Best and Worst of the Week

Best: Catenary poles and catenary wire-holder-thingamabobs. Can we pause for a moment and look at how good those tapered, tubular, Saint-Paul-Brown catenary poles look? Details matter. (I apologize to those of you that ride Hiawatha everyday and will never look be able to look at your galvanized i-beams the same way.) Special thanks to the traffic engineer who strategically placed that arrow for this photo.




Worst/best: A bus shelter on a cold, rainy day. So awkward. So clammy. And yet, such a sight for sore eyes. There's kind of a strange camaraderie among a bunch of half-soaked grumpy people who need to share a tiny space. And if there's not, some group venting about the bus being late usually does the trick. Everyone loves to hate on a late bus!




Best: Lumbermobile. Something that is so bizarrely American is this idea that cars are irreplaceable. A world without a roof rack? Gasp! I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard something like, "transit is great, but nobody is going to take the bus/train to Menards to buy lumber." You know what? They actually do. Take a seat, haters.




(I should say - Menards is a true superstore and sells virtually everything. We have a game trying to guess things they don't sell - it's impossible. Pudding? Coloring books? Deodorant? Flameless candles? The magic bullet? Hot pink zebra duct tape? It turns out all these things fit on transit! And here we had just written off customers in the Central Corridor shopping for things smaller than a breadbox.)


Worst: Parking fail. Failure. Failed. Fail.




Best: Granite Pavers (aka Paver Watch 2012). From deep below the streets of Saint Paul - reclaimed granite and sandstone pavers are now being reinstalled in the medians of the Raymond historic district. There's more to this design coming east of Raymond...wait for it...





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Best and Worst of the Week(s)

Let's face it, I'm a terrible blogger. I've let real life (gasp!) get in the way of me blabbing on about construction this spring. Well, I have a good excuse.

I'm tired of construction. Is there no rest for the weary? But, I haven't stopped taking photos, I just haven't written about them. So let's look way way back at the month of May.

Best: Trash cans. The most beautiful trash can I've ever seen. The new fleet is in (and for a while was shacking up with the old ones). The hubby was pretty embarrassed that I stopped to take this photo. That did not deter me, obviously. The old trash cans are gone now, so it's kinda epic that I have this little piece of history recorded, right?

Worst: KSTP investigates if people prefer traffic. So, I-94 is closed and University is down to one lane. If they talk to people sitting at a stoplight, will say waiting in traffic is A) annoying? or B) the most amazing thing they've ever done? What a scoop! What brave journalism! Eyewitness News investigates...10 feet in front of their studios.

Best: Trees. Yes, I've mentioned it before, but the more that go in, the more obsessed I am.

Worst: Intertrack fence. That is what that is, right? I just have never been into it.

Best: The Bacon Trolley. This new food truck is just pandering to me. Pork and trolleys? Yes, please.

Worst: People not knowing how to use a "T" intersection. Because Berry Street does not go through, drivers seem to have lost all logic for how to use this half-intersection. This gentleman is stopped at a red light. In the far side of the intersection. In the crosswalk. Yeah, you better believe I'm taking your picture!

Best: West Bank station. I don't know if it's the best, but it sure is the biggest. You might say we're buying a Stairway to Heaven. Or something.

Worst: Bus wrapping. I get it, I just don't like it. (Can anyone name this location?)

Best: When you actually get the cushy bus with the spot that holds groceries, AND the seat next to it! This never happens. Sometimes bus karma pays back in wonderful ways.

Worst: Crosswalk tape. I am donating a straight edge and a pencil to Walsh.

Best: Non-confrontational signage. I'll take it! Although I'd still like to purchase the "Blight Rail" sign that used to hang in this spot.

Worst: Parking on the guideway at the Farmers Market. I had a small heart attack, but I am going to have to get over this, at least long enough to shop for produce without hyperventilating.

Best: Tickets! Knowing where to tap the card is of the utmost importance.

Worst: Tagging on my new sidewalk. I suppose if I call the city on them, they'll say it's for construction or something. I've just never been so protective of concrete.

Best: Slabs at 4th and Cedar. I think that train might just come through here after all!

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Location:University Ave W,St Paul,United States

Best and Worst of the Week

Most years you remember what happened when because you were freezing cold, or you were trudging through snow, or you were wearing flip flops for the first time even though it was not actually warm enough. This year, I have no idea what happened when or if time is moving at all. But I like it! I knew climate change would turn Minnesota into Malibu if I waited long enough.

And so I have a week of random photos, and have lost all sense of time. Were these all this week? I think so!

Worst. Huge parking. Can you guess what this shop sells? No, because you are only going there for the HUGE PARKING LOT. Btw, they are not under construction.

Best. Wall-E saves the planet. Something about seeing this little robot on the construction scene makes me believe we will be able to grow little green plants here again someday. (He actually is a robot with a remote control, but I have no idea what he does on the job.)

Worst. On-street parking on the 4th Street tracks. I would like to quote the wise Seth Meyers who once said...Really?! Really. Really. Oh yeah, well, we got your plates, twerp.

 
Best. Skyway signage. Did DSI put up this sign outside their office as a joke? Because it is freaking hilarious. No stopping! LOITERING BAD. Moving good. No sitting! NO EATING. Keep moving! Hallway/skyway! CITY ORDINANCE. This will never get old.

Worst. Granite pavers. These are too heavy to take with me on the 16, and yet they are sitting right here at my bus stop. Please stop teasing me.

Best. Spring has sprung. The first green buds on the trees on south side of the street (planted last fall) have started to pop.

Worst. Construction is insane. See also, "Best. Construction is hustling down the Avenue." Witness.

Best. Unintentional street art. Somebody please irrigate this already.

Best and Worst of the Week

What a long week! I traveled to Toronto for a whopping 48 hours and met some great plannery people. So here it goes, Transit City edition:

Best: Bumber to bumber streetcars (drool). Never realized how great it is to have a back window!

Worst: Overhead wires. Yikes, there is a lot of clutter. Finger crossed that Saint Paul can swing some of those wireless trolleys.

Best: Cool subway font used in every station. The tiles are also pretty amazing. Of course, I am not the first person to notice this - I am just one of many fans.

Worst: Skinny platforms. Makin' our LRT platforms look pretty luxurious. Amazing what a little ADA can do (I missed ADA often while in Canada.)

Best: Commonwealth candy. Picked up a Mr. Big and a Coffee Crisp - hubby's favorites.

Worst: The King Seat. Not sure why the back of every bus has this special throne, but this would cause a lot of trouble on the 16. There are already power struggles in the back of the bus, people. Terrible idea!

Best: A foot pedal on a public trash can. Yes! Why don't we have these?

Worst: Wayfinding fail. A wayfinding panel that says that maps will be added soon. Not helpful!

Best: Bike fairy love. Found on the seat of a Bixi (bikeshare) bike in Dundas Square.

Best and Worst of the Week

November has made me feel lazy on the blog front, like if I just hibernate a little, Thanksgiving will come sooner.

So in the spirit of clip shows and other tactics of non-writing, I give you best and worst of the week.

Best: New bus shelter at Raymond and University.

It was like someone at Metro Transit heard that it was predicted to rain/snow/slush today and ran out to throw up this shelter at Raymond. It is so new that there were still lots of little metal shavings on the sidewalk from its installation. I am sad to admit it's winter, but happy to have something to cover my head.


Worst: Where the Sidewalk Ends.

That is to say, these days the sidewalk ends just about everywhere you are trying to go. I like new sidewalks (A LOT), but I reserve the right to be annoyed that I can't get a little detour action while they are being installed. ADA? Nobody? Ok, maybe I'm just high maintenance. But I think this poor guy across the street agrees with me. Btw, this whole scene gets waaaay more fun in the dark (5 pm) when people can't tell that the sidewalk is missing. It's like the X-Games. Only nobody wants to play.



Best: The (temporary) pedestrian bridge at Hampden.

I feel like the crews may have built this specifically for me to take these two photos from the middle of the guideway. So I did.



Worst: Gotcha, you're surrounded by orange tape.

Thanks, construction guys, for telling me that this sidewalk was closed/non-existent as I walked past 20 of you in this block. I love climbing through dusty construction tape in work clothes.


Best of the Best: My sister got a goldendoodle puppy this week. I mean, we're not going to do any better than that, people.



Worst of the Worst: Bus Driver got told.

You know how driving a bus is like, all sunshine and fatty benefits? No? Oh. Well, this guy apparently felt the need take out his road rage on this poor bus driver anyway. He got out of his car at a red light to walk back to yell at him, for...who knows what. All I know is that the bus driver is a better person than me - seems pretty tempting to just run this guy over. Way to keep your cool, Bus Driver Man. As for you, Mr. Yells-A-Lot, way to keep it classy. Why don't you scurry back to your car before I come chew you out for parking in a crosswalk?



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