Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 1h

I also like how tRPC has automatically typed server and client without needing to do anything special and not doing anything heavyweight like GraphQL or exposing your DB over REST

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 1h

I am enjoying tRPC+Tanstack Query+React+NextJS

Having the entire stack running on Typescript is really nice for quickly iterating

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Reposted by Bryan Culbertson 🥄

Cyrus Hall @cyrushall.bsky.social · 2h

CS gas ("teargas") is toxic and can kill. I had the unfortunate luck to directly witness a heavy application of CS asphyxiate a small baby in Colorado Springs in 2003. The baby survived, but suffered permanent brain damage. The million dollar settlement didn't fix the damage.

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 2h

In the latest poll 73% of West Oaklanders said they support tearing down 980! Let's get it done!

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Reposted by Bryan Culbertson 🥄

Alfred Twu @alfredtwu.com · Feb 20

For highway projects, states only pay 20% and federal government pays the rest, but for California High Speed Rail the ratio is flipped around - 80% comes from state government.

bar chart showing typical highway project where 80% of funds are federal dollars, with state providing the other 20%. on other side is california high speed rail, where the state pays 80%, federal 20%. The bars are sized so that the state portions are the same size. The highway project has 4 times as much money total.

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Reposted by Bryan Culbertson 🥄

Burrito Justice @burritojustice.bsky.social · 7h

oooh let’s do this but for highways

Second, SB 63 would require operators and programs receiving funding to undergo a financial efficiency review. This review would be undertaken by a third party under the guidance of a select committee and MTC, and it would seek to identify a menu of specific cost savings that operators and MTO could implement to reduce deficits or improve the financial performance of their services. Based on the results of the review, operators would be asked to develop and submit to MTC a plan documenting their commitment to follow through on identified efficiency actions.

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Reposted by Bryan Culbertson 🥄

Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 5h

For example, grade separated Speedline may have a higher per-hour cost to operate than MUNI ($400/hr vs. $384/hr), but is *significantly* cheaper at providing service ($13.34/mi vs. $44.63/mi)

SFMTA would save $151M every year if MUNI was grade separated with the per-mile costs of the Speedline

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 5h

Prioritizing single (or in some cases zero) occupancy cars over transit is one of the primary reasons that it costs so much to operate transit in US cities

All of the cars are in the way all the time!

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 5h

For example, grade separated Speedline may have a higher per-hour cost to operate than MUNI ($400/hr vs. $384/hr), but is *significantly* cheaper at providing service ($13.34/mi vs. $44.63/mi)

SFMTA would save $151M every year if MUNI was grade separated with the per-mile costs of the Speedline

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 6h

Here is the data for hourly cost to operate vehicles

You are right that light rail does better by this metric. MUNI is 17th at cost to operate vehicles, but 50th at per-mile cost to provide service to riders 😮

Sharing the road with cars costs transit agencies a lot of money 😞

Service Efficiency - Hourly Cost to Operate Vehicles

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 7h

It is time for CA to invest in transit!

BART should standup for their riders and tell electeds they are more than efficient enough at providing service. No more capitulating to transit austerity!

These same electeds just approved a 9-mile $11B freeway expansion without worrying about cost savings

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 8h

For comparison, Caltrain's higher per-rider funding provides common amenities for regional service like on-train staff, trash cans, bathrooms, tables, wifi, etc.

We should fund BART to have standard amenities too, not ask nation's most efficient transit agency to "identify additional cost savings"

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 8h

BART is already the most efficient rail agency in the nation at providing service. It is unreasonable to squeeze even more cost savings than BART already has.

BART riders deserve more service, not less!

www.transit.dot.gov/ntd/data-pro...

Metrics from FTA's National Transit Database with BART as the most efficient rail service in the nation at $9 mile of service

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Reposted by Bryan Culbertson 🥄

BART @bart.gov · 13h

When will Caltrans start adding time via transit to their freeway signs? ⏳

BART @bart.gov · 13h

Take transit.

It’s safer, better for the environment and it will support our ability to fund service and make improvements.

Google Maps image showing a longer drive time (one hour and 14 minutes) from Walnut Creek to downtown SF compared to taking BART (39 minutes).

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Reposted by Bryan Culbertson 🥄

Thomas Lecaque @tlecaque.bsky.social · 1d

Christopher Columbus was dragged back to Spain in chains by a crusading knight, convicted of tyranny and immeasurable cruelty, pardoned by Isabella but banned from returning to Hispaniola.

Fuck Columbus.

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 1d

If you do the community organizing work to get neighbors in the same page about the problem and possible solutions then it is straightforward for a city councilor to go straight to getting something implemented without needing to do that prep-work first

Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 1d

From my experience, one email won't do much, but organizing neighbors to jointly ask for something could

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Reposted by Bryan Culbertson 🥄

Ian Boudreau @ianboudreau.com · 1d

Pretty sure I say this every Columbus Day, but getting hauled back to Spain for excessive brutality in 1500, just as the Inquisition was really getting fired up, is some genuinely Evil Guys Hall of Infamy material

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 2d

Also, Alameda has a seal on the docks!

Seal on the Alameda docks with Oakland in the background

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 2d

People are being turned away from the Woodstock Oakland-Alameda ferry because it is too full 😮

@sfbayferry.com can you run Woodstock more often?

People waiting to board the ferry while people deboard with a seal on the docks

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Reposted by Bryan Culbertson 🥄

Doug Gordon @brooklynspoke.bsky.social · 2d

A big thing we need from @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social is the ability to finally and quickly move beyond temp materials to beautifully built-out streets. Procurement reform, better agency coordination, etc. No more paint and plastic, please.

Qagggy! @qagggy.bsky.social · 2d

Some of the urbanism happening in New York City…is stunning.

Broadway between Union Square and the Flatiron.

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 2d

I think the tradeoff that Switzerland chose is a good where most people pay via a monthly pass

They banned fare gates in the country, but employers purchase transit passes for employees, hotels to purchase transit passes for guests, and cities to include transit passes with low income benefits

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 2d

Caltrans removed the toll gates and went with open tolling because they considered free flowing traffic to be worth losing some revenue

I wish we were willing to make a similar tradeoff for transit as well

Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 2d

Many of the people with license plate covers are cops themselves

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Bryan Culbertson 🥄 @bryanculbertson.com · 2d

Caltrans is okay with a 10%+ toll evasion rate as long as traffic is flowing. CA funds Caltrans at $20B every year from our taxes so they don't need the toll money anyway.

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