Four YouTubers Bringing Transit Stories to Millions

MARC URBANAS
APTA Intern

Ray Delahanty had “no idea there were so many people interested in urbanism and transit” until he started a YouTube channel called CityNerd. But 48 million views and 412,000 subscribers later, he’s seen transit’s connections to “public health, quality of life, affordability, and climate impact—things that people care deeply about and animate their thinking and politics.”

Ray is not alone. Dozens of YouTubers have engaged hundreds of millions of viewers by sharing their passion for public transportation. Their channels are becoming new hubs for transit enthusiasm and activism, especially among younger audiences. The following explores four highly successful transit-focused YouTube channels and how they are transforming the way the public perceives public transportation.

CityNerd

The CityNerd channel is all about analyzing cities, city planning, and transportation systems. It has over 412,000 subscribers and 48 million total views.

The channel features video essays, city-visit vlogs, top 10 cities lists, and more than 90 videos dedicated to all modes of transit. Topics include top BRT systems, small cities with high transit ridership, and prominent North America ferry networks.

The creator, Ray Delahanty, is a former urban planning and traffic engining consultant. He started the YouTube channel because “stories about cities, and transit in particular, are inherently visual and lend themselves well to long-form video content.”

Ray enjoys covering public transit because he sees it as uniquely democratic. “It gives people a chance to cooperate and share scarce resources…in a way that benefits us all, no matter our socioeconomic background.”

Trains Are Awesome

The Trains Are Awesome channel highlights what its creator considers the most fascinating parts of rail and transit systems, from their history to rolling stock to new service testing. The channel has more than 127,000 subscribers and 21.6 million views.

“I love finding extraordinary things in the middle of ordinary places: historical artifacts in subway stations, feats of creative engineering in otherwise normal rail lines, etc.,” says Thom, the creator of the channel.

Thom built a lifelong love of trains growing up in the Netherlands and Japan. He began filming them for YouTube as a hobby. It’s now his full-time job where he’s “meeting fans on the metro every other day and being invited to events by Amtrak.”

However, he still loves the simple joy of riding trains, which feels “just as thrilling as it did when I was a kid.”

DJ Hammers Transport

The DJ Hammers Transport channel creates “immersive, high-quality videos that let people experience and learn about railways around the world from many different perspectives,” according to the channel’s creator. The channel’s videos provide perspectives from a driver, rider, and sometimes a technical expert on a train or metro journey.

The channel has more than 117,000 subscribers and 63.5 million views. It features videos from across the globe, which it sources from an engaged community of transit enthusiasts.

“It is quite fulfilling to see so many people watching these videos and developing their own interest in the topic, inspiring a greater appreciation for these systems and the vital role they play in connecting communities,” says the creator of the channel.

Transport International

The Transport International channel is a gateway to the world’s transit. It features videos from Istanbul, Osaka, Buffalo, Lima, and more, allowing viewers to take in the sights and sound of each city’s transit systems. The channel has more than 17,900 subscribers and 6.5 million total views.

Julian, the creator of the channel, has loved documenting transit systems on camera since childhood. “Eventually, around my 14^th birthday, I decided it would be a good idea to share them,” Julian said. “What better way to do so than through YouTube.”