Synopses & Reviews
In My Kind of Transit, Darrin Nordahl argues that like life itself, transportation isnand#39;t only about the destination, but the journey. Public transit reduces traffic and pollution, yet few of us are willing to get out of our cars and onto subways and buses. But Nordahl demonstrates that when using public transit is an enjoyable experience, tourists and commuters alike willingly hand in their keys.
The trick is creating a system that isnand#39;t simply a poor imitation of the automobile, but offers its own pleasures and comforts. While a railway or bus will never achieve the quiet solitude of a personal car, it can provide, much like a well-designed public park, an inviting, communal space.
My Kind of Transit is an animated tour of successful transportation systems, offering smart, commonsense analysis of what makes transit fun. Nordahl draws on examples like the iconic street cars of New Orleans and the picturesque cable cars in San Francisco, illustrating that the best transit systems are uniquely tailored to their individual cities. He also describes universal principles of good transit design.and#160;
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Nordahland#39;s humanistic treatment will help planners, designers, transportation professionals, and policymakers create transit systems the public actually wants to ride. And it will introduce all readers to delightful ways of getting from point A to point B.and#160;
Review
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My Kind of Transit is the first volume I have come across that comprehensively considers transit in terms of those factors that actually determine whether or not people will choose to ride it. Nordahl's humane, and even humanist, arguments recognize and celebrate how transit, if properly designed, can be elevated in the public esteem from loser cruiser to mode of choice. Please, if your work deals in any way with planning or transportation, do us all a favor and read his book."
Review
"This unique work will inspire scholars and students to research further on this essential and largely untreated topic. It will also pop up on the shelves of those urbanists who ponder wistfully on the loss of great city culture and vital urban social life and imagine the emergence of a more beautiful, more convivial, and more livable urban future."
Review
“A thoroughly entertaining and thought provoking journey through an undeservedly overlooked region of the country. Nordahl comes away not only with a harvest of rediscovered ingredients and a reconnection to America’s original pantry, but also a network of genuine friendships.” —Simon Majumdar, author of Eat My Globe and Fed, White, and Blue, and judge on Food Network’s Cutthroat Kitchen and Iron Chef America
Review
“As a native West Virginian, this book transported me back to the amazing meals of my childhood, high in the Appalachians. Join Nordahl as he demystifies the mountains, taking a walking tour of America’s best-kept culinary secrets.” —Forrest Pritchard, professional farmer and author of Gaining Ground and The Farmer in Your Kitchen
Review
“With this entertaining and enlightening book, Darrin Nordahl shines a light on the native foods of Appalachia and the colorful locavores who celebrate them. A fascinating read for anyone curious about regional American foodways.” —Marisa Bulzone, cofounder 150ish.com
Review
“The book is lively and conversational, and is an excellent beginning point for discovering—or rediscovering—America’s most unique culinary storehouse.” —Eat Kentucky
Synopsis
In Americas car-dominated landscape, public transit has long played second fiddle, but rising gasoline prices and the global warming crisis point to a need for alternative means of transportation. Darrin Nordahl sets the stage for these efforts by proposing that the experience of public transit and the quality of the ride are pivotal to the success of public transit.
My Kind of Transit explores Americas most beloved transit systems and how they work. From San Franciscos cable cars to Pittsburghs funiculars to the streetcars of New Orleans, Nordahl recounts a transportation history of both short-sighted planning and visionary policies, and reveals that current American transit systems contain many key elements for successfully expanding public transport. My Kind of Transit explains the characteristics of ideal transit, or “passenger enrichment,” such as transit vehicles that offer views of the surrounding landscape and systems that enable diverse peoples to interact.
Successful public transport must be a uniquely enjoyable experience for riders, My Kind of Transit contends, and it offers a new vision of civic engagement that occurs when we step out of our cars and onto the train.
Synopsis
Dozens of indigenous fruits, vegetables, nuts, and game animals are waiting to be rediscovered by American epicures, and Appalachia stocks the largest pantry with an abundance of delectable flavors. In
Eating Appalachia, Darrin Nordahl looks at the unique foods that are native to the region, including pawpaws, ramps, hickory nuts, American persimmons, and elk, and offers delicious and award-winning recipes for each ingredient, along with sumptuous color photographs. The twenty-three recipes include: Pawpaw Panna Cotta, Pawpaw Whiskey Sour, Chianti-Braised Elk Stew, Pan-Fried Squirrel with Squirrel Gravy, Ramp Linguine, and Wild Ginger Poached Pears, among others. Nordahl also examines some of the business, governmental, and ecological issues that keep these wild, and arguably tastier, foods from reaching our tables.
Eating Appalachia profiles local chefs, hunters, and locavores who champion these native ingredients and describes food festivals—like the Pawpaw Festival in Albany, Ohio; the Feast of the Ramson in Richwood, West Virginia; and Elk Night at Jenny Wiley State Park in Prestonsburg, Kentucky—that celebrate them.
About the Author
Darrin Nordahl is the city designer at the Davenport Design Center, which was formed in 2003 as a division of the Community and Economic Development Department of the City of Davenport, Iowa. He has taught in the planning program at the University of California at Berkeley and is the author of Public Produce: The New Urban Agriculture (Island Press).
Table of Contents
Prefaceand#160;
Introduction The Positive Transit Experienceand#160;
Chapter 1. Disneyland: The Fundamentals of an Enjoyable Rideand#160;
Chapter 2. Cable Cars in San Franciscoand#160;
Chapter 3. Streetcars in New Orleans and San Franciscoand#160;
Chapter 4. Monorails in Seattle and Las Vegasand#160;
Chapter 5. Shuttles in Santa Barbara, Phoenix, and Chattanoogaand#160;
Chapter 6. Taxicabs in New York Cityand#160;
Chapter 7. Funiculars in Pittsburghand#160;
Chapter 8. Aerials and Elevateds in New York City and Chicagoand#160;
Conclusion: Creating Positive Transit Experiences
Notesand#160;
Selected Readings
Acknowledgmentsand#160;
About the Author