Canada’s gridlocked mayors call for multi-level strategy on transit

The following news item shows that the issue of public and regional transit and funding of transit is beginning to creep into the politicians radar. Throwing more money at transit will not solve very much as politicians have a very strange habit of funding their ‘pet‘ projects. The federal government can help by rewriting the […]

Bad Practise!

From David CockleAi??Ai??in the UK. Some interesting video clips. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unhXEQQk8G8 and a few more; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rETMf03JYL0&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9cf9dOqxjs&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5fjKwloMww&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfu3t68dzI8&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgCPPeYmyKw&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fh-NyFBWM6k&feature=fvw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2cBgqpllfw&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-6q6TI_7_U and the good practise. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdB9xXzvsw8&feature=fvsr http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGHyGQn98Z4&feature=channel enjoy

The Failure To Understand Modern Light Rail = Public Transit Chaos

‘Zwei’ has been taken aback by the viciousness of the SkyTrain Lobby and the great lengths they haveAi??Ai??taken in discrediting the LRT, while at the same time refusing to acknowledge the marketing failure of the proprietary (ICTS/ALRT/ALM/ART ) light-metro system, known in Vancouver as SkyTrain. ‘Zwei’ is also taken aback by abject refusalAi??Ai??by many supposed […]

A Poll That the Main Stream Media Ignored. Can We Expect The Same For Other Non SkyTrain ‘Rail’ Projects?

A very strange thing happenedAi??yesterday with ‘Zwei’. When I was discussing a transit matter with an US transit type about the RAV/Canada line. He told me that TransLink officials claimed that over 80% of Vancouverites supported RAV and if it were not for the high costs of the metro, many more metro type transit systems […]

The SkyTrain Lobby Just Can’t Debate Transit Issues

The followingAi??Ai??letter to the Georgia Straight sums up transit planning in Vancouver and the region, an almost mythicalAi??Ai??blind faith in the SkyTrain light-metro and the complete inability to debate transit issues. The SkyTrain lobby’s preference is based purely on mass hysteria not technical merit and the commentsAi??Ai??following letter clearly illustrates a hysterical response; there is […]

The new Ottawa LRT Will save $100 Million in Operating Costs Over 30 Years!

As with all projects in Canada’s Capital, the New LRT line is heavily gold-plated, including a nearly billion dollar, 3.2 km. tunnel under the city. Just a few years ago, Ottawa’s city fathers canceled a 29.7 km., $780 million light rail line contract with Siemens (which cost the city $36.7 million), to build light rail […]

Has TransLink Already Struck The Finacial Iceberg?

Ai??Ai?? The problem with TransLink is simple, it operates two very expensive and Ai??Ai??incompatibleAi??Ai??metro systems on routes that do not have the ridership to sustainAi??Ai??them,Ai??Ai??which translates into higher annual subsidies (read higher taxes) and ever higher fares. The annual subsidy for just the two SkyTrain lines is over $230 million annually. As well, TransLink offers […]

The Broadway Follies Part 4 – The Versatile Light Rail

TheAi??Ai??entire transit debate for the Broadway route has been defined by the SkyTrain Lobby as a quest for speed, as if speed was the only criteria for a successful urban ‘rail‘ line. Yet speed of a transit system is onlyAi??Ai??one ofAi??Ai??many factors that determine a successful ‘rail‘ transit line. From the Haas-Klau study (Bus or […]

The Broadway Follies Part 3 A?ai??i??ai??? Questions & Answers about SkyTrain

We continueAi??Ai??with the question and answer format about Broadway’s transit issues, with a focus on SkyTrain. Vancouver is the only city in the world that continues to plan and build solely with automatic (driverless) light-metro and many people would like to know why. First, we must tackle the issue of SkyTrain and answer questions posed […]

The Broadway Follies Part 2 – Questions & Answers about LRT

Zwei received a phone call from a confused citizen regarding a transit meeting he attended in Vancouver about transit options for Broadway. It seems a state of confusion reigns about what LRT is, what LRT can achieve, and modern transit in general. This is not to unexpected as TransLink has never been clever about LRT […]