Memphis is going rock BRT
Will Transit Unplugged TV answer whose BBQ is best?
We started out in February with Terry Black’s BBQ in Austin. In April we took you to Gates Bar-B-Q in Kansas City. Now we bring the BBQ showdown to a close with the World Barbecue Championship during Memphis in May.
We’re not picking a winner this week, but we are giving you a sneak peek of the episode. Paul Comfort and the Transit Unplugged TV crew visited Memphis to learn about MATA’s (Memphis Area Transit Authority) plans for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), a visit to famous Sun Studio where rock ‘n’ roll was born, and the world BBQ Championship to compare all the different kinds of BBQ you can imagine.
Speaking of BRT, MATA Interim CEO Bacarra Mauldin and Chief Development Officer John Lancaster have big plans for East-West and North-South BRT lines that would transform Memphis connecting education and innovation to the entire city. You’ll hear more about that next week. Until then, enjoy this taste of Memphis.
On the podcast: A special episode from Lunch with Leon
Paul isn’t usually the person in the interviewee chair, but this week we bring you a special feed drop from Paul’s recent appearance on Lunch with Leon, hosted by Leon Daniels, OBE. Simon Reed joins Paul and Leon on the show. Simon happens to be one of the 30 contributors to Paul’s newest book The New Future of Public Transportation (you can pick it up on Amazon) which a focus of the interview.
In this very engaging conversation, Paul, Simon, and Leon talk about the current status of public transport in the world and their visions for what public transit will look like in 5 years time.
It’s not often we get to hear from Paul himself on these topics, so make sure you listen and don’t forget to subscribe to Lunch with Leon too!
Coming up next week on Transit Unplugged: Ron Kilcoyne on how to boost ridership
On Transit Unplugged we talk a lot about changing ridership patterns. How rush hour has flattened out. How remote work has created the “three day city.” But beyond offering good, safe, convenient service, no one really talks about which levers make the most difference in changing ridership.
Next week we have an answer for you. Ron Kilcoyne has led transit agencies across the U.S. and has been working on understanding ridership for decades. His research has uncovered relationships between service and ridership that could be a guiding principle for building ridership in the new era of work.
Make sure you follow us wherever you listen to podcasts so you don’t miss this episode.
Find us wherever you get your podcasts
