Dave Ederer

Hello and welcome to the 2019 edition of the Sustainable Transport Abroad blog! My name is Dave Ederer. This is my second year as TA for the course, and third year of my PhD. 

Where am I from?

I grew up in Buffalo, New York. I didn't realize it at the time, but Buffalo has a rich transportation history. I grew up right around the corner from one of America's great transportation projects: the Erie Canal. I also like to point that we had a "BeltLine" long before that became a trendy idea. Fredrick Law Olmsted designed an interconnected system of parks and parkways. I love my hometown and always enjoyed riding my bicycle, but always took advantage of any excuse to take the Metro Rail. It was my favorite way of getting around town and remains so! If you get a chance to visit Buffalo, check it out. I'll give you some tips. 

How have my travels influenced my thinking on transportation?

I left Buffalo for college and have lived in many places since then, including Jeju Island, Ann Arbor, and the Philadelphia area. My first year out of college in South Korea changed how I viewed transportation. I did not have access to a car, but I did have a bicycle and a transit pass. I was forced to navigate an unfamiliar country with little grasp of the language without a vehicle. This was a profound experience. I learned that I could get most places with a bicycle and a bus pass with a little planning. To this day, I predominately travel by bicycle and transit. I moved to Atlanta in 2013, and still primarily travel by bicycle and transit. 

Goals for the course

I've visited the Netherlands quite a few times, and this is my third time serving as a TA for the course. My goals for this course are to:

  1. Help our students improve their writing,
  2. better understand how value judgments influence design and planning of transportation infrastructure, and
  3. introduce the class to a country and culture that I've become familiar with over several years.

I look forward to talking all things transportation and teaching you the proper technique for eating nieuwe haring.