Best NJB Studios Podcasts (2024)

1
The Insanity of Canadian Housing Prices (with Mike Moffatt) 52:33

19d ago52:33

52:33

Canada's housing crisis is one of the worst in the world. But why? In this episode I talk to Mike Moffatt, Canadian economist and housing expert about what's going on in the Canadian housing market, as well as the common factors that are creating a housing crisis in almost every major city in the developed world. The Missing Middle Podcast https://…

1
Trams are Great so why are Toronto Streetcars so Terrible!? (with RM Transit) 1:07:53

1M ago1:07:53

1:07:53

Trams are great. They create and enable some of the best urbanism around. And yet the streetcars in Toronto are slow and unreliable and painful to take. What is Toronto doing wrong, and what could other "streetcar" cities learn from their mistakes? Financial capital of Canada pauses so streetcar driver can move tracks with big stick: https://www.th…

1
What to do When Your City Won't Fix Things (with Bike Curious) 47:59

3M ago47:59

47:59

What should you do when your city won't fix things, even after years of advocacy? The answer might be guerrilla urbanism, aka tactical urbanism. I talk to Bike Curious about the people who are tired of waiting, and just get things done by themselves. Is it legal? Well ... it's sometimes better to ask for forgiveness rather than permission. Tactical…

1
NYC REALLY Screwed Up Congestion Pricing (with Doug Gordon) 50:33

4M ago50:33

50:33

New York City was about to roll out congestion charging. The cameras were up, the staff were hired, the metro projects were financed, and thousands of people were lined up to make public transit better ... and then the governor cancelled it on vibes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congestion_pricing_in_New_York_City https://thewaroncars.org/2024/06/…

1
All Trains Need Level Boarding (with Gareth Dennis) 42:43

5M ago42:43

42:43

Level boarding is simple enough: the floor of the train should be level with the platform. But it's not very common, is it? Why? And what can we do about it? Because once you learn the details of level boarding, you'll realise just how important it is. The Campaign for Level Boarding: https://www.levelboarding.org.uk/ Passengers suffer serious inju…

1
Some Business Owners REALLY Hate Bike Lanes (with Bike Curious) 49:51

6M ago49:51

49:51

When a bike lane was installed on Valencia Street in San Francisco, one business owner hated it so much he went on a hunger strike. Bike lanes are almost universally positive for business, so why do some business owners hate them so much? Jon from Bike Curious joins me to discuss. San Francisco restaurant owner goes on 30-day hunger strike over new…

1
How Japan has Remained (relatively) Affordable (with Life Where I'm From) 48:48

7M ago48:48

48:48

As housing and transportation prices are skyrocketing around the developed world, Japan has remained (relatively) affordable. I talk to Greg from the YouTube channel Life Where I'm From about how Japan is different - from transportation to housing policy - and about what we can learn from Japanese cities.\ Relevant videos by Life Where I'm From: Ho…

1
Living with Self-Driving Cars (with Bike Curious) 41:17

8M ago41:17

41:17

For most of us, autonomous vehicles are this nebulous concept that might appear some time in our future, but there are other people living with this reality today - whether they like it or not. In this episode, I talk to Jon from the Twitch channel Bike Curious about what it's like to live in San Francisco, where autonomous vehicles are around you …

1
Cars are (REALLY) Expensive! (with RMTransit) 53:16

8M ago53:16

53:16

Yup. Cars are REALLY expensive, and they're getting more expensive. And yet, most car owners seem completely oblivious to it. Canadians estimated to pay over $1,300 a month to own a car, report finds Car ownership cost me a LOT of money. I'm done. (YouTube) RMTransit: https://youtube.com/@rmtransit Not Just Bikes: https://youtube.com/@notjustbikes …

1
Europe Spends More on Roads than Rails (with Real Time History) 38:43

9M ago38:43

38:43

Europe is known for its train networks, and the EU has been promoting trains as the preferred mode of travel. But the train networks are not functioning well, and it's not a coincidence that many EU countries are spending twice as much on roads than they do on rails. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/19/european-governments-railways-road-b…

1
10 Years Car-Free (with Mrs. NJB) 46:14

10M ago46:14

46:14

It occurred to us the other day that we have lived 10 years without owning a car. This didn't happen intentionally, we just moved to a walkable neighbourhood and living car-free just made the most sense. In this episode, I talk with Mrs. NJB about what it's been like to live without a car, how it made more sense for us even with two kids, and about…

1
From Pickup Driver to Cargo Bike Urbanist (with American Fietser) 48:16

11M ago48:16

48:16

Can rural people understand city folk and vice-versa? American Fietser thinks so. He went from being a die-hard truck driver to a cargo-bike riding urbanist, and it all started with a trip to the Netherlands. American Fietser: https://www.youtube.com/@AmericanFietser American Fietser (Twitter): https://twitter.com/AmericanFietser Not Just Bikes: ht…

1
The Problem with Cities: Skylines 2 (with Cities by Diana) 53:31

11M ago53:31

53:31

City Simulators, such as SimCity and Cities: Skylines are very popular, both among gamers and the general public. But these are just games: they don't accurately model real cities, and that can result in misleading assumptions about what a city is, and how it functions. Cities by Diana: https://www.youtube.com/@CitiesByDiana Not Just Bikes: https:/…

1
Following the War on Cars (with Doug Gordon) 42:10

12M ago42:10

42:10

The "War on Cars" is a phrase that comes up every few years whenever some right-wing politician wants to get elected. But this phrase is nothing new, and has been around almost as long as cars themselves. In this episode, I talk to Doug Gordon from the War on Cars podcast, who has been following this phrase in the media for several years. https://t…

1
The Amsterdam Metro ... Kinda Sucks, Actually (with RMTransit) 48:23

1y ago48:23

48:23

Not Just Bikes, normally a champion of all things Amsterdam, talks to RMTransit about why the Amsterdam Metro isn't good enough. And if GVB has their way, it might become even worse. https://www.at5.nl/artikelen/219864/metrolijnen-50-en-53-worden-samengevoegd-30000-passagiers-zullen-moeten-overstappen https://www.iamexpat.nl/expat-info/dutch-expat-…

1
The Staggering Ignorance of Traffic Engineers (with Build the Lanes) 51:43

1y ago51:43

51:43

America has Traffic Engineers. The Netherlands has Transportation Engineers. One is concerned with moving as many cars as possible, the other builds transportation systems. In this podcast, I'm joined by Steffen Berr, an American Traffic Engineer turned Transportation Engineer who now lives in the Netherlands. We discuss the myopic approach taken b…

1
5 Years Living in the Netherlands (with Mrs. NJB) 1:13:35

1y ago1:13:35

1:13:35

Our family has lived in the Netherlands for 5 years now. In this episode, I have a conversation with my wife, Mrs. NJB, about our experiences and how it compares to other places we've lived before. Listen to the next episode early on Nebula: https://nebula.tv/agenda Not Just Bikes: https://youtube.com/@notjustbikes See Privacy Policy at https://art…

1
Most Europeans Aren't Chained to their Cars (with Adam Something) 43:35

1y ago43:35

43:35

I was recently asked to comment on a news story in my hometown of Fake London in Canada: a single mom had her car break down and she couldn't afford to fix it, so she asked people how feasible it was to go car-free. In the end, she had to spend $6000 on a new transmission because living car-free was effectively impossible. It got me thinking how cr…

1
The Superior Form of Housing (with Justin from WTYP) 44:20

1+ y ago44:20

44:20

Rowhouses have been around for literally thousands of years: a house that's connected to the house next to it. This type of housing is illegal in huge swaths of the US and Canada, but it's extremely common elsewhere because it is the greatest form of housing. Jason from Not Just Bikes is joined by Justin Roczniak from the Well There's Your Problem …

1
Opening Transit Payments (with Urban Caffeine) 40:00

1+ y ago40:00

40:00

Paying for public transit is way too complicated, especially if you're an occasional user or tourist. Can open payments make this process easier for everyone? In this conversation, Jason from Not Just Bikes and Thea from Urban Caffeine discuss recent developments in open payments. If we're going to charge for public transit (which is a whole other …

1
Toronto Needs a New Mayor (with RMTransit) 53:43

1+ y ago53:43

53:43

Toronto's mayor stepped down, which gives the city a unique opportunity to make a meaningful change. Without an incumbent in the race, the field is wide open for someone new to take charge. Will Toronto choose good urbanism, or will it continue down its car-centric trajectory? In this episode, Jason from Not Just Bikes and Reece from RMTransit go t…

1
Engineering Bad Outcomes (with CityNerd) 38:37

1+ y ago38:37

38:37

Traffic engineers in the US and Canada have complex guidebooks and formulas for everything they do, but somehow they still build places that are dangerous, expensive, ugly, and terrible at actually moving people. Jason (Not Just Bikes) and Ray (CityNerd) discuss how all this engineering still results in bad outcomes. All Traffic Models are Wrong (S…

1
Closing Open Streets (with City Beautiful) 39:00

1+ y ago39:00

39:00

During the covid-19 pandemic, many US cities made streets off-limits to cars and opened them to people walking an cycling. These "open streets" were loved by urbanists everywhere, but now that the lockdowns are over, many of these places are being given back to motor vehicle traffic. In this episode, I talk to Dave from the YouTube channel City Bea…

1
Toronto Drivers are Above the Law (with RMTransit) 50:00

1+ y ago50:00

50:00

Toronto has almost completely stopped issuing parking tickets to drivers, even as it faces critical budget problems. But this is just one more decision in a long line that allow drivers in Toronto to get away with almost any behaviour. From running red lights to driving literally twice the speed limit, the Toronto Police have proven, time and time …

1
The 15-Minute Cities Conspiracy (with Adam Something) 39:20

1+ y ago39:20

39:20

The 15-minute cities conspiracy has almost nothing to do with urban planning, and everything to do with climate change denialism. Urban planning has just become the latest topic to get caught up in the culture war. Relevant articles & links: https://www.desmog.com/2023/02/16/revealed-the-science-denial-network-behind-oxfords-climate-lockdown-backla…

1
Welcome to the Urbanist Agenda 1:40

1+ y ago1:40

1:40

A podcast by the creator of the popular YouTube channel Not Just Bikes, The Urbanist Agenda is an exploration of the latest topics in urban planning and urban mobility from your favourite urbanist YouTubers. Each month we'll put another important topic on the agenda and pull back the curtain to discover how online urbanists plot and scheme to make …

Podcasts Worth a Listen

NJB Studios Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen

51
The Urbanist Agenda

Not Just Bikes

1
The Insanity of Canadian Housing Prices (with Mike Moffatt) 52:33

1
Trams are Great so why are Toronto Streetcars so Terrible!? (with RM Transit) 1:07:53

1
What to do When Your City Won't Fix Things (with Bike Curious) 47:59

1
NYC REALLY Screwed Up Congestion Pricing (with Doug Gordon) 50:33

1
All Trains Need Level Boarding (with Gareth Dennis) 42:43

1
Some Business Owners REALLY Hate Bike Lanes (with Bike Curious) 49:51

1
How Japan has Remained (relatively) Affordable (with Life Where I'm From) 48:48

1
Living with Self-Driving Cars (with Bike Curious) 41:17

1
Cars are (REALLY) Expensive! (with RMTransit) 53:16

1
Europe Spends More on Roads than Rails (with Real Time History) 38:43

1
10 Years Car-Free (with Mrs. NJB) 46:14

1
From Pickup Driver to Cargo Bike Urbanist (with American Fietser) 48:16

1
The Problem with Cities: Skylines 2 (with Cities by Diana) 53:31

1
Following the War on Cars (with Doug Gordon) 42:10

1
The Amsterdam Metro ... Kinda Sucks, Actually (with RMTransit) 48:23

1
The Staggering Ignorance of Traffic Engineers (with Build the Lanes) 51:43

1
5 Years Living in the Netherlands (with Mrs. NJB) 1:13:35

1
Most Europeans Aren't Chained to their Cars (with Adam Something) 43:35

1
The Superior Form of Housing (with Justin from WTYP) 44:20

1
Opening Transit Payments (with Urban Caffeine) 40:00

1
Toronto Needs a New Mayor (with RMTransit) 53:43

1
Engineering Bad Outcomes (with CityNerd) 38:37

1
Closing Open Streets (with City Beautiful) 39:00

1
Toronto Drivers are Above the Law (with RMTransit) 50:00

1
The 15-Minute Cities Conspiracy (with Adam Something) 39:20

1
Welcome to the Urbanist Agenda 1:40

Quick Reference Guide