Lawned rights-of-ways = non-user friendly & green transit
In stark contrast to SkyTrain’s and RAV/Canada Line’s (in Richmond) ugly elevated concrete viaducts, Europe is greening their tram-lines. European transit authorities are lawning their tram routes, creating a park like atmosphere, which is further enhanced by trees, shrubbery and statuary. Tram lines, either ballast and tie on the ground or elevated on a viaduct can be an eyesore, but by ‘greening‘ the tram formationAi??Ai??and making it a linear park certainly makes new LRT lines an easier sell to local residents; making the tram-line non-user friendly. Even the German Federal Railways (DB) are experimenting with lawned rights-of-ways for ecologically sensitive areas along the railway’s mainline.
The photo shows a Grenoble tram, with a simple station, operating on a lawned rights-of-way, as it were operating in a small park. Certainly the Arbutus Corridor is a natural for lawned light-rail tracks, but also imagine if you will, lawnedAi??Ai??interurban line in Cloverdale, Langley, Abbotsford, and Chilliwack, with the Valley interurban becoming aAi??Ai??vast linear park connecting town centres. Talk about green transit!
In today’s Tyee – Hats off to Prof. Condon and UBC, they are now planning for the 21st Century!
In today’s Tyee is a very interesting item about LRT, Gateway and how monies invested (some say squandered) in the Gateway – Port Mann Bridge expansion could provide over 200 km. of LRT for Surrey, Whiterock, Langley, Coquitlam, Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge and New Westminster! Now add in the 90 km. Vancouver to Chilliwack Interurban and you have the magic 300 km. of LRT (future post) that would be an attractive alternative to the car.
For the entire article:
http://thetyee.ca/News/2009/03/25/LightRail/
Calgary’s C-Train Development & Operating Costs
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C-Train’s Development and Operating Costs |
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What is interesting is that Calgary’s C-Train operating costs in, 2006, was nearly $33 million, while SkyTrain’s annual operating costsAi??Ai??during the same period wasAi??Ai??nearly $80 million and Calgary’s light rail system carries more passengers!Ai??Ai?? The Interurban, by comparison would be far cheaper to operate on an annual basis.
World transit system list as of 2006 – from the LRTA
The following is the number or various type of transit systems around the world including those under construction, excluding airport shuttles, commuter/mainline rail, entertainment parks and funiculars. Classification always brings areas of doubt, particularly in countries such as Japan and Switzerland where clear dividing lines just do not exist.
Metro (including SkyTrain) – 146
Light RailAi??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai?? – 98
Tramways (streetcars)Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai?? – 445
Light RailwaysAi??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??- 143
Heritage TramAi??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai?? – 51
OtherAi??Ai??Ai??Ai??(incl. monorails)Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai??Ai?? – 27
Interesting to note that as of 2006, the light-rail family had 686 systems in operation.
Trondheim – A template for light-rail in the valley? It’s a cert!
| Population (2009) | |
| Ai??Ai??-Ai??Ai??Total | 168,257 |
|---|---|
| Ai??Ai??-Ai??Ai??Density | 480/km2Ai??Ai??(1,243.2/sqAi??Ai??mi) |
Trondheim, Norway boasts the northernmost tramway line in the world: the GrA?A?kallbanen, the last remaining bit of the Trondheim Tramway is an 8.8 km (5.5 mi) route (which is mostly single-track outside the inner most parts of the city; except the stretch between Breidablikk and Nordre Hoem stations) which runs from the city centre, through the ByA?A?sen district, and up to Lian, in the large recreation area Bymarka.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxG2-ffA_xw&feature=related]
Please note single track and on-street operation.
WithAi??Ai??four majorAi??Ai??urban centres, Vancouver, Langley, Abbotsford, and Chilliwack and an area population of just under 3 million, the success ofAi??Ai??a Vancouver to ChilliwackAi??Ai??interurban would be, as they say in the trade, a cert!
Trams in the countryside – where’s all the density that’s supposed to be needed for light-rail?
The following video is ofAi??Ai??the famous Stubaitalbahn Innsbruck-Fulpmes Tram, which starts in downtown Innsbruck and terminates in the mountains, servicing the small town of Fulpmes. Standard trams are used through out the journey, providing a seamless or no-transfer journey for the customer. The Stubaitalbahn Innsbruck-Fulpmes Tram is just further proof that light-rail can successfully operate on routes in the countryside, connecting urban centres. So when TransLink of Transportation Minister FalconAi??Ai?? says there isn’t enough density for light-rail on the old BCE interurban rights of way, just mention the Stubaitalbahn; theAi??Ai??Innsbruck-Fulpmes Tram.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SGa9FpGbPY&feature=PlayList&p=100E8C5DDA13F196&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=1]
Seeing is believing – Diesel LRT in the USA.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixMw5M9tt80]
The following is the New Jersey Camden “River Line, operating Diesel light rail.
April 11 – Highway 1 Day of Action
*BANNER MAKING WORKSHOPS* coming up – Abbotsford, date/time TBA (check back)
Want to help make some history?
“Rail For The Valley” and “Better Transit, Not Freeways” Present…
April 11 – HIGHWAY 1 DAY OF ACTION
Gateway to what?!
On Saturday, April 11, from 11:00am to 1:00pm, join with others across the region in hoisting banners above Highway 1 for sensible, sustainable transportation solutions… on overpasses all the way from Eagleridge Bluffs in West Vancouver, to Chilliwack!
google map of locations:
For quite some time now, people across the Fraser Valley have been speaking out, strongly and continuously, for Rail for the Valley.
The public is in near-unanimous agreement that a service is long overdue, and that we must start building a passenger rail network for the Fraser Valley TODAY. Many of us have worked tirelessly to convince our governments of this necessity. After much patient lobbying, however, it appears the only thing our provincial government is interested in south of the Fraser – is “Gateway” highway expansion projects.
The government’s current idea of “balanced infrastructure spending” for the Fraser Valley appears to be: a $3.3 billion 10-lane bridge… and Rapid buses to Abbotsford by 2030 – this is the exclusively rubber-on-road Gateway agenda.
A Gateway to what, we might ask? A Gateway to complete automobile dependency, and a gateway to no rail for the valley. While governments the world over are now making wise investments in light rail infrastructure, in BC we are building bridges, and tearing them down. Meanwhile, the Interurban rail line sits there, waiting, mostly unused.
When will we get long-overdue passenger rail service for the Fraser Valley? Commuters are supposed to cheer the temporary relief of traffic congestion on the new Port Mann bridge, while the light rail needs of the valley, and the united pleas of residents across the region, are completely ignored.
Citizens of the Fraser Valley and the Lower Mainland, the time has come to make some history!
On Saturday, April 11, from 11:00am to 1:00pm, join others across the region hoisting banners on Highway 1 overpasses, from Eagleridge Bluffs in West Vancouver, all the way out to Chilliwack.
There are many individuals and groups throughout the Lower Mainland who are opposed to our government’s singular focus on highway expansion, and are in support of sensible, sustainable transportation solutions for the Lower Mainland. You are welcome to join us on this historic Day of Action, and make this a success all the way from West Vancouver to Chilliwack! (Please forward this widely, to anyone who may be interested.)
Contact John Buker (railforthevalley@gmail.com) or David Fields (cleanairradio@gmail.com) to “adopt an overpass” near you, or join with others. Be sure to sign-up your friends and family, and even your organization and business.
Banners for the Day of Action can be made at workshops (see details below) or you can bring your own.
Check our Highway 1 Day of Action Google Map to see locations. We’ll keep it up to date and you can see which overpasses still need “adopting” –
http://maps.google.ca/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=115203212304539598492.0004649dd0df789f8924f&z=9
More details:
More banner-making workshops to be announced.
– We would like the ability to contact each location by cell phone. Please share your number with us if you have one.
– Not all overpasses along Highway 1 may be suitable for bannering. We will continue scouting locations over the coming days and if we find that your location is risky we will suggest another location.
– Contact John (railforthevalley@gmail.com) or David (cleanairradio@gmail.com) for further details.
Can trams (the interurban) operate with passenger and freight trains? They can in Germany!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsdJPaih0Fw]
To everyone who says that the interurban can’t operate on existing railways or share tracks with freight trains, this U-Tube video from Karlshrue Germany should be watched. If the Germans can do it, so can we!
Brouhaha over bridge (Abbotsford Times)
This article in the Abbotsford Times today
by Rafe Arnott
(excerpt):
Rail For The Valley spokesman John Buker said, “This is a seriously flawed project – with or without a private partner.
“It seems the government has been hypnotized by this project, and wishes to plow ahead regardless of rapidly changing circumstances.”
Buker said people in the Fraser Valley need a light rail service, citing the fact that valley taxpayers continue to fund TransLink.
“In 2013 they will be expected to pay an additional $3 toll each time they cross the Port Mann, and still there will be no light rail alternative whatsoever.”
David D. Hull, the executive director of the Abbotsford Chamber of Commerce, said last week: “Build the bloody thing. I sat [in traffic] for a 1* hours to cross on a Friday to go have a meeting with the premier and the cabinet . . . they can’t build it fast enough.”
Hull said despite the failed partnership he thinks the government is wise in proceeding.
“The project is, frankly, 20 years past due. You’re talking about a 1963 freeway and bridge system that is horribly, horribly inadequate for today’s needs.”
Hull believes the provincial government is doing a good job of balancing transportation infrastructure between rubber and steel wheels.
“These roads and bridges are not going to be built just in isolation, they’re going to be built in conjunction with transit, and transit plans and extensions of SkyTrain systems.”
Ed Fast, Conservative MP for Abbotsford, said he was hesitant to comment on a provincial project.
“We, as a federal government, have not lobbied for that particular solution. We’ve said ‘Listen, we understand the provinces are closer to the challenges, and it’s their prerogative to make those decisions.’ “
When asked whether the feds have a preference for expanding rail travel solutions over roads, Fast jumped on several federal initiatives focused on making it easier for goods and services to take advantage of existing rail lines, or to expand on them.
He said Abbotsford International Airport plays a huge role as a transportation hub of the province. “[The airport] holds one of the keys to the future of air travel in the Lower Mainland and the Fraser Valley.”
It’s really too bad that David Hull didn’t have a light rail option to travel to Vancouver for his meeting with the premier. He could have relaxed and gone over his notes, instead of being stuck in traffic…..
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