Nov. 27: Public meeting in Sault Ste. Marie on rail passenger services
"Recently proposed legislation Bill 118: Countering Distracted Driving and Promoting Green Transportation was tabled before legislature in late October. The bill aims to rewrite the definition of a carpool in Ontario. The new legislation couldn't come fast enough for David Jeanes, president of Transport 2000, who said services, such as the one offered by PickupPal, are a good way to get cars off the road and encourage environmental best practices.
"Jeanes said, if PickupPal can be fined for organizing carpools, then there are many other employers and informal community organizations that can also be fined," the Citizen reported.
"De l'avis de Transport 2000, une association vouée à la défense des usagers du transport en commun, cette nouvelle hausse n'aidera en rien la promotion du transport en commun.
"On aurait souhaité une pause dans cette avalanche de hausses de tarifs, et même plus, a indiqué Normand Parisien. Ce qu'on vise, c'est une diminution de 50 % du prix de la CAM en 10 ans, ce qui favoriserait l'accessibilité etaugmenterait l'achalandage du transport en commun," Métro a rapporté,
When finished in 2009, the Canada Line will carry people between the centre of Richmond, YVR and Vancouver's Waterfront Centre in 25 minutes or less. The project is overseen by Canada Line Rapid Transit Inc. (CLCO), a subsidiary of TransLink. The Line was designed, and is being built and partially financed by InTransitBC which will operate and maintain it.
The result will be a severely imbalanced and less than optimal line bringing riders into downtown from the east, with surface buses from the west jamming the streets above for decades to come.
Transport 2000 and Friends of the O-Train presented a series of videos to a Council hearing this week which it is believed will have good value as a reality check. The videos were done by Jim Blondeau of Ottawa with contributions in time and money members including Tim Lane, David Jeanes, David Gladstone, Klaus Beltzner, Dick Howey, Ron Rancourt, and Michael Kostiuk.
At the same Council Committee session, there was a fiery showdown in which Transport 2000 was able to demonstrate that a leaked consultant/staff document debunking diesel LRT extensions in the south was full of errors and mistruths. This must have caught staff off-guard as they had no idea that anyone outside City Hall had access to their pot-boiler. On Nov. 17 Councillors Clive Doucet and Christine Leadman will unveil an alternative ELRT plan for Ottawa that should create yet more dissent.
The meeting, at Algoma University's Shingwauk Auditorium, is on Nov. 27 at 7 pm. For more information, please , contact Jill Driver at 949-2301, extension 4206, or jdriver@algomau.ca.
"Transport 2000, l'organisme qui fait la promotion du transport collectif, est du même avis. " Les effets du péage sur le secteur immobilier dépendront des mesures de flexibilité mises de l'avant ", indique Normand Parisien, président. Le péage dans le Grand Montréal rapportera des recettes d'au moins 1 milliard de dollars par année," Les Affaires a rapporté.
Aviation Safety News readers' group includes six top aviation safety authorities and a number of industry and civil service professionals. The Nov, 11 edition included stories about laser pointers, noisy airports, 12 hours on the tarmac, Yorkton Airport SMS, Terrain awareness and warning systems, Mikun Airlines Flight 961, Commercial boat safety regulations, Aviation crews IDs, a tracking tool to help pilots see the runway, medical helicopter crashes and Boeing 757 engine inspections.
It will not however be enough to simply re-open the line. There are a number of necessary steam train developments that are falling off the table. Not included in the current plans are the necessary relocation of the HCWR station to a spot near the Casino in coordination with the impingent on the line by the Rapibus project, the creation of a station in Chelsea and the acquisition of more rolling stock," the Co-president, of Friends of the Steam Train wrote.
"Il s'agit de la première étape du projet ambitieux de train léger sur rail électrique totalisant 4,7 milliards $ recommandée, lundi, par les hauts fonctionnaires de la Ville.
"Cette première mise en oeuvre coûtera 1,7 milliard $ et devrait être complétée en 2017, selon le scénario le plus optimiste. Outre l'ajout de 12 km de voie ferrée, le plan comprend aussi la construction du pont Strandherd-Armstrong au sud de la ville et le prolongement du Transitway - transport rapide par autobus - à l'ouest, à l'est et au sud de la ville," Le Droit a rapporté.
"'It's more than just an infrastructure project. It's visionary in nature,' Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty said yesterday. 'I'm hoping that we can turn this (economic) crisis into an opportunity to actually act as a catalyst to move this project along' he told reporters.
"They could send a powerful signal by saying the fast train project between Quebec City ... and Windsor is going to happen," Quebec Premier Jean Charest said yesterday of a proposed high-speed train that could get travellers from Toronto to Montreal in less than 2 1/2 hours.
"Twenty-four hours after the horrific crash that shocked the GTA, I read this article with disbelief. Ontario laws currently allow trucks to carry a 16-metre trailer, but this spring they will be allowed to pull two trailers of that length," Zack Barrett wrote on Nov. 6. "I simply do not understand how this could even be considered, especially after the death of an innocent man. Anything that can be done to prevent an accident like that from occurring ever again should be done. Ontario should be setting an example, not following what other states and provinces are doing. Even if it will help the manufacturing sector, it sure won't help anything else".
John Souuvage wrote the Star on Nov. 9: "I just had a stroke of inspiration as I read Zack Barrett's letter about the folly of allowing transports to tow two trailers through our busy highway traffic. Why don't we create special restricted roadways they can use? To solve the problems of turning too quickly and rolling over, why not place their wheels on special tracks? Make the towing engine bigger so they can tow not just two but many trailers for increased efficiency. Best of all, instead of the taxpayers and other motorists paying for the upkeep of these special roadways, make the transport companies pay it all. Then let's call the whole system something like, oh I don't know, how about railroads?"
Big truck "Pilot Projects" are also slated for Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.