#rail
Seen today in #Ottawa, an electric #Alstom Citadis Spirit #train.
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epfljwXgbhE
- Ghost Archive: http://ghostarchive.org/varchive/epfljwXgbhE
European governments shrinking railways in favour of road-building, report finds
The Guardian
Rail networks in most countries have been starved of funding while motorways lengthen, study shows.
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A sleeper train in Vienna. Austria is one of only seven countries in Europe that has invested more in its rail network than on roadbuilding in recent years. Photograph: Alex Halada/AFP/Getty Images.
European governments have “systematically” shrunk their railways and starved them of funding while pouring money into expanding their road network, a report has found.
The length of motorways in Europe grew 60% between 1995 and 2020 while railways shrank 6.5%, according to research from the German thinktanks Wuppertal Institute and T3 Transportation. For every €1 governments spent building railways, they spent €1.6 building roads. (...)
“Most European countries have been actually encouraging car use by investing large amounts of public money into expanding motorway infrastructure.”
In the public and political debate, Mattioli added, small investments into bike lanes and railways were heavily scrutinised while investments in roads were taken for granted. “This absolutely needs to change if we are to meet climate mitigation targets in the transport sector.” (...)
The EU plans to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by the end of the decade from 1990 levels but has failed to make any headway in its transport sector. Road transport was responsible for three-quarters of the sector’s emissions in 2020. (...)
“The €9 and €49 German tickets have given many the impression that people would shift to public transport if it were cheaper. But levels of service and infrastructure networks are much more important for modal shift. So I think we should be talking less about fares and a lot more about infrastructure.”
Tags: #climate #climate_change #climate_crisis #europe #eu #european_union #transport #cars #public_transport #roads #rail #railways #infrastructure #greenhouse_gas_emissions #greenhouse_gas #air_pollution #pollution
SNCF condamnée à 450 000 euros d’amende pour complicité d’atteinte à l’environnement.
La filiale de la SNCF est mise en cause pour des travaux d’élagage le long des voies, réalisés près d’Angers en 2019 en pleine période de nidification d’espèces protégées.
Cette législation est sans doute la raison pour laquelle le chantier de l'A69 a repris le 1er septembre : date de la fin de l'interdiction d'abattage des arbres, en vigueur depuis le 31 mars, en raison de la nidification des oiseaux.
#réseau #rail #infrastructures #environnement #protection-du-vivant
A look today at Iris Station on our under-construction #Confederation #LRT line. Not yet finished, but taking shape, at least.
A look today at Mooney's Bay Station on our under-construction #Trillium #LRT line. Other than the landscaping and removing the #construction fencing, it looks pretty much complete.
The Cascadia Hish Speed Rail project should be funded and started ASAP.
The region's population has been growing is going to be a major climate migration destination.
Meanwhile, in the #UK...
#HS2 is officially ‘unachievable’ after being given red rating
The HS2 #rail project was last week given an “unachievable“ rating by the official infrastructure watchdog. A “red” rating was assigned to the plans for the construction of the first two phases of the high-speed line, from London to Birmingham and then on to Crewe in Cheshire, by the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA).
“Successful delivery of the project appears to be unachievable. There are major issues with project definition, schedule, budget, quality and/or benefits delivery, which at this stage do not appear to be manageable or resolvable. The project may need re-scoping and/or its overall viability reassessed.”
Not promising, is it?
This month, HS2’s chief executive, Mark Thurston announced his resignation after delays and cost pressures for the railway project. He is to leave his role in September after six and a half years leading the government-owned company.
HS2 was initially scheduled to open in 2026, but is now projected to open between 2029 and 2033 because of construction difficulties and rising costs.
Fear not, though:
A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “Spades are already in the ground on HS2, with 350 construction sites, over £20bn invested to date and supporting over 28,500 jobs. We remain committed to delivering HS2 in the most cost-effective way for taxpayers.”
Just a little look at work on our light #rail project in #Ottawa. This is a #bridge over then tracks to allow pedestrians, bikes and wildlife access. Ironically this actually replaces a turn of the century wooden bridge that burned down in the 1950s and was never replaced. The road went into disuse at the time, due to lack of access.
Of course this bridge is not finished yet, but the construction company needs to get with the program, as this is all supposed to be handed over to the city in under three months!
People here who like #railways might find this little #video of interest. This is an official video from #OCTranspo, our transit organization, and is an update on how the light #rail #railway construction is coming along. It is almost all just #drone video and nice music, no narration at all, which I think is good, as the photos speak for themselves. This line serves our end of #Ottawa, the south part and is supposed to be open in September, only 13 months behind schedule.
This is a really well done video. If you are a rail fan, or cyclist, or a Californian, I think you'll like it.
Paging: @Karl Auerbach
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_JyDOIWHQk
#travel #rail #railfan #bike #bicycle #ebike #scenery #california