What is a “Gadgetbahn”

Interesting video and informative. Also the comment about the Hyperloop should also be taken note of. One quibble, I would not call “monorail” a gadgetbahn, rather it is a “niche” transit mode, operating in environments that would be too expensive or awkward for a railway. True monorails are quite rare (Germany’s famous Schwebebahn is a […]

The MetroTown Express?

I have to ask, why an express bus to MetroTown? It is puzzling that TransLink would waste valuable money on an express bus to, transit wise, nowhere. It’s like the Broadway subway stopping at Arbutus and it just does not make sense. The 99-B “Rapid” (Express Bus) is successful because it largely serves UBC and […]

De-spinning The Spin – The Broadway Subway

First published on July 8, 2022 under the title “The $1.47 Billion Solution”, recent comments about the Broadway subway need clarifying. The following quote sums up the capacity issue for the Millennium Line (Broadway subway). When the programme is fully implemented, the Expo Line will be able to accommodate 17,500 passengers per hour per direction, […]

Karma

karma /ˈkɑːmə/ noun The following is from the LRPPro: Alstom has a problem on their hands with their Citadis Spirits LRV’s and they are not going to get into the LRT market in NA over it. They are no longer building the Flexity after TTC order and Kitchener will need 18 of the for the next […]

Slander

The continued debate about the trains that operate on the Expo and Millennium Lines continues. The SkyTrain for Surrey folks have crossed the line on this issue and Rail for the Valley call for a retraction of their recent News Release or face possible legal action. The claim that Rail for the Valley and others […]

Will The Broadway Subway Solve Transit Issues?

In Metro Vancouver, The SkyTrain light metro system has had an interesting issue, no noticeable modal shift from car to train. Yes, the light metro system carries a lot of customers but the vast majority have transferred from bus to light-metro. The bus system has been so designed to feed every bus customer onto the […]

SkyTrain Was So Successful No One Wanted One!

Interesting article in the Hive, which is basically the mouthpiece for TransLink. The problem with SkyTrain is that it was a politcal decision and now with almost 45 years of deliberate misinformation and pro SkyTrain propaganda, the local media, especially with lazier younger reporters and journalists just do not do any research and print what […]

Dutch Regional Railways – A Model For The E&N?

Single track stub terminal station at Leeuwarden. (Harlingen–Nieuweschans Railway) Scheemda Station. Please note, cyclists use bicycles to commute to the station to take the train! (Harlingen–Nieuweschans Railway) A single stub terminal station at Stavoren. (Leeuwarden–Stavoren Railway) Franeker Station. Simple platform station with minimal amenities. (Harlingen–Nieuweschans Railway)

Toronto’s Transit Failures – Or Not Listening To The Experts!

The problem in Canada, with “rail” transit, especially light rail (LRT) is that politcans get involved and when politicians get involved, costs rise dramatically. Unlike Europe, Canadian University’s do not offer degrees in Urban Transport and the vast majority of Engineers and Planners who work on transit projects have little knowledge of what “light rail” […]

YouTube Does Not, A Transit Expert, Make

I was sent a following link The Transit “Experts” That Derail Transit. (click here) It is by a fairly well known YouTube type who has ‘taken the wrong tack’, but he has a large following. It is obvious that the author has a preference for metros and a disdain for light rail and in fact […]