Chris N. Morfas
@thehappygringo.bsky.social
Ex-executive advocate for sustainable transport and former TV game show winner now offering occasional notes on my native USA, my adopted Colombia, math, and cities/walkability/cycling
Pinned
Celebrating the Ciclovía: Bogotá’s Weekly Miracle Turns 50
Bogotá's Ciclovía is about to celebrate its 50th birthday. Find out
thebogotapost.com
A note of appreciation regarding the Bogotá Ciclovía, this year celebrating its 50th birthday!
thebogotapost.com/celebrating-...
thebogotapost.com/celebrating-...
Reposted by Chris N. Morfas
This is a stunning thing to even have to see Members of Congress say out loud. Absolutely chilling. And inspiring.
We want to speak directly to members of the Military and the Intelligence Community.
The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution.
Don’t give up the ship.
The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution.
Don’t give up the ship.
November 19, 2025 at 8:18 PM
This is a stunning thing to even have to see Members of Congress say out loud. Absolutely chilling. And inspiring.
I wish this generation’s campaigners success on this matter. Still, a Trump/GOP victory might finally shatter the 30-year old illusion shared by many sustainable transportation advocates that reforming (rather than ending) the current federal transportation program is the preferred strategy.
The Trump administration wants to do two unbelievably dumb things that would collectively devastate mass transit in America — and be *epically bad for drivers, too,* especially in red states. Broke down the (many) problems with nuking the mass transit account and taking away flex funding.
Breaking: Trump Admin Seeks To Decimate Federal Transit Funding — Streetsblog USA
"When you're talking about taking away money from transit, your proposal is flawed from the get-go," said one expert.
usa.streetsblog.org
November 18, 2025 at 8:53 PM
I wish this generation’s campaigners success on this matter. Still, a Trump/GOP victory might finally shatter the 30-year old illusion shared by many sustainable transportation advocates that reforming (rather than ending) the current federal transportation program is the preferred strategy.
Reposted by Chris N. Morfas
On November 20, 1975, Franco died in his bed, and Spain unexpectedly went democratic - part of the global wave of democratisation from 1974 to 1990. Now we're in the worst democratic decline since the 1930s. But there's hope. Me @financialtimes.com on how to create more Spains on.ft.com/4nRUpK0
How democrats can fight back
[FREE TO READ] Fifty years after Franco’s death, autocracy is going strong
on.ft.com
November 13, 2025 at 5:53 PM
On November 20, 1975, Franco died in his bed, and Spain unexpectedly went democratic - part of the global wave of democratisation from 1974 to 1990. Now we're in the worst democratic decline since the 1930s. But there's hope. Me @financialtimes.com on how to create more Spains on.ft.com/4nRUpK0
President Vance will be beatable in 2028.
November 6, 2025 at 6:39 PM
President Vance will be beatable in 2028.
I once gave a presentation on Eugene Debs at MBA school. It was not warmly received.
November 5, 2025 at 4:23 AM
I once gave a presentation on Eugene Debs at MBA school. It was not warmly received.
Reposted by Chris N. Morfas
as an epitaph to this sad story, just this week, California climate philanthropy celebrated slashing the throat of the most effective climate transport solution ever tried on earth -- e-bikes -- so they could subsidize more cars.
bodies buried all over the place. cal.streetsblog.org/2025/10/30/c...
bodies buried all over the place. cal.streetsblog.org/2025/10/30/c...
CARB Quietly Ends the Statewide E-Bike Voucher Program - Streetsblog California
The sun sets on what was once a promising program.
cal.streetsblog.org
November 1, 2025 at 10:59 PM
as an epitaph to this sad story, just this week, California climate philanthropy celebrated slashing the throat of the most effective climate transport solution ever tried on earth -- e-bikes -- so they could subsidize more cars.
bodies buried all over the place. cal.streetsblog.org/2025/10/30/c...
bodies buried all over the place. cal.streetsblog.org/2025/10/30/c...
California thinks highly of itself as a climate change leader, but its transportation programs and projects are more problem than solution.
It seems bad that only $668 million of California's $31 billion transportation budget is for public transit capital projects next year.
HSR gets another $798 million.
$1.45 billion out of $31 billion. It's a hidden form of climate arson.
HSR gets another $798 million.
$1.45 billion out of $31 billion. It's a hidden form of climate arson.
The 2025-26 California Spending Plan: Transportation
In this post, we summarize some of the most notable components of transportation program budgets in the 2025-26 spending plan.
lao.ca.gov
October 29, 2025 at 7:27 AM
California thinks highly of itself as a climate change leader, but its transportation programs and projects are more problem than solution.
My apologies to all the Colombians whom I castigated for constantly asking me “¿De donde eres?” The French do it, too, but I get to confound them by responding, “Je suis de Colombie!” 😁
October 23, 2025 at 7:39 PM
My apologies to all the Colombians whom I castigated for constantly asking me “¿De donde eres?” The French do it, too, but I get to confound them by responding, “Je suis de Colombie!” 😁
L’Effet Hidalgo @annehidalgo.bsky.social
Angers is going to experiment with a “school street” that restricts vehicle access and instead prioritizes youth safety and comfort.
Photo Le Courrier de l’ouest
Angers is going to experiment with a “school street” that restricts vehicle access and instead prioritizes youth safety and comfort.
Photo Le Courrier de l’ouest
October 20, 2025 at 10:37 AM
L’Effet Hidalgo @annehidalgo.bsky.social
Angers is going to experiment with a “school street” that restricts vehicle access and instead prioritizes youth safety and comfort.
Photo Le Courrier de l’ouest
Angers is going to experiment with a “school street” that restricts vehicle access and instead prioritizes youth safety and comfort.
Photo Le Courrier de l’ouest
Hey @baldwin.senate.gov Have you yet renounced your support of this creep?
Sean Duffy says the No Kings protests this Saturday are “really frustrating” because they are all paid Antifa people.
October 13, 2025 at 1:59 PM
Hey @baldwin.senate.gov Have you yet renounced your support of this creep?
“Paris is changing!”
Mayor Hidalgo touts a couple of the many marvelous street transformations her administration has completed.
Mayor Hidalgo touts a couple of the many marvelous street transformations her administration has completed.
Avec de nouveaux arbres, de la nature et plus de place pour les piétons, Paris change !
La rue Charles-Baudelaire dans le 12ᵉ et la rue du Docteur-Magnan dans le 13ᵉ en sont de beaux exemples !
La rue Charles-Baudelaire dans le 12ᵉ et la rue du Docteur-Magnan dans le 13ᵉ en sont de beaux exemples !
October 12, 2025 at 3:54 PM
“Paris is changing!”
Mayor Hidalgo touts a couple of the many marvelous street transformations her administration has completed.
Mayor Hidalgo touts a couple of the many marvelous street transformations her administration has completed.
During my years of strong ties to Bogotá, Colombia 🇨🇴 (2014- present), increased motorcycle use, from roughly 1% to 10% of trips, has been the single greatest detrimental change to my quality of life there.
#noise #danger #contamination #sidewalkparkinganddriving
#noise #danger #contamination #sidewalkparkinganddriving
Male motorcyclists die at an exceptionally high rate in Colombia (per research cited below).
My view: Those who don’t die degrade the quality of life in 🇨🇴 cities— via noise, air contamination, the conquest of public space, and the danger they pose to people walking— and reduce 🇨🇴’s attractiveness.
My view: Those who don’t die degrade the quality of life in 🇨🇴 cities— via noise, air contamination, the conquest of public space, and the danger they pose to people walking— and reduce 🇨🇴’s attractiveness.
The crude city-level motorcyclist mortality rate was 4.16 per 100,000 population. Age-standardized rates varied from 0.51 to 22.60. Males had higher mortality rates, with the highest rates in 20-24-year-olds.
Yannone et al. (2025)
Colombia 8.6 motorcycle deaths per 100,000 people (2.63 F, 14.89 M)
Yannone et al. (2025)
Colombia 8.6 motorcycle deaths per 100,000 people (2.63 F, 14.89 M)
October 4, 2025 at 1:09 PM
During my years of strong ties to Bogotá, Colombia 🇨🇴 (2014- present), increased motorcycle use, from roughly 1% to 10% of trips, has been the single greatest detrimental change to my quality of life there.
#noise #danger #contamination #sidewalkparkinganddriving
#noise #danger #contamination #sidewalkparkinganddriving
Male motorcyclists die at an exceptionally high rate in Colombia (per research cited below).
My view: Those who don’t die degrade the quality of life in 🇨🇴 cities— via noise, air contamination, the conquest of public space, and the danger they pose to people walking— and reduce 🇨🇴’s attractiveness.
My view: Those who don’t die degrade the quality of life in 🇨🇴 cities— via noise, air contamination, the conquest of public space, and the danger they pose to people walking— and reduce 🇨🇴’s attractiveness.
The crude city-level motorcyclist mortality rate was 4.16 per 100,000 population. Age-standardized rates varied from 0.51 to 22.60. Males had higher mortality rates, with the highest rates in 20-24-year-olds.
Yannone et al. (2025)
Colombia 8.6 motorcycle deaths per 100,000 people (2.63 F, 14.89 M)
Yannone et al. (2025)
Colombia 8.6 motorcycle deaths per 100,000 people (2.63 F, 14.89 M)
October 4, 2025 at 1:04 PM
Male motorcyclists die at an exceptionally high rate in Colombia (per research cited below).
My view: Those who don’t die degrade the quality of life in 🇨🇴 cities— via noise, air contamination, the conquest of public space, and the danger they pose to people walking— and reduce 🇨🇴’s attractiveness.
My view: Those who don’t die degrade the quality of life in 🇨🇴 cities— via noise, air contamination, the conquest of public space, and the danger they pose to people walking— and reduce 🇨🇴’s attractiveness.
Reposted by Chris N. Morfas
For his friends, Donald Trump provides protection from the law; for his enemies, punishment. www.thenation.com/article/poli...
Donald Trump’s Corruption of the Law Is Destroying American Democracy
If Democrats don’t fight this with everything they have, they are basically admitting that authoritarianism is here to stay.
www.thenation.com
September 22, 2025 at 5:56 PM
For his friends, Donald Trump provides protection from the law; for his enemies, punishment. www.thenation.com/article/poli...
Traffic prohibited “except bicycles and residents.” Rural France (here, Normandy) is a model for low-stress cycling. 1/2
September 17, 2025 at 10:11 AM
Traffic prohibited “except bicycles and residents.” Rural France (here, Normandy) is a model for low-stress cycling. 1/2
Reposted by Chris N. Morfas
Political violence should never be condoned. Gun violence should never be condoned. Not in our schools, not anywhere. Period.
September 10, 2025 at 7:02 PM
Political violence should never be condoned. Gun violence should never be condoned. Not in our schools, not anywhere. Period.
Reposted by Chris N. Morfas
If I have any credibility with you from 20 years of reporting on rightwing & fascist movements, please listen when I beg you not to celebrate Charlie Kirk getting shot. Leave aside morality: this isn’t a match in dry grass, it’s a torch. We do not want what this could ignite & we would not win.
September 10, 2025 at 7:00 PM
If I have any credibility with you from 20 years of reporting on rightwing & fascist movements, please listen when I beg you not to celebrate Charlie Kirk getting shot. Leave aside morality: this isn’t a match in dry grass, it’s a torch. We do not want what this could ignite & we would not win.
Below, a discussion of a “limited traffic” zone in Paris’s Marais neighborhood. Pictured: A sidewalk sign informing Parisians that a new such zone is coming. What’s the purpose? 1/2
September 7, 2025 at 8:29 AM
Below, a discussion of a “limited traffic” zone in Paris’s Marais neighborhood. Pictured: A sidewalk sign informing Parisians that a new such zone is coming. What’s the purpose? 1/2
“Hiring slowdown.” “Unemployment edges up.” Corrupt dictators should at least make the trains run on time.
www.cnbc.com/2025/09/05/j...
www.cnbc.com/2025/09/05/j...
Payrolls rose 22,000 in August, less than expected in further sign of hiring slowdown
Nonfarm payrolls were expected to increase by 75,000 in August while the unemployment rate edged up tp 4.3%.
www.cnbc.com
September 5, 2025 at 2:20 PM
“Hiring slowdown.” “Unemployment edges up.” Corrupt dictators should at least make the trains run on time.
www.cnbc.com/2025/09/05/j...
www.cnbc.com/2025/09/05/j...
I’m currently in Europe. Cities offer integrated train and bus transit. Safe bicycling options abound. Walking is pleasant and conveniently leads me to cute parks, plazas, and local shops. Who exactly is falling behind???
Will the absence of robotaxis in Europe mark the moment its citizens notice how far their continent has fallen behind?
Robotaxis will be the Sputnik Moment for a declining Europe
A slow-motion car crash on Europe’s roads
econ.st
September 5, 2025 at 11:25 AM
I’m currently in Europe. Cities offer integrated train and bus transit. Safe bicycling options abound. Walking is pleasant and conveniently leads me to cute parks, plazas, and local shops. Who exactly is falling behind???
Reposted by Chris N. Morfas
For 58€ a month I can ride on almost any public transport anywhere in Germany. Within a 15 minute walk from my house I can access 4 S Bahn lines, 3 UBahn lines, regional trains (I honestly don’t even know how many of those), 3 tram lines and at least 4 city bus lines (probably more).
Will the absence of robotaxis in Europe mark the moment its citizens notice how far their continent has fallen behind?
Robotaxis will be the Sputnik Moment for a declining Europe
A slow-motion car crash on Europe’s roads
econ.st
September 5, 2025 at 8:23 AM
For 58€ a month I can ride on almost any public transport anywhere in Germany. Within a 15 minute walk from my house I can access 4 S Bahn lines, 3 UBahn lines, regional trains (I honestly don’t even know how many of those), 3 tram lines and at least 4 city bus lines (probably more).
Caitlin Clark’s lost season is the biggest sports story of the year. 😕
September 5, 2025 at 8:39 AM
Caitlin Clark’s lost season is the biggest sports story of the year. 😕
The ex-Republican Never-Trumpers are better at this than the Democrats 🤷♂️
"My Plea to Democrats: Stop Being Polite, Go Nuclear"
Absolute #mustread for Zeteo from former GOP strategist Stuart Stevens, in which he lays out what the Dems must do if they win back the House next year, including defunding the entire executive branch and nationalizing SpaceX.
Absolute #mustread for Zeteo from former GOP strategist Stuart Stevens, in which he lays out what the Dems must do if they win back the House next year, including defunding the entire executive branch and nationalizing SpaceX.
My Plea to Democrats: Stop Being Polite, Go Nuclear
A former Republican strategist lays out what the Dems must do if they win back the House next year, including defunding the entire executive branch and nationalizing SpaceX.
zeteo.com
September 4, 2025 at 2:06 PM
The ex-Republican Never-Trumpers are better at this than the Democrats 🤷♂️
Reposted by Chris N. Morfas
The problem of e-bikes/e-motos is one of their maximum speed and not the presence of a throttle.
September 3, 2025 at 6:46 PM
The problem of e-bikes/e-motos is one of their maximum speed and not the presence of a throttle.