Transport 2000 Canada Hot Line

2 October 2009

This is the Transport 2000 Canada Hotline, issue number 1040, for 2 October 2009.

In this issue...

1 - Calendar

2 - Red Deer High Speed Rail Seminar: Speakers

"We have speakers who are knowledgeable about the Calgary-Edmonton rail corridor. With the presence of Alstom Transportation, the largest manufacturer of high speed trains in the world, the seminar promises to be an exciting event," Paul Langan, the founder of High Speed Rail Canada said on Sept. 29. Speakers include: William Cruickshanks, President and CEO of Alberta High Speed Rail; Ashley Langford - Vice President of Alstom Transportation Canada; Paul Pettypiece - Alberta Central Rail Historian.

High Speed Rail Canada in cooperation with the City of Red Deer, Red Deer County and the Red Deer Chamber of Commerce is hosting the seminar on Oct. 14 from 5:30 pm to 9:00 pm at Red Deer County's Council Chambers, 38106 Range Road, 275, Red Deer County. There is no cost to attend the seminar but seating is limited. Pre-registration is highly recommended. Participants can register by calling or emailing Lindsey Hutton at the Red Deer Chamber of Commerce at 403-347-4491 lhutton@reddeerchamber.com

http://www.highspeedrail.ca> ou

3 - La 66e revue TRAQ

Groupe TRAQ publiera sa 66e revue TRAQ et a fêté son dixième anniversaire le 31 août 2009. La revue TRAQ a été fondée en janvier 1999 alors que le Groupe TRAQ l'a été le 1er août 2000. Pour s'abonner à la revue TRAQ, il suffit de communiquer avec : "Le Groupe TRAQ (Louis-François Garceau), C.P. No. 45005, Charny (Québec) G6X 3R Courriel: traq@sympatico.ca T. (418) 832-1502 - F. 832-2466 - Cell. 955-2466. La revue ne coûte que 35$/année pour six numéros plus les hors-séries. http://www.groupe-traq.com

4 - Transport 2000 Atlantic reports on new Miramichi transit system

A new transit system is up and running in Miramichi, NB (pop. 10,000). There are 3 routes: Red, linking former towns of Newcastle and Chatham along the south shore of the Miramichi River; Blue on the north shore from Newcastle to Northumberland Square, and the shorter Green route linking Chatham northward across the river to Northumberland Square. Blue and Green routes run hourly from 7 am to 7 pm Mon to Sat, while the Red route operates every second hour 7 am to 6 pm Mon to Fri only, Transport 2000's John Pearce and Mike Perry report.

Fares are $2 or 20 tickets for $34. Monthly passes are $60. Capital cost of setting up the system was about $600,000 in addition to the city operating subsidy of $1.48 per passenger. Routes are served by four new 25 passenger buses and one special needs bus. Manager Roy Innis visited the new and growing Charlottetown, PEI system to get some tips on operations. In addition to serving malls and big box stores the system serves the hospital, the N.B. Community College, and the VIA Rail station.

5 - Drapeau didn't wait: Normand Parisien, Transport 2000

"Montreal mayoral candidates can rehash old public-transit promises all they want but nothing will get done until the city can finally convince Quebec to open its wallet. That was the assessment from a major Montreal environmental coalition yesterday after Mayor Gérald Tremblay unveiled his first election promises, all of which dealt with public transit," the Montreal Gazette reported on Sept. 28.

"Normand Parisien, executive director of Transport 2000, said he's "very skeptical of anything (Tremblay) says about public transit. "After eight years in power, there's been very little progress and improvements we've seen (such as more bus and métro service) only brought us back to where we were before the cuts of the mid-1990s," Parisien said. Meanwhile, fares have gone up significantly, he added. Tremblay has been "too timid" and hasn't put enough pressure on Quebec for funding, Parisien said.

"Montreal needs some leadership. When he wanted the métro system, (former Montreal Mayor Jean) Drapeau didn't wait for Quebec to fund it before he started. He just went ahead. And where would Montreal be today without the métro system?" the Gazette's Andy Riga reported.

http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Déjà+critics+Tremblay+transit+plans/2041581/story.html

6 - Le TGV Québec-Windsor serait rentable

« Ces conclusions de la SNCF ne surprennent pas Daniel Bouchard, responsable des dossiers de transport et des GES au Conseil régional de l'environnement (CRE) de Montréal. "Il est presque toujours assuré que les projets de TGV valent la peine d'être réalisés, a-t-il indiqué à Métro. On n'a qu'à regarder en France ou au Japon, tous les TGV sont rentables présentement, » Métro a rapporté le 28 septembre.

« Au-delà des gains économiques, Daniel Bouchard a rappelé que les gains environnementaux et sociaux du TGV ne devaient pas être sous-estimés."Avec le TGV, on décongestionne les autoroutes, on réduit le trafic aérien, on réduit les gaz à effet de serre, on réduit le nombre de routes et de ponts à construire, on réduit le temps de déplacement et on élimine la pollution, a-t-il illustré. En plus, au Québec, ça créerait de l'emploi, autant pendant les travaux qu'après, puisqu'un entretien du réseau et des locomotives serait nécessaire. Et il ne faut pas oublier que le TGV favorise le tourisme » Jennifer Guthrie a écrit.

7 - Who is in charge of the aviation safety hen house?

"If there's any thought out there that when it comes to security we're going to be downloading responsibilities to-- for, you know, guarding the hen house to the foxes, that's not on," Transportation Minister John Baird told the Fifth Estate on Sept. 25

Hana Gartner in part set up her interview with: "(In 2002) Liability was becoming a huge issue for Transport Canada. They didn't have enough money or manpower to regulate, inspect and enforce their own rules. That's why, eight years ago, they made a decision to change the policy. Now, they rely on companies to come up with their own safety and inspection systems."

Hugh Danford, told Fifth Estate: "They (Transport Canada) are getting out of the liability business, just like with Maple Leaf meats. They don't have meat inspectors anymore. They have inspectors who inspect the inspectors. And if they see a flaw in the system, they notify the accountable executive. And that's the end of it."

8 - US releases motor vehicle date rate for 2008: Canadian data for 2007 not available yet

"Motor vehicle deaths dropped nearly 10 percent in 2008 compared with 2007, pushing down all transportation deaths, the National Transportation Safety Board said on Tuesday. Highway fatalities, which dominate the toll, dropped to 37,261, from 41,259. But motorcycle deaths rose for the 11th year, to 5,290, and now account for one in seven motor vehicle deaths," the New York Times reported on Sept. 29.

The most recent official Canadian death rates cover 2006. Safety advocates say Canada's failure to publish timely data is a major problem.

http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/tp-tp3322-2006-menu-586.htm>

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/30/us/30highway.html

9 - CP Rail considering new $400-million rail tunnel to Detroit

"Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. has been quietly advancing plans for a new $400-million rail tunnel under the Detroit River and will probably start digging two years from now. Richard Blouse, president and CEO of the Detroit Regional Chamber of commerce, said he expects CP officials will give the green light before the end of the year to dig a large-diameter tunnel between Windsor, Ont., and Detroit that's big enough to allow double-stacked railway cars to pass under the Detroit River," the Windsor Star's Chris Vander Doelen reported on Sept. 26.

http://www.canada.com/Rail+considering+million+rail+tunnel+Detroit/2037821/story.html

10 - High Speed Rail in Poland: Construction to start in 2014

"On Wednesday, Infrastructure Minister Cezary Grabarczyk said that building the first stretch of high speed rail (KDP) would start in 2014. The first KDP train, the speed of which will reach 300 km/h, should take passengers on board four years later. The KDP network will connect four cities: Warsaw, Lodz, Poznan and Wroclaw. The investment is to be completed no later than in 2020," Mass Transit Magazine reported on Sept. 29.

http://www.masstransitmag.com/online/article.jsp?siteSection=3&id=9667

11 - Port Metro Vancouver to receive millions for infrastructure projects

"Port Metro Vancouver will receive up to nearly $21 million for 14 infrastructure projects from the federal government. The funding, provided through the Government of Canada's Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, will be matched by the Port for a total of up to $42 million. The 14 infrastructure projects are diverse, ranging from the installation of waterlines to service the Richmond Logistics Hub, to upgrading seismic capacity of three buildings at the Lynnterm Terminal, to upgrading water and storm sewers systems on the south shore to enhance emergency preparedness for south shore terminals in the event of a fire, spill or similar event, to the creation of a Fusion centre to manage the Port's operations and manage communications to ensure safe, secure and sustainable operations," Canadian Transportation & Logistics reported on Sept. 24. http://www.ctl.ca/issues/isarticle.asp?aid=1000341894&link_source=aypr_CTL&link_targ=DailyNews

12 - Halifax Council approves $33m bus tender

"Council has green-lighted a $33-million tender that will put 45 new buses on roads in Halifax Regional Municipality over the next threeyears. The 18-metre-long buses will be rolled out at a rate of 15 per year, with 10 each year expanding Metro Transit's fleet and replacing five aging buses," the Chronicle Herald reported on Sept. 30.

http://thechronicleherald.ca/Metro/9013415.html

Thank you for calling the Transport 2000 Canada Hotline. For additional information, please contact our web site at:

www.transport2000.ca.