And now, here is the real story ~ Lies, damned lies and statistics!

For a long time now, TransLink’s spin doctors have been crying a woeful story that SkyTrain is “jammed packed” and needs more cars. With ridership numbers increasing at a fantastic rate on the metro, Gordon Campbell’s cronies on theAi??Ai??TransLink Board approved the purchase of more SkyTrain cars. As well, TransLink and ‘Metro’ region are trying […]

Pattullo Bridge will be closed for at least one month! Bring on the Interurban!

If there was a compelling argument for the proposed interurban service to connect to downtown Vancouver, here it is. Those who want the interurban service to deadhead into Scott Road Station are extremely short sighted and certainly fail to understand the driving mechanisms in attracting ridership – the seamless or no transfer journey. For the […]

Rail for the Valley petition

Hi everyone, If you want interurban light rail for the Fraser Valley, an online petition you can sign…… http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/rail-for-the-valley The comments people are leaving are great to read as well. 🙂 pass this on to others who might be interested 🙂

Federal infrastructure spending: speak out

The Black Press newspaper chain is asking the question, “What is the number one project in your community that you feel would be most effective in helping improve local economic and social conditions?” Respond in 75 words or less, by either leaving a comment on one of their websites, or writing a Letter to the […]

All highways and no rail

There’ll be an “announcement about the South Fraser Perimeter Road” tomorrow. Probably a funding announcement. The SFPR is a new proposed highway from Deltaport to the Trans Canada Highway, primarily for trucks. It’s a major part of BC’s $10 billion Gateway project, which is focused entirely on road-building to the exclusion of rail. Looking at […]

Calling all passenger rail advocates – PLEASE WRITE YOUR MAYOR!

Calling all passenger rail advocates – PLEASE WRITE YOUR MAYOR! (spread the word) regarding the upcoming federal budget: You may have heard, with the economic turmoil, that the federal government is planning a massive amount of new infrastructure spending for their next budget, supposedly for projects that are useful, ideally sustainable, and can be started […]

TramTrain, the interurban of the 21st century!

With the ongoing campaign for the “return of the interurban” in the Fraser Valley, an understanding of what the 21st century interurban is needed. The old Vancouver to Chilliwack interurban,Ai??Ai??ran from downtown Vancouver along streetcar tracks, up Main St. and down KingswayAi??Ai??to the beginning of the Central Park Line, just past Commercial drive. Then the […]

The case for Diesel LRT for the metro Vancouver region.

Diesel light-rail is a light-rail vehicle which is powered by a diesel engine, rather than electricity, conforming to the operational parameters of modern LRT. ThisAi??Ai??meansAi??Ai??Diesel LRTAi??Ai??can be installed very cheaply on routes that would otherwise not be considered for ‘rail’ transit, as itAi??Ai??forgoes the expense of the ‘overhead’ for electric transmission,Ai??Ai??giving large cost savings on […]

Diesel light-rail to Chilliwack – What will it cost?

One Canadian transit line, seldom mentioned by TransLink or the Minister for Transportation is Ottawa’s 8 km. diesel LRT line, called the O-Train. The five-station route connects to Ottawa’s existing east-west bus Transitway system with simple stations at its north and south ends. Because it uses an existing rail line, it cost only about $4 […]

Streetcars – light-rail, what’s the difference?

With the ongoing transit debate, there is some confusion between streetcars and LRT, so what’s the difference? Streetcars are just that, a rail guided transit mode that has the legal right to operate on the public highway. Streetcars in Europe are known collectively as trams, a term dating back over two hundred years, where ‘trams’ […]