2012's Biggest Transportation Successes

At the end of last year we brought you the biggest urban transportation failures, but this year we thought we'd take a brighter angle on things and see what went right. That's not to say there weren't any low points — Atlanta voters rejected a penny transportation tax, San Diego found itself in a major emissions fight, and a Beverly Hills school opposed a subway extension — but on the whole there was a lot to like about (North) American city transportation in 2012. Here's a short list of the biggest moments and trends.

The subway recovery post-Sandy. New York wasn't prepared for the storm of the century in a broad sense, but when the fateful hour arrived the city's transit authority rose to the occasion. The M.T.A. secured rolling stock before the storm, pumped its flooded tunnels after it, and kept riders informed every step of the way. The system hasn't made a full recovery, and the M.T.A. still needs billions in relief funds to get there, but the city's transportation rebound after the worst storm in memory should go down as memorable in its own right.