From the Light Rail Transit Association – Mulhouse tram train ready

Mulhouse tram train ready : On December 12, 2010, ai???the first inter-connected tram-train of Franceai??? will enter into service. The public will be able to preview the new line from the afternoon Saturday 11th when there will be free travel on the trams, tram train and buses as far as Lutterbach on both the Saturday […]

TransLink Stuff and Nonsense!

It seems that the regional mayors got tired of Langley City Mayor Fassbender support for the Evergreen line and changed the Chair ofAi??the Metro Vancouver Mayorsai??i?? Council on Transportation and voted District of North Vancouver Mayor Richard Walton as the new chair. No real change, as the Metro Vancouver Mayorsai??i?? Council on Transportation is as […]

The Vancouver Sun Again Embarrasses Itself With a Pro SkyTrain – Pro TransLink Editorial!

In one of the most self serving pro-TransLink, pro-SkyTrain editorials yet, the Vancouver Sun printed a "puff' editorial authored by former Premier Mike Harcourt, who championed the Canada Line, and Dale Parker, Chair of TransLink, whose planning bureaucrats still squander millions of dollars on unachievable metro plans. The aim of the editorial, of course is to try to embarrass […]

Has The “War On The Car” Gone To Far?

There is a growing problem concerning public and regional transportation that has become very worrisome and that is the so called "war on the car". This simple phrase has been used with great effect in Toronto, where anti-transit politicians have been elected in the Toronto metro region, whose sole goal is to dismantle Toronto's public transit system. The slogan […]

Transit News From Around The World – December 3rd 2010

Light rail train derails in Seattle Komonews http://www.komonews.com/news/local/70237837.html Business leaders: Build light-rail leg to Tampa airport Tampa Bay Online http://tinyurl.com/26qguhs Manchester passengers consulted over closure of Metrolink stop Rail Technology Magazine http://tinyurl.com/26fq6jj Light Rail news Rail Technology Magazine Pages 46 – 53 inclusive; Manchester, Sheffield, Edinburgh, Tyne & Wear and Liepaja http://tinyurl.com/2auqhcs Fraser Valley Interurban […]

What Fools We Mortals Be – Toronto’s New mayor, Rob Ford.

American style Tea Party politician andAi??Toronto’s new mayor Rob Ford, is taking the TTC back 50 years or more by forcing the TTC to build new subways, instead of much cheaper light rail. Ford is just mimicking the same bleat that AmericanAi??politicos use, the “war on the car” andAi??has used itAi??with great effectiveness, but what […]

Bus Rapid Transit Vs. Light Rail

Too often theAi??Bus versus Light Rail debate omits to mention the operational costs associated with public transport.Ai?? This is the great weakness of the bus when there are significant numbers of passengers to be carried. Official American cost comparisons show that the cost of carrying a passenger on light rail is approximately 2/3rds that of […]

Brisbane, Australia (BRT) Bus Rapid Transit

If there could be any doubt, of the cost effectiveness and the capability to relieve urban congestion of Bus Rapid Transit [BRT], study the following image of Brisbaneai??i??s system. http://www.translink.com.au/about-translink/what-we-do/infrastructure-projects/busways TransLink in BC are actively promoting BRT as the answer for transit in the Fraser Valley, they & the City mayors & councillors who are […]

The Silence of TransLink Speaks Volumes

Since Rail for the Valley released the RftV/Leewood TramTrain report in September, there has been a silence from TransLink and the government's two favoured media outlets, the Vancouver Sun and CKNW radio on the valley rail project. All the TV stations did reports, as did all the regional (semi)weekly newspapers, which is credit to their profession; but […]

Mayors face tax dilemma

 More thoughts on the TransLink/regional mayors funding debate. What I do not see is any hint of fiscal responsibility from TransLink, just demands for more money with dire threats on what will happen if funding doesn't come through. In South Delta, three bus routes, the C-84, C-89 and the 609, which operate at 60 minute headways or […]