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| Transport Action Hotline - 23 April 2010 | |||||||||||
In this issue...This is the Transport Action Hotline, issue number 1069, for 23 April 2010.
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1 - Calendar
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2 - Co-operation essential to establish transit system in Pictou county, Transport Action says"When municipalities took over the transit system (from the province in the mid-1990s) with a new garage and new transit buses previously funded by the province, they immediately took to squabbling over joint funding. Discussions became so acrimonious that the excellent four-route system was dismantled and buses sold to the Halifax system which used them on lightly travelled routes," Transport Action's John Pearce wrote in the New Glasgow News."In the Annapolis Valley, for example, an excellent Kings Transit system exists which carries 360,000 people annually, largely due to co-operation of town and county governments in Kings, Hants, Annapolis, and Digby counties," John Pearce wrote in an April 16 letter to the editor of the New Glasgow News | |||||||||||
3 - Les Journées vertes de Sainte-Thérèse, nouvelle formule« Lancées l'année dernière et concentrées dans une même semaine au mois d'août, les Journées vertes de Sainte-Thérèse reviennent cette année, offrant quatre journées d'activités liées à l'environnement, du mois d'avril au mois d'août » Donald Brouillette a écrit pour le Journal Le Courrier.« Le premier événement de la saison est prévu au Marché de la gare, 113 rue Turgeon, de 9 h à 13 h le samedi 24 avril. On y fera la promotion du transport actif et en commun dans le cadre du Jour de la Terre. Il y aura des cliniques de 30 minutes sur la mise au point d'un vélo, ainsi que plusieurs stands d'information du CIT Laurentides, du Réseau de covoiturage, de Transport 2000, Vélo Québec, etc. » le Journal Le Courrier a rapporté le 21 avril.
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4 - Metrolinx lowballs Hamilton bus rapid transit system cost: Transport Action"In an essay written for the January-February 2010 edition of the Ontario Report, the newsletter for Transport Action Ontario, editor Anton Turrittin notes that the Metrolinx Benefits Case Analysis comparing rapid transit options for the east-west B-Line in Hamilton "low-balled" the cost of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) option," Raise the Hammer reported on April 13."Turrittin writes: It appears that the Metrolinx BCA low-balled the cost of BRT (half the cost on a per kilometer basis of VIVA's conversion of its 37 km express bus routes to dedicated "rapidway"!). http://www.transport-action.ca/dc/TAOntReport_2010-0102.pdf
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5 - No case for going full bore on $1.6 billion Windsor-Essex ParkwayConstruction is set to begin in the fall. The Windsor-Essex Parkway will cut through the Ojibway Prairie Nature Reserve to a site just downriver from the Ambassador River. And there it will wait for a least decade. The Americans won't start working on their side of the new Detroit River International Crossing until 2021. Why is the Ontario government spending $1.6-billion now for a highway to bridge that won't be there for ten years, if ever?Demand has dropped. In 1999 there were 12,348,762 crossings over the Ambassador Bridge. In 2009 crossings were down to 6,471,994. Declines in casino trips and auto industry just-in-time shipping contributed. The downward trend is evident at the two other crossings. There are cheaper (not to mention greener) alternatives. Dr. Dietrich Bergmann outlined some during Transport Action's March 27 DRIC discussion. His presentation, posted the week, cites ways of getting more out of existing capacity including better use of rail, transit and signs pointing motorists to the Sarnia-Port Huron's Bluewater Bridge. http://www.transport2000.ca/ontario/
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6 - VIA Rail ajoute un arrêt à Casselman« Le transporteur ferroviaire VIA Rail ajoute un arrêt à son trajet Montréal-Ottawa en raison de l'arrivée du parc Calypso, à Limoges, à moins de 10 kilomètres du village. Le plus grand parc aquatique thématique du Canada prévoit accueillir entre 8000 et 10 000 visiteurs par jour. ... « Notre service du marketing s'est penché sur la question en tenant compte de l'accroissement potentiel du trafic de voyageurs engendré par l'ouverture prochaine du parc Calypso », ex plique Marc Laliberté, président et chef de la direction de VIA Rail, dans une lettre dont Le Droit a obtenu copie » Jean-François Dugas a écrit pour le Droit.« Le maire du village, Conrad La madeleine, a tenté à maintes reprises d'augmenter la desserte ferroviaire dans son village au cours des derniers mois. Toutefois, VIA Rail hésitait à ajouter un arrêt au trajet Montréal-Ottawa pour éviter de prolonger le parcours des voyageurs et risquer une diminution de l'achalandage » le Droit a rapporté le 20 avril 2010.
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7 - Clean, affordable light rail also delivers economic lift"In the ideal world, an informed public debate over the TTC's $10 billion Transit City light rail transit (LRT) plan would hone it into a scheme fully responsive to the needs of transit users and residents who live along the line. Instead, Transit City is being lambasted by a cadre of critics who hope to derail it, but without really knowing anything about LRT," Greg Gormick wrote in the April 21 edition of the Toronto Star."The success of European LRT was not lost on planners and politicians in some North American cities that abandoned their traditional streetcar systems and paid the price for it in traffic gridlock, unacceptable levels of air pollution and rampant suburban sprawl. In 1978, Edmonton inaugurated North America's first all-new LRT with service-proven German equipment and designs. The LRT concept has spread to 22 other North American cities and more than 30 additional systems are now under construction or in planning. ... Some Torontonians maintain that we should be building subways instead of LRT. But subways cost about four times as much per kilometre and they are financially sustainable only where there are huge volumes of passengers ready to ride them on opening day. That is not the case in Toronto on the lines proposed for LRT," the Gormick wrote in Star op=ed. http://www.thestar.com/opinion/columns/article/798311
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8 - Aviation Safety News: Eyjafjallajökull, ash guidelines, Air Travellers Security ChargeAviation Safety News reported on Eyjafjallajökull, CATSA's increases Air Travellers Security Charge, CATSA spending spree, ash guidelines, 600 micrograms per cubic meter, Flight-Time, Duty-Time, the Absence of traditional safety oversight and pilot error on April 21. Aviation Safety News is a project of Transport Action Canada (formerly Transport 2000) and the Public Interest Advocacy Centre. The Aviation Safety News readers' group includes top aviation safety authorities, industry and civil service professionals.
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9 - Edmonton LRT south extensions unveiled"Regular service to the stations in south Edmonton will begin April 25. "We're expecting the overall number of boardings on a weekday to double compared to what we had when the line ended at the University Station," said Ken Koropeski, director of service development with Edmonton Transit. The extension will add about 50,000 riders a day, he said. Once it's open, express buses to downtown from Southgate and Century Park transit centres will be discontinued," CBC News reported on April 16.
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10 - Peterborough-Toronto rail report completed, not public"A long-awaited report on what it would take to restore Peterborough-Toronto commuter rail service and upgrade the track for freight trains is completed, a Ministry of Transportation spokesman states. But Peterborough MP Dean Del Mastro disagrees; saying that it's a draft report at this time and information is still being gathered for the study the Peterborough Examiner reported on April 17."The study is critical for the proposal to upgrade the rail line between Toronto and Peterborough. The provincial and federal governments committed as much as $150 million each in the Building Canada Fund agreement for the Peterborough commuter rail line in July 2008 -- contingent on the results of a study done by Metrolinx, a provincial agency that coordinates transportation in the greater Toronto and Hamilton area," Brendan Wedley wrote for the Examiner. http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2539047
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11 - Eyjafjallajökull: is this the start of the 'traincation'?"It's not just for eco-geek reasons of carbon-emission efficiency, although if you need a justification for taking the train then I'd argue that's a pretty good one. I love the simple pleasures that overland forms of travel like rail can bring; the rhythmic rumble of the wheels beneath you and the rolling vista of ever-changing views outside your window to name but two. It's intriguing that many of the stranded British passengers returning to the UK have mentioned the "adventure", "challenge" and surprising joys of their return trips. "There was so much to see!" exclaimed one 81-year-old woman whose son had just driven her back from Switzerland," the Guardian's travel columnist wrote on April 20."In recent years it has seemed that the unfettered growth of aviation would likely continue unchecked, despite high-profile politicking and protests around Heathrow's proposed third runway. Campaign groups, like Plane Stupid with their polar bears plunging from the sky, and Greenpeace's ingenious Airplot sit in stark contrast to the slightly disingenuous findings of the Government's own Committee on Climate Change. Their report at the tail-end of 2009 loudly trumpeted a vibrant future of aviation growth. Provided we decarbonise the rest of the economy by 90%," Eric Gillespie wrote for the Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2010/apr/20/train-rail-st-moritz-switzerland
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12 - The problem with shortlines: No infrastructure investmentHarry Gow, founding president of Transport Action reports: "Work to create short lines in Northern and Eastern Ontario has led me to understand a critical weakness of many shortlines : they often do not invest in the track and infrastructure, preferring to pay dividends to their shareholders. This seems to be particularly true of the larger "chains" often run out of the USA. Investment in the North Main Line (Toronto-London) infrastructure would benefit passenger, but also freight. Weak track structures mean slow trains (vulnerable to derailments), leading line closedowns (OVR (Smiths Falls-Sudbury) or threat of line closure (HCR (Soo-Sudbury))."Gow wrote: "Public investment in railways is not evil, it often is the only way to guarantee continued freight service. The NML's condition is unimpressive to say the least and investment is needed. It won't come from the owner or the freight operator."
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13 - RailAmerica in Cape Breton"RailAmerica, the American company that controls the rail line from Cape Breton to Truro, is proposing to sell property along the line to lease-holders at the end of the year at today's market value. I'd like to know how the railway can get away with this when there is a legal document between former owner CN and the short-line operator which states that the lands were to be sold to lease-holders after the sale of the line, which took place in 1993," Evelyn Green wrote to the editor of the Cape Breton Post."The government might as well have kept the CN line open because we are paying an American company to do it for us. It simply amazes me that politicians stand by and allow this. We are Canadians but it sounds like we are being dictated to by RailAmerica. If this keeps up we might as well fly American flags from our properties. I think the government should take the line back and create jobs here in Nova Scotia," the April 17 letter to the Cape Breton Post said.
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14 - RailAmerica in Waterloo region"In the more environmentally conscious 21st century, trains may have a chance to catch up. If Ontarians - and Canadians generally - can design a better overall transportation system, we may require less oil to power vehicles and, consequently, spew out fewer pollutants. Furthermore, if the use of trains increases, the average cost of going from one point to another should be significantly reduced," an April 19 Waterloo Region Record editorial said."The problem, however, is that as of today Ontario doesn't have such a system, except perhaps in the Toronto area ....Just look at a problem that has arisen in the Georgetown area, between Guelph and Toronto. Goderich-Exeter Railway Co. Ltd. leases the tracks from CN Rail and then rents them to agencies such as VIA Rail," the Record editorial said. "VIA, an independent Crown corporation, wants to improve the tracks so it can increase the number of trains on the tracks and the speed at which they travel. Those are admirable goals. Ontarians won't leave their cars at home unless the rail options are better than at present. The problem is that Goderich-Exeter Railway Co. Ltd, which is owned by RailAmerica, has not been able to reach a deal with VIA about the cost of maintaining the new tracks. They would come with a higher price tag," the Waterloo Region Record editorial said. http://news.therecord.com/article/698632
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15 - ONR interested in filling RailAmerica's void: Sudbury to Temiscaming line"Ontario Northland Railway wants to operate the Canadian Pacific line between Sudbury and Temiscaming, Que. ONR spokeswoman Beverly Martin confirmed Thursday it has filed an "expression of interest" with CP Rail to replace RailAmerica's Ottawa Valley Railway as the operator," the North Bay Nugget reported on April 16."The ONR's freight division is also negotiating to continue transporting Xstrata's copper and zinc to new destinations at refineries in Quebec. More than $8-million in ONR revenue is scheduled to be lost when Xstrata closes its Kidd Creek metallurgical site in Timmins May 1. Brian Kelly, chairman of the General Chairpersons Association representing four unions with 800 ONR members, said the Xstrata revenue represents almost 25% of freight revenue," the Nugget's Dave Dale wrote. "Kelly said the GCA has been pushing for the ONR to take over the short line for quite some time, partly because of its strategic location and the leverage it might gain for customers when negotiating with CP and Canadian National. Ideally, he said, the ONR could operate the line between Sudbury and SmithFalls and he would like to see an east-west passenger line between Sault Ste. Marie and Smiths Falls," the Nugget reported. http://www.nugget.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2536429
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