“It’s Kind Of Like Building A Subway Station On King For A Fraction Of The Cost.”

As Toronto’s Kings street streetcar reinvents itself as LRT, good things happen.

But, as always with something new, people will complain, especially some restaurant owners who no longer can park their cars in front of their places of business.

If public transit is to work, it must be given priority over other transportation modes and unfortunately, parking.

Light rail, when built properly gives metro style servcie at a fraction of the cost.

Streetcar travel times continue to improve as pilot goes on, city says

ByAi??Kate McGillivray ,Ai??CBC NewsAi??Posted: Feb 16, 2018 4:04 PM ETAi??Last Updated: Feb 16, 2018 4:04 PM ET

Horgan’s Great Blunder, The Pattullo Bridge Affair – A Complete Lack of Foresight

Foresight:Ai??The ability to predict what will happen or be needed in the future.

The announcement for the Pattullo Bridge replacement, by Premier Horgan, displayed a complete lack of foresight for transportation needs in Metro Vancouver.

The key to improving regional mobility in Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley is a new railway bridge crossing the Fraser River, as the current decrepit, single track rail bridge crossing the river has long needed replacing.

The GVRD knew this back in the 70’s but with the forcing of the SkyTrain proprietary light-metro on the GVRD, all commonsense planning departed the region.

SkyTrain is far too expensive to build much past Surrey and lacks the flexibility to achieve much in reducing gridlock, which leaves the region withAi?? “Hobson’s Choice” (a choice of taking what is available or nothing at all) of using existing railways or no improvement in regional transit.

The current SkyTrain Lobby fail to understand this and presently they they are lost in a transit ennui, with visions of SkyTrain everywhere.

Sadly, they seem to have the Premier’s ear.

For Premier Horgan, an announcement of a combined road/rail bridge would have been a winner, both by providing a much needed replacement for the Pattullo Bridge and improving rail access across the Fraser River with an eye on future transit needs.

As it stands, Premier Horgan and the NDP’s lack of foresight has just given the Fraser Valley a massive slap across the face and no chance of wooing the Fraser Valley voter in future elections.

A Massive Conflict of Interest

Oh, what tangled webs we weave……..

The big news today is not the forthcoming announcement by the Premier and Minister of Transportation replacing the aged and decrepit Pattullo Bridge, with a new $1.6 billion bridge, rather it is revelation that so-called due diligence panels of handpicked experts who were hired to review TransLinkai??i??s business cases.

Included in the due diligence panels was a former SNC Lavalin Executive, yet SNC Lavalin hold the Engineering Patents for the ART Innovia proprietary light-metro system! In fact the due diligence panel, to review the TransLink business case for both the Broadway subway and Surrey’s LRT were filled with SkyTrain and light-metro types.

Even more disturbing, no one with any expertise with modern LRT, was on the panel.

As for TransLink’s Business Cases for transit projects, they are a joke, the Evergreen Line’s business case was easily shredded by transit expert Gerald Fox and the business case for the Canada Line allowed a subway to be built with just more than half the capacity needed to justify a subway!

A missive conflict of interest now hangs over both rail transit projects, abetted by Premier Horgan and Minister of Transportation Claire Travena.

The fix is in and with the Broadway Subway and the Surrey LRT, as the recommendations from the due diligence panels were censored from the briefing notes.

As Gerald Fox observed:

So I went back and read the alleged ai???Business Caseai??? (BC) report in a little more detail. I found several instances where the analysis had made assumptions that were inaccurate, or had been manipulated to make the case for SkyTrain. If the underlying assumptions are inaccurate, the conclusions may be so too.

And concluded:

It is interesting how TransLink has used this cunning method of manipulating analysis to justify SkyTrain in corridor after corridor, and has thus succeeded in keeping its proprietary rail system expanding.

Common sense would derail both projects immediately, but building transit was never about common sense, it was and is by political diktat from the Premier’s Office; to build what the premier wants built. What the premier wants built is the political deal he or she cut with SNC Lavalin and Bombardier Inc. the patent holders of the proprietary ALRT/ART Innovia light-metro system.

This is the stuff how FastFerry fiascos begin!

Exclusive: A new Pattullo Bridge for $1.6B, but Broadway Subway and Surrey LRT costs remain secret

Bob Mackin

The cost of the new Pattullo Bridge is pegged at $1.6 billion, according to a mid-October briefing note to the NDP minister responsible for TransLink.

Premier John Horgan, Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Claire Trevena and Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Selina Robinson will green light the New Westminster-to-Surrey spanner on Feb. 16. They are expected to announce the government, not TransLink, will be responsible for replacing the decaying 80-year-old bridge. A source close to the project also told theBreaker that the contract to build the new bridge is expected to include a community benefits clause that may require, among other things, a quota of aboriginal apprentices.

Aritstai??i??s rendering of the new Pattullo Bridge (TransLink)

The briefing note, obtained by theBreaker under the freedom of information law, was written after the government received TransLinkai??i??s business case for the new four-lane bridge, which would be expandable to six lanes. Jan. 1, 2023 would be the target for opening.

ai???The Mayorsai??i?? Vision indicated that the bridge replacement would cost approximately $980 million,ai??? said the briefing note to Robinson. ai???TransLink currently estimates the Pattullo Bridge replacement would cost approximately $1.6 billion.ai???

The project is not eligible for funding from the Public Transit Infrastructure Fund, but TransLink was exploring options with the federal infrastructure bank and Trade Transportation Corridor Initiative. Horgan and Trevena threw TransLink a curveball last summer when they kept a campaign promise and abolished tolls on the Port Mann and Golden Ears bridges.

ai???TransLink is also looking for a subsidy to replace the tolls that were eliminated Sept. 1,ai??? said the briefing note. ai???The transit authority had been counting on tolls to pay for up to two-thirds of the cost of the new Pattullo, which was estimated at about $1 billion in 2014. The amount of the subsidy has not been determined.ai???

Late last year, Burnaby Mayor Derek Corrigan was voted to replace Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson as chair of the Mayorsai??i?? Council and a member of the TransLink board of directors. Corrigan suggested the Pattullo be the top priority, before TransLink builds the Broadway subway or Surrey light rail transit.

The cost estimates for the two rail projects were censored from the documents provided to theBreaker. However, one of the briefing notes was created Dec. 14 and quotes a Dec. 13 story by theBreaker about the ongoing cost secrecy.

Under the heading ai???Escalating Costs,ai??? an aide to Robinson summarized theBreaker story that was headlinedAi?? ai???Mayors got secret update last year on TransLink mega project costs, but kept public in the dark,ai???

ai???The story is based on internal documents released through FOI that suggest the estimated costs for the megaprojects have risen significantly. Final costs will not be determined until TransLink submits its final business cases and will be shared publicly when they are approved (estimated late February).ai???

In 2014, the Surrey project was estimated at $2.21 billion and Broadway $1.98 billion. TransLink warned that costs have increased due to rising costs of property, labour, materials and equipment.

A briefing note said that $300,000 is being spent on so-called due diligence panels of handpicked experts who were hired to review TransLinkai??i??s business cases. The panels were struck in January 2017 to review what is officially called the Surrey L Line and the Millennium Line Broadway Extension.

ai???The focus of each panel was to review current alignment, geotechnical considerations, design and methods of construction; property acquisition; costs estimates; and formation and content of business case in relation to Treasury Board expectations,ai??? the briefing note said.

Former SNC-Lavalin executive vice-president James Burke and ex-B.C. Deputy Finance Minister Peter Milburn are on both panels. Engineer Les Elliott is the third member of the Surrey panel, while veteran SkyTrain construction engineer and transit tunnelling specialist Jeff Hewitt are on the Broadway panel.

Their recommendations were censored from the briefing notes.

GCP-2017-74550-Mackin.pdf by BobMackin on Scribd

Metro Madness – Does TransLink Understand The Issue Of Subway Maintenance?

Subway maintenance costs are an issue that TransLink and the regional mayors have not even considered.

As subways age, they cost a lot to maintain. The TTC has put the cost just to operate and maintain 5 km of subway, at $40 million annually and just gives a hint of maintenance costs to come for TransLink.

If costs are deferred, like many transit operators do, the problems are compounded until so bad that the subway line has to be closed down altogether for repairs.

Vancouver already has the Canada Line subway, but as it ages, much money must be spent to maintain it, but in the future, how will those costs affect the rest of the transit system.

The Broadway subway, if built, will be another maintenance time-bomb for TransLink, yet subway maintenance costs have been completely ignored by all.

Memo to John Horgan; Claire Travena; and David Eby; not only is the Broadway subway a “FastFerry” project on steroids, the huge maintenance costs of this “White Elephant” project will haunt the NDP forever!

 

Md. shuts down entire subway system for emergency repairs

Posted on February 12, 2018

As sections of the Metro SubwayLink are repaired and made available for use, MDOT MTA will evaluate a partial reopening of the system.

MDOT/MTA

Anatomy of a Rail System Shutdown, Reconstruction ai???Safety is our top priority,ai??? said Quinn. ai???With bus bridges, we will be able to do the necessary rail repairs to reopen our system as quickly as possible while still providing our customers with critical access to work, school, medical facilities, and leisure activities.ai??? “On behalf of our citizens who rely daily on the Metro SubwayLink system for their transport needs, I want to express our gratitude to the Hogan Administration for this emergency funding we requested to provide dedicated buses that will travel the Metro SubwayLink route,ai??? said Mayor Catherine E. Pugh. ai???It is important that we do everything possible to mitigate the inconvenience of prolonged disruption of the Metro SubwayLink service.ai??? Category: Latest News, News Articles, Opinion, Reference Material / Education, SkyTrain and the Canada Line, zweisystem · Tags: Broadway subway, Canada Line, NDP, subway, Vancouver Civic Maturity Comes With Light Rail Posted by zweisystem on February 12, 2018 · 3 Comments  Light Rail, brings with it, civic maturity. This civic maturity puts the transit customers before political friends; it puts financial reality ahead of political prestige; it puts the public interest as a whole, ahead of car drivers and even business owners. Light rail focuses on good transit and good planning, which in the future will make the city vibrant and livable. Metro Vancouver sees no such transit maturity at all. The anti-LRT crowd, offer cliched “fake news” and “alternative facts” about modern light rail ad naseum, but fail to mention that no one actually wants to build with their pet Innovia SkyTrain and/or the classic white elephant, Canada Line, also lack the maturity to understand modern public transit philosophy. Metro Vancouver builds transit because of political deals made by the Premier of the day and executed by a neutered TransLink, for the benefit of Bombardier Inc., SNC Lavalin, land developers and land speculators. In Metro Vancouver, the transit customer does not count as transit is designed to move money, not people. In Toronto, with the introduction of new low-floor modular trams, comes the next step of upgrading the heritage streetcar network to a 21st century light-rail standard and already, ridership has increased, as transit customers like the changes. Of course there will be problems and of course some businesses will find the changes challenging. Car drivers are finding out that they also must give way to better transit, a lesson that is unheard of in Vancouver, where car drivers are forced off roads, without any noticeable improvement in transit at all! The result, gridlock reigns in Metro Vancouver. As for TransLink, their puerile “rah-rah” media friendly news releases claims are just that, claims, as evidence point to the opposite, people are avoiding transit. The continued abysmal planning for SkyTrain; the continued planning for ‘rapid transit’ on routes that do not have the traffic flows to support it, shows a genuine immaturity with transit planning. TransLink, the City of Vancouver and the metro Vancouver mayors have shown no signs of maturity, in fact they treat transit like a child’s Christmas train set, very expensive for what it does and then lose interest soon after ‘daddy’ sets it up Christmas Day! Memo to metro mayors: Grow up and be adults;Ai?? do what is right and not what your political bagmen tell you to do. After timid rollout, Toronto’s King Street project enters pivotal phase City planners dreamed of transforming the crucial roadway in the core, but some ideas were later shelved for being too radical Oliver Moore Published 2 days ago Updated 2 days ago When the King Street pilot was first envisioned, it was about more than speeding up streetcars. City planners dreamed of transforming the crucial roadway, discouraging drivers in favour of transit and adding dynamic public space that would reshape theAi??corridor. Instead, the city “shelved” broader plans to improve the look and feel of King Street, nervous that being too radical would bring political and public opposition. The project was launched as a transit initiative that did little to improve what planners call the publicAi??realm. The city then found itself on the defensive as business opposition mounted, forcing staff and politicians to scramble for ways to head off critics and add elements that would bring life to theAi??street. Observers say the response ai??i?? including escalating offers of free parking and a restaurant promotion announced, then discarded ai??i?? could have been avoided if the city had started with more comprehensiveAi??changes. “There are components of the public-realm plan that were sort of shelved, and very clearly those components of the public-realm plan are a critical part of the success,” said former chief planner Jennifer Keesmaat, who left the role two months before the projectAi??launched. “I think that there was some fear about taking the pilot too far too quickly, but it’s kind of like one of those situations where you can’t just dip your toe in the water. You’re either in the water or you’re out of the water, but you can’t be halfwayAi??in.” In November, the city eliminated street parking and prohibited continuous vehicle traffic on King Street from Bathurst to Jarvis. Transit ridership is up, but some businesses complain of big drops in customers. Now, after three months, the year-long project is entering a pivotalAi??period. The worst of winter should end soon, likely bringing more people outside to use the street. The financial district’s business improvement area (BIA) has been surveying its members before it takes a public position on the pilot. A coalition of civic and residents’ groups has begun promoting KingAi??Street. The popular musical Come From Away returns to a King Street theatre next week, and is expected to draw thousands. Around the same time, the city is planning to release credit card sales data that will help show whether businesses are, in fact,Ai??suffering. The Globe and Mail canvassed more than 140 businesses throughout the pilot area and the responses did not suggest the street is deserted, as some opponents insist. But impacts vary widely. While most respondents said business dropped after the pilot launched, around one-third reported it being flat orAi??improved. For the rest of the story…… Category: News Articles, Opinion, Politics, Reference Material / Education, zweisystem · Tags: Broadway light rail, Broadway streetcar, infrastructure, King Street tram, light rail, Patrick Condon, Surrey, Totonto, tram, trams, transit, Translink, TTC, Vancouver Dublin’s LUAS 55 Metre Tram Posted by zweisystem on February 8, 2018 · 1 Comment  It has been said that longer trams are cheaper to operate than a coupled set and with the Dublin LUAS 55 metre long trams, sets a new standard in the British Isles and Eire. Whether the ancient streets and bridges can handle the beasts is another issue altogether. Teething problems abound, but a quick comparison with the Canada Line proves interesting. The new trams will increase capacity on heavily used routes to over 7,600 persons per hour per direction, with the trams capacity of 380 persons at 3 minute headway’s. The best, the much more expensive Canada Line can manage to do is 6,520 pphpd in the peak hour at 3 minute headway’s and unlike the LUAS LRT, one cannot just add another body module on the non articulated metro cars on the Canada Line! Imagine one traveling down Broadway…….. Category: Latest News, News Articles, Opinion, Politics, Reference Material / Education, zweisystem · Tags: Broadway light rail, C-train, LRT, LUAS, Patrick Condon, streetcars, tram, trams, transit, Translink Election Season Is Near – Abbotsford Mayor Proposes LRT For The Fraser Valley Posted by zweisystem on February 7, 2018 · 6 Comments  In BC, when election time nears, politicians are looking for issues to garner votes. In the Fraser Valley, traffic chaos grows with population, with the obvious results – gridlock. Rail for the Valley has an affordable plan, yet it fell on deaf ears and still does. The key word is “affordable” because if a plan is affordable it is doable and BC politicians do not like that at all, as they prefer to sit moribund in their taxpayer paid offices and council chambers, traveling to and fro on the taxpayers dime and do absolutely as little as possible, except at election time! The old saw about LRT in the median of Highway 1, is being used as an election gimmick, but the promoters of the scheme forget one important fact, the cost and by going “greenfield’s” construction is hugely expensive proposition, with costs almost on the same scale as SkyTrain light-metro construction. The LRT in the median plan also means it will be very hard to utilize and the vast majority of customers will have to transfer at least two times to use it. Estimated cost for a 65 km Vancouver to Abbotsford Calgary style LRT @ at a very conservative $100 million/km to build – $6.5 billion! The Rail for the Valley plan is the superior plan because it is affordable and services far more destinations for transit customers. Today’s cost for a 130 km Vancouver to Chilliwack diesel LRT or light DMU,Ai?? service (a train every 60 minutes each direction), serving, downtown Chilliwack, Sardis, Huntington (for the Abbotsford Airport), Abbotsford, Langley. Cloverdale, North Delta and Vancouver with many destinations within easy walking distance of the line, is under $1 billion. The real reason is revealed for the Abbotsford Mayor’s LRT pitchAi?? is; “At the very least, Braun said congestion is bad enough to the valley that the highway should be widened.” The mayor of Abbotsford as shown no “great conversion on the road to Damascus” for LRT, rather a pitch to get Hwy. 1 widened, so more traffic can use it, creating even more congestion and gridlock. The Alstom RegioTram, would make for an excellent transit servcie for a Vancouver to Chilliwack rail servcie. Light rail to the Fraser Valley? Abbotsford mayor says itai??i??s not ai???pie in the skyai??i?? By Janet Brown Senior Reporter Ai??CKNW Abbotsfordai??i??s mayor is floating the idea of building light rail transit (LRT) down the middle of Highway 1 between Surrey and the Fraser Valley to alleviate congestion. ai???No I donai??i??t think itai??i??s pie in the sky, I said that 20 years ago,ai??? Henry Braun told Global News. Braun says traffic is so bad on the stretch of highway between the two areas that it is actually faster to travel using the back roads. ai???Itai??i??s taken me as long as two hours to get from [Abbotsford] city hall to downtown Vancouver.ai??? With the region talking transit mega projects, Braun is now arguing his city should be included. Heai??i??s proposing the LRT line be constructed using the space between east and westbound lanes. ai???The median should be an LRT surface-based transit system like Calgary and Edmonton,ai??? Braun said. Braun is not the first person to float the idea of a light rail service to the Fraser Valley. Transit advocates have previously floated the idea of reviving the old BC Electric Railway Interurban line, which ran from New Westminster to Chilliwack until the 1950s. Braun didnai??i??t propose how the line would be funded, or say whether he thought it should be administered by TransLink or BC Transit. But he said while itai??i??s clear that the federal governmentai??i??s transit priority is on the major urban centres, itai??i??s time to get the same discussion going on at the local level. At the very least, Braun said congestion is bad enough to the valley that the highway should be widened. ai???The freeway was built when I was 14 years old,ai??? Braun said. ai???Iai??i??m now 67 and the freeway is still the same.ai??? Category: Latest News, News Articles, Rail for the Valley, Reference Material / Education, TramTrain, zweisystem · Tags: Abbotsford, Chilliwack, cost per km, demonstration project, Diesel LRT, economic stimulus, Fraser River rail bridge, Fraser Valley, infrastructure, Interurban, Langley, light rail, NDP, passenger rail, rail for the valley, Surrey, track-sharing, tram, trams, tramtrain, transit, Translink, Vancouver SkyTrain Ka-Put Again Posted by zweisystem on February 6, 2018 · 8 Comments  For a proprietary transit system that is supposed to have a remarkable operational reliability, it is breaking down an awful lot lately. Could it be that SkyTrain is not as reliable as certain people would have us think? Sadly, SkyTrain is demonstrating the perils of an aging proprietary railway. Stalled train creates SkyTrain delays during afternoon rush by Hana Mae Nassar Posted Feb 5, 2018 5:02 pm PST Last Updated Feb 5, 2018 VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) ai??i?? A big headache for those trying to take the SkyTrain this afternoon. Expo Line SkyTrain service has been stopped between Waterfront and Commercial-Broadway St Stations because of a stalled train by Main Street-Science World. According to TransLink, a bus bridge has being set up to help commuters, but all downtown Vancouver stations are being closed to help alleviate congestion. Canada Line and Millennium Line service is unaffected. Transit Police officers and additional staff have been called in and are on the platforms to help manage crowds during during the afternoon rush.   Update 5:36 pm VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) ai??i?? Service is slowly resuming on the Expo Line SkyTrain after a stalled train shut down operations between Waterfront and Commercial-Broadway stations this afternoon. Stations are still dealing with crowds of people, and TransLink is asking for patience. Expo Line SkyTrain service had been stopped between Waterfront and Commercial-Broadway St Stations because of a stalled train by Main Street-Science World. A bus bridge had been set up to help commuters, and all downtown Vancouver stations were closed toAi??help alleviate congestion. Category: Latest News, News Articles, Reference Material / Education, SkyTrain and the Canada Line · Tags: Expo Line, skytrain, Surrey, transit, Translink, UBC SkyTrain How SkyTrain Zealots Want To Crush Rational Transit Thinking Posted by zweisystem on February 4, 2018 · 7 Comments  The End of the Line for SkyTrain? Recent articles, by the SkyTrain Lobby are nothing more than the old adage; “Repeat a lie often enough and the people will come around to believing it.” What we call SkyTrain, a combination of three railways of which one is not compatible in operation with the other two, are just simply railways. To try to give the two unconventional railways some sort of perceived advantage, they are powered by Linear Induction Motors or LIM’s and they are fully automatic (driverless). The problem is, the two railways, built as light-metro’s cost much more to build, more to operate and more to maintain than conventional railways. Sadly for the two unconventional railways, they became museum pieces because there were cheaper and just as good alternatives. Why spend more for one railway, when the alternative was cheaper and just as good or better? And here lies the problem for the SkyTrain Lobby, their much cherished ALRT/ART proprietary rapid transit system. So let us examine what we call SkyTrain, again. Only seven such systems built. Six name changes in 40 years, starting with; Intermediate Capacity Transit System (ICTS); Advanced Light Rail Transit System (ALRT); Advanced Light Rapid Transit System (ALRT), Automatic Light Metro (ALM), Advanced Rapid Transit (ART) and now Innovia 100, 200,Ai?? 300 series. No sales in the past decade. Designed to be elevated to mitigate the high cost of subway construction. Limited capacity. Patents owned by Bombardier Inc. and SNC Lavalin. Maintenance intensive. hugely expensive constriction costs. Higher maintenance and operation costs, due to small cars and ‘4-rail’ operation. In comparison, the Expo line cot about 40% more to operate than the Calgary C-Train (both having about the same length at the time), with the C-Train carrying more passengers. Only one supplier. Not compatible in operation with the Canada Line, which though is called SkyTrain, is not. Not compatible in operation with any other transit system. Most studied of the light-metro family, with unprecedented exposure during Expo 86, yet no buyers in North America, during an era of unprecedented investment in light rail. Note, both the Detroit ICTS and the JFK/Port Authority were private deals between the operator and the UTDC/Bombardier, with the former used as a single track 4.5 km ‘people mover’ and an airport ‘people mover’ at JFK and parking lots and a subway station and are not used for urban transport. Until there is honest debate about transit, instead of their constant harangue of SkyTrain myth and wishful thinking, congestion and gridlock will continue unabated in metro Vancouver, until the region and metro mayors enter into rational transit thinking. Category: Opinion, Reference Material / Education, SkyTrain and the Canada Line, zweisystem · Tags: Langley, light metro, skytrain, Surrey, transit, Translink, UBC, UBC SkyTrain, Vancouver Has Metro Vancouver Past The Point of No Return With Transit Planning? Posted by zweisystem on January 28, 2018 · 2 Comments    Metro Vancouver is approaching a critical decision on transit, but has the region already past the “point of no return” with regional transit? The Metro Vancouver region has been able to afford one light-metro line every decade; the 80’s saw the the Expo Line; the late 90’s the Millennium Line; the 2000’nds the Canada line and the 20 teens the Evergreen Line. We are ready for one more light metro line in the 2020’s. But is it enough to offer an attractive alternative to the car? By comparison, for the same money invested, the region could have had a tram/light rail network three times as large. Are the huge investments made (over $10 million to date) for light metro and future huge investments in the next decades to come, almost $10 billion for a subway and rebuilding the Expo/Millennium and Canada Lines to allow higher capacity, be cost effective? Has the past decisions to not build with modern light rail, hamstrung sensible transit planning? Those who want SkyTrain and subways, ignore the huge costs associated with the mode remain blind to the fact that transit to date has not reduced congestion. The tried and true practice of inflating light rail’s costs to match SkyTrain, just makes TransLink look silly internationally. If we continue doing the same thing, over and over again, ever hoping for different results, currently a problem endemic with regional transit planning, will the region be just wasting money on just more bad transit decisions? Has the region already past the point of no return for good transit planning? Has the region now, forever ignoring the need for a user friendly regional public transit servcie and will continue with its present “Balkanization” of transit planning, where some regions get multi billion dollar transit solutions, leaving other regions wanting, to suit political needs? Is “Road pricing” or “Congestion Charging”, the last desperate attempt to hide current transit planning malpractice and/or malfeasance from the public? And now just in; has ICBC’s massive deficit which will lead to huge insurance increases, in part, the result of TransLink’s utterly poor transit planning, by not providing an attractive alternative to the car?   Who is in charge of the clattering TransLink train? SkyTrain creaks, and the buses strain. The planning is hot, and decisions are near, And ignorance hath deadened the plannerai??i??s ear: And congestion increases, but solutions in vain. Political incompetence is in charge of the clattering TransLink train! With apologies to Edwin James Milliken   Category: Opinion, Politics, zweisystem · Tags: Langley, light metro, light rail, LRT, Metro Vancouver, NDP, Pattullo bridge, rail for the valley, skytrain, Surrey, transit, Translink, UBC, UBC SkyTrain, Vancouver « Previous Page Next Page » Disclaimer: Opinions expressed on the blog are the opinions of the writers, and are not official positions of Rail For the Valley. We welcome submissions from the community. If you would like to submit an article for consideration, please contact us at info@railforthevalley.com. Post Catagories: Cardinal Fang Events John Buker John Vissers Latest News Letters to the Editor News Articles Opinion Politics Puff Piece Rail for the Valley Reference Material / Education Repost SkyTrain and the Canada Line Surrey LRT TramTrain Uncategorized zweisystem Subsribe to Our Updates! 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