TransLink’s Compass Card Boondoggle Revisited

Well, here we go again, new numbers from TransLink clearly shows that the much touted Compass Card is $23 million over budget and Cubit Industries will be paid $12 million annually to operated the system – more money than was thought lost through fare evasion! So, let’s look at more TransLink expenditures. *TransLink CEO Ian […]

Stop Press – SkyTrain Fizzles Again – UPDATED

Once again, SkyTrain breaks down and during rush hour too! This nonsense of having only one metro line to service downtown Vancouver, demonstrates just how bad TransLink’s planning is – one breakdown and the system fizzles. From CKNW Radio News http://www.cknw.com/2013/10/22/skytrain-problem/ Here is TransLinkai??i??s statement: Ai??Due to a problem between Main and Broadway Station on […]

The Real Costs of Subways – Is The Provincial Government Listening?

There is a misconception by Vancouver politicians and engineers; TransLink’s planners and bureaucrats; Ministry of Transportation bureaucrats; and The Minister of Transportation and the Premier, that subways are rather cheap to build. TransLink has fortified this perception by deliberately over-engineering light rail to sell the idea that the cost of at-grade and or on-street light […]

GetOnBoard Want’s Valley Tax Money

The pro transit group GetOnBoard BC (well Rail for the Valley is a pro transit group as well) wants a yes vote in the upcoming TransLink referendum, but they seem to be a little naive about public transit in general and firmly believe that the more money you throw at TransLink, the better it will […]

Does the Provincial government Want TransLink To Fail?

Like a death dirge, the TransLink referendum drags on and on, yet the provincial Premier is steadfast on the question of a funding referendum for TransLink. The regional mayors are more and more making fools of themselves wanting one of many tax proposals to fund the TransLink behemoth, yet abhor a “none of the above” […]

Is The Canada Line A Classic White Elephant?

From Wiki: A white elephant is an idiom for a valuable but burdensome possession of which its owner cannot dispose and whose cost (particularly cost of upkeep) is out of proportion to its usefulness or worth. The term derives from the story that the kings of Siam (now Thailand) were accustomed to make a present […]

A comparison of Canadian Rail Transit Systems

Please note station platform lengths, SkyTrain and the Canada Line’s station platforms, as well as the vehicles are smaller than most, which means TransLink’s claimed high capacity for Metro Vancouver’s rail system maybe more of a fairy tale than reality. Pixie dust planning and operation seems to be TransLink’s forte.  

A Letter To South Fraser Mayors And Councils

A letter sent this week to South Fraser mayors and councils and to the media. One wonders how TransLink and its surrogates will respond? Zwei The following email was sent out to South Fraser mayors and councils, warning of Translink hyperbole in overstating the success of SkyTrain and the Canada Line. This letter contains a […]

Debunking the SkyTrain Myth – A Repost From 2009

Debunking the SkyTrain myth. Rail for the Valley answers the UBC SkyTrain Lobby! With updates. First posted by zweisystem on Thursday, April 23, 2009 It was brought to Zweisystemai??i??s attention yesterday that a blog site was established by the UBC SkyTrain Lobby, critiquing modern LRT.Ai?? Zweisystem responded,Ai?? posting corrections for the many myths, half truths […]

Another “Malcolm Letter”, As TransLink Grinds Its Teeth.

The letter in the Surrey Leader says it all………….. Sales tax wonai??i??t resolve transit ills Published: August 28, 2013 The notion that a $0.5-per-cent sales tax increase will solve TransLinkai??i??s financial ills is naive in the extreme; spending more money on unsustainable transit projects will only exacerbate TransLinkai??i??s money woes. TransLink faces many problems, including […]