Modern trains are expected to handle crush loads at times, rough use and vandalism, yet have pleasing interiors and comfortable seating that will last in good condition for 15-20 years or more. In addition, the …
Continue readingAuthor: Long Branch Mike
New York City’s Bus Lane Evolution (UrbanOmnibus)
New York City’s public transportation is in the midst of a slow-moving crisis. Years of deferred maintenance, staff shortages, and insufficient funding have left subway commuters navigating regular delays and bus passengers riding the slowest buses …
Continue readingIndian cabinet approves construction of eight new railway lines (RailwayGazette)
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved eight new line projects which are intended to improve connectivity, minimise logistics costs, reduce oil imports and lower CO2 emissions. The projects approved on August 9 include 64 …
Continue readingUtilisation of trams for urban freight transport & logistics (UrbanTransport)
As part of the LogIKTram research project, it was determined how future urban freight transport can be shifted by tram or regional train. At the final event of the LogIKTram research project in Karlsruhe in …
Continue readingŠkoda operates autonomous driverless tram in Finnish tram depot (RailAdvent)
Škoda Group has carried out a demonstration in Finland of a tram being driven autonomously without a driver. Škoda’s breakthrough took place at a tram depot at Tampere Finland, with a tram fitted with its Smart Depot …
Continue readingKorea Great Train eXpress metro installs transparent OLED window displays (OLEDInfo)
LG Display announced that Korea’s newly launched Great Train eXpress (GTX) subway service has installed the company’s 55″ transparent OLED displays in the cabin windows. This is the first subway service in Korea to install …
Continue readingBucharest trolleybus system ordered new battery trolleybuses, but infrastructure is decaying (UrbanTransport)
Like stories from other parts of the world, the condition of the trolleybus network in Bucharest, Romania started to look pretty bleak in the last decade. No new investments in the overhead wire infrastructure were …
Continue readingTinted window film trial to determine reduction of train air-conditioning needs (RailwayGazette)
TransPennine Express is trialling two tinted window films which it hopes will reduce solar heating and thus lower the energy used by train air-conditioning systems. The operator expects the film supplied by Aura Brand Solutions to …
Continue readingStation Dwell Times, Anglosphere Incuriosity, & NYC’s Penn Station’s Expansion Proposal (PedestrianObservations)
This is the second part of my series about the Regional Plan Association event about expanding capacity at Penn Station. Much of the presentation, at least in its first half, betrays wanton ignorance, with which area power …
Continue readingNetwork Rail AI projects tackle ‘ever changing’ risks to trains & passengers (IMechE)
Trains face countless risks across the almost 16,000km of track in Great Britain. From misuse of level crossings to overhanging trees, Network Rail works with partners across the network to protect passengers from a wide …
Continue readingHigh Wages and Baumol’s Cost Disease (PedestrianObserations)
The Baumol effect is a mechanism for how the real costs of goods and services can rise over time: wages rise due to economy-wide productivity growth, including in sectors with no productivity growth, and this raises their …
Continue readingPlanes still bad: Modern carbon-efficient models worse for climate change than older types (E+T)
A study has found that even though modern commercial aircraft emit less carbon than their predecessors, they could be contributing more to climate change due to their longer-lived planet-warming contrails. Contrails, or vapour trails, are …
Continue readingSpatial impacts of a massive rail disinvestment program: The Beeching Axe (JUrbanEconomics)
This paper investigates the reversibility of the effects of transport infrastructure investments, based on a programme that removed much of the rail network in Britain during the mid-20th century. We find that a 10% loss …
Continue readingThe first US airline to launch automated tag for mobility devices (AmericanAirlines)
American Airlines is the first U.S. airline to launch an automated tag for mobility devices, part of an ongoing commitment to improve wheelchair and mobility device handling across its network. Developed in-house by American’s Technology …
Continue readingThe fare evasion prosecution scandal explained (RailBusinessUK)
It was widely reported this month that several train companies have unlawfully prosecuted individuals by misusing the Single Justice Procedure, and up to 75 000 convictions for fare evasion offences have now been quashed. This …
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