It's often a tricky balance for public agencies to strike when deciding whether to build a service in-house or to contract with a private company. So when Metro Transit paid for everyone in Minnesota to get premium access in the Transit App, we got curious about the terms of that arrangement. Turns out, there's a lot of interesting data work going on in this partnership under-the-hood! Listen in on this chat with representatives from Metro Transit, MnDOT, and Transit App to learn more.

• Transit App
• MnDOT Transit Trip Planner

Our theme song is Tanz den Dobberstein, and our interstitial song is Puck's Blues. Both tracks used by permission of their creator, Erik Brandt. Find out more about his band, The Urban Hillbilly Quartet, on their website.

This episode was hosted and edited by Ian R Buck and was produced and transcribed by Parker Seaman aka Strongthany. Many thanks to Laura Matson, Kathy Schultz, and Stephen Miller for coming on the show! We're always looking to feature new voices on the show, so if you have ideas for future episodes, drop us a line at [email protected].

Find the full transcript on our website.

The young transportation activists of today are the legislators of tomorrow. Let's meet some of the students who are getting involved in advocacy at an early age!

• Our Streets' Bring Back 6th.
• Harding's transportation page still has a bike map that Ian added in 2020.
• The Purple People Coalition (note: the Purple Line project has since been renamed the Bronze Line).

Our theme song is Tanz den Dobberstein, and our interstitial song is Puck's Blues. Both tracks used by permission of their creator, Erik Brandt. Find out more about his band, The Urban Hillbilly Quartet, on their website.

This episode was hosted and edited by Ian R Buck and was transcribed by Parker Seaman aka Strongthany. Many thanks to Asanti, Michael, and Thomas for coming on the show! We're always looking to feature new voices on the show, so if you have ideas for future episodes, drop us a line at [email protected].

Find the full transcript on our website.

Scott Dibble and Frank Hornstein have been friends and transportation advocates since before they were elected to the state legislature, so we sat down with them to find out how that has shaped their careers.

Our theme song is Tanz den Dobberstein, and our interstitial song is Puck's Blues. Both tracks used by permission of their creator, Erik Brandt. Find out more about his band, The Urban Hillbilly Quartet, on their website.

This episode was hosted, edited, and transcribed by Ian R Buck. Many thanks to Scott Dibble and Frank Hornstein for coming on the show! We're always looking to feature new voices on the show, so if you have ideas for future episodes, drop us a line at [email protected].

Find the full transcript on our website.

Snow season is one of the biggest challenges for Minnesota's transportation system. Let's chat with the folks who make sure the snow gets cleared!

• Saint Paul Snow Emergency page

Our theme song is Tanz den Dobberstein, and our interstitial song is Puck's Blues. Both tracks used by permission of their creator, Erik Brandt. Find out more about his band, The Urban Hillbilly Quartet, on their website.

This episode was produced by Stina Neel, was edited by Ian R Buck, and transcribed by Parker Seaman aka Strongthany. Many thanks to Sean Kershaw and Lisa Hiebert for coming on the show! We're always looking to feature new voices on the show, so if you have ideas for future episodes, drop us a line at [email protected].

Find the full transcript on our website.

When his mother suffered a stroke in 2018, Matthew Stepaniak wanted to find a way to keep her active both physically and mentally. As an avid cyclist himself, Matthew had the idea to bring cycling to those who couldn't otherwise enjoy it themselves. So he teamed up with Darren Dobier and the two co-founded Limitless Cycling, which helps individuals of all abilities enjoy the outdoors through the power of a bike ride.

On this week's episode of St. Croix Stories, learn more about the origins of Limitless Cycling, hear about Matthew's knack for taking care of others (both as the primary caregiver for his 91-year-old mother and through his work with Limitless Cycling), and learn about the impressive bikes and other vehicles that Limitless Cycling is bringing to riders all throughout the St. Croix Valley and beyond.

If you'd like to learn more about Limitless Cycling or want to get involved as a volunteer or donor, visit limitlesscycling.org.

• Limitless Cycling
• St Croix Stories

Our theme song is Tanz den Dobberstein, and our interstitial song is Puck's Blues. Both tracks used by permission of their creator, Erik Brandt. Find out more about his band, The Urban Hillbilly Quartet, on their website.

This episode comes to us courtesy of the St Croix Stories podcast. It was produced by Tyler Mason and was transcribed by Ian R Buck. We're always looking to feature new voices on the show, so if you have ideas for future episodes, drop us a line at [email protected].

Find the full transcript on our website.

OpenStreetMap is the Wikipedia of maps: a publicly-available database of spacial information that anyone can edit. We sit down with prolific OSM contributor Jackson Kruger to talk about the best ways to use the data, and how to get comfortable with contributing to the project.

• OpenStreetMap (keep in mind that the map on this website is more of a tech demo than anything)
• There are many clients listed on OSM Apps Catalog, which makes it easy to filter by platform and purpose. Below are some of Jackson and Parker's recommendations:
• Navigation clients
  • OsmAnd: extremely full-featured, but the interface may be intimidating. Android and iOS.
  • Organic Maps: a simpler interface, with features that most users will need; probably the closest comparison to Google Maps on this list. Android, iOS, and Linux.
  • CoMaps: a recent community fork of Organic Maps. Android and iOS.
  • Transit App: combines OSM data for walking and biking with real-time transit data from agencies across the world to give incredibly robust navigation information for those outside a car. Android and iOS.
  • Bikemap: exclusively focused on bike routes, imagine that. Android, iOS, and web.
• Editing clients
  • Go Map!!: strikes a good balance between letting you do everything you need to be able to do while making it reasonably accessible. iOS and macOS.
  • StreetComplete: provides an interface that makes editing easy and gamifies the process. Android.
  • MapComplete: lists a series of themed collections to make it easier to focus your editing efforts. Android and web.
  • Every Door: specializes in editing businesses and points of interest.
  • iD: the default editor built into the OSM website. Web.
  • Find more editing clients on the OSM wiki.
• Cool OSM-adjacent projects
  • OpenRailwayMap
  • MOTIS Project
  • OpenHistoricalMap
• OpenStreetMap Foundation partnering with a utility company in France.
• Details about where OsmAnd gets elevation information, since that is not in the OSM database. Presumably other apps use similar sources.

Our theme song is Tanz den Dobberstein, and our interstitial song is Puck's Blues. Both tracks used by permission of their creator, Erik Brandt. Find out more about his band, The Urban Hillbilly Quartet, on their website.

This episode was produced by Parker Seaman aka Strongthany, and was hosted, edited, and transcribed by Ian R Buck. Many thanks to Jackson Kruger for coming on the show! We're always looking to feature new voices on the show, so if you have ideas for future episodes, drop us a line at [email protected].

Find the full transcript on our website.

The Midtown Greenway opened 25 years ago, so let's hear from the folks who pushed for it to happen! George Puzak envisioned the Greenway, Tim Springer was the Midtown Greenway's first Executive Director, and Soren Jensen is the current Executive Director.

• Midtown Greenway trench history by Brian Mitchell: Part 1 & Part 2
• Donate to the Midtown Greenway Coalition

Our theme song is Tanz den Dobberstein, and our interstitial song is Puck's Blues. Both tracks used by permission of their creator, Erik Brandt. Find out more about his band, The Urban Hillbilly Quartet, on their website.

This episode was hosted, edited, and transcribed by Ian R Buck. We're always looking to feature new voices on the show, so if you have ideas for future episodes, drop us a line at [email protected].

Find the full transcript on our website.

We talked to Genevieve Furtner, who Govenor Tim Walz called the "Queen of Walleye," about all things fish: the DNR hatchery in Saint Paul, the State Fair fish pond, where baby walleye come from, what a "tiger muskie" is, why we stock lakes, and how much of an impact anglers have on the state economy.

• Egg harvesting demonstration video
• Walleye biology
• The almighty Muskellunge
• DNR State Hatcheries
• Saint Paul Hatchery

Our theme song is Tanz den Dobberstein, and our interstitial song is Puck's Blues. Both tracks used by permission of their creator, Erik Brandt. Find out more about his band, The Urban Hillbilly Quartet, on their website.

This episode was produced, edited, and transcribed by Stina Neel, and was engineered by Ian R Buck. We're always looking to feature new voices on the show, so if you have ideas for future episodes, drop us a line at [email protected].

Find the full transcript on our website.

In today's book club episode, Parker Seaman and Ian R Buck discuss Bowling Alone by Robert D Putnam, in a conversation moderated by Stina Neel.

• Current book: Bowling Alone
• The Evolution of Trust (Explorable Explanation)
• MLMs are the mirror-world version of community organizing
• Next Book: The Lost Cause

Our theme song is Tanz den Dobberstein, and our interstitial song is Puck's Blues. Both tracks used by permission of their creator, Erik Brandt. Find out more about his band, The Urban Hillbilly Quartet, on their website.

This episode was produced by Parker Seaman and Stina Neel, edited by Jeremy Winter, and engineered and transcribed by Ian R Buck. We're always looking to feature new voices on the show, so if you have ideas for future episodes, drop us a line at [email protected].

Find the full transcript on our website.

For many years, Naomi Kritzer has compiled the most comprehensive collections of information about candidates in Twin Cities races. We sat down with her to find out her process, how it started, and what advice she has both for campaigns and voters!

• Naomi's blog
• Some insight into St Paul city council drama

Our theme song is Tanz den Dobberstein, and our interstitial song is Puck's Blues. Both tracks used by permission of their creator, Erik Brandt. Find out more about his band, The Urban Hillbilly Quartet, on their website.

This episode was hosted, edited, and transcribed by Ian R Buck and was engineered by Sherry Johnson. Many thanks to Naomi Kritzer for coming on the show. We're always looking to feature new voices on the show, so if you have ideas for future episodes, drop us a line at [email protected].

Find the full transcript on our website.