The Vancouver SkyTrain Executive Committee – Looks Good In A Brochure
In the UK, there is a plan to service Heathrow Airport with another rail link and one of the contenders is the London Air Rail Transit System or “LarTs”.
The Buckley family are heavily involved with LarTs and includes:
- Captain Peter Buckley – Airline Pilot
- Hugh Buckley – P Eng, MPTIC – Vancouver SkyTrain Executive Committee (more on this later)
- Marjorie Buckley – P-Eng., Bridge design specialist
- Micheal Buckley – MA, DIBA DipArch – Architect
- Tony Buckley – Communications Consultant
- Katie Buckley-Driscoll – Brochure design.
Several things intrigued old Zwei, the first being, Vancouver’s SkyTrain, which is mentioned a few times, is not light rail, though once called Advanced Light Rail Transit, fails the definition of LRT and is considered a proprietary light-metro.
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What we see in the brochure is surprisingly look alike Bombardier MK.2 Innovia cars, operating in married pairs, just like Vancouver, JFK Airport and Kuala Lumpor.
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What really caught Zwei’s attention was the The Vancouver SkyTrain Executive Committee.
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Just what is the The Vancouver SkyTrain Executive Committee?
Was it a part of TransLink or the Mayor’s Council on transit? Was it a Ministry of Transportation committee, either federal or provincial? Or, is it a add-hoc affair that looks good in a brochure.
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Well the latter seems true because after extensive research, I could not find any evidence of such a committee and the only conclusion I can make is that the The Vancouver SkyTrain Executive Committee is an add-hoc committee that looks good in a brochure to fool politicians in another country.
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The only way to try to sell SkyTrain abroad is by stealth and not the truth or facts, a very sad commentary of our rapid transit system.
This is very informative and it will be put to good use.
Why the masquerade? What is trying to be hidden?
As always, dealing with Canadian Companies is really dealing with government agents and why we tend to ignore events on your side of the pond.
Zwei should read the UK news article a little more carefully. Have you been to the UK?
That article says they want a built to a new airport rail link from Staines to nearby Heathrow which is a distance of only 9km and passes through sensitive wetlands.
The station for the light rail scheme would be close to the existing railway station in Staines-upon-Thames, with seamless and frequent connectivity. Trains will run every six minutes and take just seven minutes to reach the airport. The route would mostly run alongside the M25, using ‘brownfield’ land. Funded by private backers, the scheme is expected to cost £375m. That is less then $800 million.
The full details of the proposal will be put to the Government within the next month. The Government are expected to analyse and market test the options and report back in the autumn.
This is just an airport link. Bombardier has built many airport links using light rail like skytrain.
Zwei replies: It is not the project but the the so called SkyTrain Committee that the post was all about.
The Staines branch has been touted for a heathrow connection since the 1960’s and on a historical note, the Staines branch was use as a test bed for BR’s driverless steam train operation in the 1950’s!
@TheWanted, it works like this. I can create a group and call it, The Great Trains R Us Executive Committee, and say to the people in charge of this project that, “we think this idea of providing more rail connections to Heathrow is great and
boy do we have a rail operating technology for you! Do you want to see and hear more about it?” As long as the name doesn’t imply some connection to government run bodies and no money ever changes hands, it’s entirely legal.
It’s another thing all together to name a city as well as a copy written marketing name from a major transit operator and claim even in a rather half hearted way that, Skytrain technology is a good way to go. This particular group doesn’t state anything about it’s connections and must legally state, whom it really represents. Is it Translink staff, city of Vancouver staff or Bombardier staff? Or is it all three of them? If it is one or all of these groups, they legally have to say so, both in Canada and the UK. If it isn’t one of these three groups, they have to say that they got permission to say these things from one or all of them! If they didn’t, they can technically be sued by Translink, The City of Vancouver or Bombardier!
By the way, British Law requires groups making even a half hearted pitch about the use of a product in a government project, to be fully registered as a representative of said group and how it is connected to you (I had to be registered when I worked for a unnamed rail vehicle provider who was trying to get a British municipal government contract). All that information then becomes public knowledge.
I’m not sure about BC but in Ontario you also have to publically register your group as a professional Lobbying Group, if you plan to push professional information or advice towards any municipal government and or their agencies, during any part of a public project that involves public funds. Even if it is only advice in an advertisement or public information campaign! Then registering as a possible lobbyist becomes your safety net. If not, the municipality or agency can’t accept your services.