• UK Orient Express dropped due to border hassles (RailTech) • ScotRail removing peak rail fares for six month trial (RailTechnology) • Rotterdam opens last extension of Line B, to the beach! (RailwayPro) • The …
Continue readingAuthor: Long Branch Mike
Big cities cranking up enforcement to collect dwindling transit fares (Governing)
Agencies are spending new money — lots of it, in some cases — to crack down on fare evasion, with new fare gates, updated collection systems and beefed-up policing. But some experts question the cost. …
Continue readingDfT undersells modal shift: Air passenger CO2 impact 60 times more than rail (RailEngineer)
In 2021, the Department for Transport (DfT) published transport and environmental statistics for various journeys which included Glasgow to London. However, the true carbon impact of these journeys, considering actual energy consumption, shows the DfT …
Continue readingFriday Reads – 21 April 2023
• HS2 confirms Euston tunnels construction has been put hold (RailTechnology) • UK’s not so Smart Motorways have been cancelled (Roads) • TfL is pushing on with the DLR extension to Thamesmead (IanVisits) • The …
Continue readingPeriodic Table of Urbanism, with their transport links (CNU)
At CNU [Congress for the New Urbanism] 30 in Oklahoma City, planner Stephen Goldie presented an idea that has been in the works for several years, building on the rural-to-urban Transect. Goldie calls it the …
Continue readingLondon Mayor faces court challenge over ULEZ (CitiesToday)
A legal challenge to the expansion of London’s ultra-low emission zone (ULEZ) will be heard in the UK High Court later this year, after a judgment permitted councils opposed to the move to proceed. Four …
Continue readingCrossrail TBM resurrected to drive third HS2 tunnel to Euston (NewCivilEng)
Despite the pause on construction of High Speed 2’s (HS2’s) London terminus at Euston, work is progressing on tunnels to facilitate the work with the launch of the third HS2 tunnel boring machine (TBM) in …
Continue readingMonday’s Friday Reads – 17 April 2023
• Closing Nuneham Viaduct the right decision says Network Rail boss (NewCivilEng) • History of women in London’s transport (LTMuseum) • Repurposed Thurgoland railway tunnel has otherworldly acoustic characteristics (AtlasObscura) • If only we saw …
Continue readingTfL testing first fully electric New Routemaster bus (Electric&Hybrid)
The electrification specialist unveiled the New Routemaster at the Euro Bus Expo this week. Developed in Norfolk, its hybrid drivetrain has been replaced with Equipmake’s Zero Emission Drivetrain (ZED), which uses 95% British-built components. Operated …
Continue readingFriday Reads – 14 April 2023
• Aviation industry awarded £18Bn in public finance since the Paris Agreement (DeSmog) • West London Orbital Overground line likely to get approval (IanVisits) • East Lancs Railway faces accusations in sacking of 10 year …
Continue readingBelgium to encourage night trains by covering energy, access charges (RailTech)
To encourage railway operators to run night trains to and from Belgium, the federal government wants to cover the costs of using the rail infrastructure and energy charges. A proposal for this that was submitted …
Continue readingFlexy, the road-rail solution that could revitalize local rail: Video (Movin’On)
More than 40% of the world’s population live in rural areas and the transformation of lifestyles and urban sprawl is leading to a constant new spread of housing, employment and service areas. The challenge for …
Continue readingThis is the lightest paint in the world (Wired)
An energy-saving coating needs no pigments, and it keeps the surface beneath it 30 degrees cooler. Debashis Chanda had trouble finding a physicist who could paint. The researchers in his nanoscience lab at the University …
Continue readingMonday’s Friday Reads – 10 April 2023
• Blackfriars (road) Bridge repairs & history (BBC) • Southern Region Kent Electrification scheme 1958 film: Video (BennetBrookRy) • A spiral of motorway road signs at Somerset House (IanVisits) • New Yorkers are fed up …
Continue readingDead electric car batteries find 2nd life powering UK cities (NextCity)
What do you do with old EV batteries that are too weak to run a car? Connect them by the hundreds to power vital urban infrastructure. This story originally appeared in Reasons to be Cheerful. Last …
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