Sky Blue And Vermilion

 V LR

 V ehicles

fbb has blogged before about the proposals for Very Light Rail in Coventry.

And there's more from one of the Coventry big cheeses.

So, in essence the VERY LIGHT vehicles run on very light track which is easy to install, a bit like a kid's train set. Not only that, there is no need to dig deep or spend oodles of money re-routing cables and pipes. So it costs a lot less thaln a conventional tram, but more than a bus lane!

fbb has also covered the trials taking place at Ironbridge.

But earlier this year there was a potential hiccup.

It does seem a bit perverse that chummy on the video was telling us how much money Coventry City would save by installing this "toy tram" system rather than real trams. But he was expecting DaFT (Department for Transport) to pay for it.

Coventry's plans are, indeed ambitious.

The first proposed route for the system is from Coventry Railway Station to University Hospital via Coventry city centre. This route is proposed to be operational by 2024. 

Hmmm?

Another proposed route would link the railway station with the University of Warwick. In the long term, the city council has intentions to construct a total of four routes which are intended to connect the major residential, industrial and commercial areas across the city, as well as a direct connection to the Birmingham Interchange station on HS2 near Birmingham Airport via Kenpas Highway and Allesley (possibly).

Hmmm?

But the latest headline news is that Eversholt Rail has placed an order.

Eversholt Rail has ordered three Pre-Series Revolution VLR (RVLR) battery-only vehicles, with line side fast charging, from TDI, for passenger trials and service. They will be built from 2024 and are expected to be ready for passenger operation in 2026. They will be based on the RVLR Demonstrator tested at Ironbridge. A report says they will be 62 ft long, formed with composite carbon fibre and aluminium panels and have 56 seats and a maximum speed of 65 mph.

Hmmm?

Now, fbb is old enough to remember the very first Docklands LIGHT Railway trains ...

... just a two segment car trundling around on some rather HEAVY but basic infrastructure.

Just look at the new trains soon to be operational ...

... even more heavy light rail infrastructure as below at Poplar ...

... and some whopping stations (But DLR doesn't run to Wapping! - - GROAN).

LIGHT it certainly isn't!

Then here is a Birmingham tram from "the good old days" with a typical four bay body ...

... and today, a five segment beauty.

Or, you could go to Budapest and enjoy a ride on s NINE segment tram!

But, there's a point to be made here.

Usually we find the new tram or train lines always exceed their apparently optimistic passenger forecasts and, often, they continue to grow their patronage.

Coventry is planning to run small 56 seat buses on wheels at "frequent" intervals. How long will it be before there is demand to replace the "toy trams" on "toy track" with something bigger and better,

And where will the money come from them, eh?

Surely VLR has a place providing shuttles to a main tram or train hub from less populated areas? Would they be a better bet than the highly unsuccessful BR railbuses of the early 1960s?

Yes they would be more successful, needing lighter maintenance of their lighter track and operated by one single man/woman with a ticket machine.

Seemples.

But for busy city routes (and Coventry is busy) ...

Again ...

Hmmm?

===============================

 V ertuous

 V ictory

 V anquishing the

 V ile

Most images of "The Devil" come from the Middle Ages, when Church leaders employed artists to help the mainly illiterate congregations understand the dangers of the sinful life.

In the bible there are no horns, no red colour, no skin-tight costume, no forked tail and no toasting fork. Yet Jesus was tempted by "The Devil" and warned his followers of the devil's wily but destructive ways.

It is sad that in a world where the devil seems to be evident at a personal level, a political level and an international level, it seems rather foolish to demote some "influence" that brings hurt and evil to the level of a cartoon.

If we can conceive of such a being, surely treating him/her/it as a joke is risky in the extreme. If you were the embodiment of evil, you would be pleased as punch to see those you wished to tempt treating you as a meaningless joke.

Thus many Christians see their lives as tantamount to warfare. And for warfare you need armour and weapons.

When Paul wrote to the Christians of Ephesus (Greece), he used the image of a Roman soldier, very familiar to the people as the occupying power. Here is Pail's lifestyle power pack!

Whatever your attitude to the idea of "The Devil", there is a VERY good argument for giving some sort of defence mechanism when the nasty naughty thoughts arrive and the temptation is to give in to them and say, dangerously, "What the Hell?"

An obscure memory pops into your author's head from 64 years ago approx. A Bible Class talk on "dealing with the Devil" produced this little snippet.

("Ill" in the sense of "ill will" not simply poorly). Interestingly, the etymologies of all FIVE words above are all quite different - tonally unrelated and from different ancient sources. Weirdly FIVE words of nastiness which, as they are all different, suggests that the world of bad things is far more subtle than we like to think.

Hmmm?

==========================

 Next W ABC blog : Saturday 23rd December