Metro Vancouver Transit Discussion

[Millennium2002]

That bus doesn't do much at all actually... it's still local service... except that it misses Champlain Heights.

One wonders if the 43 needs a bit of a rework or something such that it can help relieve both busy corridors... oh wait... that's roughly what a B-Line should be and it's apparently too expensive to implement. =.="

[twoNeurons]

Not strictly Vancouver related, but I thought it was an innovative idea that could be applied in Vancouver... maybe along the south side of Vancouver or for commuter rail?

May 19th - JR West To Develop Lithium Ion Battery-Only Train By 2020

West Japan Railway Co, or JR West, has set a goal of developing a lithium ion battery train that can be put to practical use by 2020.

Nearly 40% of the train operator's jurisdiction is not electrified and is serviced by diesel-powered trains. By switching to battery-operated trains on these lines, JR West calculates that it can reduce energy consumption by 10%, lower its carbon dioxide emissions and also reduce noise pollution.

Rail operators have a difficult time lowering fixed costs. By switching to battery-operated trains, JR West will be able to cut expenses associated with purchasing diesel fuel. And since the trains will be lighter than diesel-powered models, the firm will also be able to save money on rail maintenance.

JR West recently set up an R&D group and will begin development of a prototype next fiscal year. The idea is to design a system so the batteries can be recharged when the train is stopped using power fed from a facility near the station and supplied to the train via overhead wires.

The train will also incorporate a regenerative braking system so the battery can be recharged from the energy produced when the train brakes.

source

[quobobo]

Suicide at Joyce Station today around 5:30PM, the Expo Line is pretty much shut down and the #19 is way, way beyond capacity. I ended up catching a cab with some very disgruntled Canucks fans...

[Millennium2002]

Are we sure that it is a suicide? = \

[hollywoodnorth]

Originally Posted by allan_kuan

Are we sure that it is a suicide? = \

ruceClaggett: Victim removed from Joyce #skytrain station http://yfrog.com/h03xtpbj

http://search.twitter.com/search?q=skytrain+joyce

CuhreepyIvee: A guy jumped right infront of the skytrain at Joyce Skytrain in Burnaby at around 5:50 pm, Today! D:
about 1 hour ago via web · Reply · View Tweet

looks that way

[Millennium2002]

That's sad. Condolences to the family and everyone else affected. = \

Sort of freaked me out for a bit also because I know of a friend who just broke up and I don't know how well she's coping with it. ><"

EDIT:

Silly CTV... why post up photos of SkyTrains seemingly running normally for this incident!? There's only like two photos that have any sort of relevance. Bleh.

[SpongeG]

5:50 sounds late - it happened around 5 or just before 5

I was trying to get downtown at 5:15 pm when it all happened - it got messy the trains sat at stations for longer than 5 minutes and canucks fans were freaking out that they were gonna miss the game and broadway and commercial drive was a mess

i was going from lougheed to comm drive...

they kept saying it was a "medical emergency" at joyce but we all knew it was a suicide

worst time for it to happen - surrey people going to the game must have got to metrotown and got turned around i guess - the station between metrotown and broadway were all closed

[Waders]

I am sure some Canucks fans were freaked out and might have missed the game.

I was at Metrotown station at 6pm. Translink staffs directed people to take #19 bus to get to downtown. You can imagine how long the line up quickly became. Some Canucks fans eventually decided to take a cab to get to the venue. Other people in the line up commented about how much we depends on Skytain today to get around. When the system stops, everyone is stuck.

If the "medical incident" did happen around 5pm, then the service interruption would have lasted for about 3.5 hours as normal service was only restored around 8:20pm.
It is sad to have this type of incident happening from time to time(too often IMO). I still believe station platform door should be installed. The cost may look expensive but how much does a life is worth? Also the economic cost adds up.

[bardak]

^^^
Installing the platform doors would not necessaries stop people from taking their lives it would only make them do it some other way.

On how to get downtown from metrotown wouldn't it be faster to take go 130>mell>expo

[deasine]

Platform doors can't be installed until we get rid of the MK Is.

[twoNeurons]

I think I remember reading that mirrors on the other side of the platform helped in preventing jumpers in Japan. I know train suicides have gone down there, but I don't know all the measures that were put into place.

[Canadian Mind]

Originally Posted by bardak

^^^
Installing the platform doors would not necessaries stop people from taking their lives it would only make them do it some other way.

Would stop them from inconveniencing the rest of the population, though.

[dreambrother808]

Originally Posted by twoNeurons

I think I remember reading that mirrors on the other side of the platform helped in preventing jumpers in Japan. I know train suicides have gone down there, but I don't know all the measures that were put into place.

I guess the mirrors confront the jumper with what they are doing, creating an emotional barrier of sorts?

[GeeCee]

Looks like TransLink is threatening to cancel the U-Pass program due to the resale problem.



http://www.vancouversun.com/TransLink+threatens+cancel+Pass/4842200/story.html

Edit: According to CBC/Translink, TransLink isn't talking about cancelling it.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2011/05/26/bc-u-passes-translink.html

[twoNeurons]

Yeah, I don't see the U-Pass fraud as difficult to combat. Like the article reads, integrating it into a student pass would help a great deal. Imposing clear consequences from the school would also help.

If all else fails, when smart cards are implemented, these things will be easier to track.

[Metro-One]

Originally Posted by dreambrother808

I guess the mirrors confront the jumper with what they are doing, creating an emotional barrier of sorts?

I also believe that if you attempt to commit suicide in Japan via jumping in front of a train and you survive, you are fined around 1 million dollars (please don't quote me on this, this is just what my wife has told me, who is born and raised in Japan). If you die, your family is given the fine.

[CLC]

For translink, getting websites to co-operate is the cheapest way to combat the fraud
It is easy to do a google search to find which forums allow people to advertise u-pass resell

[BCPhil]

Originally Posted by twoNeurons

Yeah, I don't see the U-Pass fraud as difficult to combat. Like the article reads, integrating it into a student pass would help a great deal. Imposing clear consequences from the school would also help.

If all else fails, when smart cards are implemented, these things will be easier to track.

Switching to Smartcards will put an end to this completely. Universities will end up using an all in one smart card which contains electronic ID (for accessing secured doors in labs and dorms and such), Library cards, food tokens (do they still have meal programs?), and the U-Pass. Selling away your upass will be giving away your student life. And as smart cards, if one is re-issued because it is "stolen" (read sold) the old one can be deactivated and tracked if it is used. This would make reselling them almost impossible.

It is bad now, but this is only a 3 or 4 year problem at most.

Originally Posted by Metro-One

I also believe that if you attempt to commit suicide in Japan via jumping in front of a train and you survive, you are fined around 1 million dollars (please don't quote me on this, this is just what my wife has told me, who is born and raised in Japan). If you die, your family is given the fine.

Don't quote me on this, but I believe it was Montreal years ago that ran a PR campaign inside stations that ran statistics about how many Metro Suicide attempts suffered long, painful agonizing deaths trapped under trains, or survived with life long disabilities, combined with a strategy of not reporting on deaths at all in the media. Shortly after suicide attempts dropped.

Between 1986 and 1995, some 115 people killed themselves in the metro. There were also 323 suicide attempts and 362 suicidal people apprehended by metro personnel before they attempted suicide. Although STM intervention has decreased the number of suicides and attempts, metro suicide is a tragic problem not only for the troubled individuals and their friends and families, but also for the bystanders and STM personnel. Traumatic effects on metro drivers are particularly well documented.

Above from the Montreal metro FAQ. So 26% of suicide attempts work out, the rest survive, and most that do die are not instant.

It is a common belief that jumping infront of a train is an instant death. If people knew that the majority of people survive the impact, less people would do it. The problem is I think media never reports on the anguish or suffering of the people who commit suicide on Skytrain. They gloss over the human tragedy and almost try to play up the "they didn't suffer" aspect so that people watching don't feel sick or wrong for watching which just glamorizes it in the eyes of copy cats who see it as a great way to commit public suicide.

[tybuilding]

Facebook Event: “Exploring Vancouver’s Transportation Future”
MAY 27, 2011
by pricetags
Having your say without having to put a sticky on a wall:

Vancouver drivers, bicyclists, pedestrians and transit riders are invited to a Facebook event where they will give advice to the City of Vancouver and help shape the future of transportation in our city. Start here.

The main event is a two-week Facebook discussion (May 31-June 14) followed by public ideas sharing. Sign up closes May 31 so that the discussion groups can start as a team.

Results of the online discussion and other public transportation conversations this spring will be integrated into a draft Transportation Plan by the City of Vancouver, which will then go back to the public for feedback in early 2012. For other opportunities to be involved, go here.

Vancouver residents and commuters will discuss key issues – like health, affordability, economy, and the environment – in small Facebook groups. Each group will work together to evaluate strategies and propose directions for the City’s Transportation Plan, followed by a chance to promote your ideas through Facebook sharing and commenting.

This Facebook event is a partnership of the City of Vancouver and Greenest City Conversations, a University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University research group.
http://pricetags.wordpress.com/2011/05/2...ncouver%E2%80%99s-transportation-future/

[SpongeG]

TransLink convinces Craigslist to pull U-Pass ads
Students say the transportation authority could have avoided the issue if it didn't force them to buy the transit passes

Postmedia News: Friday, May 27, 2011

METRO VANCOUVER - TransLink has succeeded in getting Craigslist to pull ads for the resale of U-Passes, but students say the transportation authority could have prevented the problem if it didn't force them to buy the transit passes in the first place.

The U-Pass program, which is offered at five universities and colleges and will be expanded to three more this fall, is mandatory for all students. Even if students don't use transit, the cost of the pass is tacked on to their tuition.

That means students in Maple Ridge and Squamish, for instance, are paying into the program when they don't even have easy access to transit to travel to their classes. And at least one University of B.C. student is paying for her U-Pass while on an exchange program in Australia.

"Why can't it be voluntary?" said Ernie Payne, whose daughter in on an exchange program in Brisbane, Australia. "You're charging them all for something some of them won't use. There are benefits to the program, but make it optional."

Getting an exemption from the program is arduous and difficult, students say.

Lorna Allen, a part-time student at Capilano University and mother of three, pays about $400 a year for her U-Pass even though she lives close to the North Vancouver university and it takes her just seven minutes to drive there.

If she took a bus, she would have to transfer at the Phibbs Exchange and catch another bus, taking her more than an hour to get there.

"I could probably walk there faster," she said, adding: "Being a mom I don't have time to take a bus everywhere. It's not very cost-effective.

"For people on student loans, that's a lot of money. I'm not surprised people are selling them."

TransLink this week threatened to shut down the U-Pass program if students continued to sell their passes on Craigslist, saying it was costing them up to $15 million a year in lost or resold transit passes.

On Thursday, Craigslist agreed to help "in addressing the illegal trade in U-Passes" and pulled the ads on their site, TransLink spokesman Ken Hardie said. Earlier in the week, there had been 29 student transit passes for sale or wanted on the website.

...

http://www.globaltvbc.com/TransLink+convinces+Craigslist+pull+Pass/4851138/story.html