Nottingham’s light rail system – a real P-3 project!

The Nottingham (city pop. 275,000) light rail project should be of interest, because it was and is a true example of a P-3 (Public/Private/Partnership), where the operating consortium, Transdev, not only went to the international banks for financing, but assumed all risk. Today, Nottingham’s NET light rail systems, operates at a profit, even after paying […]

The Last of the Interurbans #4 – The Electroliner, the last great Interurban!

The Electroliners were a pair of electric triple articulated interurban train sets operated by the Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad, which ran between Chicago, Illinois, and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. These streamlined electricAi??Ai??articulated interurban trains were built by St. Louis Car Company in 1941. Each train set carried two numbers, 801-802 and 803-804. Although the Electroliners […]

International News from Tramways & Urban Transit – Alstom wins Brasilia tramway contract

Ai??Ai?? August 19, 2009 Alstom wins Brasilia tramway contract The Brastram consortium, led by Alstom, has won the EUR265m (CAD$409.1 m)Ai??Ai??contract to build the 8.7km phase 1 tramway, designed to reduce car traffic by 30% on the congested Avenida W3 Sul from Asa Sul to 502 Norte. Alstom Citadis trams featuring APS surface current collection […]

The last of the interurbans #3; the last American Interurban – The Chicago, Illinois / South Bend, Indiana: The South Shore Line

The The South Shore Line, operating on both regular railway tracks and on, on-street trackage, is strong evidence that the Fraser Valley could still do the same in 2009 and beyond. In an age of expensive SkyTrain light-metro and even more expensive, glitzy subways like that RAV/Canada line, it is still interesting to noteAi??Ai??that the […]

Tech. stuff for light rail – The LR55 rail system

What is of interest is that the SkyTrain lobby decry any sort of LRT/streetcar installation on Broadway as catastrophic, yet tram tracks can be laid quite quickly, depending on the method used, in Nottingham, penalties were to applied against the contractor, if tram track installation were to directly affect merchants directly adjacent to the construction […]

Tech. stuff for light rail – Single track and interlaced operations

Since the proposed Interurban will run mainly on single track, with passing loops at strategic places, the following U-Tube video is instructive on the relative ease of single track operation. Of course single track operation is a lot cheaper than dual track (which can be added when demand warrants), construction and with an initial one […]

Why we built with LRT – first published in December 2008, updated August 17, 2009

The following was first published in December 2008 and is being reproduced here because of popular demand. Ai??Ai?? What is Light Rail Transit or more commonly known as LRT? According to the Light Rail Transit Association (www.lrta.org) Light rail is a mode that can deal economically with traffic flows of between 2,000 and 20,000 passengers […]

The last of the interurbans #2 – Mason City, Iowa: Iowa Traction Railroad

The following is from Jon Bell’s web site. Jon Bell is anAi??Ai??Associate Professor Department of Physics and Computer ScienceAi??Ai??Presbyterian CollegeAi??Ai??Clinton, South Carolina 29325 USA Although the Iowa Traction Railroad (IATR) hasn’t carried passengers since 1936, I’ve included it on this site because it is a link to a mode of electric passenger transport that was […]

From Charlie Smith & The Georgia Straight – Canada Line subsidy will be felt for years to come

Charlie Smith of the Georgia Straight is probably the regions best reporter on transit issues as he has researched SkyTrain and all other transit issues for almost two decades and his insight to RAV andAi??Ai??SkyTrain issues clearly demonstrate this. What is not mentioned is that RAV will drain money away from the bus system, simply […]

The SkyTrain lobby – "Pixie Dust planning"

One finds it interesting how the SkyTrain lobby warps the truth to suit it’s own ends. What the SkyTrain lobby is really saying is that; “We completely discount over oneAi??Ai??hundred and fifty yearsAi??Ai??of rail/light rail/metro development, to support a unconventional, proprietary railway.” That only seven such systems have been built (actually there are two types […]