Hugo von der Thüsen

Hugo von der Thüsen

@hugovdthusen.com

website: www.hugovdthusen.com

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Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

First time that I’m flying to Rotterdam airport. Fares to Amsterdam were the same but I have to do it before they inevitably close the airport somewhere in the next 15 years.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

Finally we’re zooming across the Turkish countryside. The views are beautiful. Honestly, it could also be somewhere out in the American west, except for the electrified high speed rail.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

Absolutely crawling on the High Speed line from Istanbul to Ankara. The trainsets are the same that DB uses and it seems that they use the same on-time-performance too. Also, why does the high-speed service between the 2 largest cities stop at every village along the way?

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

Absolutely horrendous operations at Istanbul HSR station. They put you in a warm holding pen on the the platform with no signs. Then 2 trains arrive and everyone goes to the platforms but no one knows which train goes where, not even the staff. At the same time passengers are disembarking.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

The tünel is an extremely old funicular connecting the shore to the city in Istanbul. Opened in 1875 it is often referred to as the 2nd oldest metro in the world. I don’t agree with that since it’s just a funicular, but it’s still pretty cool! It’s actually rubber-tyred since 1971

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

The Istanbul unlimited public transport pass is in fact NOT unlimited. It gives you 30 ‘tokens’ to use for a day and then it runs out. Different modes costs varying amounts of tokens. No information about his can be found anywhere, not even online.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

I’ll have to write something on my website about this so that there is at least one online source which confirms this limit. I have not tested what happens with a 3, 5 or 7 day pass. Either it gives 30 tokens per day or it gives ‘30 x amount of days’ which you could also spend in a day.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

The Istanbul unlimited public transport pass is in fact NOT unlimited. It gives you 30 ‘tokens’ to use for a day and then it runs out. Different modes costs varying amounts of tokens. No information about his can be found anywhere, not even online.

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Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

I understand that almost no one will hit 30 tokens in a day, but I did since I wanted to ride a bunch of different transit today. Token amounts per mode: Bus: 1 Regular metro: 1 Metrobüs: 2 for some reason Tram: 1 Marmaray: 3 Airport metro: 2 or 3 depending on station Funicular and cable cars: 1

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

The Istanbul unlimited public transport pass is in fact NOT unlimited. It gives you 30 ‘tokens’ to use for a day and then it runs out. Different modes costs varying amounts of tokens. No information about his can be found anywhere, not even online.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

I’ll have to write something on my website about this so that there is at least one online source which confirms this limit. I have not tested what happens with a 3, 5 or 7 day pass. Either it gives 30 tokens per day or it gives ‘30 x amount of days’ which you could also spend in a day.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

14 second headways during peak hours. The Istanbul Metrobüs is on another level. With 200 people capacity buses (underestimated) that would give this BRT a theoretical capacity of 50,000 p/h/d

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

Moeilijke keuzes moeten gemaakt worden omtrent infra uitgaven en ik ben blij dat een groot deel gehaald word bij weg uitbreidingen. Maar wat is het zonde dat er ook geld weg genomen wordt bij de uitbreiding van Randstadrail en de Rotterdamse metro.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

De steden tussen Rotterdam en Den Haag, samen met Zoetermeer, zijn geweldige locaties voor extra woningbouw, en als je wil dat die nieuwe bewoners hun auto thuis laten dan zal je een aantrekkelijk OV-aanbod moeten maken. 50.000 nieuwe woningen staan gepland langs lijnen E en C.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

And just like that my Orient Express trip is done! Paris to Istanbul via the Simplon tunnel and the Balkans.

Hugo von der Thüsen@hugovdthusen.com

Bienvenue à bord du TGV Lyria reliant Paris à Lausanne. Today begins my #OrientExpressInterrail trip from Paris to Istanbul over the trackage of the famous Simplon-Orient-Express.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

It’s a Marmaray train? I was expecting some light rail to pull up, but it seems like they integrated it into the Marmaray system on the historic approach to Sirkeci station, the end of the Orient Express.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

My last leg of this Orient Express trip! Sofia to Istanbul on this very comfortable sleeper where I’ve got the entire cabin to myself for only 15 euros on interrail.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

I never really understand this list as I’ve cycled, for example, in Strasbourg and München and neither come close to how safe and comfortable it is to cycling in Rotterdam.

Dutch Cycling Embassy@dutchcycling.nl

🚲 What are the world's best cycling cities? Every two years, the Copenhagenize Index ranks 100 cities around the world based on how well they create the conditions for cycling to be safe, convenient and a normal part of everyday mobility. 📊 buff.ly/sFgb2mu

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

Sofia’s metro has sections of at-grade and elevated tracks but almost all are encased in glass. I think it’s mainly for protecting against the elements, other former communist systems also do this.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

Sofia had installed these platform edge nets on their oldest line. I’m unaware of any place outside of Asia which has implemented this, pilot projects excluded.

Hugo von der Thüsen
@hugovdthusen.com

Got my ticket to Istanbul! Interesting to see German is still the universal European train language. Also the ticket booth still had a railway map with the USSR and Yugoslavia on it.