Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City

@thefoxandthecity

The world-famous urban theorist who…wait, this has to be honest‽ Independent Professional Urbanist and Writer, creating in-depth critiques of urban spaces, places, & systems. My work: thefoxandthecity.com Also ED @etany.org She/her

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Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 15

The Orange has caught up with me.

Orange haze descending over the Pulaski Bridge.

(It is nowhere near sunset)

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 15

Shots from the worst day of smoke in NYC back in 2023. Was otherwordly in a way that's hard to get across. (Also, I didn't realize how dangerous it was till the end of the day: it's only after a bunch of exposure that you start to realize "Crap, this is really bad for my lungs and it's too late")

Looking down 6th Ave in the sepia fire haze at a barely visible 1 WTC

Looking up a street at a skateboarder in the sepia fire haze.

Looking up Broadway at a church in the sepia haze of fire smoke

Looking past the Washington Square Arch through the sepia fire haze at a barely visible 1 WTC

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 15

For many years, left turn on red was allowed at 39th & 1st Ave in Manhattan (sped traffic off an FDR exit). Had to dig in streetview; went away for bike lanes (and, you know, safety). There are few like that in NYC, but they are explicitly signed and it always feels weird. It's not a normal thing!

Intersection with sign saying "After stop left turn permitted on red"

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 15

TFW you're waiting off stage and Train Daddy refers to you by name.

A backstage view of the "Could through-running unclog Penn Station event"

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 14

It's a SIGN. A fox sign, to be precise.

A closed storefront with a fox on the front

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 14

Okay, title page, you've given me the sizzle, now show me the steak!

Simple B&W title page of "Managing Think Tanks: Practical Guidance for Maturing Organizations" by Raymond J. Struyk

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 13

I just got a very nice gift: a special edition World Cup Presto card to add to my collection! Thanks so much, @jacktatttran.bsky.social! It's very, very appreciated!

A Limited Edition Toronto Summer 20206 Presto Card.

The Presto card sitting with an Ottawa Presto card amidst a number of others on a window, including a Clipper, a CharlieCard, a Phildelphia Key, an Indy MyKey, a Seattle Orca, and Houston METRORail ticket

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 13

I'm not used to having project marketing directed specifically at me... I suppose I'm obligated to support it now. bsky.app/profile/colo...

Ready to Deliver:
A Better Way to Travel the Front Range.
Colorado Connector (CoCo) is an express intercity passenger train built for the Front Range. Powered by the Front Range Passenger Rail (FRPR) District, it will link 12 communities with fast, comfortable, relaxing service and it starts with tracks that already exist.

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 11

The New York, New Haven, and Hartford commuter services will live on legally forever.

Connecticut-New York Railroad Passenger Transportation Compact
Continues and improves the railroad passenger service of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad between New Haven, Connecticut and New York City.

Connecticut (1967)
New York (1967)

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 11

Huh. Learning all sorts of fascinating things this evening. www.nytimes.com/1941/11/27/a...

Although the two States had not experienced any difficulties heretofore because of the absence of a definitive boundary, it was believed wise to establish it in order to avoid possible jurisdictional disputes in the future and to facilitate law enforcement as regards fishing and navigation.

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 11

I uh... huh.

New York-Rhode Island Boundary Settlement, 1943

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 11

TIL there is a National Center for Interstate Compacts compacts.csg.org

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 10

Another problem is temporal. There is a mismatch between political terms of office and infrastructure lifespans. Most urban jurisdictions operate on 3- to 5-year electoral cycles, whereas assets such as transit networks, utility grids, and water mains have life cycles of up to 80 years. Thus, the consequences of investment decisions arrive long after responsible actors are out of office. Bad investments and flawed strategies are not corrected early because the initial architects are no longer accountable for the results.
There is also the issue of a loss of knowledge. Cities are continually losing operational intelligence about why urban systems fail and have become more dependent on external vendors to fix systems without knowing how to diagnose problems themselves. This trend affects a local government’s ability to govern autonomously and manage public funds responsibly.

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 7

Essentially all of East Midtown is "near Grand Central"

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 6

Really good piece on bringing the Toronto model of frequent buses to LA—an argument I agree with. I particularly appreciated this understanding. To truly be an alternative to car travel, transit needs to be there for more than just 9-5 travel.

When I spoke at Chapman, Orange County—with a population of over 3 million people—had only two bus routes that cleared the rather modest bar of running every 30 minutes until midnight, seven days a week. In Toronto, virtually everyone in the city lives within walking distance of a bus scheduled at least every ten minutes until late in the evening, and that gap in frequency—far more than anything to do with the built environment—is what separates a city where transit is a genuine option from one where it functions as a last resort.

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 6

Like a lot of cities with old infrastructure, Chicago decided to invest in the Deep Tunnel project—really a massive system of underground tunnels and reservoirs—to deal with large amounts of stormwater. So far, it seems to be working.

Reservoir of the Chicago Deep Tunnel under construction.

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 5

TFW your grocery store knows you so well they lay out a custom collection of olive oils just for you.

Three bottles of olive oil varieties all labeled "Lorenzo"

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 5

This would be the night to share that the other day I caught a semi sesquicentennial "M" train on Metro North. So there are some good things going on in the world.

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 4

The only times I ever notice struggle is in the most intense of intense heat, one or two days in the summer at most. Well, except for the 2003 blackout, which was fun, but that was Ohio's fault. That said, you are spot on. I miss when 70% of my power came from nuclear, 7 years ago. RETVRN!

Indian Point #2 & 3 nuclear reactors along the Hudson River

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 4

Front page of the NY Times feels deliberately a throwback. "Fireworks, Parades and Concerts Are Planned for the July 4 Holiday"

July 4, 2026 NY Times homepage, including "America Celebrates 250th Birthday With Patriotic Fervor, Despite Political Turmoil

Away from Washington, people across the nation will mark Independence Day. Expect rodeos, line dancing, Tejano music and Led Zeppelin.

4 min read"

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 3

Bring back pneumatic transit!

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 2

Nope, this isn't adorable, I wouldn't know *anything* about adorable F units... bsky.app/profile/spat...

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jul 1

You know, I never really had reason to think I would even own a Canadian flag, let alone hang it outside once a year. Life is sometimes a series of left turns. Happy Canada Day!

Canadian flag hanging from a tree outside home.

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jun 30

Glad to see that the Gateway Project continues to be funded.

A small newsstand in the subway named "GATEWAY newsstands"

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jun 30

But... Taos is in New Mexico...

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jun 30

It's kind of amazing we built a two-track subway under Nassau St. If you proposed it today, I'm sure it would be dismissed as impossible.

Looking south down narrow Nassau St towards the NYSE

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jun 30

I'm thinking that either I or ETA will need to write a post mortem on this whole NJ Transit / World Cup fiasco. Even in the best analysis closing Penn Station to serve a special invent was unfathomable: transit is not a toy that you can just shut off. With these numbers, it's even worse.

Modified David Letterman billboard reading "Attention transit riders: New Jersey is closed."

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jun 30

(I also put this into Google and the AI result was hilarious.)

Google AI overview for "Vive les islands!":
"Vive les islands! Island hopping and coastal escapes are absolute game-changers, whether you're dreaming of the French Caribbean or Michigan's northern archipelago. Let's make that tropical or Great Lakes escape a reality with some real-world options:"

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jun 29

Read. Theory.

Cover of von Thunen's "The Isolated State"

Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City@thefoxandthecity· Jun 29

New York is just such an outlier compared to other US cities (laudatory). I have to say, @yonahfreemark.com has gone above and beyond. This is amazing work with a host of useful tools that I can't wait to dig into more! Bravo!