SkyTrain “Stutters” – Craps Out Again

I only thought people stutter, but evidently not as TransLink claims "stuttering" has caused SkyTrain to shutdown periodically. Metro Vancouver hit by windstorm; SkyTrain, West Coast Express, ferries all facing disruptions  Vancouver Sun November 22, 2011 6:19 AM   VANCOUVER – The heavy rain and fierce windstorm that struck Metro Vancouver overnight is wreaking havoc with […]

SkyTrain Craps Out Again – So what Else Is new! (Updated)

For the third time this week, the SkyTrain Expo Line has shut down, first due to electrical problems; then for mechanical problems; and as I write this, the news on the radio claims that the Expo Line is closed for electrical and mechanical reasons – go figure. For those who claim that SkyTrain is more reliable […]

Light rail closer to reality for Surrey, Langley – From Newsradio 11:30

Some positive news – well maybe, but we have all heard this before. If TransLink is involved with light rail planning for Surrey, it will fail for sure as TransLink couldn’t even plan for an outhouse, let alone understand its function. TransLink is famous for gold-plating proposed LRT that the cost becomes more than an […]

Transit agencies must put customer first

If ‘Zwei’ ever wants to createAi??howls of “shock and disbelief“, from the transit elites in the region, all ‘Zwei’ has to say is “transit is about moving people andAi??the transit customer comes first. Well ‘Zwei‘ is not alone with this thought. Custom journeys for transit customers andAi??seamless (no-transfer) journeys for transit customers both areAi??a non-subjectAi??with […]

The SkyTrain Faregate Saga – The Farce Continues!

While transit authorities around the world are doing away with faregates and turnstiles and investing in smart card that can be automatically read even if the card is in one’s pocket or wallet, TransLink, abetted by the provincial government is, at great expense, retro-fitting faregate to the entire SkyTrain/Canada Line system. The real story about […]

The Evergreen Line Farce Continues

The Evergreen Line saga continues, with tenders being called for construction. The sad fact is, the winning bidder will have to cut corners to if is to secure the winning bid, just like what SNC Lavalin did when it won the Canada Line bid, by changing from bored tunnel to cut-and-cover tunnel construction and not […]

The Incident At 152nd Street in Surrey

A week or so ago I was traveling on 152nd Street in Surrey, when I encountered a traffic light turning to amber then to red. I promptly stopped of course, but not the car in the right lane, which continued on at speed through the intersection and causing a collision. The accident looked somewhat nasty […]

A Tale of Two Letters

The SkyTrain lobby has entered the Surrey political arena with the all so predictable misinformation that is so common with the "metro lobby". Sadly much of their anti-LRT rhetoric is thirty years out of date.   Light rail system may be the wrong choice Published: October 31, 2011 1:00 PM I have a few important points […]

The SkyTrain/LRT debate – 20 Years Too Late!

On Sunday, November 13, will be a civic election debate in the Fleetwood Library in Surrey (BC) on the topic SkyTrain versus LRT, the sad fact is, the SkyTrain versus LRT debate has been dealt with over twenty years ago and light rail won! That local political wannabees are still trying to turn SkyTrain lead into […]

The Novice’s Guide to “Rail” Transit Or…………

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