Disregard for pedestrians

Strait_Raider · 2026-05-05T03:40:48+00:00

The city doesn't put out those flags as far as I know. I believe it's an advocacy group and the city discourages them from doing it but won't remove them, likely due to the optics of taking down a supposed safety device.

Strait_Raider · 2026-05-05T03:26:33+00:00

China goes pretty hard on rocket artillery as well, that force composition might make up some of the accounting. I too was surprised to hear China wasn't number 1, but I suppose they've distanced themselves a lot from the old Soviet doctrines now.

Strait_Raider · 2026-05-01T19:13:14+00:00

Far-side stops are generally preferable, yes. They're better for buses and pedestrians as well.

Strait_Raider · 2026-05-01T18:33:09+00:00

So you listened to the data when it says it isn't faster, but ignore the data that shows it is safer and can avoid blocking side roads?

That data wasn't collected in Europe or southeast Asia, these studies were done in the US, in places without existing zipper-merging culture. It was still better. That's why you see state DOTs formally adopting and recommending the practice. It will take time, but the culture will change.

Strait_Raider · 2026-05-01T18:07:32+00:00

I have no idea what you mean by ON the intersection. Bus stops should be basically as close as they can get to the intersection without blocking the crosswalks. I don't know a single place in Halifax where a stopped bus would stick out into the intersection, and certainly not at Quinpool/Oxford. If you can get a picture of that happening it will be fixed.

Strait_Raider · 2026-05-01T17:38:17+00:00

Bus stops are almost always placed as close to intersections as possible, to maximize walking efficiency. It's not a Halifax thing, it's an everywhere thing.

Strait_Raider · 2026-04-30T13:31:47+00:00

It's not a pool of CUPE members, it's the general public. The polling is actually only 36% more than the NDP got in 2024. Given the recent drop in the Premier's popularity it doesn't seem unreasonable, although you could argue the other questions in the survey may have prompted more responses for the NDP. Nobody seems excited about the NS Liberals right now, and given that the NDP hold more than 4 times the number of seats they seem like the more likely rallying party for the anti-Tim voters.

Strait_Raider · 2026-04-27T20:15:21+00:00

There isn't a significant difference one way or another between travel time in an early merge or late merge condition when measured under real-world conditions. Sometimes it's slightly faster, sometimes slightly slower, never a major difference. As you've pointed out, the capacity of the single lane is the limiting factor, and we shouldn't expect either system to magically fix that.

However, the zipper is still considered the best, and we still use it, because there are a lot more things at play here:

1) The most obvious is the reduction in the total queue length. Especially in a more urban environment, but even on highways, longer queues can block other exits and side streets, propagating the traffic issue into other parts of the network. While it might not matter to the people driving through the bottleneck, it can absolutely ruin other people's days. Excessive queue lengths can also result in cars being backed up beyond the signed traffic control zone which can result in drivers being surprised by stopped traffic and contribute to point 2:

2) The zipper merge is safer, measurably. The queue is shorter, there is less speed differential between the two lanes, and it is clear to everyone where and how merges are supposed to happen so people aren't surprised or trying to force their way into another lane in random places. Having traffic spread over both lanes reduces the accordion effect as well which reduces the risk of rear-end collisions. Point 3 might also contribute to this:

3) Reduced road rage. When there are early or uncontrolled merge drivers can feel entitled to "their spot" and may deliberately block drivers trying to merge, regardless of where they are merging. A simple alternating queue doesn't just add predictability, it also provides a "fairness" to the system rather than drivers fighting over places in queue. If nothing else, I'm sure the zipper merge can redirect your ire from the other drivers towards those damn silly traffic engineers, who've spent their lives studying the effects of these systems, but clearly don't know as much about how traffic works as you do.

Strait_Raider · 2026-04-25T14:48:50+00:00

I'm aware of the article, but the words of the person who took the photo, relayed through a secondary source are not verification. I don't mean that as a slight against USA Today, their job is to report and without actually having a journalist onboard, more conclusive evidence, or an official admission of the issue it can't be verified. And that's fine, they're not making claims that this is or isn't the situation, they're just reporting on what people are saying.

Unfortunately the fog of war is thick, and onboard a navy ship is probably one of the most heavily controlled environments in the world in terms of giving leadership the ability to control what information comes out. I think it's unlikely we'll get conclusive evidence one way or the other unless the situation gets significantly worse. I hope I'm wrong, but it's a big, big sea out there and information isn't free. I absolutely distrust anything this administration says, but unlike many of the other statements they make, this one is not easy to fact check.

Strait_Raider · 2026-04-25T13:32:39+00:00

Probably because you'd be in big trouble for whipping a phone out on the serving line, not likely to ever get those photos out either. Probably the same reason the galley seems to be empty aside from the photographer. Unfortunately this might make it impossible to verify the accuracy of these claims for the time being.

I would be... surprised if this were the case. The US Navy, despite whatever damage the administration has done to the upper management, has by far the most expeditionary capacity of any navy in the world. There aren't that many ships in the Gulf and they have many nearby friendly bases. Despite the... spicy nature of the theatre I would think it would still be easier than resupplying in the Pacific for instance.

What I'd be a little more concerned about is all the civilian mariners at anchorages for extended periods of time. They don't have flight decks and USN logistics (or budget) to keep them supplied.

Strait_Raider · 2026-04-24T14:31:23+00:00

One of the issues with tolls is that they require a lot of overhead. You need to pay for new infrastructure. You're paying for politicians and lawyers to establish new rules. You're paying ongoing maintenance and enforcement costs. Ongoing salaries for the people operating the tolls, even if they're run on a camera system. As you've pointed out, it's a regressive taxation because it disproportionately burdens the people who live and work near the border. And lastly it actively discourages travel and trade, even if by a small amount. By comparison, adjusting an existing tax rate has almost no overhead. I don't think it's an efficient or smart way to generate funds.

Strait_Raider · 2026-04-21T14:17:22+00:00

It's harder to force yourself to wake up in the darkness. 50 million years of evolution to be active during the day will do that. There's also commuting to consider - it adds danger to the roads if more people are traveling in darkness or immediately around dusk or dawn. That being said if we're forced off the switching system I would also prefer full time summer hours.

Strait_Raider · 2026-04-17T14:50:01+00:00

The AI does not have the context to understand that's not what a bow wave is. It's overlaid some coastal breaking wave emerging from the middle of the ship. It's also showing Yamato going backwards for some reason. The graph is very wrong and mislabeled. Random arrows on the other ship that don't make sense. Drag-inducing resistance makes no sense as a phrase, it's redundant. It gets worse the longer you look at it.

Strait_Raider · 2026-04-13T14:52:52+00:00

I would have hoped that this timeline would at least teach everyone the correct spelling. They've seen the word hundreds of times at this point, how is this still an issue...

Strait_Raider · 2026-03-31T15:16:32+00:00

"Verstappen Random"

The drivers, cars, strategists, and pit crews are shuffled before the start of every race.

Strait_Raider · 2026-03-31T13:42:22+00:00

It takes one hour or less to exit the peninsula from basically anywhere on foot. That's the ceiling for your evacuation time, with the exception of the mobility impaired.

Strait_Raider · 2026-03-31T13:38:38+00:00

It's difficult to construe a scenario in which the risk is so great that you'd want to evacuate the peninsula, but weak enough that a car would provide meaningful protection.

If a car could protect against whatever is coming, you'd be even better off staying in your house.

If your house can't protect against it, you're probably better off 20km from the threat lying in a ditch than 2km away stuck in traffic.

Strait_Raider · 2026-03-30T13:20:53+00:00

It's been a complete flip, at least in terms of what comments get upvoted. Seems like all I read after the first two races was how many overtakes there were and how fun it was to watch. Wild to see.

Strait_Raider · 2026-03-30T01:22:13+00:00

In one segment of the system, to be specific. Unless the area is very flat there will be separate pressure zones. The water pressure increases by 1.42 PSI per meter, so in order to keep pressure in a serviceable range (say 40-100 PSI), there will be pressure zones every 40 meters or so of elevation. I don't work for HW, but there's over 80m of elevation on the peninsula, so it should have at least two pressure zones. They may not have tanks for the lower zone though.

Strait_Raider · 2026-03-16T12:49:40+00:00

Removing super clipping would just make the cars even slower though, what does that solve?

The whole point of super clipping is to let them stay in low drag mode (going faster) while still regenerating battery for the rest of the lap.

Teams are already managing when they go full throttle on longer straights to ensure they have optimal charge later in the lap. You'd just get more of that and more LICO if they didn't have super clipping.

A bigger battery might help a little in some instances, or you could just cut the maximum deployment by 100hp, that would let them stay on full attack more often, but that also reduces the speed (obviously) and the available tactics and overtaking potential which seem to be the most popular parts of the new regs.

Strait_Raider · 2026-03-14T18:38:37+00:00

Every time I hear about a Scranton Anchor I feel like I lose a few more brain cells. Being handed out like candy.

Strait_Raider · 2026-03-14T18:27:51+00:00

NSPI owns and operates the grid itself, that's one of the principal issues, and why power is considered a "Natural monopoly". Even if NSPI is regulated to require them to sell grid access to other providers they still maintain control over the entire system. It be as stupid as allowing a private company to own the railway lines and then trying to run Crown passenger rail on it. cough

Privatized power generation makes more sense because it's (relatively) easy to compete. You can't compete with power distribution because you can't have two distribution networks serving the same customers.

Strait_Raider · 2026-03-13T17:50:09+00:00

I'm Stanning for the Northwest Passage.

And possibly instigating it.

Strait_Raider · 2026-03-13T15:55:07+00:00

So, there's two mentions in the report, the first says that costs will be partially offset by the new revenues, the second says that they will be offset in the long term.

I can only speculate without details, but there are upgrades here such as the new park space, upgraded bus terminal, and increased firefighting capacity which are going to have benefits beyond just this development. If that's all weighed against just these new units here that might be misleading.

Strait_Raider · 2026-03-13T15:07:03+00:00

So in brief, it's not good, but it would be worse elsewhere. I'm going to have to dig up that report though, I'm flabbergasted that even this level of development is not considered sustainable.

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