One of my favorite things about New York is its awesome scale. Small changes can make a huge difference. Imagine if we shaved a minute off the morning commute for 2-3 million New Yorkers, and another minute on the way home. Those five million minutes are roughly equal to 40
My 12-year-old son and I ride the bus and subway almost every day. On the bus, it’s rare to see anyone tap their fare. Are we chumps for paying? The subway has improved recently, with security guards now stationed by many turnstiles. But we still often see people jumping
Earlier this spring, I spent a few weeks in Paris. One morning, I was biking right behind a mom who was taking her kids to school: This is a totally ordinary scene. On weekday mornings, Paris's bike lanes fill with commuters and parents taking their kids to school.
Let’s talk about energy. Consider the human body: If you eat 2,000 calories per day, you’re burning about the same amount of energy as a 100-watt light bulb. You’ll burn around 250 watts on days you run a marathon. The average home in New York City
As brutal as the early days of the pandemic were, they also forced New York to try things it normally wouldn't. New York moved at light speed to launch its "Open Restaurants" program in June 2020, less than 60 days after the alpha wave ended. Everything
Last week I visited Troyes, France—a small city about two hours from Paris in the Champagne region. It’s known for its medieval town center and the world’s largest collection of European hand tools. When others look to the stars for inspiration, I often look down at the
Earlier this month, I spent a few days in Tangier, Morocco for my birthday. Tangier is less than ten miles from the Spanish mainland by ferry and was a designated "international zone" from 1923 to 1956, attracting diplomats, spies, artists, writers and exiles. French and Spanish colonial influence
In July 2021, a flight scheduling mix-up gave me an unexpected evening in Paris. It was just a few weeks after the EU had re-opened to Americans. I hadn’t been to Paris in several years, and I was shocked at how its streetscape had transformed: bike lanes and pedestrian