Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
December 6, 1913 The steam ferry Leschi was launched from Rainier Beach on Lake Washington, a large freshwater lake adjacent to Seattle. Chief Leschi (1808-1858), for whom this vessel was named, served as the leader of the Nisqually Indian Tribe in the vicinity of Puget Sound in present-day Washington State. The ferry Leschi had the... Continue Reading →
December 5, 2020 In the Canadian province of Ontario, an intercity bus terminal in the downtown section of Toronto was officially opened. The Union Station Bus Terminal (USBT), which is operated by the government-owned company Metrolinx, is connected via pedestrian walkways to Union Station (a major railway facility and Canada’s busiest transportation hub). USBT serves... Continue Reading →
December 1, 1863 In the east-central section of New Zealand’s South Island, a railway line between the city of Christchurch and its suburb of Ferrymead in the Canterbury Region first went into service. Several days later, the area newspaper known as the Press confirmed “that the Ferrymead Railway was opened for traffic, with a general... Continue Reading →
November 17, 1999 In the state of Western Australia (WA), a bus station built on the Bentley campus of Curtin University of Technology was opened. Bentley, which is a southern suburb of WA’s capital city of Perth, serves as that university’s main campus. (This official name of this educational institution was shortened to Curtin University... Continue Reading →
November 14, 1982 Manors Metro station in northeastern England’s ceremonial county of Tyne and Wear was officially opened. This station, which is located in the Shieldfield area of the city and metropolitan borough of Newcastle upon Tyne, is part of the region’s Tyne and Wear Metro light rail rapid transit system. Measuring a total of... Continue Reading →
November 6, 2018 In the city of Bhubaneswar in eastern India’s state of Odisha, a public transport bus service known as Mo Bus (the Hindi phrase for “my bus”) was launched. (Bhubaneswar is the capital of Odisha and also that state’s largest city.) Mo Bus was officially inaugurated by Naveen Patnaik, who has served as... Continue Reading →
October 31, 2011 A rapid transit system in Algiers, the largest city and capital of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, was inaugurated. This system was officially opened by Abdelaziz Bouteflika (1937-2021), Algeria’s president from 1999 to 2019. The Algiers Metro became the second rapid transit system in Africa to go into service. (The first... Continue Reading →
October 27, 2008 In western Switzerland’s canton (member state) of Vaud, a rapid transit station was officially opened near the Place de la Riponne in the city of Lausanne. The Place de la Riponne is a historically significant grand square at the center of Lausanne, which is Switzerland’s fourth largest city and the capital of... Continue Reading →
October 3, 1906 In southwestern England, a road-rail swing bridge crossing the River Avon in Bristol -- a city, ceremonial county, and unitary authority -- first went into service. The Ashton Avenue Bridge was built as a key part of the Bristol Harbour Railway, a longtime transportation link for Bristol’s docks and wharves. Alfred John... Continue Reading →
September 28, 2022 Bródno station on Line M2 of the Warsaw Metro rapid transit underground system first went into service. This station, which marks the eastern terminus of that line, is located in the vicinity of Kondratowicza, Rembielińska, and Bazyliańska Streets in the Bródno neighborhood of Poland’s capital city. Construction on the station began in... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 