The following graph combines my two most beloved local institutions, Downtown Albuquerque News (DAN) and the New Mexico Rail Runner (RR):

As you probably know because you’re a subscriber (you’re a subscriber, right?), DAN publishes a monthly “Climate and Transport Index” full of marvelously simple, yet informative graphs such as above. While the preponderance of modern illustrations of information tend to be more about the visuals than the information, it’s so great to see displays that both inform and lead everyday common folks like your humble blogger to say “Hey, I could make that graph!” I love DAN!

Speaking of “old school,” I’d always wondered how DAN gets the info above, particularly as a rather frequent RR cycling “alighter” (love that word!). So, I asked a conductor after getting off at Los Ranchos/Journal Center recently. He pulled out a red ledger book and explained that he notes, by hand, the number of riders and the number who board with a bicycle into the red book. I love RR!

My love for these two institutions goes beyond their old-school simplicity to their essential function. DAN’s role as local, in this case hyperlocal, disseminator of news and information is bedrock to what makes certain parts of the world great and other parts of the world not-so-great. In other words, societies without objective news sources suck. We can argue all day what “objective” means; however, in a great society we can have that argument and still both be members of that society. DAN is helping make this possible at a time in which both “objectivity” and “news source” are highly threatened concepts.

Another highly threatened concept in a society seemingly hell-bent on “running government (into the ground) like a business” is public transportation. Your humble blogger expanded earlier this morning on this point for about 3,000 words of rant, outrage, rant and more rant, but has decided the last thing you need this morning is a rant about this crucial point at this crucial point in history.

So I’ve cut all that rant and will instead simply state I love trains. A lot.

I also love that the lovely graph atop this post seems to indicate were getting back to pre-public health order numbers in terms of folks cycling boarding/alighting RR. Alight away, New Mexicans, and subscribe to DAN, if you don’t already. They’re two institutions that make Burque and America great.