Liz James Gets It Right!

Liz James, who pens op-ed pieces in the North Shore news has a very good grasp of our local transit ills. Liz’s Jan. 7th article is well worth a read as she has a full grasp of the transit situation, which is more than I can say about the Vancouver Sun and many other reporters. […]

April First Comes Early In Vancouver

I just do not know whether to laugh or cry at this one. Business in Vancouver (who’s co-founder is one Peter Ladner, noted Vancouver politician) has printed the puff piece of puff pieces, regarding TransLink. In Zwei’s timid way and not wanting to get TransLink’s higher purposes persons in a tissy, I have made a […]

Transit Problems Across The Pond

The metro Vancouver region is not alone with financial problems with public transit. Buses are very expensive to operate and U.K. planners and politicians have been very reluctant to fund modern trams which have proven to mitigate the high cost of public transport. Like Metro Vancouver, the transit authorities are finding it very difficult to […]

A Light (Rail) In The Piazza

A very welcomed editorial in the Delta Optimist. Slowly, ever slowly, people are beginning to realize that modern LRT is just not a transit mode, but a transit philosophy! Here lies the difference between LRT and SkyTrain; as SkyTrain or light metro is designed to give fast service between transit hubs forcing transit customers to […]

Beijing’s Subway Needs Fare Hikes

An interesting item from China, Beijing’s metro system, despite being one of the world’s busiest, is having funding problems and fares are escalating. Beijing metro price hike ‘squeezing poor’ 7 January 2015 Despite it being one of the biggest and busiest in the world, the Beijing metro is making huge losses and the government is […]

Seattle’s “big Dig”, Is Digging The City Into a Finacial Morass

As predicted by so many, Seattle’s “Big Dig” to build an auto tunnel to replacing the decrepit stacked Alaskan Way Viaduct, has hit a pipe and stopped. It seems the entire highway tunnel under Elliot Bay, is sinking into a sinkhole created by political prestige laced with engineering hubris. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it. Instead of […]

The Broadway Subway, No Value For Money

Despite a growing number of supporters, such as the business community, the City of Vancouver; most of the regional mayors, the provincial NDP and their combined sundry of shills clamouringAi?? for a SkyTrain Broadway subway, many serious questions remain unanswered. The following op-ed commentary published by The Toronto Star questions whether the concept of building […]

Canada Line Train Catches Fire

The fire was on the Canada Line, which isn’t SkyTrain. For those who are not in the know, the SkyTrain system cars are powered by Linear Induction Motors or LIM’s and the Canada Line cars are powered by “squirrel cage” electric motors. Much of Canada Line down By DAN FUMANO, The Province December 20, 2014 […]

The GVRD’s 1978 LRT/Rail/Road Bridge – A Bridge Too Practical

In 1978, the GVRD were poised to install a three leg light rail system on the region and to cross the Fraser river a new bridge would have to be built. Demonstrating the forward thinking of the era, GVRD planners conceived a multi-use bridge for ‘rapid transit’; the mainline railways; a cycle path; and when […]

TransLink Incompetence Continues – Again Another Fail

Incompetence, thy name is TransLink. Suffice to say, if this happened in Europe and passengers were trapped in a bus for two hours because of a downed trolley line, management would have been fired the next day. All (except for Vancouver maybe) transit services that operate trolley buses or trams have a “crash crew” on […]