TransLink Fined $607,000 – The Breaker News

This is significant on two accounts. First: Why was TransLink doing electrical repair during operating hours at the station and why wasn’t proper procedure followed? Second: Why is it that the Breaker News scooped the mainstream media on this? This is important as the mainstream media has a “hands off” policy on TransLink and regional […]

The SkyTrain Cult Is Today’s Version Of The Cargo Cult

The Cargo Cult is a millenarian movement first described in Melanesia which encompasses a range of practices and occurs in the wake of contact with more technologically advanced societies. The name derives from the belief which began among Melanesian’s in the late 19th and early 20th century that various ritualistic acts such as the building […]

“We do not have to watch reruns of Monty Python for our amusement, we just have to tune in to Vancouver’s transit planning for our entertainment”

It is now 2017 and the transit year is off with a dull thud. The title comes courtesy of an old transit acquaintance from the UK who was badly burned by his Canada Line experience. With the planned Pattullo Bridge replacement bridge having only 4 traffic lanes; the Surrey Hawthorne Park road debacle (where a […]

Fear of Subway Costs Grips Mayors Council

As our friend, Haveacow indicated some time ago, the Broadway subway is going to cost a lot more than many think. Some years ago, Zwei entered into correspondence with a German transit Engineer, Wolfgang and he warned of subway construction and operating costs, which hobbled German transit authorities and also lead to the rebirth of […]

TransLink CEO No Better Than A Cheap Carny Huckster

In Metro Vancouver, local journalists remain largely ignorant of transit issues and believe, without reservation, what they are told by TransLink. There is no investigative journalism with TransLink and its favourite, SkyTrain. This “puff” piece is nothing more than softening up the public for both the Broadway subway and Road Pricing, which is needed to […]

The Ignorance Of Light Rail Knows No Bounds – Distinctly In Vancouver

It is sad that anti-tram journalist, Francis Bula, writes such tawdry articles about transit and by doing so, demonstrates that she does little or no research and repeats the anti-tram myth. Citing Jarret Walker as a renowned transit expert is stretching it a bit, as he is a bloggist, catering to the anti-tram crowd. He […]

New York To End 24 Hour Subway Service

Not all is roses for 24 hour subway service. The reason for ending 24 hour subway servcie in New York is…… Ai??that it would allow for longer windows to perform maintenance work needed to keep the system in good repair for daytime commutes. ….is the same as TransLink’s maintenance needs for its light-metro lines. The […]

Toronto Politicians Fear Scarborough Subway Costs

As expected, the costs for the Scarborough subway, the subway that is replacing the Scarborough ICTS Rapid Transit line, is escalating. Toronto’s ICTSAi?? or locally called SRTAi?? is a very close cousin to Vancouver’s ALRT/ART system, which we collectively named SkyTrain. What should interest Metro Vancouver residents is the final cost of the 6.4 km […]

24 Hour Operation for SkyTrain? Not Going To Happen.

One has to laugh at the armchair experts, who think it’s so simple to offer a 24 hour servcie on the SkyTrain light metro system. The ignorance about the SkyTrain light-metro system operation is endemic. SkyTrain does not magically move people from point A to point B, rather a lot of man-hours are spent ensuring […]

A Novices Guide To Transit – Updated

ai??i??ai??i??ai??i?? or cutting through the BS about light rail, SkyTrain and BRT. The following is a guide plus definitions about ai???railai??? transit. ALM: Automatic Light metro, the fourthAi??marketing name given for the SkyTrain family of light-metros, when Lavalin briefly ownedAi??SkyTrain before going bankrupt. ALRT (1): Advanced Light Rail Transit, the secondAi??marketing name for SkyTrain. ALRT […]