Bay Curious

By KQEDSociety & Culture History Places & Travel

Ranking
36th
on Places & Travel
Favorites
247
Followers
Typical duration
20 min
per episode

Based on Podcast App listening data

Bay Curious episodes

March 05, 2020Why Highway 280 Has So Few Billboards
Question asker David Shayer has a lot of opinions... about billboards. He says the worst are electronic billboards that flash changing images at night. But in addition to an opinion, David has a question: "Why is Highway 101 plastered with billboards while Highway 280 doesn't have any billboards?" In this episode, reporter Christopher Egusa takes a roadtrip to find out more.

Additional Reading:
Green Foothills
Bay Area, I Love You

Reported by Christopher Egusa. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Jessica Placzek, Asal Ehsanipour, Katie McMurran and Rob Speight. Additional support from Julie Caine, Paul Lancour, Kyana Moghadam, Suzie Racho, Carly Severn, Bianca Hernandez and Ethan Lindsey Patricia Yollin.

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12 min
February 27, 2020In A Changing City, How Does The Tenderloin Stay The Same?
San Francisco’s Tenderloin neighborhood is bordered by some of the wealthiest neighborhoods in the city, yet it has a bad reputation. Tourists are told to avoid the area. You can often see drug dealing out in the open, and garbage on the streets. Today's question asker, Vy Nguyen, lives in the neighborhood and wants to know how the Tenderloin has stayed the same in a city where most low-incomes areas have gentrified.
Additional Reading:
Why Hasn't the Tenderloin Gentrified Like the Rest of San Francisco?
By Randy Shaw: After a Tough 2019, Tenderloin Will Move Forward

Reported by Kelly O'Mara. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Jessica Placzek, Katie McMurran and Rob Speight. Additional support from Julie Caine, Paul Lancour, Kyana Moghadam, Suzie Racho, Carly Severn, Bianca Hernandez, Ethan Lindsey and Don Clyde.

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16 min
February 20, 2020Coyotes, They're Back and They're Thriving
Question asker Lauren Fleming has noticed a lot of signs warning about coyote sightings in San Francisco parks. She wants to know how many coyotes live here, how they got here, and how they manage to live in an urban environment. In this episode, reporter Bianca Taylor meets a woman who has been observing the city's coyotes for thirteen years.
Additional Reading:
San Francisco's Coyotes are Back, and They are Thriving
The "Coyote Lady's" website, CoyoteYipps.com
Submit your love letter to the Bay Area

Reported by Bianca Taylor. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Jessica Placzek, Katie McMurran and Rob Speight. Additional support from Julie Caine, Asal Ehsanipour, Paul Lancour, Kyana Moghadam, Suzie Racho, Ethan Lindsey and Patricia Yollin.

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14 min
February 13, 2020 Bay Area, I Love You
This week the Bay Curious team asked locals to help us make a collective love letter to the Bay Area. We talked to people whose families have been here for several generations, people who just arrived and some who recently left. We heard all kinds of reasons for why you love it. We present to you, your stories and our love letter.

Credits
Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Jessica Placzek, Kyana Moghadam, Katie McMurran and Rob Speight. Additional support from Julie Caine, Paul Lancour, Don Clyde, Carly Severn, Christopher Cox, Bianca Hernandez, Kyana Moghadam, Suzie Racho, Ethan Lindsey, Vinnee Tong and Holly Kernan.

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16 min
February 06, 2020We Built This City on ... Water and Marsh?
When Nicole was growing up, her grandmother always told her: Don't live anywhere built on fill. Her uncle also had strong memories of watching the Marina burn after the 1989 earthquake — when parts of the ground liquefied, causing buildings to collapse and gas lines to break.
Nicole wants to follow her grandmother's advice, but she needs to know a few things: "What neighborhoods and cities in the Bay Area are built on filled land? And what are those cities and neighborhoods doing to mitigate the risk of liquefaction?"

Additional Reading
Large Parts of the Bay Area Are Built on Fill. Why and Where?
MAP: Where We "Created" Dry Land
The Precarious Future of Treasure Island: Rising Seas and Sinking Land
How Treasure Island Got Made and Why

Credits
Reported by Kelly O'Mara. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Jessica Placzek, Katie McMurran and Rob Speight. Additional support from Julie Caine, Paul Lancour, Don Clyde, Carly Severn, Christopher Cox, Bianca Hernandez, Kyana Moghadam, Suzie Racho, Ethan Lindsey, Vinnee Tong and Holly Kernan.

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15 min
January 30, 2020You're Really, Really Curious About BART
We get a lot of BART questions from our listeners, so this week we're answering a slew of them with long-time transit reporter Dan Brekke.
How did they build the underwater tunnels for BART?
In its nearly 50 years of existence, why has BART taken so long to extend into Santa Clara County? And only normally protruded into San Mateo County and never expanded into any of the North Bay counties?
Why are there news kiosks in the BART station that are closed? Why doesn't BART let people run these news kiosks? What is the history?
At the West Oakland BART Station there are ads right next to the third rail. How on earth do they change those out without getting electrocuted?
Why does it seem like the escalators are constantly broken?
Why does BART announce elevator status all the time?
Our question askers this week were Briana, Brad Meyer, Jay Quigley, Mark, Dan and Eric.
Additional Goodies
Why are BART trains so loud? (Apple Podcasts)
Sign up for the Bay Curious newsletter
The Bay: An Unspoken Guide to Riding BART (Apple Podcasts)
Why are BART Escalators Nearly Always Broken? And How Did They Build Those Tunnels?

Credits
Produced by Jessica Placzek and Olivia Allen-Price. Featuring KQED's transit editor Dan Brekke. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Jessica Placzek, Katie McMurran and Rob Speight. Additional support from Julie Caine, Paul Lancour, Patricia Yollin, Carly Severn, Christopher Cox, Bianca Hernandez, Kyana Moghadam, Suzie Racho, Ethan Lindsey, Vinnee Tong and Holly Kernan.

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18 min
January 23, 2020 Jerry Brown’s Impact on Oakland May Surprise You
Jerry Brown has been a dominant force in California politics for decades. He spent 16 years as governor of California, ran for Senate twice, ran for president three times, and spent eight years as Mayor of Oakland. In this episode, we explore how Brown's legacy in Oakland is playing out today with Devin Katayama of The Bay, and Guy Marzorati, producer of new podcast The Political Mind of Jerry Brown. You can subscribe to both in the same place you get Bay Curious.
Produced by Devin Katayama, Marisol Medina-Cadena, Alan Montecillo, Jessica Placzek and Olivia Allen-Price. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Jessica Placzek, Katie McMurran and Rob Speight. Additional support from Julie Caine, Paul Lancour, Kyana Moghadam, Suzie Racho, Ethan Lindsey, Vinnee Tong, Holly Kernan and Patricia Yollin.

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21 min
January 16, 2020What's The Real History of El Camino Real?
Reporter Rachael Myrow and listener Debbie Torrey discover that what we've been told about this famous road is mostly bunk. This story first ran on the podcast in Nov. 2017.
Additional Reading:
Video: The true story of the 'royal' road
El Camino Not-So-Real: The True Story of the 'Ancient Road'

Reported by Rachael Myrow. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Jessica Placzek, Katie McMurran and Rob Speight. Additional support from Julie Caine, Paul Lancour, Kyana Moghadam, Suzie Racho, Ethan Lindsey and Patricia Yollin.

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12 min
January 09, 2020 Why Do S.F.'s Crosswalks Play a Machine Gun Sound?
The crosswalks in San Francisco, and many other Bay Area towns, play a 'machine gun' sound when the 'walk' sign is illuminated for pedestrians. A Bay Curious listener recalls hearing chirping sounds in other areas. Why do ours sound the way they do? Plus, we get to know an architect who listens to buildings.
Additional Reading:
An Architect Who Listens To Buildings
Reported by Olivia Allen-Price, Annika Cline and Sam Harnett. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Jessica Placzek, Katie McMurran and Rob Speight. Additional support from Julie Caine, Paul Lancour, Kyana Moghadam, Suzie Racho, Ethan Lindsey and Patricia Yollin.

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14 min
January 02, 2020 What Are Those Grids of Glass in the Sidewalk — And Why Are They Purple?
Listener Britt McEachern is a tour guide in San Francisco, and spends a lot of time walking around city streets. He's noticed grids of glass embedded in the sidewalk and wants to know what they are. Take a journey with reporter Jessica Placzek to learn the purpose and origins of these gems beneath your feet.

Additional Reading:
What Are Those Grids of Glass in the Sidewalk — And Why Are They Purple?
Quiz: Test Your Bay Area Knowledge

Reported by Jessica Placzek. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Jessica Placzek, Katie McMurran and Rob Speight. Additional support from Julie Caine, Paul Lancour, Kyana Moghadam, Suzie Racho, Ethan Lindsey and Patricia Yollin.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
13 min

About Bay Curious

From the publisher's feed

Bay Curious is a show about your questions – and the adventures you find when you go looking for the answers. Join host Olivia Allen-Price to explore all aspects of the San Francisco Bay Area – from…