place.

before and after of inner loop transformation

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 22/05/2026

An abandoned factory in Williamsburg becomes a public park. (2012 -> Today)

Top image: A fenced-off, abandoned rail platform and stairwell sit in front of an industrial brick building in Louisville, overgrown with weeds and surrounded by barbed wire fencing under a cloudy sky.

Bottom image: People walk and gather in a modern waterfront public space beneath a large steel bridge at sunset, framed by concrete walls and planters, with outdoor seating and city buildings visible in the background.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 19/05/2026

When you travel on the 0.028% of tracks in the USA capable of supporting 160 mph, it feels good to see what train travel was like in Japan in 1964.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 27/04/2026

HARD MODE: What transit station am I at? (If you get this wow)

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 19/03/2026

That’s 82 years of Amtrak funding, but we don’t have money for trains!

Tweet: Breaking: the pentagon is trying to get more than $200 billion from congress for the Iran war.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 16/03/2026

The island of Lindau, Germany (pop. 3,000), sees 115 train departures per day. The entire state of Texas and all of its cities combined, by comparison, sees 56 daily Amtrak departures.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 13/02/2026

A casual reminder that the federal government in 1974 killed a plan to build a 75-mile, BART-like rapid transit rail system in Detroit, which called for 3–12 minute headways and a 150-mile BRT system feeder system, for being “too ambitious.”

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 27/01/2026

A sentence I'd never think I'd read from a fellow American in 2026. Long live the people.

"They're going to kill some of us. But if we don't risk our safety now and here, they will just keep killing us," she said. "If we don't stand here now, despite the back to back murders and more, they will keep taking." - Savannah Thissen, a minneapolis protestor who works in healthcare

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 29/12/2025

Ohio, an economy the size of Switzerland, sees just 48 trains a week and has no rail links between its major cities. Yet the state found $600M for a new Cleveland Browns stadium, 136× more than it plans to spend on rail projects over the next two years.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 25/12/2025

My family knows exactly what gift to get me. Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas 🎄❤️

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 22/12/2025

At max speeds of 110 mph, Michigan could provide rail service between Grand Rapids and Detroit in 95 minutes, 20% faster than driving. For fun, you could name it the "Polar Express," given Grand Rapids is where the movie takes place!

Polar Express Route showing Grand Rapids and Detroit via Lansing

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 21/12/2025

If I won the lottery I wouldn’t tell anyone but there would be signs. (NY Botanical)

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 14/12/2025

Providence will always be home. If you live in the state and are able to donate blood, the Rhode Island Blood Center needs it, especially O-negative and B- blood types. Link below to find a place to donate.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 14/12/2025

Huh, wonder why this is happening?

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 12/12/2025

Because the state of Connecticut doesn’t want to provide rail service to Norwich, they claim it would cost around $650 million to provide 13.6 miles of rail service. I propose it can be 3x the length and cost $140 million to do.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 07/12/2025

People from Vienna in the suburbs of Kansas City next year for the World Cup:

Over the hedge meme saying “what is this place?”

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 06/12/2025

It would take 2 hours and 20 minutes to travel between Boston and Washington, D.C. at this speed. This country is so behind, it's laughable.

Image showing AVE train with headline that says "Spain set to cut Madrid-Barcelona rail time to under 2 hours"

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 05/12/2025

Mecklenburg County voted in November to raise taxes to fund the Red Line. To me, anything short of an electrified rail line would be a failure, and the Red Line should be seen as the foundation for a future 176-mile S-Bahn/Regional Rail network. Thoughts?

Map of three potential regional/s-bahn routes

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 03/12/2025

I’ve never seen a sexier way to use my taxpayer dollars

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 24/11/2025

Say what you want, but Mayor-elect Mamdani's transportation transition committee is absolutely fantastic. Having a roster of people who have written reports on how to make subways cheaper, along with the biggest pedestrian and transit advocates in the city, makes me very happy.

A text list titled “Committee on Transportation, Climate, & Infrastructure” followed by approximately 35 committee members and their affiliations. The names include representatives from environmental justice organizations, design and planning nonprofits, academic institutions, transit advocacy groups, labor unions, climate policy organizations, and city-focused alliances. Notable affiliations include NYC Environmental Justice Alliance, Rebuild by Design, Spring Street Climate Fund, TYLin, Transportation Alternatives, NYU Marron Institute, Green New Deal, Urban Green Council, Greenwood Cemetery, 2nd Ave Subway, Gateway Development Commission, Prospect Park Alliance, NRDC, Riders Alliance, PSC-CUNY, Climate Jobs NY, TWU, Kinetic Communities Consulting, Bronx River Alliance, Teamsters Local 831, WE ACT, Three Cairns Group, Waterfront Alliance, Regional Plan Association, PULP, and New York Lawyers for the Public Interest.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 20/11/2025

If you need extra expertise for an RFP, a strategic sounding board, conducting a project or study, or flexible part-time support, let’s talk! thetransitguy.com

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 20/11/2025

The Transit Guy, LLC is officially open! 🧵

The Transit Guy graphic with thetransitguy.com

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 19/11/2025

Project 636 of Project 2025, btw.

Headline: Trump admin proposes to divert billions from mass transit to highways: advocates sound alarm

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 18/11/2025

The university will offer undergraduate study away and a graduate program that combines business and engineering curriculum to support NYC’s growing tech sector. For more on Vanderbilt University - New York City: 👉 vanderbilt.edu/nyc/

A narrow garden walkway lined with brick edging and lush greenery leads toward an arched wooden doorway on a red-brick building in the distance. Overhead, leafy tree branches form a canopy of dappled sunlight, creating a peaceful, shaded path.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 18/11/2025

What impressed me most is how seamlessly the private residential buildings weave into the campus fabric; it feels like you’re just in a Chelsea neighborhood, not an isolated, stuffy campus.

A quiet, grassy courtyard shaded by large leafy trees, with two empty wooden Adirondack chairs facing the open lawn. Behind a black iron fence, rows of red-brick townhouses line the street, their doors and windows framed by late-afternoon light. Small garden beds and scattered fallen leaves add to the peaceful, neighborhood feel.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 18/11/2025

I got to tour the grounds during Open House New York last month, and honestly, this “quiet” campus in Chelsea I’ve walked by so many times is small but has beautiful cloisters, gardens, and an architectural mix that feels like nowhere else in Manhattan.

A grand historic hall with tall arched windows filled with patterned stained glass, dark wood-paneled walls, and an ornate carved stone fireplace centered on the far wall. The vaulted ceiling features intricate golden detailing supported by heavy wooden beams, and several antique brass chandeliers hang from above, casting a warm glow across the spacious room.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 18/11/2025

Vanderbilt University will lease the campus from the General Theological Seminary for the next century, saving the campus from becoming abandoned and giving it new life and connecting students and faculty with opportunities only available in NYC.

The interior of a historic chapel with dark wooden pews lining both sides of a central aisle decorated with ornate mosaic tile patterns. At the front, an elaborate stone altar features carved figures beneath a towering stained-glass window glowing with vibrant colors. Tall organ pipes rise along the right wall, and warm lamps cast soft light across the brick and stone architecture.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 18/11/2025

Seventeen historic buildings surround one of the most peaceful courtyards in the city, a private park leading to this gorgeous chapel that centers the campus.

A tall, historic red-brick church tower with arched windows and decorative stone details rises behind leafy tree branches. Below it sits an adjoining brick building with green-trimmed windows. Sunlight filters through the leaves, casting soft shadows on the façade against a blue sky.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 18/11/2025

Built in the late 19th century, the campus in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood is a masterpiece, a patchwork of architects and eras that tells the story of New York at every chapter of the city’s life.

A detailed aerial-style watercolor illustration of a city block in Manhattan, showing a large green courtyard surrounded by historic red-brick and brownstone buildings. At the center is a prominent church with a tall square tower, clustered among academic-looking buildings. Dense residential blocks surround the campus on all sides, highlighting the contrast between the leafy interior and the tightly packed urban grid.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 18/11/2025

Vanderbilt University’s new campus, its first outside of Nashville in the institution's 150-year history, is absolutely stunning, and it’s hidden in plain sight.

A quiet, sunlit garden with lush green grass, blooming flowers, and tall leafy trees casting dappled shade. Two people sit on wooden benches near the center of the lawn, facing each other. In the background, a red-brick building with large arched windows is partially visible through the trees.

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 18/11/2025

So we got 218 votes for a discharge petition to release the Epstein files for Congress to unanimously pass them? Why wasn’t there unanimous backing for the original discharge petition?

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Hayden Clarkin @thetransitguy.com · 14/11/2025

The transformation of Williamsburg’s Domino Park over the past decade has been insane.

Before and after of Domino Park from 2012 to Today

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