On this episode of Transit Unplugged, Paul Comfort sits down with Nancy Purser, Acting Director of the Hamilton Street Railway (HSR). After 15 years with the agency, Nancy now leads one of Ontario’s most historic and ambitious transit systems — one that’s preparing for transformative growth.
Nancy shares how HSR is executing HSR Next: Moving Hamilton Forward, a seven-year network redesign that will expand service by 50%, add new routes and on-demand zones, and better connect residents — especially those in equity-deserving and suburban communities — to jobs, education, and opportunity.
She also discusses HSR’s shift to a 100% CNG fleet by the end of 2026, emerging exploration into renewable natural gas, the city’s newest indoor fueling and storage facility, and what it means to become the greenest transit fleet in Ontario.
Plus, Nancy opens up about her path into transit, the power of customer-focused service, and how dragon boat racing keeps her energized outside of work.
In This Conversation, You’ll Learn:
Why Hamilton chose to preserve the historic HSR name — and why riders love it
How HSR Next will reshape the network, expand frequency, and support suburban growth
What it takes to deliver 50% more transit service over seven years
The environmental and operational impact of going fully CNG
How municipal investment and federal capital programs influence long-term planning
Ridership trends — and how immigration policy and education markets affect demand
The role of equity, access, and job connectivity in modern network redesigns
How community partnerships and strategic planning positioned HSR for its “golden era”
Episode Credits
Host & Producer: Paul Comfort
Executive Producer: Julie Gates
Producer: Chris O’Keeffe
Editor: Patrick Emile
Associate Producer: Cyndi Raskin
Consultants: Dan Meisner & Jonas Woost, Bumper
Brand design: Tina Olagundoye
Social Media: Tatyana Mechkarova
Transit Unplugged is brought to you by Modaxo — passionate about moving the world’s people.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the guests, and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Modaxo Inc., its affiliates or subsidiaries, or any entities they represent (“Modaxo”). This production belongs to Modaxo, and may contain information that may be subject to trademark, copyright, or other intellectual property rights and restrictions. This production provides general information, and should not be relied on as legal advice or opinion. Modaxo specifically disclaims all warranties, express or implied, and will not be liable for any losses, claims, or damages arising from the use of this presentation, from any material contained in it, or from any action or decision taken in response to it.
Episode Transcript
How would you like to talk to two CEOswho held the same position back to back?
I'm Paul Comfort, and this is TransitUnplugged America and the world's
leading podcast where we talk to transitexecutives to find out what's happening
in their operations and we go behindthe scenes and show you everything.
Today we talk with Nancy Purser in thispart two of a two-part series from Canada.
(00:25):
Last week we spoke withMaureen Cosyn Heath, who now
is CEO of MiWay, MississaugaOntario's transportation system.
Prior to that, she was headof Hamilton Street Railway.
Now it's Nancy Purser,who's the acting director.
They were both in the same room.
I interviewed them oneright after the other.
Nancy Purser is, has been a memberof the staff there at Hamilton Street
Railway since 2010, for about 15 years.
(00:47):
She joined as the manager of transitsupport services and quickly became
the driving force behind some of thecity's most transformative initiatives.
From rolling out the Presto Smart Cardsystem to helping craft the 10 year local
transit strategy, Nancy has consistentlychampioned innovation and accessibility.
And on today's podcast that werecorded live and in person,
(01:08):
she tells us all about it.
Let's jump into the conversationnow with Nancy Purser.
Excited to be in Canada today forpart two of two powerful women who
are leading transit in Ontario.
Last week we interviewed Maureen CosynHeath, director of transit at MiWay,
and if you listened, you recall atthe end she said she recently left an
(01:31):
agency to take her job there at MiWay.
And the agency she left wasHamilton Street Railway.
Well, today we have the acting transitdirector for that agency, Nancy Purser.
Nancy, thanks for joining us.
Thank you for having me.
I'm excited to be here.
So tell us a little bit about youragency, Hamilton Street Railway.
Most unique to me is it'snot a railway anymore.
But you kept the name, right?
That that is right.
(01:51):
Hamilton Street Railwayis actually 150 years old.
We celebrated our 150th year in 2024.
And we did start with rails in theground, pulling horses, pulling wagons.
And we are going backto rails in the ground.
Okay.
We did go out to look at rebrandingat one point and there was a
(02:12):
resounding, don't change the name.
It resonates with theresidents in Hamilton.
So we continue to beHamilton Street Railway.
They call you though HSR, right?
Yes, they do.
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
And you've been there a while?
I've been there for 15 years.
Okay.
And what, what'd you do?
What's your background?
So, prior to coming to transitwas a long, circuitous route.
(02:33):
I started in the privatesector, manufacturing.
Okay.
Went through a couple ofmanufacturing organizations that,
you know, you really learn how tobe productive, right, to make money.
Yeah.
Bottom line.
It's all about that.
And then found the stress oftrying to make money on something
that's not that important.
I needed a change and I foundsocial housing and I saw how much a
(02:57):
difference that can make to people'slives and how important that was.
And, you know, smallgroups of individuals.
And then I had an opportunityto look at transit.
It serves so many more people, itimproves the lives of so many more people.
And I found my home.
I started there as a manager oftransit support services, was involved
(03:17):
in so many areas, including farepolicies, operational training,
quality management, budgeting, andalso amazed by how complicated
it is to put a bus on the road.
That's just to me was the catcher.
Yeah.
It's like, how do you, how do you do that?
It looks so easy when itjust drives down the street.
(03:37):
Yeah.
And it's not.
And so subsequently after Maureenleft, I was appointed acting director.
So just where I am today.
Congratulations.
How, and you've been in thisrole, what, three or four months?
Four months.
Four months?
Yes.
What do you love most about transit.
I mean, I love your storyand I felt the same way.
I would agree.
It is truly customer orientedservice that is provided.
(04:02):
Where we wanna hear thevoice of the customer.
We wanna know what they want, andprovide them the best, safest, most
reliable service that we can, becausewe know how important it is to them.
We know they need it to getto school, to get to where
Right.
To get to their appointment.
So that is what excites me about it.
And what keeps me there.
Yeah.
Mobility is life, right?
(04:22):
Mm-hmm.
It is.
I mean, if you're stuck, if you'renot moving, you're probably dead.
Right.
You know, whether it's aplant or a person, whatever.
If you're moving, that's life.
And so we provide access toall of life's opportunities.
Mm-hmm.
Yes.
It's a great feeling, isn't it?
Yes.
I have a friend of mine who had a14, well he's a little older now,
but at the time, 14-year-old sonwho found transit and was just gone.
(04:45):
He's like, I know how to get there.
I wanna go there.
I wanna do this.
I don't need you to drive me.
Yeah.
And just the freedom that he found at14, which all 14 year olds should try it.
Yeah.
It's, transit is the safest place andthe safest mode of moving about a city.
So how big is Hamilton?
You know, gimme some of thestuff about where you operate.
So you're a part of Ontario, right?
(05:06):
You in Ontario?
Yes, we are part of, well wecall ourselves the greater
Hamilton, Toronto-Hamilton area.
Okay.
So we are at the west end of Lake Ontario.
Okay.
And in, as part of the goldenHorseshoe, which includes Niagara
all the way out to bury theescarpment, follow the escarpment.
So we have, present about 570,000
(05:29):
is our population.
Okay.
We have a very large rural area,so we only service our urban area,
which is about 243 square kilometers.
So, pretty big area to cover.
We have right now 320 buses.
Okay.
86% of them are fueled withcompressed natural gas.
(05:51):
The remainder are diesel, but we'll bethrough all of them and by the end of
2026, so we'll be a hundred percent CNG.
Oh, the end of next year?
Yes.
Wow.
100% CNG?
Yes.
That's awesome.
Congratulations.
Yes.
It'll, it's we will be the greenestfleet in Ontario for sure, by that time.
It's very low.
(06:11):
Like, it's very, very low.
It's particulates or whatever, right?
Yes.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And even the production,like from cradle to grave
Oh yeah.
Green process.
Yes.
It's still green.
That's interesting.
Yes.
Yeah.
So yeah, we have almost a thousandemployees that work for, in transit.
That's big time.
Yeah.
About 700 of them are operators.
(06:32):
150 are in our maintenance area.
And the remainder are ouradmin, our supervision.
Okay.
Talk about CNG a little bit more.
So is there, is there alot in the ground here?
Is that why you all chose for that?
I mean, it's local.
You can just pull it up?
I don't know that it's here.
Okay.
But, you have access to it?
We have access to it.
Hamilton is mostlyheated with natural gas.
(06:54):
Yeah.
Yeah.
So, we partnered with Enbridge,who is a natural gas provider.
Okay.
To help build our stationsthat actually fuel it.
Currently we have an outdoor, it'san outdoor fueling station just
because it's compressed natural gas.
Right.
We are building a second facilityright now down in the lower city.
(07:14):
We have a mountain in Hamilton.
We refer to it affectionatelyas the mountain.
I've been there.
I've seen that.
Yes.
Okay.
Yeah.
So we have our current facility andthe only one we operate is on the
mountain with an outdoor fueling station.
We are currently building one in thelower city with an indoor fueling station.
Wow.
The very first one in Ontario, I believe.
(07:34):
The second one in Canada.
Okay.
Yeah.
So, our employees that, you know,clean and fuel the buses will be
excited that they get to do it inside.
Yeah.
What about RNG?
Are you, are you experimenting with that?
RNG is, we've, we did,experiment once already.
We had enough brought in to fuel one bus.
So that's exciting.
We just need to continueto investigate some more.
(07:58):
It is more costly.
Renew, it's renewed
Renewable natural gas.
Yeah.
So, you know, we're gettingthe fuel from dumps, right?
Where they
Oh yeah.
The methane gases and all of that.
Oh, they burn it off or whatever.
It comes out the
Yeah.
The landfills.
Right.
And you try and reuse that as gas.
Okay.
So it's trying to get enough tofuel all of our buses, because it's,
(08:20):
that's pretty cool.
Yeah, I know.
So they capture it asit's coming off, but the
mm-hmm.
methane or whatever the gas is.
Yeah.
Yeah.
That's a great idea.
I know.
And so it's, it worksout to net zero, right?
It's carbon negative, as opposedto electric or any of the
others that are carbon neutral.
Interesting.
Yes.
I used to be a county administrator andwe ran a landfill and I remember we had
(08:43):
flares that would burn it off coming offa landfill, but I've heard about capture
mm-hmm.
Where they capture it andtry to do something with it.
That's great.
Yes.
Wow.
So you think you'regonna look into it more?
Yes, we are.
Hopefully, we'll, I mean with thenew facility and going a hundred
percent CNG, it's a great opportunity,because the volume will allow
(09:04):
us to get it at a better price.
Thanks for listening to theTransit Unplugged Podcast.
We are so glad you're here.
If you're enjoying this show, we knowyou'll love our other transit industry
programs on Transit Unplugged TV.
Paul Comfort explores the food cultureand transit systems around the globe.
You get to see everything.
You'll love this show, and everyweek we also offer up the Transit
(09:27):
Unplugged News Minute whereyou can get the latest industry
headlines in less than 60 seconds.
You can find out more attransitunplugged.com Now back to
Paul Comfort for this edition of theaward-winning Transit Unplugged podcast.
Let's talk about ridership.
I think Maureen and I talked about it lastweek on the previous podcast and how, you
(09:48):
know, ridership patterns have changed.
Ridership has generally gone down.
Some cities are back up to what theywere at in 2019, but some aren't.
And you know, a lot of people aresaying, is that really the main
metric we should be looking at?
But one thing that a lot of transitsystems are looking at, it sounds like
you all are too, is a network redesign.
So ridership patterns have changedand a lot of transit agencies
(10:09):
are still running the same busroutes they ran five years ago.
Are you changing that?
Yes, we are.
We just, recently got approval fromour council to implement what is called
HSR Next (10:19):
Moving Hamilton Forward.
It's been years of workto reshape our network.
We worked with McMaster Universityon some technical support.
We had 27,000 customer touchpoints to help ensure that we
designed it to their requirements.
(10:39):
Okay.
And we will be implementingit over the next seven years.
This,
Oh, it's a slow burn or whatever.
Yeah, it's an additional 50% in service.
You're adding more service?
Yes.
50%?
50% more service.
Holy moley!
Yes.
So,
Wow.
Transit in Hamilton isgonna grow substantially.
It's another 450 FTE
(11:01):
Wow.
That we're gonna be adding.
We gotta dig into this now.
Yes.
Yes, so it is, it's a substantial change.
We currently, we have 34routes and one on demand route.
We'll have 41 routes and six on demandroutes We're looking at, again Hamilton
is an amalgamation of many communities.
(11:22):
Okay.
And historically, the outlyingcommunities did not receive good
transit, and so that's wheremost of the investment is going.
Ah, out to the suburbs.
Out to the suburbs,
Okay.
Which is where people have movedto, that's where our growth
has, we've seen the growth.
Yeah, of course.
Yeah.
We've added business parksthough, out in those areas.
(11:43):
Okay.
And so once this grows, we willhave a network that will give anyone
access to jobs within 45 minutes.
Very nice.
So's very,
Is that like a goal youwere trying to do to re
Yes, and it's, you know,equity deserving areas, right?
The focus is there to make sure thatthey have transit that will allow
(12:06):
them to be competitive, to be inthe market for all kinds of jobs.
So you're gonna roll itout over seven years?
Yes.
Like you've got, we're gonna goto this neighborhood next year,
in the neighborhood the next year.
It's a combination
Okay.
Of we'll do one or twoneighborhoods, and also changing
the main routing at the same time.
I was gonna ask you about that.
(12:26):
Yes.
Okay.
Yes.
So that some of it will orient.
We had a typical hub and spoke, soeverything went to our downtown core
and then came back up and went out.
So now we're gonna have a hubto hub system, so people will
be able to get to places faster.
Ah, I love that.
Suburb to suburb.
Yeah.
So you don't have to go downtownand come back out in the V.
(12:46):
Right.
Dude, that's awesome.
I love that.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So
I hope you can make that stick.
Sometimes when they come back later,they're like, eh, but that's important.
Yeah.
So our focus is on thenetwork as designed, and we're
going to try not to deviate.
Yeah.
More power to you.
Yeah.
If you're gonna,
(13:07):
so the amount of subsidy fromthe city is gonna have to go up
a little bit each year, right?
Yes.
It is not just,
What's your budget now, do you know?
Not just a little bit.
It's about 127 million.
Okay.
Gross.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Interesting.
So that's really interesting.
So you have a big planning departmentthat's been working on this with outside
consultants and all that kind of stuff.
(13:27):
So we don't have a bigplanning department.
Okay.
But we have a very goodplanning department.
That's good.
We did get consultants to helpsupport how to implement in which
order do we, you know, changethe network and add the service.
Yeah.
So we had them kind of lead wholeteam where we got many other
people, sections of the city to alsoparticipate public health planning our
(13:50):
transportation area so that everyonecan see what's happening, and also
help direct when changes would happen.
So is the plan done now?
The plan is done.
Okay.
Approved?
It's approved.
Boom.
All we gotta to do now is make it happen.
Wow.
Yeah.
That's cool.
Yes, its very, very exciting.
I don't know anyone who'sincreasing bus service by 50%.
(14:11):
No.
That is something,
We just finished a 10 yearlocal transit strategy, so we've
already had eight years of growth.
We're kind of wrapping up the 10 year
Okay.
and rolling into this new one.
So the City of Hamilton hasn't beeninvesting in transit since 2015.
So, including through thepandemic, they continue to invest.
(14:32):
So We are set in a really good place.
Our council understands how importanttransit is to building the community.
Yes.
To building the city of Hamilton.
And they can see that this networkwill actually transform it.
I'm sure Maureen wassuper involved in that.
She was.
Yeah.
Oh, yes, she was.
How long was that process,
like putting this plan together?
(14:53):
So we started to do thenetwork design in 2018.
Oh,
and then the delays, right.
The pandemic and all that.
And then, the net we had it finalized.
Maureen came on board and you know, weworked really hard to create growth plan.
So we had the 10 year strategy,we had this network redesign.
(15:14):
Yeah.
You know, we need to, we can'tkeep going on two separate angles.
Right.
So, you know, put them together
Yeah.
as a growth plan.
And then HSR next.
How are you doing ridership wise, ascompared to, I hate to say it, but
two, let's just say the year 2019.
Yeah.
So we had recovered pretty well by 2024.
(15:34):
Okay.
We are seeing some slightreductions right now.
The government of Canada made somechanges to immigration, and our colleges
relied heavily on international students.
And we rely heavily on ourcolleges to fill our buses.
Mm.
So we've been, and I think it's,throughout Ontario, I've seen
(15:58):
it that there's been reductionsin riderships this year.
And, from our perspective, Hamilton'sperspective, it is truly because
of the changes in immigration.
Stuff that you can't control.
We can't control that.
Yeah.
So we are still focused on growingand going after other markets.
So our, we're looking at commuters.
(16:18):
We're trying to get to the youth becausethey are the riders of the future.
Sp we haven't lost substantial ground.
But it's a real, it'sstarting to become a struggle.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I'll be going up to the CUTA conferencein Montreal, and I just saw that the
government of, the federal governmenthas been giving, they have a new program
where they've, last couple years they'vebeen giving, I think it's $3 billion,
(16:40):
something like that, nationwide.
Do you all get some of thatmoney and is that helping you?
A new program has been announced, whichis the Canada Public Transit Fund.
Yes.
And there's baseline funding.
So every transit agency has beenpretty much guaranteed money for
the next 10 years, to support
Is that operating dollars?
It's capital dollars.
Our federal government onlysupports from a capital,
(17:03):
That's what I thought,
perspective.
But during the pandemic, they helpeda little bit in operating, right?
They, if you matched itwith provincial new dollars?
um.
No,
Not really?
No.
It was the province who
probably stepped up
that really stepped up.
Okay.
But this is new capital dollars,which will be helpful for you, right?
Yes, yes.
So it's permanent funding and it's gonnahelp us fund our replacement buses.
(17:23):
'cause we know we have thatexpenditure every year.
Yeah.
We have to, you know,
Like how many buses are yougetting a year normally?
So it depends.
This year, we're gonna be placing an orderfor 18 articulated new articulated buses.
Oh, new artics.
Okay.
That's good.
And those are replacement.
And then we have another orderfor new fleet to service HSR Next.
(17:46):
Okay.
So that's another 18 or so articulatedbuses, and then some small buses
to help with the on demand.
Gotcha.
We've got you and I and Maureen andMichael Coote from Nova are gonna
be on a panel later today here atthis Vontas Canada Users Forum.
And I'm sure the bus manufacturers loveyou if you, if you're expanding the fleet.
(18:07):
Huh.
That's amazing.
Yeah.
Yeah, it is, it is wonderful.
We're hoping that we get the order in,but the buses don't start to arrive until
after we've opened our second garage.
Oh yeah.
When will you be tryingto do that, do you know?
Um, so we are at about 90% completion.
Okay.
Now, if the second facility,it's designed so that we can
(18:27):
maintain 300 buses, it's a very,
'cause it's for the expansion?
Yes.
Okay.
It's a very, very large Facility.
We currently will be able to store 200buses, but we'll be able to expand to 300.
And they'll all be stored indoors?
They will all be stored indoors.
That's great.
Yes.
Especially the weather uphere gets cold winters.
Yeah.
Yes, it does.
So once that new garage is open, itdoes allow us to move ahead with all of
(18:51):
our additional buses and with HSR next.
That's great.
So, all right.
Let's dive into you, personal life.
What do you wanna tell meabout your personal life?
Personal life.
What do I have?
I have
Do you have a personal life now?
I do.
Yeah.
You've got this new gig as head of it.
I know it kind ofconsumes you, doesn't it?
I have a daughter who we arecurrently planning her wedding.
(19:13):
Oh, congratulations.
So, yes, she will begetting married next August.
And so that's very exciting.
And you know, 'causeshe's outta the house.
It's me.
I have all these otherinterests that I get to do.
So I've started dragon Boat Racing.
What is it?
Dragon Boat Racing.
What is that?
I've never heard of that.
It's, it is addictive.
Really?
Yeah.
(19:33):
So you're in a big, long boat.
There's 20 paddlers in the boat.
And you have a steers personand you have a drummer and
Oh, wow.
Yeah, and they're 250 meter races.
500 meters.
Is like crew, what we call inAmerica, where you people are.
The Naval Academy has, I alwayssee them out in Chesapeake Bay.
So it's not, it's similar.
Okay.
But not exactly the same.
(19:54):
Right.
You paddle one side, like they're,you're, you have a paddle partner and you
Okay.
Yeah.
It's a lot of fun.
You're out there doing that?
Oh yeah.
Wow.
It's a lot of fun.
When do you do it?
Like in the mornings or
-? No, in the evening.
Okay.
After.
Right now, we get out there and weget to watch the sunset on the bay.
Beautiful.
It's beautiful.
Yeah.
And then we paddle in the dark.
That's great exercise too, isn't it?
(20:16):
Yeah, it is.
Wow.
It's amazing.
What a neat hobby.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Having a lot of fun with that.
I betcha.
Mm-hmm.
And so somebody's booming on the drumsback there, like to keep everybody in at
the front.
Yeah, they're at the front of boat.
Okay.
Yeah.
To keep their, everyone at the same pace.
What kind of music do you listen to?
What do you like?
Oh, again, I listen to everything.
Yeah.
I do listen to everything.
My daughter is a musician, so
(20:36):
Okay.
she's always playing music andit's like, oh, I like that.
Oh, I like
Keeps you young.. Yeah.
And, but I do like jazz.
Do you?
I do like jazz.
Yes.
Yeah, I do too.
Yeah.
Yeah.
That's great.
It's, so I have a lotof that on my playlist.
Read any good books lately?
So I am a Stephen King fan.
Okay.
Mm-hmm.
So I've read all of his books.
I'm currently working on his newone.. And, enjoying every page.
(21:02):
Well, this has been greatgetting to know you, Nancy.
Yeah.
It's been wonderful.
I wish you the best.
It's an amazing system.
150 years old.
Mm-hmm.
Going all CNG.
Building a new bus barn,expanding your service by 50%.
I mean, you're in the golden era, man.
This is awesome.
This is life.
This is great, right?
Congratulations.
Thanks for being on the show today.
Thank you.
(21:25):
Thank you for listening to this episodeof Transit Unplugged, the world's
number one transit executive podcast.
I'm Julie Gates, executiveproducer of the podcast.
Many thanks to the teamthat makes this show happen.
Host and producer Paul Comfort,producer Chris O'Keeffe, editor
Patrick Emile, associate producer CyndiRaskin, and consultants Dan Meisner
(21:46):
and Jonas Woos at Bumper Transit.
Transit Unplugged is beingbrought to you by Modaxo.
Passionate about movingthe world's people.
If you would enjoy behind the scenesinsights and updates from the show sign
up for our weekly newsletter, whichhas links to can't-miss conversations
with the biggest names in mobility.
Head to transitunplugged.com and scrollto the bottom of the page to sign up.
(22:07):
Thanks for listening, and we'll catch youon the next episode of Transit Unplugged.
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The Burden
The Burden is a documentary series that takes listeners into the hidden places where justice is done (and undone). It dives deep into the lives of heroes and villains. And it focuses a spotlight on those who triumph even when the odds are against them. Season 5 - The Burden: Death & Deceit in Alliance On April Fools Day 1999, 26-year-old Yvonne Layne was found murdered in her Alliance, Ohio home. David Thorne, her ex-boyfriend and father of one of her children, was instantly a suspect. Another young man admitted to the murder, and David breathed a sigh of relief, until the confessed murderer fingered David; “He paid me to do it.” David was sentenced to life without parole. Two decades later, Pulitzer winner and podcast host, Maggie Freleng (Bone Valley Season 3: Graves County, Wrongful Conviction, Suave) launched a “live” investigation into David's conviction alongside Jason Baldwin (himself wrongfully convicted as a member of the West Memphis Three). Maggie had come to believe that the entire investigation of David was botched by the tiny local police department, or worse, covered up the real killer. Was Maggie correct? Was David’s claim of innocence credible? In Death and Deceit in Alliance, Maggie recounts the case that launched her career, and ultimately, “broke” her.” The results will shock the listener and reduce Maggie to tears and self-doubt. This is not your typical wrongful conviction story. In fact, it turns the genre on its head. It asks the question: What if our champions are foolish? Season 4 - The Burden: Get the Money and Run “Trying to murder my father, this was the thing that put me on the path.” That’s Joe Loya and that path was bank robbery. Bank, bank, bank, bank, bank. In season 4 of The Burden: Get the Money and Run, we hear from Joe who was once the most prolific bank robber in Southern California, and beyond. He used disguises, body doubles, proxies. He leaped over counters, grabbed the money and ran. Even as the FBI was closing in. It was a showdown between a daring bank robber, and a patient FBI agent. Joe was no ordinary bank robber. He was bright, articulate, charismatic, and driven by a dark rage that he summoned up at will. In seven episodes, Joe tells all: the what, the how… and the why. Including why he tried to murder his father. Season 3 - The Burden: Avenger Miriam Lewin is one of Argentina’s leading journalists today. At 19 years old, she was kidnapped off the streets of Buenos Aires for her political activism and thrown into a concentration camp. Thousands of her fellow inmates were executed, tossed alive from a cargo plane into the ocean. Miriam, along with a handful of others, will survive the camp. Then as a journalist, she will wage a decades long campaign to bring her tormentors to justice. Avenger is about one woman’s triumphant battle against unbelievable odds to survive torture, claim justice for the crimes done against her and others like her, and change the future of her country. Season 2 - The Burden: Empire on Blood Empire on Blood is set in the Bronx, NY, in the early 90s, when two young drug dealers ruled an intersection known as “The Corner on Blood.” The boss, Calvin Buari, lived large. He and a protege swore they would build an empire on blood. Then the relationship frayed and the protege accused Calvin of a double homicide which he claimed he didn’t do. But did he? Award-winning journalist Steve Fishman spent seven years to answer that question. This is the story of one man’s last chance to overturn his life sentence. He may prevail, but someone’s gotta pay. The Burden: Empire on Blood is the director’s cut of the true crime classic which reached #1 on the charts when it was first released half a dozen years ago. Season 1 - The Burden In the 1990s, Detective Louis N. Scarcella was legendary. In a city overrun by violent crime, he cracked the toughest cases and put away the worst criminals. “The Hulk” was his nickname. Then the story changed. Scarcella ran into a group of convicted murderers who all say they are innocent. They turned themselves into jailhouse-lawyers and in prison founded a lway firm. When they realized Scarcella helped put many of them away, they set their sights on taking him down. And with the help of a NY Times reporter they have a chance. For years, Scarcella insisted he did nothing wrong. But that’s all he’d say. Until we tracked Scarcella to a sauna in a Russian bathhouse, where he started to talk..and talk and talk. “The guilty have gone free,” he whispered. And then agreed to take us into the belly of the beast. Welcome to The Burden.