Salt Lake Transit News Thread - Page 97

WeST · #**1921** Posted **Sep 12, 2009, 5:09 AM**

I watched an interesting news clip from CBS that talked about the worlds reserves of lithium, which goes into most of our modern day batteries. It pointed out that this metal is only found in a few places on earth. We talk about getting away from oil so we are not as dependent on a few countries, but wouldn't switching to batteries put us into the same predicament?

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/09/...iles-desert-will-be-key-source-video.php

delts145 · #**1922** Posted **Sep 18, 2009, 1:52 PM**

UTA, West Valley open transit hub

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705330795/UTA-West-Valley-open-transit-hub.html

Officials from the Utah Transit Authority and West Valley City on Thursday opened to the public an Intermodal Transit Hub at 3650 S. 2800 West that will serve as a transfer station for multiple bus routes, including the 3500 South bus rapid-transit service...

...The Intermodal Transit Hub also will be a connecting point for light rail that is being constructed in the area.

The newly opened and operating site of the new West Valley Intermodal Hub at 3650 South and 2800 West in West Valley City on Thursday. (Mike Terry, Deseret News)

Crews from Stacy and Whitbeck Inc. / Kiewit Western Co. work on the West Valley Trax Line, a 5.1 mile light rail extension beginning at 2100 South Station and ending at West Valley City Hall. The Trax stop is being constructed at the site of the new West Valley Intermodal Hub at 3650 South and 2800 West in West Valley City on Thursday. (Mike Terry, Deseret News)

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Stenar · #**1923** Posted **Sep 18, 2009, 8:26 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by WeST

I watched an interesting news clip from CBS that talked about the worlds reserves of lithium, which goes into most of our modern day batteries. It pointed out that this metal is only found in a few places on earth. We talk about getting away from oil so we are not as dependent on a few countries, but wouldn't switching to batteries put us into the same predicament?

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/09/...iles-desert-will-be-key-source-video.php

There's a thing called Research & Development. I'm sure if we focused our time and energy on finding a replacement for oil, which we're not really doing now, we would come up with solutions and new elements to use in batteries and find other alternatives for oil.

delts145 · #**1924** Posted **Sep 18, 2009, 10:29 PM**

^^^

New battery could change world

http://www.heraldextra.com/news/article_b0372fd8-3f3c-11de-ac77-001cc4c002e0.html

In a modest building on the west side of Salt Lake City, a team of specialists in advanced materials and electrochemistry has produced what could be the single most important breakthrough for clean, alternative energy since Socrates first noted solar heating 2,400 years ago...

ASHLEY FRANSCELL/Daily Herald - Ceramatec President Ashok V. Joshi and his team John Gordon (from left to right), John Watkins, Grover Coors and Anthony Nickens at Ceramatec in Salt Lake City. The team has been working on developing a storage battery for homes and businesses. Photo taken at Ceramatec in Salt Lake City.

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esirhgih · #**1925** Posted **Sep 23, 2009, 10:42 PM**

Link to project site and video for the reconstruction of SR-92:

http://www.udot.utah.gov/sr92/index.php

UDOT is getting pretty creative with ways to move cars around the state.

WeST · #**1926** Posted **Sep 23, 2009, 11:27 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stenar

There's a thing called Research & Development. I'm sure if we focused our time and energy on finding a replacement for oil, which we're not really doing now, we would come up with solutions and new elements to use in batteries and find other alternatives for oil.

First off, thanks for informing me about R&D that sounds radical and revolutionary! Imagine, researching better technologies for the future and trying to develop them into new products.

Second, if you know about R&D then you would of course know that your statement about no really doing much right now is untrue. Last year $250 billion was spent around the world to add new energy capacity and more than half of that was spent on renewable resources-- more than ever!

The government and private companies are investing massive amounts of money in renewable technologies and other methods to make fossil fuel sources more efficient and green. Delts article is a great reminder of the new technology that is quickly changing. You will find once again, that before government can get its act together to come up with a good energy policy companies will bring us into the new greener age. This is why I have great faith in the entrepreneur, but little in big government.

Lastly, I find it funny how we tend to have faith in our ability to discover better ways of doing something when it comes to the technology we like, but not when it has to do with the ones we don't. I would love to see a world where batteries are cheap, powerful and easily accessible, but I don't think we should put all our eggs in one basket when we don't know what the future holds.

urbanboy · #**1927** Posted **Sep 23, 2009, 11:57 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by esirhgih

Link to project site and video for the reconstruction of SR-92:

http://www.udot.utah.gov/sr92/index.php

UDOT is getting pretty creative with ways to move cars around the state.

Hopefully, this will be moving busses faster too.

WeST · #**1928** Posted **Sep 23, 2009, 11:59 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by delts145

^^^

New battery could change world

http://www.heraldextra.com/news/article_b0372fd8-3f3c-11de-ac77-001cc4c002e0.html

In a modest building on the west side of Salt Lake City, a team of specialists in advanced materials and electrochemistry has produced what could be the single most important breakthrough for clean, alternative energy since Socrates first noted solar heating 2,400 years ago...

ASHLEY FRANSCELL/Daily Herald - Ceramatec President Ashok V. Joshi and his team John Gordon (from left to right), John Watkins, Grover Coors and Anthony Nickens at Ceramatec in Salt Lake City. The team has been working on developing a storage battery for homes and businesses. Photo taken at Ceramatec in Salt Lake City.

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Delts I read this article when you posted it prior and I was really excited about the possibilities! I know utilities have been saying that renewables are problematic because we can't store the energy when the sun goes down or when the wind stops, so this is great news. High energy storage has been one of the missing links in a cleaner energy revolution. The future of energy generation is very exciting.

WeST · #**1929** Posted **Sep 24, 2009, 12:00 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by urbanboy

Hopefully, this will be moving busses faster too.

I did note the UTA TRAX cruising over the road in Lehi... nice.

Stenar · #**1930** Posted **Sep 24, 2009, 12:41 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by WeST

... if you know about R&D then you would of course know that your statement about no really doing much right now is untrue. Last year $250 billion was spent around the world to add new energy capacity and more than half of that was spent on renewable resources-- more than ever!

Compared to what should be spent researching new alternatives to oil, this is a tiny drop in the bucket, which is what I meant.

WeST · #**1931** Posted **Sep 25, 2009, 3:18 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stenar

Compared to what should be spent researching new alternatives to oil, this is a tiny drop in the bucket, which is what I meant.

I can get behind that.

esirhgih · #**1932** Posted **Sep 30, 2009, 3:45 AM**

UTA backtracks on TRAX change
http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_13448499

I said from the beginning that stopping the Sandy trains at Arena was a stupid idea.
Apparantly I wasn't the only one.

John Martin · #**1933** Posted **Sep 30, 2009, 5:07 AM**

Yay! I agree, it was stupid.

cololi · #**1934** Posted **Sep 30, 2009, 3:20 PM**

I was mad as hell when UTA gave us a heads up months before they officially announced this. Glad to see all of the yelling, screaming, etc. has paid off. This was seriously the most idiotic decision UTA has made regarding rail service. Although, once the airport line is up and running, expect the Sandy trains to interline with the airport and bypass the hub.

urbanboy · #**1935** Posted **Sep 30, 2009, 6:03 PM**

This will create a rail overload problem when the Davis line is implemented on 400 West, which is why the 600 West option for the airport line needs to be reexamined.

cololi · #**1936** Posted **Sep 30, 2009, 6:25 PM**

600 West is by far the best from an operational, cost and technical perspective. It isn't, obviously, the best political decision because that is why the viaduct and 400 W were picked.

UTA has already said that right now they think the Airport Line will interline with Sandy line. Originally they thought it would be for the U, but they cannot run the U station to the hub and have it go to the airport without adding 6-8 minutes to the total travel time. But the Sandy station, by bypassing the central station, can make the airport run without losing any time. The decision to have Sandy stop at arena was to train the rider for the future sandy-airport alignment. besides, more people ride from Central Station to the U than any other destination after transferring from Frontrunner to LRT. Amazingly, the 200 S bus line carries as many students to the U from Central Station as the LRT.

MetroFanatic · #**1937** Posted **Oct 1, 2009, 1:18 AM**

Out here by the 4800 South Trax stop for the Mid-Jordan line, they station is taking shape and they are starting to put up the poles that hold the electric wire. The poles are much higher than the ones on the Sandy line because at night the Union Pacific will be using the rail.

esirhgih · #**1938** Posted **Oct 1, 2009, 5:38 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by cololi

Amazingly, the 200 S bus line carries as many students to the U from Central Station as the LRT.

Its not so amazing if you've ever tried to ride TRAX through downtown vs. taking a bus. TRAX takes forever. From SL Central, I can walk to Gallivan Plaza faster than I can get there on TRAX.

urbanboy · #**1939** Posted **Oct 1, 2009, 6:37 PM**

I doubt that.

esirhgih · #**1940** Posted **Oct 1, 2009, 7:36 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by urbanboy

I doubt that.

I actually do it several times a week on my way to/from work. It doesn't take me any longer to get to work or home, and gives me a bit of exercise during time that I would otherwise spend sitting on a train. Look at the map / sample itinerary below:

The blue line is my walk to/from SL Central, cutting through the lobby of the Rio Grande Depot. The path is exactly one mile. The red line is the TRAX route, just shy of 2 miles. TRAX trains leave 4 minutes after FrontRunner trains arrive and take 11 minutes to get from SL Central to Gallivan Plaza, a total of 15 minutes. I', 6'3" and have long legs, so I can easily walk a mile in 15 minutes. When TRAX trains run behind schedule (which they often do through the city center) I'm even further ahead by the time I catch back up to the same train. If I ride my bike, I can get from SL Central to Ballpark by bike and actually pass a train and get 15 minutes ahead of the train I would have been sitting on if I rode TRAX the whole way.