Showing posts sorted by date for query the airport train. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query the airport train. Sort by relevance Show all posts

Monday, August 31, 2026

Why New York City has a Two-Car Subway Train and provincial Vancouver is stuck with a 2 car airport train

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xH37SqlW0Ks 

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

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R68_(New_York_City_Subway_car) 75-foot (22.86 m) length for each car. So roughly, a 2 car joke of a train is almost 46 m, or 150 ft. The absurd Canada_Line-Stations with its 2 car trains are in the 40 m to 50 m range. Thus, only two car & 2.5 car trains are only possible. In contrast, a 9 car Montreal_Metro train can be up to 152.5 m, or 500 ft.

Train length
  • 2 car train: 150 feet (46 m)
  • 4 car train: 300 feet (91 m)
  • 8 car train: 600 feet (180 m)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R68_(New_York_City_Subway_car)#Description So, an 8 car, 600 foot long train is 100 feet longer than a 500 foot, 9 car Montreal train. 

The end of the line for the Franklin_Avenue_Shuttle is only a single track platform. 

Unfortunately, the YVR and the Richmond end if the Canada_Line stations are also a single track platforms. Even if this was initially decided as a cost saving measure, a double track guideway still should have been built. Then, a proper double track station could eventually be completed. Especially if the line is ever extended to the Delta Ferry terminal.

The YVR-Airport_station was deliberately designed to be narrower and shorter than what a proper big city airport station should be. Its another example of the unofficial BCMV reducing and thwarting the scale of things. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearson_Airport_station Almost like REM quality for Toronto, but not for provincial Vancouver. https://www.upexpress.com/en/up-express-stations/pearson-station , https://www.torontopearson.com/en/transportation-and-parking/up-express Wow, Toronto like Perth can run 3 car big city type trains. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Pearson_Express#Rolling_stock Vancouver can only hope for a 2.5 car train, someday. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Pearson_Express#Route Sometimes, a 2 car joke of a train might be OK to start with, but there should already be enough station clearance for at least 3-5 car trains. Then, as long as its a walk-through train, Selective_Door_Operation (SDO) can make it possible to add an extra car at both ends of a short train. SDO can be an intermediate step before having to extensively lighten each station. 

Stubborn, backwards Vancouver will eventually have to seriously consider SDO in order to have longer big city type trains. Unfortunately, as long as its stuck in the BC backwater mentality or under the spell of the BCMV, things won't improve.

https://canada.constructconnect.com/dcn/news/projects/2026/05/montreals-airport-rem-station-will-have-signature-iceberg-motif , https://montrealgazette.com/news/rem-has-begun-testing-trains-on-airport-branch Of course the YUL-P.E. Trudeau_station, like the Honolulu Airport station, will be longer and wider than the one at YVR.

Perhaps the short, single track & platform at the YVR-Airport_Station would be impressive if it were in Victoria, Prince George, Kamloops or Kelowna, but its hardly impressive when compared to the SeaTac/Airport_station, Portland_Airport_station, Lelepaua_station in Honolulu, Brisbane_Airport station, Sydney_Airport stations, the future Melbourne_Airport station and Perth_Airport station. The scale of the San_Francisco_International_Airport_station, which can accommodate 10 car trains, is on a whole other scale. All major airports and their train stations in Asia & Europe are so far beyond what Canada has. There is no reason as to why Greater Vancouver and some other cities in BC, can't be upgraded to a Pacific Rim infrastructure level, instead of  being stuck in a perpetual BC backwater mindset. 

The VMV, under the umbrella of the larger BCMV, is such a horrible impediment and it doesn't even officially exist. 

Saturday, August 29, 2026

Vancouver International Airport (YVR) is Getting MASSIVE Upgrades

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQw18DQ4TlY MA$$IVE Upgrades? Compared to what, other provincial backwaters? 

SkyTrain Front Window View - Canada Line to YVR https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxTEBfxYH0g This is very sad & pathetic that the stations weren't designed to be long enough to accommodate a 5 car train. The stations can only accommodate a 2.5 car joke of a train. The real sad joke is that the line is still only running 2 car trains on what is supposed to be a major urban area on the Pacific Rim.

Unfortunately, even if Vancouver-Surrey & Abbottsford, Victoria & Nanaimo, Prince Rupert & Kitimat were all upgraded to proper big urban areas on par with Melbourne, Sydney & Brisbane, or even Seattle & Calgary, BC just isn't as warm as Australia, or even NZ for half of of the year. Edmonton & Calgary, Seattle & Portland are able to have wider bridges & roads, and even longer trains than Vancouver to Richmond & Vancouver to Surrey-Langley. 

Fortunately, the Pacific Rim part of Australia hasn't been trapped in a provincial backwater mentality like the Pacific Rim part of Canada. For too long there has been a keep BC small and backwards mindset. AKA, the BC Mind Virus (BCMV).

Running short & frequent trains could be seen as a cost saving measure initially, but unless there is a genuine to have proper long big city type trains, the BCMV still wins out. The fanatical approach to keep most of the bridges in BC so narrow has made it very difficult to have a proper regional express bus network, let alone BRT. 

The 3 main seaport regions of BC, Greater Vancouver, Victoria-Nanaimo-Kitimat should become proper big city ports on the Pacific Rim. BC is 23 times the size of Switzerland, yet it doesn't even have the population of 1 CH. Canada in turn, has less than half of 1% of the worlds population. 


Monday, August 17, 2026

The YVR-Canada Line since 2009

The Canada_Line opened with 2 car trains and is still running just 2 car trains. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1ouk0VifwM&t=817s

https://thecanadaline.com/station-history No reasonable attempt was made to make sure that the stations could eventually accommodate at least 5 car trains. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada_Line#Stations The inadequate 50 m stations can only accommodate a 2.5 car train, not a 5 car train.

https://globalnews.ca/news/5778392/canada-line-10-year-anniversary/

https://buzzer.translink.ca/2024/08/skytrains-canada-line-marks-15th-anniversary/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada_Line#Technology 

https://www.atkinsrealis.com/en/projects/the-canada-line 

https://thetyee.ca/News/2025/01/31/Canada-Line-New-Stop-Years-Making/ 

https://www.bb-gi.com/investment/canada-line/ 

 Airport to Downtown Vancouver Transit Guide (Don't Take a Taxi!) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bNYrJhUgu0

https://www.railforthevalley.com/latest-news/zweisystem/should-we-convert-the-canada-line-to-light-rail-2 

 This $9 Train Saves You $40 at Vancouver Airport (YVR to Canada Place) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxUpww86dow

Fortunately, the REM trains in Montreal can accommodate 4 car trains, as does the Skyline_(Honolulu). 

The big mistake for all 3 of the Skytrain lines was not having all of the stations to be capable of accommodating 6-8 car trains. Plus, allowing for a future level station clearance of 153 m-160 m. That would have allowed Greater Vancouver to start of with short REM & Skyline type trains, with the capability to eventually have trains as long as those on the Montreal_Metro.  

Proper big city transportation infrastructure is so difficult to plan and build in backwards BC.


https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=YVR-Canada+Line

Friday, August 7, 2026

3 Ways to the JFK Airport

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YG1aRLZwihA  

Of course Vancouver opted to have the shortest airport train possible. The 2 car YVR-Canada+Line. 


https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=NYC

Friday, June 26, 2026

Is LA's Airport Train Actually Useful?

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-9O8UYX3FQ 

Ideally, an airport line can run from the city to the airport station. Sometimes, the airport station is just a stop on a larger line.

Monday, June 1, 2026

Yaletown–Roundhouse station's fare gate capacity increased by 66%

 https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/skytrain-yaletown-roundhouse-station-additional-fare-gates-completed 

The Canada line is such a watered down version of what should have been a proper big city airport and ferry rapid transit link. Just because this infrastructure project had to be scaled down during its first phase, the stations still could have been designed to eventually accommodate 5-6 car trains. Unfortunately, the stations were only designed to accommodate a 2.5 car train. While this perfectly fits in with the inept urban transportation mentality and especially fits in with the BC congestive transportation agenda, this is another sad result. 

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/skytrain-yaletown-roundhouse-station-fare-gate-expansion

Despite being downtown with several condominiums around, the Yaletown-Roundhouse_station is too small for an inner-city station.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yaletown-Roundhouse_station#Station_information 

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Yaletown_Roundhouse_Stn.jpg/1280px-Yaletown_Roundhouse_Stn.jpg 

There is barely enough level clarence beyond the short platform for another car. To remedy this inadequate situation, this line needs to have three full-size cars, not just some eventual 2.5 car joke of a train. 

https://www.eke-electronics.com/automatic-selective-door-operation-asdo 

Then eventually, once people got used to a 3 car train, an extra car could be added at each end, resulting in a 5 car train. Its a workaround that can eventually enable the 3rd line or the C Line to run 3-5 cars trains to meet demand. 

Then the Exp. Line and Mil. Line, or what could become A & B lines with standard 5 car trains. However, during the busy times, a 7 car train could be possible with selective-door-operation technology. 

It would have been better to have just built all of the Skytrain stations long enough for 5 car trains in the first place, with enough level track clearance for 10 car trains eventually.

Sunday, May 31, 2026

Honolulu and San Diego...

Honolulu is very reluctant to allow buildings to go much higher than 450 feet. SD can't go higher than 500 feet, because of the airport being so close. However, that's not the case in Boston.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honolulu#Economy

https://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?cityID=421 

Will Honolulu ever have some Miami or Singapore size buildings? That remains to be seen. For now, Honolulu like San_Diego will remain free of 50 story hotels and condos and 40 story office towers. 

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

https://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?cityID=120 

If SD can ever relocate its airport, then it can have much taller buildings. Once Edmonton closed an airport that was too close to its downtown, the city eventually had the tallest building in Western Canada. 

Honolulu got a nice airport train station long before SD.

https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2024/09/05/will-san-diegos-airport-ever-get-a-light-rail-connection/

Friday, May 15, 2026

Granville Bridge death was preventable, advocates say

 https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2026/05/14/granville-bridge-death-was-preventable-say-advocates/ 

While the Granville+Bridge needs to have a higher fence like the Burrard+Bridge, there is another remaining pending danger. 

https://vancouversun.com/news/iio-investigates-womans-death-after-9-hour-incident-on-granville-street-bridge 

There is no central safety barrier to prevent head-on collisions. Whether a person becomes disoriented, or actually wants to crash into traffic from the opposite direction, there is no traffic divider.

https://www.ctvnews.ca/vancouver/article/barrier-needed-on-vancouver-bridge-after-another-suicide-death-advocates-say/

The sidewalks could have been made a little wider in a way that there still could have been enough space for a traffic divider. 

https://www.reddit.com/r/vancouver/comments/1td85mt/iio_investigates_womans_death_after_ninehour/ 


https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Granville+Bridge Was 8 lanes, now 6, but with 2 bike lanes and wider sidewalks.

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Burrard+Bridge Was 6 lanes, now 4, but with 2 bike lanes & already good sidewalks. 

Unfortunately, both bridges have no middle safety barrier to prevent head-on collisions, despite their recent modifications. 


The Pattullo+Bridge was too narrow to ever have a traffic divider. Fortunately, its 4 lane replacement does have a central divider. 

The inadequate Knight+Street+Bridge is only 4 lanes wide in the middle, but has a traffic safety barrier. The KSB really needs a bike, bus and HOV bridge next to it.

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Oak+Street+Bridge A traffic divider was eventually installed, but the narrow bridge was never designed to have 2 emergency lanes, or 2 wide shoulders. There especially was no consideration to have 2 bus lanes on the OSB. Since there is no 24 hour train service to the airport, there should be a parallel bus and bike bridge. 

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Arthur+Laing+Bridge While it does have a traffic divider, there are no wide emergency lanes or wide shoulders. There isn't even enough space for 2 bus lanes. Thus, a bus and bike bridge really should be built next to it.

Wednesday, May 6, 2026

West Broadway at Cambie Street

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/broadway-city-hall-station-subway-full-road-closure-construction-summer-2026 

Under current station platform limitations, the 2nd line can only accommodate 5 car trains, not 10. The 3rd line can only accommodate a 2.5 car train, not 5 and especially not 10 cars. That despite it being an airport line and potential link to a BC Ferry Terminal train station.


Sunday, May 3, 2026

What is Happening with Lansdowne Mall in Richmond?

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9_GQWyo8h0 

Boston and Las_Vegas allow much taller buildings than what's permitted in Richmond. Those cities don't use their airport as an excuse to have stumps. Even San_Diego has taller towers than Richmond. 

Despite New_Orleans being on a delta, it has much taller buildings than Richmond as well. 

Boston & LV have longer trains, while N.O. never totally got rid of their streetcars like Richmond had.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lansdowne_station_(SkyTrain) A little 2 car joke of a train that's expected to do the job of what a big size or at least medium size city can do. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rseau_express_metropolitain#Rolling_stock 4 cars.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyline_(Honolulu) 4 cars.

Fortunately, Montreal & Honolulu opted to not have something like a 2 car YVR-C Line joke of a train. 

When stations can't easily be extended, Selective_door_operation can turn a 4 car rain into a 6 car train.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selective_door_operation#International_variations  

Unfortunately, the YVR-Canada_Line wasn't designed to have 4 or 5 car trains. The stations were only designed to just accommodate a 2.5 car train. However, with Selective_door_operation, a 2.5 car train could become a 4.5 car train. Perhaps, even a 5 car train with 3 full-length cars accessing the station platform. To still be running a 2 car train to Richmond and a Richmond-Delta tunnel that's still only 2 lanes each way, is a very sad joke.

So much more should have been done between 1986 and 2010. Especially, since 2010 and 2026.

https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2026/05/02/expo-86-40-years-later-the-memories-live-on 

Everything is so much more difficult & costly to do in backwards BC.

Wednesday, February 4, 2026

North Shore of Greater Vancouver

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Shore_(Greater_Vancouver)

Is North Vancouver the most livable city in Canada? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gX89qkSRBvg 

https://www.vancouversnorthshore.com 

Unfortunatly, there still isn't a commuter train from the airport to the H Bay ferry terminal. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Shore_(Greater_Vancouver)#Access 

There isn't even a train tunnel or a bus bridge between Downtown_Vancouver and the North Shore. Inept regional planning has been very slow to build rapid rail transit, or even a proper rapid bus bridge over the Inlet. An inadequate 3 lane Lion Bridge is so narrow that some people have living rooms or swimming pools wider than it. The 6 lane Iron Bridge that's so narrow, there isn't enough room for emergency lanes and no space for HOV lanes. Any attempt of a rapid bus will still have to be funneled into the inadequate single deck crossing. 

Tuesday, November 25, 2025

Airport Rail Links

The Transit Every Airport Needs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YeVZVluQWI&t=247s 

https://www.upexpress.com/en/about-up/things-are-looking-up Its only a two and three car train, when it should be between 4-6 cars, depending upon the time of day. https://www.torontopearson.com/en/transportation-and-parking/up-express

At least it's not a perpetual 2 car train joke that is the YVR-Canada Line. The eventual airport REM line should consist of 4 car trains, but the entire REM should eventually have 6 car trains.

Somehow, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane & Perth all are able to have longer trains to the airport. The 10 car SFO-BART trains are pretty cool.

Thursday, November 6, 2025

Expect noise, vibration during upcoming Massey Tunnel replacement

 https://www.delta-optimist.com/local-news/expect-noise-vibration-during-upcoming-massey-tunnel-replacement-11436394 This B$ should have been done a few decades ago.

A 10 lane bridge with 2 bus lanes, 2 HOV lanes & 2 wide shoulder-emergency lanes, plus at least 3 general lanes each way, could have been a nice wide crossing. Some 12 lanes, including the 2 emergency lanes. Plus, a provision for at least 2 LRT tracks. 

Instead, it's a 3 lane each way tunnel with the 4th being a bus lane. No HOV lanes and no emergency lanes & especially, no train tube section. 

So, just like the YVR-Canada (embarrassment) Line, this new 8 lane tunnel will eventually require some major upgrades. 

Eventually, a YVR-Canada Line bridge or tunnel will have to be built so that someday, trains can go between the airport and the ferry terminal. Such a train crossing should be parallel to the new highway tunnel. A new train tunnel or bridge should have at least 3 tracks, 2 rapid bus lanes and 2 bike lanes and sidewalks. Then the bus lanes in the highway tunnel could become HOV lanes. 


https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Richmond-Delta+Tunnel

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Massey+Tunnel+replacement 

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Richmond+and+Delta

Sunday, November 2, 2025

Getting to and from the Airport Doesn’t Have to be Difficult

Getting to the Airport Doesn’t Have to Suck https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WDCfDHQrxQ 

The Missing Transit in This Fast-Growing Canadian Province https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LGigNBLuS0

The Transit Every Airport Needs | Airport Rail Links https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YeVZVluQWI  

Metro Vancouver's Future Transit Plans https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVVfYwn7vmI 


https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=the+airport+train

Monday, October 27, 2025

Honolulu’s Skyline Rail Expands to West Honolulu, and to a New Airport Station

 https://www.travelandtourworld.com/news/article/honolulus-skyline-rail-expands-to-west-honolulu-bringing-faster-more-sustainable-public-transit-to-oahu-with-a-new-airport-station 

Even if the widest parts of the H-1 could be 10 or 12 lanes, it would still get plugged up. Nevertheless, being from Vancouver, it's quite impressive to see such a wide H-1 by the airport. If you visit Vancouver from Hawaii, you might think that Vancouver is a big city like Sydney, SF or Seattle. Then you discover that the roads & bridges are much narrower than what's in those cities. The real big surprise is that Vancouver not only has shorter trains than Sydney, SF & Seattle, but even Edmonton. Fortunately, the Skyline to the airport isn't a 2 car joke of a train like Vancouver's airport line is.

https://honolulutransit.org/about/route-map , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyline_(Honolulu)#Route

https://www.honolulu.gov/dts/skyline


The Airport Segment.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyline_(Honolulu)#Segment_2:_Airport 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lelepaua_station If only Vancouver's line to the airport could have opened with 4 car trains, then with Selective_door_operation, eventually 6 car trains. Unfortunatly, backwards Vancouver has been stuck with a 2 car YVR train since 2009, but it has the potential to become a 2.5 car joke of a train, someday.  


Downtown Honolulu.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyline_(Honolulu)#Segment_3:_City_Center 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyline_(Honolulu)#Ala_Moana_extension 


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyline_(Honolulu)#Rolling_stock "The line uses 256 ft (78 m) four-car train sets, each with the capacity to carry nearly 800 passengers..."  "Each car is 64 ft (20 m) long, weighs 72,000 lb (33,000 kg), and has 36 seats with a listed total capacity of 195 people, and sits on standard-gauge (1,435 mm) rails." 

While the Skyline cars are similar in length to the YVR-Canada-Line cars, they are of a heavier construction. Plus, the trains are twice as long as any on the embarrassingly short Canada+Line trains.

While it took a long time to get the Skyline to the airport, at least the stations were all initially built to accommodate 4 car trains. Unfortunatly, the joke that is the SkyTrain-Canada+Line is still only running 2 car trains and wasn't designed to eventually have 5 car trains. Its difficult to understand why the joke-line stations are only designed to accommodate a 2.5 car train, someday.

Honolulu like Brisbane, are very far away from the Vancouver Mind Virus (VMV) and much warmer. Thus, they are able to have longer trains to the airport, because they can build on a proper big city scale.  


https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=Brisbane+Airport+Railway+Line 

https://jfdatalinks.blogspot.com/search?q=the+airport+train

Thursday, October 23, 2025