Kristian

@kristianblais

Transportation Economist and Research Fellow at Harvard Business School. Studying transit, cities, and the economics of innovation. Canadian 🇨🇦

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Kristian@kristianblais· 4d

Then, you enjoy the ride and the beautiful scenery! It was so nice not having to stop at the US-Canada border for customs. In fact, I didn’t notice we had passed into the US for probably 10-15 minutes, it’s just that seamless. Would definitely recommend.

The Amtrak Cascades crossing the Fraser River from New Westminster to Surrey.

View of the Fraser River, looking west, with the north coast mountains in the background.

A view of Mt Baker, close to the US-Canada border

King Street Station in downtown Seattle - the final stop of my journey.

Kristian@kristianblais· 4d

Once you are cleared, you exit onto a train platforms that is completely segregated from the rest of the train tracks (much how pre-clearance gates at airports are fully separated from the normal gates). From here, you just walk up to your train and board!

The Amtrak Cascades train pulled up to Vancouver’s Pacific Central station, waiting for passengers to board. The fences on the platform and across the tracks means that this platform is completely separate from the rest of the train platforms, as those in this area should only be those who have cleared IS customs pre-clearance.

Kristian@kristianblais· 4d

When you enter Pacific Central station, there is a large line to the right (south) of the station to enter the customs pre-clearance area. There are two lines: one for general boarding, and another line that cuts to the front that is for the business-class passengers and those enrolled in Nexus…

The line to the customs pre-clearance area in Pacific Central station.

Kristian@kristianblais· 4d

A few days ago, I took the Amtrak Cascades service from Vancouver, BC to Seattle, WA. It was exciting since they recently added a custome pre-clearance checkpoint at the station in Vancouver, but was surprised how little info I could find on it before I booked my ticket. So this was my experience! …

The exterior of Pacific Central station in Vancouver, British Columbia. This is the start location of the Amtrak Cascades service that runs through Seattle, to Portland, OR. Inside the station is a US customs pre-clearance area, where passengers go through US customs before they enter the train. This allows passengers to not have to disembark and go through customs at the US-Canada border like was done beforehand.

Kristian@kristianblais· 28d

Hey Vancouver people, what is up with these insane headways on the Expo Line?! A train departs and in 30-60 SECONDS another one rolls in!! And it’s only 3PM. Is this normal??

Kristian@kristianblais· 28d

The greenery on this wall at the Millennium Line platform of Commercial-Broadway Station is very “Prospect Park Station” coded.

West bound millennium line SkyTrain pulling into Commercial-Broadway station in Vancouver, BC. The station is built into a trench, so the wall beside the track is covered in many plants/vines.

Kristian@kristianblais· 28d

Back in Vancouver, back on my bullshit* *riding the skytrain for kicks

A Canada Line SkyTrain pulls into YVR-Airport station

Kristian@kristianblais· Jul 21

Biidaasige Park is the closest we’ve gotten yet to Solar Punk irl. What an incredible gem of a park for Toronto.

Looking North-West at the Toronto skyline from Biigaasige Park. Lush greenery surround both sides of the new Don River in the foreground, feeling very much like you are surrounded by nature. The Cherry Street South bridge crosses the Don River in the mid-ground, with the CN Tower and One Yonge tower loom over the rest of the city in the background.

Kristian@kristianblais· Jul 8

Got the chance to check out Niagara College’s Wine Visitor & Education Centre and this place is truly a hidden gem. The wines are great and can stand along side the offering of many Niagara wineries, they’re affordable, and you get to support the next generation of Canadian wine makers!

The outside facade of Niagara College’s Wine Visitor + Education Centre

A tasting flight of four red wines. Specifically, from left to right, Gamay Noir, Shiraz, Syrah (same varietal as Shiraz, just a different style), and Cabernet Franc.

A row of grape vines in the teaching vineyard behind visitor centre. The Niagara escarpment looms in the background. These are were the grapes to many (but not all) of the wines come from. I believe this vineyard sits in the St David’s Bench sub-appellation.

Kristian@kristianblais· Jul 6

Make it 12 systems on the year! Got to ride the Ion LRT in Waterloo for the first time! Honestly for the size of the region, it’s an incredible little system! Fast, efficient, and comfy 🚉

A northbound Ion LRT vehicle stopped at Waterloo Public Square station in uptown Waterloo, Ontario.

A northbound ION LRT vehicle pulling into University of Waterloo station, with the E5 engineering building in the background.

Kristian@kristianblais· Jul 2

In Toronto today for a job interview, so you know what that means… Yup, joy riding all the different modes of rail transit (Subway, LRT, Streetcar, and Regional Rail)

An eastbound Line 5 LRV pulls into Eglinton Station

A westbound Line 2 subway train sits at Kennedy station awaiting passengers.

A 504 King streetcar sits in the track loop outside of Broadview station. There is a 505 Dundas streetcar pulling out in the background.

A Lakeshore West Go Train pulls into the platform at Union Station.

Kristian@kristianblais· Jun 27

Insane to see just how much downtown Toronto has built up over the last 50 years. A truly modern metropolis.

View of downtown Toronto from the CN tower in 1976 looking east. Lots of open space, especially around the tracks leading into Union Station.

The same general view (although zoomed out) today. Way more towers on both sides of the rail tracks.

Kristian@kristianblais· Jun 25

The vines on this wall at Prospect Park station is very “Millennium Line platform of Commercial-Broadway Station” coded

A MTA shuttle train parked at Prospect Park station in Brooklyn, New York. The station is located in a trench, and the wall beside the track has many vines growing up the side. The vines on the wall is very reminiscent of the vines that grow on the trench wall of Commercial-Broadway SkyTrain station in Vancouver, BC.

Kristian@kristianblais· Jun 24

It’s incredible that these three architectural divas are all on the same corner. Truly blessed 🥲

The Boston Federal Reserve Bank Tower, has an “A” shape, with the sides of the building supporting the centre, and the middle has a large hole, supposedly to allow sea breezes to pass through.

The Fiduciary Trust Building in downtown Boston. This building is distinguished by its “Christmas tree” like form, with the large boxy tower seeming balancing on a much skinnier base at ground level. Reminiscent of Rainier Tower in Seattle.

Boston’s historic South Station. It has a curved facade designed in a Classical Revival style, it’s the terminus for many of the MBTA’s commuter rail lines, plus is a stop for both the Red Line and Silver Line. The newly constructed South Station tower looms over it in the background.

Kristian@kristianblais· Jun 22

I always find it funny that Victoria is considered the “warmest city in Canada”. Because on one hand, statistically yes it’s true, it has the highest annual mean temperature in the country. But on the other hand, what do you mean Yellowknife NWT has warmer summer temperatures than you???

Chart comparing the average daily high and low over a year between Victoria, British Columbia, and Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. In the winter months there is a huge gap, with Victoria having temperatures between 7 to 3 degrees Celsius, while Yellowknife experiences temperature between -22 and -29 degrees Celsius. However, in the summer both cities experience relatively similar conditions, with Yellowknife seeing highs of 22 degrees Celsius on average, edging out Victoria’s summer average high of 19 degrees.

Kristian@kristianblais· Jun 6

Re: location of terminals, I remember seeing a concept by Greg Freer for an Edmonton station right downtown, immediately adjacent to the north end of the High-Level bridge. Always thought it was a cool idea, and plus it would directly connect with the LRT at Government Centre station.

Rendering of a proposed high-speed rail station developing the north end of the high-level bridge in Edmonton Alberta. You can see a little bit of the Alberta legislature behind the station to the top.

Further more basic renderings of the proposed high speed rail station from different angles

A cross-section diagram of the proposed station showing the different concourses and connections. Then include a waiting lounge that overlooks the River Valley also LRT connections to the far end of the station.

Kristian@kristianblais· Jun 4

I love comparing the density of American and Canadian cities because it's always surprisingly stark! Both of these cities are at the same scale, have a metropolitan population of ~1.5 Million and both are in the middle of the great plains. Yet Calgary is so much more compact than OKC!

Density map of Oklahoma City, showing a lot of exurban development on the urban fringe, and a relatively sparse core.

Density map of Calgary, with much lower exurban development, and denser core. Also notable is the reserve boundary in the south west of the city.

Kristian@kristianblais· Jun 2

I always thought this network plan was utterly insane, but knowing now that much of it is/could be single tracked makes it so much funnier

Map of the current, under-construction, and proposed lines tunnels and stations for the Vegas Loop. Unlike a traditional metro that would have trunk lines with a few branches, this ones creates a chaotic mesh of lines that criss-cross the Vegas Strip, with many stations seeming to small stubs off of a main line.

Kristian@kristianblais· May 19

By popular request: some more of the REM overlaid in other cities, this time in America!

Montreal's current REM network laid over Boston, with Gare Centrale roughly centred on Government Center Station. The A1 branch makes it to the fringes of Lynn, while the A2 and A3 branches head south towards Sharon and Brockton.

The current REM network overlaid Detroit and Windsor, with Gare Centrale lining up with Grand Circus Park. The A1 branch goes across the Detroit river to Windsor in Canada, extending all the way to it's urban boundary. The main branch follows Woodward Ave, with the A2 branch extending to Birmingham, and the A3 branch to just before Farmington Hills.

The REM network over Phoenix, AZ, centred on the Downtown Phoenix Hub. The A1 branch extends northwest to around Glendale, the A3 branch goes west to Mesa, and the A2 towards Chandler.

Montreal's REM network overlaid on Philadelphia, PA, with Gare Centrale centred on City Hall. The A1 branch goes south to West Deptford Township in New Jersey. The A3 branch runs northwest past Noristown, and the A2 branch goes north past Whitemarsh

Kristian@kristianblais· May 19

At the request of @stateofthecity.bsky.social the REM imposed over Winnipeg - just in case you ever wondered what it would be like to have an automated metro that could take you from Assiniboine Park to Selkirk!

Montreal's REM overlaid Winnipeg, Manitoba. Where Gare Centrale station would be is roughly centred over Portage and Main. The A1 branch terminates around the Kirkfield neighbourhood in the Western part of the city. The A3 branch roughly follows the Red River to Selkirk, and the A2 branch terminates in a rural area northeast of the city, just past Birds Hill Provincial Park.

A different orientation of the REM across greater Winnipeg, running more north-south, still oriented so Gare Centrale is at Portage and Main. the A1 branch ends around Parkdale, the main trunk roughly parallels the existing BRT corridor, and the A2 and A3 branches terminate on either side of Sainte Agathe.

Kristian@kristianblais· May 19

In honour of the opening of the new Anse-à-l'Orme (A3) branch, here is the REM overlaid other Canadian cities. I tried to roughly centre Gare Centrale with the centre of the city to convey just how much high-quality, automated rail has been built in such a relatively short period of time!!

The current two branches of the REM imposed over Toronto, with Gare Centrale roughly lining up with the intersection of Bloor and Yonge. The A1 branch (that terminates in Brossard) extends past the Beaches and into the lake, just south of Birch Cliff. The A2 branch to Deux-Montagne extends well into Mississauga, terminating around Erin Mills parkway, north of Eglinton Ave. The newly opened A3 branch would extend all the way into southern Oakville, close to Sixteen Mile Creek.

The current REM laid over Metro Vancouver, with Gare Centrale centred around Granville Station. The A1 branch extends into West Vancouver and terminates west of Mount Seymour. The main branch extends roughly parallel with the existing SkyTrain ROW, branching out around Edmonds. The A2 branch extends into Surrey and terminates around East Newton. The new A3 branch reaches into Coquitlam, terminating in Port Coquitlam.

The REM overlaid Ottawa, with Gare Centrale roughly lining up with Parliament station. The A1 branch extends east up to the boundary of Orleans. The other two branches extend west, with A2 terminating west of Stittsville, and the new A3 branch extending into farmland.

The REM laid over Edmonton, with Gare Centrale centred over Churchill Station. The A1 branch extends north east along Fort Road, terminating in the Horse Hills area. The other two branches run south of the city, with A2 terminating in farmland southwest of the airport, and A3 terminating due south of Leduc.

Kristian@kristianblais· May 17

The solution: rapid-transit adjacent, full-size Costco acting as a podium for multiple towers in the middle of every city’s downtown

A Costco in downtown Vancouver. Located right between BC Place and the Stadium-Chinatown SkyTrain station, with multiple apartment towers built on top. It even still has the Costco food court inside. Photo credit to Brent Toderian

Kristian@kristianblais· May 13

I feel like we sometimes forget the level of development that occurred to create the Ice District in Edmonton. The first photo is from 2009, and there basically nothing. Today: An NHL rink, multiple towers including the tallest tower in Canada outside of Toronto, and a new LRT station!

View of what is now the Ice District, before it was built in April 2009, from Google Map's Street View. The screenshot is at the corner of 104st and 104 ave, looking east. In the foreground is an empty brick warehouse, with a gravel parking lot to the left, and the CN building in the background.

Same view taken in July 2025, looking east down 104 ave at 104 street. In this photo you can the Rogers Place, the new NHL arena on the left as well as two towers towering over: the JW Marriot Tower on the left, and the Stantec Tower (Western Canada's tallest tower) on the right. The warehouse in the foreground is now home to many business including a bar and some restaurants. You can also see a new condo tower poking behind the trees on the far right.

Kristian@kristianblais· Apr 29

Like on one had, one of those bus routes is every 20 minutes, but it kind of runs on the outskirts of the city. The bus that actually serves this surprisingly walkable downtown runs every 80 minutes!!! And this is the city that’s trying to bring back the Atlanta Thrashers!

Aerial photo of downtown Alpharetta, GA.

Kristian@kristianblais· Apr 29

Trying to get to Alpharetta, GA by transit and wow this bus map is making me sad. A city of 65k, with many tech companies based here, and there’s only TWO (2) bus lines!?

Map of the MARTA bus lines in North Fulton County, GA, with Alpharetta roughly circled in red. There are only two bus lines serving the city, and only three serving the entire area north of the river.

Kristian@kristianblais· Apr 22

Have about 1000 total match-ups completed already!!!! Some interesting things to note about the global station leader board so far: 1) Waterfront Station remains undefeated! 2) Metrotown coming at number two is very surprising! 3) The Expo Line stations are mopping the floor with the competition

A global aggregated ranking of all the SkyTrain stations in Vancouver. The rankings are the following:
1) Waterfront
2) Metrotown
3) Commercial-Broadway
4) Vancouver City Centre
5) New Westminster
6) Main Street - Science World
7) Stadium - Chinatown
8) Granville
9) Joyce - Collingwood
10) Burrard

Kristian@kristianblais· Apr 22

Not only can you build your own personal ranking, but your choices help build a crowd-sourced global ranking of the stations. Now we can definitively determine what SkyTrain station is TRULY the best!!

Street level view of Waterfront Station in downtown Vancouver, BC

Aerial view of the Brentwood Town Centre SkyTrain station at night, in Burnaby, BC

A platform level view of the New Westminster Expo Line station, with a SkyTrain vehicle stopped at the opposite platform, in New Westminster, BC

A street level view of Marine Drive station, part of the Canada Line in south Vancouver, BC. You can see a train just peaking out over the elevated tracks.

Kristian@kristianblais· Apr 18

I am so bad at updating this thread lol. BUT, system number 11 is officially in the books! Featuring the ever-incredible SkyTrain in beautiful Vancouver, British Columbia!

An Expo Line SkyTrain heading southbound, on an elevated track by False Creek in Vancouver, British Columbia. The train is heading into an opening through the Vancity Centre tower, before pulling into Main Street - Science World station

A northbound Canada Line SkyTrain rides over the Middle Arm bridge, with Sea Island and the Vancouver International Airport in the background.

A Southbound Expo Line SkyTrain heads towards Surrey over the Fraser River on the SkyBridge. Photo is taken from Westminster Pier Park.

A northbound Expo Line SkyTrain pulls into New Westminster station. The train is an old Mark-I train with the old white livery.

Kristian@kristianblais· Apr 7

Like I can tell much of it still needs to be developed, but Westminster Pier Park and the waterfront in general is incredible! It’s such a cool mix of nature, urban, and industrial.

View of Westminster Pier Park looking west. The boardwalk along the river is wooden and there are wooden recliners all along the path. In the background you can see the high rises of downtown New West

Ariel view of the east end of Westminster Pier Park. On the left there is a freight train running along the north side of the Fraser river. The Fraser river is to the right, and in the centre is the SkyBridge.

Kristian@kristianblais· Apr 7

Okay, I finally went checked out New Westminster and… how come no one told me how cool this city is?!?? Are you all just trying to gatekeep this place or is it just legitimately underrated?