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History · by Noah Miller · 2026-10-26

Blaise Pascal invented fixed-route public transport in 1662

humantransit.org

Before he was a math legend he co-founded the 'carrosses à cinq sols' in Paris - horse coaches running set routes on a schedule for a fixed fare. Basically the first bus line.

20 sparks · 3 comments

Comments

Iryna Melnyk · 2 likes

Pascal really said 'I'll do probability theory and also invent the bus'

Camille Dubois · 0 likes

and it shut down after a while because only rich people were allowed to use it, iirc

Midnight Comet · 12 likes

classic, great idea ruined by exclusivity