More Porkies – The Port Mann Bridge

It has been said that a picture is worth a thousands words……………………….. ……………..but this picture of a cross section of the new ten lane Port Mann Bridge says it all – there is no rail transit being planned for the bridge! Even Zweisystem, with his rudimentary knowledge of engineering knows if that a bridge is […]

Light Rail Transit, LRT or Tram-Train

Tram and train used to be two entirely different public transport systems. Tram served shorter (read: urban) distances. Train served longer (read: regional) distances. But the difference between city and region has disappeared in much of Europe. The difference between tram and regional rail is blurring as well. A new generation of light rail transit […]

Tales of Buffoonery – Rob FordA?ai??i??ai???s anti streetcar/light rail saga continues!

Mr. Ford's utter stupidity is breathtaking and the financial roller coaster ride he is taking the Toronto taxpayer on is beyond belief. This is the sort of simpleton anti tram, anti light rail planning which seems to be the rigour of right-wing politicians in North America and Europe – to hide their real agendas of increasing car use, […]

First tram-train arrives in Lyon

France: Lyon Tram-Train Railway Gazette 22 February 2011 http://www.railwaygazette.com/nc/news/single-view/view/first-tram-train-arrives-in-lyon.html The first of 24 Citadis Dualis tram-trains for the TER network west of Lyon arrived at the L’Arbresle maintenance centre on February 18, having left Alstomai??i??s assembly plant in Valenciennes two days earlier. Two more vehicles will be delivered to SNCF in Lyon during the next […]

LIGHT RAIL FIRM RELEASES INDEPENDENT ANALYSIS OF KEVIN FALCON TRANSIT STUDY

UPDATE: Media so far News1130Ai??http://www.news1130.com/news/local/article/187220–rail-group-provincial-report-biased Chilliwack TimesAi??http://www.chilliwacktimes.com/news/False+assumptions+worry+rail+expert/4325083/story.html Laila Yuile (2nd item in the post) Ai??http://lailayuile.com/2011/02/22/government-is-as-government-does/     LIGHT RAIL FIRM RELEASES INDEPENDENT ANALYSIS OF KEVIN FALCON TRANSIT STUDY   At the request of Rail For the Valley, the rail firmAi??Leewood Projects LtdAi??hasAi??provided an analysisAi??of the recent MoTI Transit Study commissioned by former Transportation MinisterAi??Kevin Falcon, […]

Now we know why SkyTrain is so expensive to operate.

The main story here is not the strike vote taken by Expo and Millennium Line workers, but the amount of workers that are needed to operate the SkyTrain mini-metro. According to the article, there are 530 CUPE members that work on the Expo and Millennium Lines, then add in senior non-union managerial staff, transit police and […]

Absurdity, Hiatus, Ignominy, Irony, Paradox and Prognosis

The Cardinal cordially welcomes Zweisystem back & offers him wishes for a speedy recovery from his recent illness; – Hurry up and get the heck out of there! Zwei, remember Mark Twainai??i??s advice `be careful when reading health books; you may die of a misprintai??i?? Ai?? With Zweisystem back in the section, continuing his mission, […]

Rail For the Valley – QUESTIONNAIRE RESPONSES FROM THE CANDIDATES

  CLICK HERE FOR THE COMPLETE QUESTIONNAIRE + RESPONSES With new leadership coming to both major political parties in B.C., Rail For the Valley found out where the candidates stand on crucial transportation issues for the rapidly growing Fraser Valley.  On January 26, a Questionnaire was distributed to all leadership candidates from both political parties. Three weeks later, […]

A city committed to tram-trains

Kassel’s tram-train system has transformed public transport in the region. With other cities starting to take an interest in the concept, it is no wonder people from around the world are making the journey to central Germany. Report from the Light Rail Transit Association [LRTA] published in the January 2010 edition of Tramways & Urban […]

World Tramway patronage statistics

At grade tramway system statistics. Passenger patronage, in excess of 100 million boardings per annum Updated for 2010 Ai??Ai??St Petersburg, Russia: 476 million Budapest, Hungary: 364 million Prague, Czech Republic: 350 million Ai??Warsaw, Poland: 270 million Moscow, Russia: 251 million Vienna, Austria: 240 million Zagreb, Croatia: 214 million Zurich, Switzerland: 199 million Yekaterinburg, Russia: 180 […]