Transport Planning Society’s Post

Save the date! Join us at Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) on 11th November for Transport Planning Day! This year's theme is ‘The Road Less Travelled: the Principles, Policies, Practicalities and Politics of Reducing Car Use in the UK #TPDay2024 #TransportPlanning https://lnkd.in/e4QS2948

Ground was broken today on what is said to be America’s first high-speed rail. The project, which is designed to connect Los Angeles and Las Vegas via a 218-mile stretch of track that will be built across the Mojave desert, will be completed within the next four years, its backers say. What Did Tatiana See at the End of 3 Body Problem? The proposed infrastructure project will stretch from the California city of Rancho Cucamonga to Vegas and is being headed by rail construction firm Brightline. In its description of the project, the company notes that the new route will be traveled by “all-electric, zero-emission trains” that will be capable of “reaching top speeds of 200 mph, getting passengers from Las Vegas to Rancho Cucamonga in about 2 hours and 10 minutes (2x faster than the normal drive time).” The project was helped along by $3 billion in federal funding supplied by the Biden administration, the Associated Press writes. In a press release from Biden Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, the government said the project would “remove an estimated 400,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year, bolster tourism, and create 35,000 good-paying jobs.” “As the first true high-speed rail system in America, Brightline West will serve as the blueprint for connecting cities with fast, eco-friendly passenger rail throughout the country,” Brightline’s Founder and Chairman Wes Edens, previously said. “Connecting Las Vegas and Southern California will provide wide-spread public benefits to both states, creating thousands of jobs and jumpstarting a new level of economic competitiveness for the region. We appreciate the confidence placed in us by DOT and are ready to get to work.” The AP also notes that Brightline already operates a railway system between Miami and Orlando in Florida. Gizmodo reached out to the company for details about its new project and will update this story if it responds. Many countries around the world have modernized their rail systems. Much of Europe is connected by a bevy of efficient and comfortable train systems, while Japan’s bullet trains have long been a source of pride for the country. China is said to have the fastest trains in the world and it has built up a highly effective high-speed rail network in a period of just twenty years. The U.S., meanwhile, has largely failed to develop any sort of modernized rail travel, despite decades of talk about the benefits that such systems could bring to Americans. One can only hope that this new effort won’t suffer the same fate as California’s long-suffering attempt to erect a high-speed rail service between Los Angeles and San Francisco. That project, which was originally approved by state voters in 2008, has—as of this year—completed less than a quarter of the proposed rail line and is currently missing billions of dollars in funding. In March, project leaders told California lawmakers that the full rail line that had

Delays, steep costs and construction work are undermining the dream of a Europe-wide high-speed rail network, with night trains especially susceptible to disruptions. https://lnkd.in/gAmc8KH2

A section of the West Highland Line will close for nine days from March 16, affecting trains between Glasgow and Fort William and Mallaig. A section from Crianlarich will be closed until March 25 to allow upgrade works to the Rannoch viaduct as part of a £1.6m project to secure its long-term future. As well as installing new timbers, metal girder will be repaired, cleaned and repainted. The works at Rannoch viaduct will involve replacing 50 longitudinal timbers (way beams), which run the length of the 208m structure and support the rail going over the steel bridge. The softwood timbers are life-expired and will be replaced with hardwood alternatives, with the existing baseplates and rail also being renewed. In addition to the work on the viaduct, Network Rail will also improve multiple sections of track between Tyndrum and Roy Bridge and between Spean Bridge and Arisaig. Signalling upgrades will take place between Fort William and Spean Bridge and drainage enhancements will go ahead south of Rannoch station. While the work is ongoing, services between Glasgow Queen Street and Fort William / Mallaig will be impacted with buses replacing trains between Crianlarich and Fort William and between Fort William and Mallaig. Buses will also replace trains from Tulloch, Roy Bridge & Spean Bridge stations to Fort William but there will be no services to Rannoch and Corrour during the closure. Services between Glasgow Queen Street and Oban will operate as normal throughout the closure. Zoe Monkhouse, Network Rail’s project manager for the Rannoch viaduct project, said: “The work we are undertaking in March is essential and cannot be delivered without closing the railway. “We know that closing the railway at any time is never ideal, however we always endeavour to plan our work for when fewer people are travelling on the railway and at a time which reduces overall inconvenience for the travelling public. “We understand that this is not great news for those making plans to travel to visit family or friends or for leisure purposes, but our team will be working around the clock to deliver these works safely and on time. “We thank passengers for their patience and understanding and apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.” Phil Campbell, ScotRail Customer Operations Director, said: “We know the impact this line closure will have on customers, and we will be doing everything we can to keep people moving during the work. “Replacement buses will be in operation, but journey times will take longer, and we encourage customers to check before they travel using the ScotRail website, app, or social media channels.” The post West Highland Line will close for nine days appeared first on Travel And Tour World. Source link

Construction on America’s First High-Speed Rail Has Begun

VICTORIA – Two conceptual renderings of BC Ferries’ New Major Vessels program are the first look at what up to seven new ferries could look like when they enter operation starting in 2029. BC Ferries is building these new major vessels to provide more capacity across the ferry system and continue to improve how we get our customers where they need to be. The vessels will replace up to six existing major vessels that are nearing their end-of-life and will serve the busiest routes between Vancouver Island and Metro Vancouver. “The New Major Vessels program is the largest part of our capital plan to modernize and transform the ferry experience in British Columbia,” said Nicolas Jimenez, BC Ferries’ President and CEO. “These vessels – greener, more efficient and standardized – represent the future of ferry travel in our province. They will significantly increase daily capacity, provide an enhanced customer experience, improve reliability and reduce environmental impacts.” The concept images can be viewed and downloaded here: https://lnkd.in/gtsVYXD3 The new major vessels will carry up to 360 standard sized vehicles and 2,100 people, compared to a capacity of 250-310 vehicles and 1,200-1,500 people on retiring vessels, which will help meet growing customer demand particularly as more people move to B.C. in the coming years. The vessels will be standardized with others in the fleet to allow us to be more flexible in moving them between routes when maintenance or refits are required, without disrupting customer travel. The basic design for these vessels is being developed in collaboration with a leading naval architect firm, LMG Marin AS, in order to maximize efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The design calls for engines capable of using bio- and renewable fuels, and includes a battery-hybrid propulsion system that will allow for conversion to full battery-electric operation once shore-based recharging infrastructure becomes available. Today, BC Ferries issued a Request for Supplier Qualification (RFSQ) for its New Major Vessels program. The RFSQ is available through the international shipbroker Clarksons, as well as on bcbid.gov.bc.ca. It will close on March 22, 2024. Qualified shipyards will then have the opportunity to take part in the Request for Proposal (RFP) process, currently expected to occur in the summer of 2024. BC Ferries follows a formal and transparent procurement process to obtain the best possible value for ferry users. The bidding process to build the new ships is open to qualified local, national and international companies. - 30 - Media Contact: BC Ferries, Media Relations Victoria: (250) 978-1267 media@bcferries.com

Investment, asset management best practice and leveraging technology is what is needed for the railways to be at their best for customers. Track and train combined can help but excessive involvement from the government is not likely to achieve real benefits. 5 yearly changes in pay masters is part of the challenge. Also looking at one mode of transport in isolation breeds industry bias. Long term national planning and prioritisation of multi modal transport and infrastructure is needed. Run by industry professionals not politicians. https://buff.ly/4dNrT8i

Are iconic #megaprojects good for the society, or do they just benefit the civil #engineering industry? Is it really better to focus on filling in potholes than building new state-of-the-art #infrastructure? 🏗: 🏟 vs 🕳 The article in The Guardian has a clear UK focus, but similar issues tend to ail other countries, including Poland as well: https://lnkd.in/dz-Xd_nW From Polish perspective, despite the answers being surprisingly simple, we still see a lot of hesitation in decision-making in recent years. Over last 20 years of our presence in the #EU, our road network has seen an unprecedented improvement 📈. However, the railway network seems to be in constant decline 📉, with only limited upgrades. It is worth to remember that with the economic and social development of the country, the needs and expectations of its residents are increasing as well. Although maintaining existing infrastructure is important, taking bigger leaps into the future is also relevant, as long as the net benefits of mega-projects to the society are positive. However, additional benefits for the construction industry should not be overlooked. Compared to "filling in potholes", such projects are not only the means for creating and maintaining jobs in this sector, but can also be used to raise the standards withing the entire civil engineering industry. Last 20 years of building roads in Poland has not only left us with a network of highways, but also improved the entire national engineering practice. Plans to develop High Speed Railways🚅, airports🛫 and tunnels🚇, could help our industry grow over the next two decades. What we often overlook are those less than obvious benefits such investments bring along with them: ▪ increase in the level of our local knowledge and expertise 📚 - which we can later use on other projects or even export to other countries, ▪ building stronger ties between the industry ⚒ and the academia 🔬 - as some engineering solutions can be so #innovative that input from research might be required, ▪ building greener, #sustainable #transportation - to accommodate growing needs of our society to travel for work 🏢 and leisure 🏖, ▪ finally, let us be honest, "filling in the potholes" does not sound that interesting for us as engineers.😉 Hopefully, in Poland, we will not follow the example of the UK in this regard.

VICTORIA – Two conceptual renderings of BC Ferries’ New Major Vessels program are the first look at what up to seven new ferries could look like when they enter operation starting in 2029. BC Ferries is building these new major vessels to provide more capacity across the ferry system and continue to improve how we get our customers where they need to be. The vessels will replace up to six existing major vessels that are nearing their end-of-life and will serve the busiest routes between Vancouver Island and Metro Vancouver. “The New Major Vessels program is the largest part of our capital plan to modernize and transform the ferry experience in British Columbia,” said Nicolas Jimenez, BC Ferries’ President and CEO. “These vessels – greener, more efficient and standardized – represent the future of ferry travel in our province. They will significantly increase daily capacity, provide an enhanced customer experience, improve reliability and reduce environmental impacts.” The concept images can be viewed and downloaded here: https://lnkd.in/gtsVYXD3 The new major vessels will carry up to 360 standard sized vehicles and 2,100 people, compared to a capacity of 250-310 vehicles and 1,200-1,500 people on retiring vessels, which will help meet growing customer demand particularly as more people move to B.C. in the coming years. The vessels will be standardized with others in the fleet to allow us to be more flexible in moving them between routes when maintenance or refits are required, without disrupting customer travel. The basic design for these vessels is being developed in collaboration with a leading naval architect firm, LMG Marin AS, in order to maximize efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The design calls for engines capable of using bio- and renewable fuels, and includes a battery-hybrid propulsion system that will allow for conversion to full battery-electric operation once shore-based recharging infrastructure becomes available. Today, BC Ferries issued a Request for Supplier Qualification (RFSQ) for its New Major Vessels program. The RFSQ is available through the international shipbroker Clarksons, as well as on bcbid.gov.bc.ca. It will close on March 22, 2024. Qualified shipyards will then have the opportunity to take part in the Request for Proposal (RFP) process, currently expected to occur in the summer of 2024. BC Ferries follows a formal and transparent procurement process to obtain the best possible value for ferry users. The bidding process to build the new ships is open to qualified local, national and international companies. - 30 - Media Contact: BC Ferries, Media Relations Victoria: (250) 978-1267 media@bcferries.com

Judge says construction on massive CN Rail hub in Ontario can continue — for now The Federal Court of Appeal has granted a stay allowing construction to continue on a $250-million rail-and-truck hub in Milton, Ontario, pending a decision on an appeal of a lower court ruling that halted the project. The hub, being built by Canadian National Railway Co., aims to double CN's existing line of tracks and construct a terminal for container transfers. The lower court had raised concerns about air quality and health impacts, leading to a review of the project's approval process. Source: The Canadian Press #construction #railhub #ontario #milton #canadiannationalrailway #transportation #freight #infrastructure #environment #courtruling #federalappeal #economicactivity #communityhealth #environmentalimpact #publicinterest #constructionindustry #railway #trucking #logistics #legalbattle #governmentapproval #environmentalreview #economicdevelopment #airquality #diesel #trains #trucks #containers #project #development #courtcase #sustainability #urbanplanning #business #growth #localgovernment #conservation #industry #supplychain #jobs #commerce #growth #ontariobusiness #legalissues #appeals #courtdecision #industrynews #railtransport #truckingindustry #economicimpact #communitydevelopment https://lnkd.in/eid4G-9S