Alon Levy
Writes Pedestrian Observations on public transit and why infrastructure costs what it does; a pure mathematician by training, comparing how different countries build.
Alon Levy did not write this page. ppll compiled it from their own words, each linked to the source. Is this you? · Report a mistake
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What they believe
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From the second millennium onward, extraction by kings or temples was not the only origin of cities: some began as commercial centres and only became sites of royal extraction after proving their economic value.
But once one gets to the second millennium and cities are more visible to us in economic history, this is no longer the only origin of cities. Some emerge for commercial purposes, and only become sites of royal extraction after they've proven their economic value.
pedestrianobservations.comSaid 28 Sept 2026This on korrents
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Changed their mind Common-law legal systems are what make infrastructure construction costs high
Now The theory that common law leads to higher costs, based on high costs across the US, Singapore, the UK, Australia, Canada, India, and Bangladesh. I no longer believe this theory holds up
Said 4 May 2020This on korrents
The bold line is korrents’ wording; the quote is theirs. These one: what they wrote before what they said aloud, one per source, newest first.
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As its own page →Hiding
1 November
28 September
From one piece The Origin of Premodern Western Cities 2 beliefs · pedestrianobservations.com
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korrents.com
Premodern European cities were founded along a spectrum, from the entirely commercial to the entirely political.Their words
There's really a spectrum of city foundations, from the entirely commercial to the entirely political.
The Origin of Premodern Western Citiespedestrianobservations.com
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Their words
But once one gets to the second millennium and cities are more visible to us in economic history, this is no longer the only origin of cities. Some emerge for commercial purposes, and only become sites of royal extraction after they've proven their economic value.
The Origin of Premodern Western Citiespedestrianobservations.com
1 September
From one piece The Country is the Natural Unit of Policy Analysis 3 beliefs · pedestrianobservations.com
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Their words
And yet, life expectancy about two years more than the national average is rather common in rich regions with selective migration, even in European countries with even access to health care, like France and Spain.
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korrents.com
Comparative policy analysis should be done at the level of sovereign countries, not provinces or regions within them.Their words
But it's not meaningfully possible to understand the world at this scale - macroregions are real but analysis of policy, including transportation but also the usual economic and social topics, has to be down at the level of sovereign states first with no illusion that a province in a large country is comparable to a smaller country.
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korrents.com
National politics dominates over regional politics in nearly all first-world democracies.Their words
Politics in virtually all first-world democracies is nationalized.
7 August
From one piece Electrification Costs and Confounders 2 beliefs · pedestrianobservations.com
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Their words
one should never apportion the cost of the RER or Stammstrecke tunnels to the cost of surface electrification
Electrification Costs and Confounderspedestrianobservations.com
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Their words
electrification in Germany is usually bundled with other projects that end up costing that in total
Electrification Costs and Confounderspedestrianobservations.com
30 July
From one piece The Failure of Bus Grids at the Scale of Los Angeles 2 beliefs · pedestrianobservations.com
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Their words
on-street separated lanes don't go at the speed of rapid transit, and the counterexamples you're thinking about right now are either freeways or things that might as well be freeways.
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Their words
But in fact, the scale of buses is rather short, and in a Los Angeles-size city they are hopeless, no matter how much priority they have.
25 July
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Their words
If a subway line or a train station or a similar rail megaproject has an internationally renowned architect in charge, it costs too much and is unlikely to be functional.
Conflict About the FRA Study on Penn Stationpedestrianobservations.com
15 July
From one piece Corridor Zoning is not Transit-Oriented Development 2 beliefs · pedestrianobservations.com
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Their words
the explicit purpose of corridor zoning is to concentrate both air pollution and the perceived social pollution of apartment dwellers in quarantine zones that single-family homeowners can avoid
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Their words
The reason is simple: TOD doesn't care about corridors but about the underlying transit, which is a subway, not a bus stopping every block.
7 July
From one piece Prioritizing Rail Expansion in New England 2 beliefs · pedestrianobservations.com
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Their words
it's more important to invest in trains that can get more riders than just the railfans; taking a line from 0% to 5% modal split is less important than taking it from 20% to 40%
Prioritizing Rail Expansion in New Englandpedestrianobservations.com
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korrents.com
Building out low-speed regional rail to small towns before intercity rail is fast enough is a waste of money.Their words
further investment in regional rail in New England - by which I mean RegionalBahn-style service to small towns like Westerly and Manchester, not core commuter rail service in Boston to be turned into an S-Bahn - is a waste of money in the current situation.
Prioritizing Rail Expansion in New Englandpedestrianobservations.com
30 June
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Their words
STOPS is designed for quick-and-dirty calculations and is known to choke on New York.
29 June
Nothing matches.
Beliefs
Korrents What they believe 36 beliefs, 2 changed minds — each backed by an exact quote.
Each is a — compiled by korrents.com, not by them: the one-line wordings are korrents', the quotes are theirs.
Recent
From the second millennium onward, extraction by kings or temples was not the only origin of cities: some began as commercial centres and only became sites of royal extraction after proving their economic value.
But once one gets to the second millennium and cities are more visible to us in economic history, this is no longer the only origin of cities. Some emerge for commercial purposes, and only become sites of royal extraction after they've proven their economic value.
The Origin of Premodern Western Cities Said 28 Sept 2026
Premodern European cities were founded along a spectrum, from the entirely commercial to the entirely political.
There's really a spectrum of city foundations, from the entirely commercial to the entirely political.
The Origin of Premodern Western Cities Said 28 Sept 2026
National politics dominates over regional politics in nearly all first-world democracies.
Politics in virtually all first-world democracies is nationalized.
The Country is the Natural Unit of Policy Analysis Said 1 Sept 2026
Show 33 more
Comparative policy analysis should be done at the level of sovereign countries, not provinces or regions within them.
But it's not meaningfully possible to understand the world at this scale - macroregions are real but analysis of policy, including transportation but also the usual economic and social topics, has to be down at the level of sovereign states first with no illusion that a province in a large country is comparable to a smaller country.
The Country is the Natural Unit of Policy Analysis Said 1 Sept 2026
Rich regions having noticeably higher life expectancy than their national average is a common pattern even under universal healthcare, not a US-specific phenomenon.
And yet, life expectancy about two years more than the national average is rather common in rich regions with selective migration, even in European countries with even access to health care, like France and Spain.
The Country is the Natural Unit of Policy Analysis Said 1 Sept 2026
Electrification projects in Germany are typically bundled together with other infrastructure upgrades rather than done as standalone works.
electrification in Germany is usually bundled with other projects that end up costing that in total
Electrification Costs and Confounders Said 7 Aug 2026
The cost of major tunnel projects should not be attributed to the cost of surface electrification when benchmarking rail costs.
one should never apportion the cost of the RER or Stammstrecke tunnels to the cost of surface electrification
Electrification Costs and Confounders Said 7 Aug 2026
Bus grids cannot function as a city's primary transit backbone at the scale of a very large, low-density city like Los Angeles, no matter how much priority the buses get.
But in fact, the scale of buses is rather short, and in a Los Angeles-size city they are hopeless, no matter how much priority they have.
The Failure of Bus Grids at the Scale of Los Angeles Said 30 Jul 2026
On-street separated bus lanes cannot match the speed of grade-separated rapid transit.
on-street separated lanes don't go at the speed of rapid transit, and the counterexamples you're thinking about right now are either freeways or things that might as well be freeways.
The Failure of Bus Grids at the Scale of Los Angeles Said 30 Jul 2026
A rail megaproject led by an internationally renowned architect tends to cost too much and end up unlikely to be functional.
If a subway line or a train station or a similar rail megaproject has an internationally renowned architect in charge, it costs too much and is unlikely to be functional.
Conflict About the FRA Study on Penn Station Said 25 Jul 2026
Transit-oriented development should be defined by walking distance to rail stations, not by zoning along arterial street corridors.
The reason is simple: TOD doesn't care about corridors but about the underlying transit, which is a subway, not a bus stopping every block.
Corridor Zoning is not Transit-Oriented Development Said 15 Jul 2026
Corridor zoning's real purpose is to concentrate density's pollution and social costs onto arterial streets so single-family areas can avoid them.
the explicit purpose of corridor zoning is to concentrate both air pollution and the perceived social pollution of apartment dwellers in quarantine zones that single-family homeowners can avoid
Corridor Zoning is not Transit-Oriented Development Said 15 Jul 2026
Building out low-speed regional rail to small towns before intercity rail is fast enough is a waste of money.
further investment in regional rail in New England - by which I mean RegionalBahn-style service to small towns like Westerly and Manchester, not core commuter rail service in Boston to be turned into an S-Bahn - is a waste of money in the current situation.
Prioritizing Rail Expansion in New England Said 7 Jul 2026
Transit investment should prioritize raising ridership on already well-used lines over creating minimal service where none exists.
it's more important to invest in trains that can get more riders than just the railfans; taking a line from 0% to 5% modal split is less important than taking it from 20% to 40%
Prioritizing Rail Expansion in New England Said 7 Jul 2026
A ridership-estimation model built for typical U.S. transit systems can give unreliable results in a complex system like New York's.
STOPS is designed for quick-and-dirty calculations and is known to choke on New York.
Quick Note on Ridership Estimation and the STOPS Model Said 30 Jun 2026
A new transit line still benefits riders it diverts from existing lines, not only the new riders it attracts.
Riders diverted from other lines still benefit from the project, especially in a case like QueensLink, where the diverted riders would enjoy an improvement in trip time to Midtown of about 10-15 minutes each way.
Quick Note on Ridership Estimation and the STOPS Model Said 30 Jun 2026
Rapid electrification programs without continuous rolling pipelines can still be built cost-effectively, as in Denmark, Israel and India.
In truth, rather rapid electrification projects, without decade-by-decade continuity, exist outside the UK and are often quite reasonable in their costs, as in Denmark, Israel, and especially India.
IFP’s Transit Abundance Playbook Said 29 Jun 2026
China's high-speed rail costs, once adjusted for the amount of tunneling, are not especially low compared to France's.
Well, PRC HSR construction costs relative to the amount of tunneling aren't particularly low. France's are lower; Germany's are inconsistent, depending on whether money is wasted on excessive tunneling or on other things.
IFP’s Transit Abundance Playbook Said 29 Jun 2026
A steady pipeline of transit projects does not by itself prevent costly systems-engineering mistakes, as shown by London's Crossrail.
Standardized systems are important, and there is a systems premium in the US and UK, but it can't be about a regular pipeline because London has that and yet Crossrail engaged in some really dodgy systems decisions that drove costs up.
IFP’s Transit Abundance Playbook Said 29 Jun 2026
Beyond neighbourhood distances, cars and public transport are substitutes for each other, so a trip taken by rail really is a trip not taken by car.
Beyond the scale of a neighborhood or maybe a college town, cars and mass transit are substitutes for each other.
Why Building Metros is Necessary for the Green Transition Away from Cars Said 10 Mar 2026
Spreading jobs into a polycentric region does not cut commuting: transit ridership is weaker there than in cities with one strong centre.
Nor does polycentricity solve the problem. Indeed, ridership in polycentric regions is weaker than in monocentric ones.
Why Building Metros is Necessary for the Green Transition Away from Cars Said 10 Mar 2026
Environmental cost-benefit analyses systematically understate what a new metro line is worth, because most of the driving it displaces happens elsewhere on the network.
This, in turn, creates serious estimation problems for the diversion rate, which is why environmental benefit-cost analyses underrate the effect of urban rail construction.
Why Building Metros is Necessary for the Green Transition Away from Cars Said 10 Mar 2026
Decentralisation does not explain why Spain builds subways cheaply and Britain does not: the cheap countries include Europe's most centralised ones.
In truth, the UK shares high costs with more decentralized countries, and Spain shares low ones with more centralized ones.
Low Spanish Costs are not About Decentralization Said 7 Dec 2024
The way to learn how to build cheaply is to find what every low-cost country has in common, not to study one famous city.
A single case study can lead to overlearning from the peculiarities of one place, where the right thing to do is look at a number of successes and look at what is common to all of them.
Low Spanish Costs are not About Decentralization Said 7 Dec 2024
There is nothing to learn from any American transit project within living memory except what not to do.
The truth is that there’s nothing that can be learned from American projects within living memory except what not to do.
Low Spanish Costs are not About Decentralization Said 7 Dec 2024
A city's first rail line comes in at a reasonable cost and every line after it does not, because the follow-up outgrows the in-house team that oversaw the pilot.
So Portland managed to build one very small line for fairly reasonable costs, but they were not cutting edge; this is a common pattern to Western US cities, in that the first line has reasonable costs and then things explode, even while staying self-funded and self-directed.
Low Spanish Costs are not About Decentralization Said 7 Dec 2024
Britain has a systemic problem building large infrastructure projects, including reservoirs
It’s turned entire countries, like the United Kingdom, incapable of building more than about one line per generation.
Meme Weeding: High Wages and Baumol's Cost Disease Said 22 Jun 2024
High infrastructure costs are not Baumol's cost disease: what a country pays per kilometre of subway barely tracks how rich it is.
In fact, even though growth in average infrastructure costs over time is documented, there is very little cross-national correlation between GDP per capita and per-km subway construction costs.
Meme Weeding: High Wages and Baumol's Cost Disease Said 22 Jun 2024
The English-speaking world builds infrastructure expensively because it is behind, not because it is rich.
It’s not that the Anglosphere is rich; it’s that it’s the Anglosphere and builds inefficiently.
Meme Weeding: High Wages and Baumol's Cost Disease Said 22 Jun 2024
New York's subway cost premium is overstaffing, oversized stations and procurement, not high wages.
Well, we’ve divided the New York cost premium into three tranches: labor (mostly overstaffing, not high wages), station and system design, and procurement and soft costs.
Meme Weeding: High Wages and Baumol's Cost Disease Said 22 Jun 2024
You cannot make America build subways ten times cheaper while only ever talking to Americans.
You can’t change the United States from a country that builds subways for $2 billion/km in New York and $1 billion/km elsewhere to a country that does so for $200 million/km if all you ever do is talk to other Americans.
Pete Buttigieg, Bent Flyvbjerg, and My Pessimism About American Costs Said 5 Aug 2023
High transit construction costs are not caused by political precarity; the worst blowouts happen on the projects whose political support is most secure.
In fact, the worst cost blowouts are for the politically most certain projects; Second Avenue Subway enjoyed unanimous support in New York politics.
High Costs are not About Precarity Said 12 Jan 2023
Giving a profligate transit agency more political support makes it worse, because it confirms that spending more is what gets rewarded.
Just giving more support to agencies in their current configuration is not going to help. To the contrary, it only confirms that profligacy gets rewarded.
High Costs are not About Precarity Said 12 Jan 2023
Britain's construction costs exploded because it privatised planning to consultants and risk to contractors, which multiplies conflict and soft costs.
Our best explanation is that the UK adopted what we call the globalized system of procurement, privatizing planning functions to consultants and privatizing risk to contractors, which creates more conflict; the UK also has an unusually high soft cost factor.
High Costs are not About Precarity Said 12 Jan 2023
Countries that build cheaply defer to engineers, even the ones with far more political patronage than the United States has.
Importantly, low-cost countries with more clientelism and politicization of the state tend to be more deferential to the expertise of engineers.
High Costs are not About Precarity Said 12 Jan 2023
American transit agencies stay expensive out of incuriosity: the practices that would fix them are written in languages nobody in the room reads.
This is not about precarity, because this is not a precarious project; this is about total ignorance and incuriosity about best practices, which emanate from a place that doesn’t natively speak English and doesn’t trade in American political references.
High Costs are not About Precarity Said 12 Jan 2023
Beliefs others hold too
Britain has a systemic problem building large infrastructure projects, including reservoirs 2 hold this
It’s turned entire countries, like the United Kingdom, incapable of building more than about one line per generation.
Meme Weeding: High Wages and Baumol's Cost Disease Said 22 Jun 2024
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Recommends rcmnd
rcmnd What they recommend 1 thing — each backed by an exact quote.
Compiled by rcmnd.app, not by them: the quotes are theirs, and each links to the post it was copied from.
Recent
Recommends The High Cost of Free Parking
I encourage urbanists and transportation advocates and analysts to read Shoup’s original paper. It’s this insight that led him to examine parking requirements in zoning codes more carefully, leading to his book The High Cost of Free Parking and then many years of advocacy for looser parking requirements.
pedestrianobservations.com 15 Sept 2025
Where they publish
Blog Pedestrian Observations Their blog on transit, construction costs and cross-national comparison. Has a feed.
Posts working out why a kilometre of subway costs six times more in one country than another, usually from the contracts and the timetables rather than the press releases.
Open pedestrianobservations.com
Recent
- Project Delivery and Overengineering are the Same Problem 1 Nov 2026 I have not been posting much lately. The proximate reason is that I spent most of October finalizing with Borners the text of the London construction costs report; there’s still another round of edits but they’re quite…
- The Origin of Premodern Western Cities 28 Sept 2026 Bret Devereaux writes about the origin of cities. He critiques a fantasy fiction-oriented YouTube vlogger who isn’t a trained historian, and in his critique, he expounds on the origin of cities, as coming purely from ex…
- The Country is the Natural Unit of Policy Analysis 1 Sept 2026 This post is to explain why comparative policy analysis must start with sovereign states, rather than their subnational entities. This includes urbanism, despite the anti-national orientation of some urbanists. In parti…
Show 7 more
- Electrification Costs and Confounders 7 Aug 2026 A presentation by the Bavarian Ministry of Housing, Construction, and Transport (StMB) about expansion plans for the Nuremberg S-Bahn includes several branches to be electrified. Naturally, the presentation includes cos…
- The Failure of Bus Grids at the Scale of Los Angeles 30 Jul 2026 Bus grids in North American cities are easy for planners and riders to understand, and help avoid excessive detours. Nearly all American and Canadian cities have gridded streets, often stretching over the entire city an…
- Conflict About the FRA Study on Penn Station 25 Jul 2026 The Federal Railroad Administration just released phase 1 of its own study on Penn Station capacity. Assuming that the Gateway tunnel is built but no other improvements to the station are made, the FRA thinks that the s…
- Corridor Zoning is not Transit-Oriented Development 15 Jul 2026 Corridor zoning is a style of development, in which major arterial streets are zoned for high residential and commercial density, while side streets remain zoned for low density, sometimes even for single-family housing…
- Prioritizing Rail Expansion in New England 7 Jul 2026 New England rail activist Kenny Uong talked about some New England rail lines that should be built. The proposals are not bad in theory, and remind me of longstanding advocate demands, but in practice, the prioritizatio…
- Quick Note on Ridership Estimation and the STOPS Model 30 Jun 2026 The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has a model for ridership estimation for public transit lines, called STOPS. It’s designed to be simplified enough that transit agencies can compute rough projections with it wit…
- IFP’s Transit Abundance Playbook 29 Jun 2026 Two weeks ago, the Institute for Progress published a playbook called Transit Abundance, comprising 15 policy briefs about reducing construction costs. One of them was my own, about itemization of costs. Eric has a good…
Link verified 20 Sept 2026. Recent items update automatically from the channel.
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