It’s not just the Second Avenue Subway: Nearly all urban rail projects in the US cost much more than their European counterparts. In late December, The New York Times published a bombshell article by Brian …
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China launches world’s first electric cargo ship (Clean Technica)
Here’s the good news: China has launched the first all-electric cargo ship. According to China Daily, the 230 foot long vessel is equipped with a 2,400 kWh lithium-ion battery that stores enough electrical energy to …
Continue readingBase Train Service is Cheap, Peak Service is Expensive (Pedestrian Observations)
A few days ago, I calculated regional rail operating costs from first principles, as opposed to looking at actual operating costs around the world. Subway operating costs in the developed world bottom at $4-5/car-km (and …
Continue readingFriday Reads – 26 January 2018
Welcome to Reconnections’ Friday Reads. This week’s lineup: • New solutions to reduce transport emissions (IMechE) • Zeppelin distant early warning system (Andrew Grantham) • History of the bollard, from Napoleon to Carillion (CityMetric) • …
Continue readingZero emission-ready cab now in London (Air Quality News)
London Electric Vehicle Company – LEVC – the company behind the zero-emission capable black cab, has handed over its first new model for use in the capital. The vehicle, dubbed the TX eCity is powered …
Continue readingDARPA’s challenge to map subterranean spaces (Atlas Obscura)
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, better known as DARPA, loves a good contest. Whether it’s an effort to design wild new robots or to more fully evolve cyber-security, the U.S. Department of Defense’s official …
Continue readingTransit agencies: Don’t Panic (CityLab)
Many predict that new technology will doom public transportation. They’re wrong. A transit professional can’t open a browser these days without encountering prophets of doom. “New technology is changing everything,” we’re told. “Everything you do …
Continue readingCities get creative to measure the ‘Uber Effect’ (CityLab)
Ride-hailing companies are cagey on all-important trip data. So researchers are finding clever workarounds. They’d cut back on traffic, ease air pollution, and complement public transit. Or so they said. But the effects of Uber, …
Continue readingFriday Reads – 19 January 2018
Welcome to Reconnections’ Friday Reads. This week’s lineup: • The forgotten West London Air Terminal (RB Kensington & Chelsea) • Legible London’s tenth anniversary (1LondonBlog) • Redesign of British train tickets (SadHedgehog) • Paris Métro …
Continue readingLate Washington DC Metro trains to refund fares (NextCity)
Metro ridership in Washington, D.C., has plummeted over the last decade, and a large portion of defecting riders cite reliably as their primary concern. Now, the embattled agency wants to try something new: refunds. Going …
Continue readingSan Francisco rolls out dynamic parking meter rates (GovTech)
San Francisco sets parking rates on its 28,000 meters based on the demand throughout the day — rising during peak times and falling during lulls. Cost-conscious drivers in San Francisco may want to think twice …
Continue readingSan Francisco transit commits to renewable energy (BART)
BART commits to a future powered by wind and solar power – BART took bold action today to improve the climate footprint of the Bay Area’s transportation sector. Following BART’s adoption of an aggressive and …
Continue readingNew Tottenham bridge restoring lost line (Rail Professional)
As part of Network Rail’s £170m Lee Valley Rail programme, disused land is being used to reinstate a third track between Stratford and Angel Road stations which was lost during the Beeching cuts of the …
Continue readingFriday Reads – 12 January 2018
Welcome to Reconnections’ Friday Reads. This week’s lineup: • Kew Gardens’ private underground railway (IanVisits) • Is Britain’s rail franchising system fit for purpose? [paywall] (Financial Times) • Global underground/metro typography [many images] (Prototypr) • …
Continue readingDon’t run bi-levels (Pedestrian Observations)
For years, the RER A’s pride was that it was running 30 trains per hour through its central segment in the peak direction (and 24 in the reverse-peak direction). With two branches to the east …
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