All aboard.
Dan Malouf shares an animation created by Will Geary using data from Transitland (an open-source data service project sponsored by Mapzen). The animation was actually created a year ago, but worth looking at again (and again).
"This animation shows how every Amtrak train in America is scheduled to move, over the course of one typical week," explains Malouf.
"Watching the animation run, it appears as though three separate systems run at the same time, almost independent of each other: The Northeast Corridor from Boston to Washington, the midwest's “Chicago hub,” and the west coast. Meanwhile, the south and interior west see trains few and far between."
Will Geary also wrote a blog post on the Mapzen website that explains more about how he created the animation. Animations for specific cities are also available.
FULL STORY: See a week of Amtrak trips on one animated map
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UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research