A Cost Comparison of Transportation Modes. A study worth looking at.

The following study is well worth a look as it dispels many currents myths about transit, especially the SkyTrain light-metro system. ‘Zwei’ notes that Professor Condon has fallen into the light rail/streetcar trap. The difference between LRT and a streetcar is the quality of rights-of-way, where a streetcar operates on-street in mixed traffic, with little […]

View obscured from ivory tower – From the Chilliwack times.

The Light Rail Committee has been advocating TramTrain for the Fraser Valley since the mid 90’s, hopefully some positive news will be forthcoming soon! Sadly, in an age of financial frugality, regional and provincial transit planners still plan for hugely expensive metro and SkyTrain systems, yet with little or no method to pay for them. […]

Two Valley Rail Studies

The following are two studies that have been done concerning ‘rail’ transit in the Fraser Valley. http://www.scribd.com/doc/2527465/City-of-Surrey-Community-Rail-Proposal http://www.scribd.com/doc/515139/DRL-Solutions-Interurban-Report

Light Rail Fits In! Useful Links for LRT

A reader of this blog from the UK has sent Rail For The Valley some very useful links for those advocating for light rail. Zweisystem send a a hearty thank you! http://www.eukn.org/eukn/themes/Urban_Policy/Economy_knowledge_and_employment/Urban_economy/Specific_sectors/Distribution/citycargo-freight-tram_1007.html http://citytransport.info/Street.htm http://citytransport.info/Zones.htm http://www.citymayors.com/transport/trams-europe.html http://www.etcproceedings.org/paper/trams-and-bikes-towards-good-practice-in-light-rail-planning http://www.isocarp.net/Data/case_studies/1592.pdf http://www.metrocouncil.org/media/CCLRTstreetscapeFeb09.pdf http://www.vmwp.com/projects/leland-avenue-streetscape.php http://www.pdc.us/ura/interstate/kenton.asp http://lightrailjacksonville.webs.com/whylrti.htm http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/internet/Attachments/Internet/Transport/Walking_and_cycling/Cycling_around_Edinburgh/Cycling_and_trams_leaflet.pdf http://www.totallyriviera.com/nice/content/113 http://www.globalmasstransit.net/archive.php?id=1293 http://www.bringingbackbroadway.com/stellent/groups/electedofficials/@cd14_contributor/documents/classmaterials/lacity_007110.pdf http://www.cityofsacramento.org/dsd/planning/environmental-review/eirs/documents/Appendix_B.pdf http://www.metro.net/news/simple_pr/metro-hold-streetscape-design-workshop-crenshawlax/

More Links for Transit oriented Development

Today, more links for TOD in low density areas. My thanks to David Cockle for sending them to Rail for the Valley! Ai??Ai?? http://www.drcog.org/index.cfm?page=TODDensity http://www.vtpi.org/tdm/tdm45.htm http://tinyurl.com/btacou http://www.sacrt.com/realestate/TODpage.stm

Smart Growth. A look into Cities, Urban planning, and the Sustainable Movement.

A reader of this blog has kindly given ‘Zwei’ some links about Smart Growth around the world and they are very much well worth having a look. http://smarturbandesign.blogspot.com/2009/04/mall-of-america-and-minneapolis-light.html http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQQ/is_8_41/ai_81104210/ http://www.friends4expo.org/ltrail.htm http://www.drcog.org/documents/LRT%20and%20TOD.pdf http://www.thespec.com/article/717530 http://www.mindspring.com/~tbgray/lrtmaps.htm

Notes on – Broadway merchants want light rail not SkyTrain down business corridor – meeting

A few thoughts on Tuesdays meeting put on by BARSTA regarding transit issues on Broadway or what Zweisystem calls the ‘Broadway Follies’. First though a comment on Vancouver’s pedestrians; my god does anyone in Vancouver, including pedestrians and cyclists obey the rules of the road? Driving in Vancouver reminded me of some sort of perverted […]

Take the Tram – From the AntonNews.com Long Island New York

Take the Tram By Michael Miller Friday, 11 June 2010 Why in 2010 does it often take twice as long to get from the North Shore to the Five Towns than it does to get from Mineola to White Plains? Cars are choking our roads, gas prices are threatening our economic viability. We need alternative […]

Texas’s Newest ‘Rail’ Transit line, the Red Line

This article for Mass Transit should prove interesting to supporters of the “return of the interurban“, in the Fraser Valley. What should be of interest is the cost of the 32 mile (51.5 km)Ai??Ai??line is less than $5 million per mile or $3.1 million per km. (CAD $ 3.24 million)! Let’s see, a Vancouver to […]

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 […]