No pants on light rail

Posted at 12:00 PM on January 12, 2009 by Bob Collins (4 Comments)
Filed under: Things that are puzzling

Light rail, rumor has it, is a hot topic in these parts.

But for the most part, I guess, we were left out in the cold on Saturday, which was the annual International Don't Wear Your Pants Day on light rail and other transit systems.

Phoenix appeared to be the hot spot for the celebration.

A sociologist in Arizona says light rail has brought the area "a public space where diverse groups can come together."

"Things like these get people excited, and that's the promise of the public realm," she said. "You're in a space where you don't know what will happen. I think people will start to say, 'Phoenix is cool.'"

I'm pretty sure she's serious.

There was a rumor that a similar celebration of diversity in the public space occurred on the Hiawatha Light Rail Line, although I've yet to find any proof of it.

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Comments (4)

more fun w/o pants in the great white north!

http://tinyurl.com/a2jdl7

Posted by witlessworm | January 12, 2009 12:28 PM

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I rode the light rail from the Mall of America to the VA Medical Center stop on Saturday around 2:30. We were puzzled by a group of about a dozen pants-less riders who got off at the Lindbergh Terminal stop. We thought maybe they were getting on a plane destined for some tropical climate.

Posted by molly | January 12, 2009 1:35 PM

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There were some stories on this yesterday. I guess this is becoming an annual event that - of course - started in NYC. It's not illegal to walk around in your underwear there -- I wonder if that's the case in Bloomington?

Here's the address to much more information (if you're looking) that was provided yesterday:
http://improveverywhere.com/

I guess this isn't some "brief" fad spreading across the nation...

Posted by MS | January 12, 2009 2:02 PM

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No pants? In Minnesota in January?

No wonder they went from MoA to the Lindburgh station: they're both indoors. I can't really see them waiting in the snow down by the Metrodome or at the VA.

Posted by Elizabeth T | January 12, 2009 8:18 PM

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