Greenery For Canaries?
When it opens, the Elizabeth Line (a k a Crossrail aka TfL Rail) will be spectacular with huge stations and impressively LONG trains. The line is to improve east/west travel across the capital and relieve pressure on the Underground's Central Line. It absorbs the Liverpool Street to Shenfield local service and the all stops trains between Paddington and Reading. The branch to Woolwich etc is totally new-build.
The project is running at least three years late and might now happen (albeit incompletely) just in time for HMQ's official Platinum Jubilee sheanangens c/w multiple Public (once "Bank") holidays.
Probably the most spectacular station visible above ground is Canary Wharf.
Trains down below; three circulating floors, two floors of "retail opportunity" and the roof garden.
And there it is, built over what was once the northern basin of the West India Docks.
If you look to the north on Google Earth, it is hidden by tower blocks, so we swing the view through 180 degrees and gaze southbound.
Down the right edge of the picture, reading from top to bottom are the three close-together Docklands Light Railway stations; Heron Quays, Canary Wharf and West India Quay.
The Jubilee line underground station is hidden behind the tower of One Canada Square - the one with the pyramid roof.
The glazed roof of the western entrance is in the green bit, above centre right. Interchange between any two of them will need a good chunk of walking!
And the import of a whole load of canaries? Sadly, not!
Canary Wharf itself takes its name from No. 32 berth of the West Wood Quay of the Import Dock. This was built in 1936 for Fruit Lines Ltd, a subsidiary of Fred Olsen Lines for the Mediterranean and Canary Islands fruit trade. The Canary islands were so named after the large dogs found there by the Spanish (Canarias from Canine) and as it is located on the Isle of Dogs, the quay and warehouse were given the name Canary Wharf.
The Elizabeth line station is built on (in?) the Import Dock.
That's The Way To Do It
Roger French's blog (search for "bus and train user") wrote a paeon of praise for Transdev's Harrogate operation in yesterdays posting.
Giles Fearnley and Stuart Wilde, as progeitors of the modern privatised company, can be justly proud of the quality of today's operation. But before we joint too enthusiastically in the adulation of the privatised bus industry, let us consider the residents of ...
Duchy Road and Penny Pot
Rossett Green and Pannal Village
Oatlands
Wedderburn
Kingsley Road Starbeck
Claro Road
All of these areas had a Harrogate and District bus service for some years after privatisation. In all the encouragement of a well run bus company, fbb wonders what happened in these areas.
A more detailed review will follow in due course.
Sullivan Timetable Appears
The current 84, run by Metroline, runs between St Albans, Potters Bar and Barnet. Sullivan's replacement won't be running to Barnet.
There was some speculation that the new operation would only be hourly, but, as we see, a 30 minute frequency is maintained with some schoolday only variants on Monday to Friday.
Satruday is straightforward once it gets going ...
... and there is a bus every hour on sundays.
This is a four bus commitment, so we must all wish Sullivan Buses the very best. Hopefully there will ber plenty of printed leaflets!
UK Versus USA : Contrast And Compare
It is interesting to observe how the design of things generally varies between good old Blighty and the colonies across the Pond!
As selection of US steam loco pictures popped into the old blokes in-box recently. Here is a typical US front end.
... and similar in the UK.
And a side view of a US cab etc ...
... and one of our home-grown locos.
Part of the extra gubbins would have been loads braking equipment to handle much heavier trains than here, plus pipes and control systems to manage the flow of oil to the boiler fire. We used a man with a shovel!
In case you wondered, a kua is not a strange-looking flesh eating bird ...
... it's a railway wagon used for transporting nuclear waste.
Sometimes these ran in pairs, so if you want a KUA you have to buy TWO!
The models are highly specified ...
... and at nearly £80 each hold the current record for the most expensive ready to run goods wagon!
Unless anyone knows better.
Tomorrow (probably) back to Harrogate and other stuff.
Next Variety blog : Monday 14mapsth March
You could have looked harder - I immediately thought of the "gubbins" under the cab of a British 9F: https://live.staticflickr.com/4153/5043525389_60f41ee0f7_b.jpg
ReplyDelete£80 for a wagon, yes, that's one way of looking at it. But if you look at a KUA as being similar to 2 Conflats and 2 box vans, just all in one vehicle, does 4 x £20 sound better?
ReplyDeleteBut the real price story, which FBB has ignored is that while the big bus group hedge fuel, the smaller ones who have their own tanks rather than using the local forecourt have this week seen their prices rise well beyond the motorist's price. The two regular fuel suppliers one operator I know uses refused to supply, and the third could only offer half the usual delivery (about 2.5 days supply) at the equivalent of 207p/litre.
Those fuel prices seem slightly excessive from what my employers were quoted though I work for a medium sized independent so our volumes may be sufficient to maintain interest from suppliers. We could get prices quoted for this week and next, both at less than forecourt prices but we have still seen huge jumps, about 20p per litre from this week to next so there was a clear attempt to fill every tank before the price went up. If fuel prices stay this high we are going to start seeing marginal routes go regardless of the latest round of Government BRG funding, it is probably going to take an increase in the BSOG rate (temporary or not) to take the edge off this if stability is to be maintained.
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