Monday, December 21, 2015

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Monday, August 31, 2015

The Regional George Massey Tunnel Replacement Project

Of course someday, the Massey+Tunnel+replacement should have a regional rail crossing with extra bus or HOV lanes. 

While it's important to have a train to Coquitlam, it's also important to have a train to the Delta ferry terminal.





Its pitiful that there is no rail bridge between Richmond and Delta to provide an efficient link between YVR and the ferry terminal. 

https://sfb.nathanpachal.com/search/label/Transportation Its very strange that there doesn't seem to a plan to link YVR with the 2 regional ferry terminals.

https://sfb.nathanpachal.com/search/label/Interurban%20Maps Its sad that instead of improving regional rail tranportaion during the 1950s, 60s and 70s, backwards BC went the other way. Then the 1980s Skytrain had stations that were barely more than half the length of a 152.4 m Montreal Metro station. The YVR Line opened in 2009 and wasn't even built with 80m stations, only enough level clearance for 50m stations.  



Why is the Canada (embarrassment) Line built the way it is?

Despite its high cost, the C+Line or YVR-Line was designed to have shorter stations than the underground stations in Edmonton & Seattle. Even shorter than the ground level stations in Calgary & Portland. Considering that a Montreal Metro station is 152.5m or 500 feet in length, the absurd C Line stations are only 50m. 

A one third size train still could have been designed for proper future capacity expansion. Unfortunatly, this joke of a train was only designed to have 2 coaches & eventually 2.5 car trains, not 5 & certainly not 10. Because that's what a proper big city would do.

The light rail train bridge to Richmond wasn't designed to have any bus lanes, just 1 bike lane. No proper bus & HOV lane bridge has been built next to the narrow Knight+Street+Bridge , Oak+Street+Bridge , or Arthur+Laing+Bridge. By now, all 3 road bridges should have had 4 lane bus & HOV bridges next to them. Indeed, each bridge should have had 2 bus & 2 HOV lanes beside them by now. But why do that when everything can be crammed into just 2 lanes each way. Combine that with no breakdown lanes or wide shoulders & you have classic BC bottleneck planning. Since the C Line isn't running 24 hours, there should have been a 24 hour express bus to the airport on 2 dedicated lanes on the C Line bridge. That would have made it possible to always have an airport express bus, especially when the C Line is only running 2 car trains.

It's all such a sad joke that should be laughed at all over the world. It's also symbolic of the refusal to properly think & build big in backwards BC. Its like a whole lot of money was never efficiently or properly put into the regional infrastructure over the course of several generations. Any serious big city airport+line should be designed for significant future capacity. 




Friday, August 14, 2015

housing-market-risk-high-in-toronto-winnipeg-and-regina-cmhc-says

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/housing-market-risk-high-in-toronto-winnipeg-and-regina-cmhc-says-1.3189981


"After a trying search, Jacob Butula has finally found a place to rent in Vancouver. But the apartment on the top floor of a house is far from ideal. Only a sheet separates his room from the living room that he will soon share with three roommates.
One roommate has promised to build him a makeshift wooden wall to replace the sheet. But it still means everyone living there will have easy access to his room.
"I hope I can trust these people with my stuff when I'm gone because they can just pull the wood [wall] aside and enter my room if they feel like it," says the 30-year-old Butula
"It's a sacrifice I'm making for affordable rent," he adds, as he moves to Vancouver to finish a master's degree in counselling psychology and complete his practicum.
For now, he believes a temporary wall may be as good as it gets with his $750 a month rent limit." http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/rental-woes-prices-jump-vacancy-shrinks-for-vancouver-toronto-1.3186886

Burrard Street Bridge (BSB)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burrard_Bridge

It's unlikely that the BSB will ever be restored or completed, because of the backwards Vancouverization mentality. 

https://cityhallwatch.wordpress.com/2015/06/07/burrard-bridge-details-revealed-at-open-house-second-event-planned-for-june-16th

The city was too cheap to build a nice, wide bike-bridge next to the BSB.

https://voony.wordpress.com/2015/06/02/burrard-bridge-the-war-on-transit-continues

Thus, instead of removing 2 lanes, the BSB could have still had 6 lanes, which 2 lanes could have been for buses. Then a lower deck for 2 streetcar tracks.  

https://www.google.ca/search?q=Burrard+Bridge+Proposed+widening+plans&es_sm=93&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=VZiLVbSUAozzoAS9jLC4Bg&ved=0CB0QsAQ&biw=1600&bih=799


Sydney Harbour Bridge (SHB)

The Sydney_Harbour_Bridge is such a fantastic structure. 








https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/93/Harbour_Bridge_looking_South_%2814039660121%29.jpg Wow, originally with 6 lanes & 4 sets of tracks. The Burrard_Bridge in Vancouver, BC was designed to have 6 lanes & a lower level for streetcars or tram-trains. No trams on the non-existent lower level, as Vancouver wants to be one of the last cities to bring back its trams. Unlike NSW, BC seems to have a problem with allowing trains on road bridges in the 21st century.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3051587/A-waterfall-gushing-Harbour-Bridge-crocodiles-stalking-train-station-flood-water-surfing-Opera-House-jaw-dropping-fake-photos-brightened-Sydneystorm.html

It's no wonder that such a wide & magnificent bridge from the 1930s would instantly become a fantastic NSW landmark & an Australian icon. Unfortunatly, it looks like Canada won't have a bridge of a similar magnitude by the 2030s. The 4 lane Pattullo+Bridge in BC is less than half its width & only has 1 sidewalk & never had any provision for trains. Its replacement will only open with 4 lanes & no HOV or bus lanes. Thus, its a pale imitation to the 8 lane Anzac_Bridge




Friday, April 3, 2015

Hopewell Centre (Hong Kong)

(1,190,000 sq ft)
"The building uses a circular floor plan. Although the front entrance is on the 'ground floor', commuters are taken through a set of escalators to the 3rd floor lift lobby. Hopewell Centre stands on the slope of a hill so steep that the building has its back entrance on the 17th floor towards Kennedy Road." 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hopewell_Centre_(Hong_Kong)

http://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?searchID=200&page=1