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Post by Cable Cassidy on Nov 17, 2012 18:44:24 GMT -8
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Post by Cable Cassidy on Nov 26, 2012 11:15:27 GMT -8
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Neil
Voyager 
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Post by Neil on Nov 26, 2012 11:54:14 GMT -8
If there's one thing that crushes any enthusiasts heart (be it planes, trains, ferries, or buses), it's seeing they're loved interests being crushed. One unit, R7141, did get donated to a better cause. She was used a few weeks ago in an earthquake drill scenario to train local emergency crews. Sadly, it doesn't make the sight any less painful. 'She', referring to a bus? |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 30, 2012 19:04:09 GMT -8
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Post by Cable Cassidy on Dec 1, 2012 22:59:43 GMT -8
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Post by Cable Cassidy on Dec 2, 2012 22:22:34 GMT -8
It's that time of year again, where transit systems across BC (and North America) dress up buses in seasonal attire. Vancouver dresses up S300 (a community shuttle) and 9715 (a conventional bus) up as reindeer. They're used in parades across the lower mainland, for various fund raisers (such as toys for tots) and then revenue service. Here's some photos of S300 taken today as it ran around the Tri-Cities  www.flickr.com/photos/chsscassidy/sets/72157632155750779/with/8239746577/ |
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Post by Cable Cassidy on Dec 3, 2012 21:48:22 GMT -8
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,310
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Post by Neil on Jan 4, 2013 10:25:50 GMT -8
I never quite know where to put posts about the old BC Electric interurban... it's transit, but it was also a 'railroad' of sorts. This may have been posted before, but if not, here's an interesting chronology in photos of the restoration of an old car by the Fraser Valley Heritage Railway Society. www.fvhrs.org/projects/1225%20Rehabilitation.htm |
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Post by Scott on Jan 4, 2013 19:49:46 GMT -8
I never quite know where to put posts about the old BC Electric interurban... it's transit, but it was also a 'railroad' of sorts. This may have been posted before, but if not, here's an interesting chronology in photos of the restoration of an old car by the Fraser Valley Heritage Railway Society. www.fvhrs.org/projects/1225%20Rehabilitation.htmThey have a nice one restored at Burnaby Village Museum. |
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Post by WettCoast on Jan 4, 2013 20:23:10 GMT -8
I never quite know where to put posts about the old BC Electric interurban... it's transit, but it was also a 'railroad' of sorts. This may have been posted before, but if not, here's an interesting chronology in photos of the restoration of an old car by the Fraser Valley Heritage Railway Society. www.fvhrs.org/projects/1225%20Rehabilitation.htmThey have a nice one restored at Burnaby Village Museum. Is that the one that was once on display at the entrance to the Royal BC Museum in Victoria? If so, it was from the BC Electric Railway's Victoria street car network which was discontinued in 1948. |
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Post by Scott on Jan 4, 2013 20:47:25 GMT -8
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Post by WettCoast on Jan 4, 2013 21:16:14 GMT -8
The street car that I remember being on display at the RBCM in Victoria is now in BC's West Kootenay at Nelson, as per this link: www.nelsonstreetcar.org/nelsonstreetcar.org/Streetcar_400.htmlAfter leaving Victoria the car was on exhibit for several years at the now defunct BC Transportation Museum in the Lower Mainland. That is why I thought it was probably still somewhere in the Greater Vancouver area. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2013 16:32:14 GMT -8
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Post by Mike C on Feb 17, 2013 17:40:28 GMT -8
Is Translink going to upgrade the Mark i trains? This was the plan, however only the RFP for repainting has been issued. No word on upgrades. A note for you SkyTrain nerds: the lifespan on the Mk I trainsets is indicated as 40 years, they have been in service for 28. The talk surrounding upgrades was regarding life extension. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2013 20:18:05 GMT -8
Is Translink going to upgrade the Mark i trains? This was the plan, however only the RFP for repainting has been issued. No word on upgrades. A note for you SkyTrain nerds: the lifespan on the Mk I trainsets is indicated as 40 years, they have been in service for 28. The talk surrounding upgrades was regarding life extension. For some reason, I do not see Translink doing it or doing it sooner. I think Translink needs to be replace the Mark I Skytrains with new mark III. Will the mark I trains run on the evergreen line when it opens? |
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Post by Mike C on Feb 17, 2013 23:08:25 GMT -8
This was the plan, however only the RFP for repainting has been issued. No word on upgrades. A note for you SkyTrain nerds: the lifespan on the Mk I trainsets is indicated as 40 years, they have been in service for 28. The talk surrounding upgrades was regarding life extension. Will the mark I trains run on the evergreen line when it opens? Yes. |
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Post by Curtis on Feb 17, 2013 23:17:06 GMT -8
This was the plan, however only the RFP for repainting has been issued. No word on upgrades. A note for you SkyTrain nerds: the lifespan on the Mk I trainsets is indicated as 40 years, they have been in service for 28. The talk surrounding upgrades was regarding life extension. For some reason, I do not see Translink doing it or doing it sooner. I think Translink needs to be replace the Mark I Skytrains with new mark III. Will the mark I trains run on the evergreen line when it opens? I have no doubt refurbishing the Mk I Trains is the most Cost-Effective Option, and Translink intends to do the first one in March according to this article from last month.
www.vancitybuzz.com/2013/01/translink-to-refurbish-skytrain-cars/Now perhaps if they ran into some issues that upped the cost of refurbishment greatly, I'm sure they'd have to consider Mk III Trains as the Plan B. I highly doubt that would be the case. It'll be nice to see Mk I Trains in the Blue, Black, Yellow, and Silver, a worthy successor to the Expo Line's Blue and Red. Not like the Millennium Line's Blue and Yellow, it never looked good on the Mk I Trains. |
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Post by Mike C on Feb 18, 2013 0:18:47 GMT -8
For some reason, I do not see Translink doing it or doing it sooner. I think Translink needs to be replace the Mark I Skytrains with new mark III. Will the mark I trains run on the evergreen line when it opens? I have no doubt refurbishing the Mk I Trains is the most Cost-Effective Option, and Translink intends to do the first one in March according to this article from last month.
www.vancitybuzz.com/2013/01/translink-to-refurbish-skytrain-cars/Now perhaps if they ran into some issues that upped the cost of refurbishment greatly, I'm sure they'd have to consider Mk III Trains as the Plan B. I highly doubt that would be the case.. Good find. This was pushed through the consultation process around this time last year. The Mk IIIs have been ordered, (28?) new vehicles to add capacity for the up-and-coming Evergreen line. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2013 17:08:05 GMT -8
I have no doubt refurbishing the Mk I Trains is the most Cost-Effective Option, and Translink intends to do the first one in March according to this article from last month.
www.vancitybuzz.com/2013/01/translink-to-refurbish-skytrain-cars/Now perhaps if they ran into some issues that upped the cost of refurbishment greatly, I'm sure they'd have to consider Mk III Trains as the Plan B. I highly doubt that would be the case. It'll be nice to see Mk I Trains in the Blue, Black, Yellow, and Silver, a worthy successor to the Expo Line's Blue and Red. Not like the Millennium Line's Blue and Yellow, it never looked good on the Mk I Trains. The Blue Red White on the Expo line was specific to it, but just carrying along the old BC Transit striping that existed on all BC Transit equipment (Buses and Seabuses) at the time. I was going to say that. Now Blue means Expo line, Yellow Millennium line. Is Translink going to put green on all Mark Trains when it opens. I think the current livery the grey,black, blue and yellow will look good on the Mark i's. The Mk IIIs have been ordered, (28?) new vehicles to add capacity for the up-and-coming Evergreen line. Here is the contract for 28 new trains. Hopefully the new trains will to go to King George station. When are the new trains coming in to test the lines? |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2013 18:30:50 GMT -8
I was going to say that. Now Blue means Expo line, Yellow Millennium line. Is Translink going to put green on all Mark Trains when it opens. I think the current livery the grey,black, blue and yellow will look good on the Mark i's. Here is the contract for 28 new trains. Hopefully the new trains will to go to King George station. When are the new trains coming in to test the lines? The new MKIII's may have green accents to advertise their placement on the Evergreen Line. Other cars will keep their Translink colours, although the original Expo cars will no doubt receive new base paint and livery. Some concept prints have shown MK IIs with green accents but that is just to show a vehicle on a project visual. I think Translink should put a green strip on all the cars since they did it with Millennium line. Here is the contract for 28 new trains. Hopefully the new trains will to go to King George station. When are the new trains coming in to test the lines? Depending on volumes, some cars may end up at King George eventually as the MK IIIs will be four articulated car walk throughs. The MK IIs are two articulated walkthroughs. The cars will no doubt be tested on the existing system before they are switched over to the Evergreen line. If that happens then they will be used on the Expo Line plus M-Line. I think Translink will do the same as they did with the Mark II on all the lines and Mark I on both lines. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2013 21:28:54 GMT -8
Looks like the busy stations on the Expo line are getting upgrade. It will increase the number of cars on the Mark I trains to five cars for better option or four cars. While every station on Expo line get upgrade in next 30 years? Has Translink even got started yet? By the way, what happen to two car trains for the Mark II? What happen to the two and six car trains for the Mark I? |
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Post by Dane on Feb 19, 2013 14:55:53 GMT -8
The colours have nothing to do with the lines, it just happened to be Translink colors at the time. Between the first Mark IIs and the second Mark IIs Translink changed the paint scheme. Referring the M Line yellow on the trains is a misnomer.
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Post by Dane on Feb 20, 2013 12:11:46 GMT -8
It is not partially correct; it is fully correct.
Translink adopted the yellow and blue in 1999, a full two and a half years before the Mk II were painted (they started as blue and white in 1998), and two years before the M Line was branded.
They (M Line and the Mk II cars) both share yellow, yes, but the trains are very obviously a slight variation of the bus scheme.
The Feds helped pay for both sets, but more with the newer batch - again, nothing to do with the paint scheme. All new vehicles purchased after 2006 have the grey accented scheme, which is entirely independent of where the equipment operates.
The Canada Line confuses all of this but that's due to the public-private-partnership, the equipment is not as directly owned by Translink as is the case with SkyTrain.
Unless TL changes the way it brands, which is not impossible - they love their sub-brands, the next gen SkyTrain cars will not have green.
What will be interesting is if the Mk I cars get the dark or light Translink sweep. Buses have been inconsistent. Low floor Flyers are getting the older 1998 sweep, and the Orions are getting the newer colours when refurbished.
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Post by Mike C on Feb 20, 2013 12:18:56 GMT -8
The colours have nothing to do with the lines, it just happened to be Translink colors at the time. Between the first Mark IIs and the second Mark IIs Translink changed the paint scheme. Referring the M Line yellow on the trains is a misnomer. Partially correct. The "200" series of MKII cars were bought for use on the M-Line (many of those finished in Burnaby) and the M-Line was built with yellow dominance signage and marks. That was done to provide distinctiveness to the line (apart from the Expo Line which has been blue dominant). The "300" series are the second round of purchases which were a joint federal provincial project Translink has different colour schematics for the varied transit services it provides based on its core colour patterns. The Evergreen Line will have green accented markings. Paul, I truly do not know where you get your facts from. Dane is 100% correct - TransLink garnered the colours in 99, and ordered the Mk II trains as fleet expansion because of the required capacity for the Millennium Line, but not exclusive operation there. The yellow on the train has absolutely nothing to do with the colour of the line or signage in the station. The Mk III trains will not have green "accented markings" and will not operate exclusively on the Evergreen Line - they will be painted in the same scheme as the 2nd Gen Mk II vehicles. |
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Post by Kahloke on Feb 25, 2013 19:23:35 GMT -8
Last weekend in Vancouver, I got to ride the Skytrain system quite a bit, which included all three lines: Expo, Millennium, and Canada Line, mainly in the downtown area. The furthest out I ever got was the Science World station on the Expo/Millennium Line. I must say, it's a very efficient system, and having ridden extensively on Sound Transit's LINK Light Rail in Seattle, it gave me something local to compare that train to. Personally, I really like the openness of the Skytrain cars, particularly the newer Canada Line trains. LINK works well, but the cars are really cramped compared to the Skytrain cars, and LINK has that elevated section in each car over the wheels below that you have to use stairs to get to. The Canada Line cars have wider aisles, more open space for standing, and it's all on one level - no stairs. I also found the Canada Line cars to be very smooth. The LINK trains jostle you around quite a bit. Don't get me wrong, I'm really glad Seattle now has light rail, but I think the Skytrain vehicles are a better design. Of course, part of that difference is the way the trains get their electricity. Skytrain uses an electrified third rail (I think), whereas LINK uses overhead lines. Anyway, I've rambled on far too long here, but I did take a picture of one of the Canada Line cars this weekend, and I have an older one I took of LINK to compare it with. Translink Skytrain's Canada Line - a very open and spacious car  Sound Transit's LINK train - the car is really broken up, the aisle is narrow, and the elevated sections at each end make it less accessible for some  |
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