- Metro announces the response to Luna Park concerns about RapidRide C.
- With luck we’ll have our own report on the S. 200th St. workshop tomorrow.
- WTA is adding signal priority for buses.
- New hybrid and “clean diesel” buses for ST, increasing capacity.
- I don’t put much stock in these subjective magazine rankings but if Vancouver is ranked most livable city in the world 5 years in a row it probably at least means it’s very nice.
- Assembling Link cars in Mukilteo.
- Josh Feit reads my mind on the anti-tunnel initiative.
- South Park Bridge construction might start in May.
- Do you have “Stockholm Syndrome?”
- Freight train derails in Chambers Bay, spilling 50 gallons of lye onto the beach. Â Come on, Pt. Defiance Bypass.
- Decline in driving threatens assumptions of some highway projects; cities tearing down freeways, even when there’s no seismic threat.
- Warren Buffett making a killing on his investment in BNSF. Good for him.
This is an open thread.
Because it can’t all be about average stop spacing and subarea equity, I’m going to post my own public transit excuse. Sadly, it wont be a Link excuse for another 5-10 years.
Metro Cinemas is having a classics night every Wednesday; last night they played In the Mood for Love. If you’re a film buff, you’ve seen all of these films before on the small screen, but they’re worth seeing again in 35mm in a good theater. If you’ve not seen those films, you should, they’re some of the best moving pictures ever committed to tape.
You should go… and you should take the bus.
I was at the 9:00 last night. Were you?
Whoever told me that 2046 could stand alone lied. It makes infinitely more sense to me (and seems a much better film) in context.
(Sadly, they’re projecting the rest of the “classics” series digitally, which makes it somewhat less worth the travel effort.)
I was at the 7PM. Not that we would know each other from Adam. Bummer about the rest of the series, but I’ll probably still go to a couple of them.
I trust you saw some of SIFF’s noir series?
Hmm… between SIFF and SAM, there always seems to be another film noir series right around the corner. I like a good shadow-strewn potboiler as much as anyone, but both series seem to be programmed by and for those who see noir as the high point of film history and any noir as noteworthy (i.e. not enough curatorial guidance for the less genre-committed).
Next time there’s such a series, please post your recommendations to help me distinguish wheat from chaff!
My mom was visiting this weekend and told me about the Grand Cinema in Tacoma. It’s a nonprofit that shows a lot of independent films.
You should go… and you should take the
busstreetcar.I have a day off work in a couple of weeks and I’m going to spend it in Tacoma. Sounder in the morning, streetcar around town, bus home. A little bird told me the shortest path from Tacoma to Seattle was on the last bus of the night, before the driver gets of work; busses apparently approach light speed on this run.
So I will be sure to hit up Grand Cinema and take the train, streetcar and bus. Thanks for the tip!
I’m jealous! If by some odd chance you’re a train buff don’t miss the model railroad exhibit in the Washington State History Museum.
Choo choo! I’m there!
I’m surprised nobody’s mentioned the Grand Illusion Cinema at 50th and University. It’s volunteer-run and shows all sorts of odd movies. Great bus service, too!
That’s another good one, although their tastes are even more esoteric than mine.
Wasn’t Metro so supposed to get new 3 door coaches (Aside from the rapid ride ones)?
Or am I mistaken?
Other than the styling, these are identical to the other 6800-series coaches.
I passed by the train wreck at Chambers Bay on Tuesday morning. Nobody was hurt in the wreck, so I didn’t feel bad about gawking at the mangled metal and destruction caused by the derailment. There’s a good reason that the term “train wreck” is iconic in our language–it’s a very impressive sight. The response teams were still on the scene: railroad cranes, track repair crews, hazmat teams and a full squad of general BNSF workers. I hope nobody along the Bypass route is thinking that this wreck is good reason to keep the Cascades trains on the Pt. Defiance tracks. There is much more mayhem and destruction on the freeways in a single day than what I saw on Tuesday. Passenger railroads are much safer for travelers and the surrounding community than driving autos and trucks.
From the same link that proclaims Vancouver the most livable city, take a look at the list of most livable US cities. This wouldn’t be my rankings.
1. Pittsburgh
2. Honolulu
3. Washington DC
4. Chicago
5. Atlanta
6. Miami
7. Detroit
8. Boston
9. Seattle
10. Minneapolis
Ben
Yeah, these rankings usually only give you insight into the people doing the rankings. Vancouver is a fantastic place, I lived there for 6 months and may soon return – but if affordability were an important criterion of livability then Vancouver wouldn’t appear on anyone’s list.
The only one I’d really have to question is Detroit. It’s been called the murder capital of the world and the crime reduction seems to be due to everybody moving out. The most recent news I heard was they were going to close half of the public schools and bump class sizes up to 60. I guess it’s a value play ;-). I have to make the disclaimer that I don’t believe I have ever been there. If I was I was too young to remember, you go lots of places when your a military brat. The obvious omission is San Francisco; maybe because it’s too expensive to live there. That and it’s so crowded nobody goes there anymore :=
It all depends on what their criteria is. “Liveable” can mean anything. I have a hard time putting Pittsburgh as #1 unless it has made extraordinary strides in the past ten years. And I have a hard time believing New York is not in the top ten and that Seattle is above it.
Pittsburgh has. I don’t know that I’d put it #1 but I would put it #1 under rated by the general populous. NY, well…. that’s an I Heart NY or I hate NY call. But putting Chicago on the list and not NY seems strange. All I can think is that it’s like SF and that cost of living was part of the criteria (begging the question how Seattle made the list). I guess being able to afford luxuries like food is a legitimate criteria for livability :+
That shows that the list has jumped the shark.
The Vulnerable User Bill passed the House 59-39. It passed the Senate 43-5 last week. So soon instead of just a $250 fine, if you kill or maim a vulnerable road user by driving negligently, you’ll have to pay up to $5,000 and lose your license for 3 months, or pay $250 and take a safety course and do 100 hours of community service.
In other words, just as many people will die on our roads, but now their killers will get a slightly firmer slap on the wrist. Rejoice, vulnerable users!
What counts as a “vulnerable user”? Just pedestrians and bicycles? Or do mopeds and motorcycles get rolled-in to the definition?
And wouldn’t it be nicer if personal injury was NOT a requirement?
There are different copies of the vulnerable user bill floating around; one I found lists vulnerable users as humans, humans riding animals, humans using tractors or “implements of husbandry” without a protective cage, humans on skateboards, roller skates, scooters, bicycles, tricycles, or electric assist vehicles (bicycles, wheelchairs).
Not listed are pogo sticks, stilts, and a number of other more exotic means of human conveyance, unless those get lumped under the trailing “… or other personal mobility device.”
If you believe punitive measures don’t impact crime, would you support spending the money they want to spend on the new king county jail on transit instead?
I’m not really sure I see the connection you’re trying to draw, but what the hell, I’ll bite. I certainly believe punitive measures impact crime. But going from a fine to a fine plus community service isn’t a substantial increase in punishment, so it’s absurd to expect there to be a substantial effect on crime.
I’d love to see that money go to transit. Or to education, health care, ecology, etc, etc. The easiest way to do it would be to get our priorities straight. Possession of a single gram of marijuana will get you more time in jail than killing someone by driving recklessly—and the VUB doesn’t change that. Release the people who haven’t hurt themselves (much less anyone else), and start locking up the people who are proven threats to the public. The overall number of prisoners will drop, obviating the need for any new jail. And that money can go to things that actually improve our quality of life, like transit.
Apparently liberals love HSR because they want to control where people are allowed to go:
http://www.newsweek.com/2011/02/27/high-speed-to-insolvency.html#
Do yourself a health favor, give it up man. It’s impossible to fight that attitude. No rational facts can ever change their opinions. Even using facts that are considered “conservatives” don’t work. It’s just so damn frustrating!
All the same anti-HSR arguments they’re using could be easily applied to airports and airplanes.
And that attitude means it will only become more impossible, as left and right become more and more incomprehensible to each other. Hint: Rational facts are the least effective things at convincing anybody, despite what centuries of philosophy by people who, by definition, thought more than the general populace will tell you.
What can work? Seeing things from their perspective. I mean, completely buying in to it. I love my car because of the freedom it gives me. If the liberals make me take high speed rail, I’ll only be allowed to get off at certain stations. Those stations will probably be in big cities where I can’t live in my single-family house, but in cramped apartments. When people live close together in cities, they become dependent on each other and on government, not individualistic and free. And the liberals seem to really, really love the choo-choo trains, even though no one rides them. Ayn Rand was right, the liberals are engaged in a conspiracy to weaken our self-reliance and exert their control over us! Whatever else they say, it’s all part of the conspiracy!
In my view, the key is not to give away that you’re trying to convince them to your side, or even that you have a side to convince them to. My preferred approach is to play Socrates, acting interested in actually converting to their side, and simply asking questions to clarify their position, raising counterarguments as devil’s advocate positions or things you’ve heard for them to actually respond to, presenting information as something you found out about or heard, and generally representing the other side rather than being it. Have them know you as a real person with genuine motivations. At the least, they should, if their priorities are straight, try to “deprogram” you by breaking down your assumptions – that is, refute your arguments.
Okay, that turned into basically presenting rational facts in a different way. The problem is, left and right are now rooted in very different cultural assumptions and don’t seem to see each other as legitimate viewpoints at all anymore, meaning they can see the exact same set of facts as supporting their own viewpoints. So you have to see things from their viewpoint and present yourself as coming from their viewpoint, demonstrating an understanding and possible acceptance of their viewpoint first, and then slowly turning them, through a chain of reasoning and questions, to your side by rooting it in their assumptions. At the least, read the Heath Brothers’ books Made to Stick and Switch; they’re indispensable for anyone who wants to move the needle.
Sorry, that comment touched a nerve.
I generally give stodgy old George Will a break on occasions like this when he jumps the shark. He’s usually an articulate conservative with an impressive grasp of the history of ideas and a healthy skepticism toward human nature. When he starts rambling on about how wearing jeans is destroying the world or how trains are a liberal ploy to destroy freedom, he probably just had a bad morning. (Though if he quotes O’Toole one more time, my patience will be gone.)
Yeah, the man loves baseball so he can’t be all bad. Mostly he has reasonable points of view.
But I don’t understand how much publicity and requoting people like Randall O’Toole and his ilk get. It’s not like the guy has facts or evidence on his side.
I’ve usually found myself agreeing with Will. In this case even though I’m not a supporter of the Obama HSR plan the reasoning was disappointing at best. It’s certainly nothing to do with telling people where they can/can’t go. In fact it gives them more options. I do believe there is a social agenda at work and that’s the old ploy of getting the public more and more dependent on government to do everything. It’s telling that in this same news round-up is a link to the success of Buffet’s “investment” in BNSF. It paints a nice contrast of the real difference between an investment and a handout. Berkshire’s $34 billion investment in BNSF and the comments about how they have deep pockets to upgrade the infrastructure to meet demand proves that if HSR was a money making proposition (as CA claims) there is private money that will jump at the chance. That’s not to say there isn’t a place for government to grease the rails though tax incentives, favorable regulation (or deregulation), etc. A good start would be a reduction in the allowable weight limit for trucks, enforcing the posted speed limit (lower for trucks than cars), and other safety related issues. Another would be to allow passenger cars to “piggy back” on freight trains. Of course that would put them in competition (gasp) with Amtrak.
I dismissed George Will as a doddering fool decades ago, when he did a commentary waxing praise on the Bruce Springsteen song “Born in the USA” as exemplary of good old fashion American values. Which proved he never listened to the song’s lyrics. I think it IS a patriotic song but for completely different reasons than Mr. Will’s.
“people will still marvel that [this presidency’s] defining trait was a mania for high-speed rail projects.”
Has he forgotten the healthcare law already?
“Only an administration blinkered by ideology would persist.”
Who’s throwing stones? Rail has some proven benefits. You may not think they’re worth the cost, but they exist nonetheless. On the other hand, what’s the benefit of eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts or the Corporation for Public Broadcasting? Any net benefit is so small as to be essentially zero.
One advantage of Florida’s decision is that it was probably the least viable of all the lines. The midwest on the other hand could seriously benefit from a regional rail network. It would essentially be like METRA but on a larger scale, and METRA seems to have a lot of passengers, even though they all have the freedom of driving on the highways.
“the real reason for progressives’ passion for trains is their goal of diminishing Americans’ individualism in order to make them more amenable to collectivism.”
Get in line, prole, the reeducation camp is waiting. We have a nice collective farm ready for you when you graduate.
No more telethons? Seriously, this is not a legitimate function of government. Think all those BBC programs are great? I do and expected that when I turned on the TV in London it would be nirvana. Wrong, it’s 99% crap. Even the commercials were awful. The feds bankrolled part of the sculpure part that replaced the waterfront streetcar. The federal contribution to the arts should be limited to the National Parks, cemeteries and historical sites/ships. And as far as official state TV… that sounds a lot like something a dictator needs than a Republic. State sponsored media is not freedom of the press.
If you saw adverts it wasn’t BBC. You were watching one of the independent channels, or, more likely, the British arm of Muchdoch’s crap-dispensing machine, Sky (satellite) TV.
When I see the roof “fins” on the Metro coaches in this picture, as well as some of the new buses that ST is running, I can’t help but think that in the 1960’s Detroit’s focus was on styling and fins and not on the performance and reliability of the cars. They had great styling but lousy quality and the Japanese came to eat Detroit’s lunch.
How does extra plastic or metal on the roof of a bus improve its performance or reliability?
It’s a safety railing for the 2nd deck. They just haven’t installed the seats yet.
I sure hope they orders some with the Duck option. It would be a big cost saving by allowing the elimination of the West Seattle Water Taxi. And who needs a transit only lane on Eastlake when you can just take the under utilized Ship Cannel we’ve already paid for!
I actually really like these roof design much more than the older design. It gives it a more uniform profile. Cleaner looking too.
It’s only a good profile from certain angles. And it’s a facade. It’s hiding the truth.
It looks very strange when viewed from above, especially the non-hybrid versions, unlike the RapidRide models whose high roof line is fully enclosed. Or Link LRVs with loads of equipment on the roof that don’t make the fairings look superfluous.
I am also disappointed to see only two doors.
I thought Metro was going all hybrid?
+1 on the doors.
I was referring to Sound Transit’s D60LFRs. The ones that run Snohomish County routes are not hybrids. Hybrid or not, the accordion part above the real roof just looks weird. It reminds me of those fake Western towns or as Carl puts it, “facades”.
Have any of you guys disassembled a pickup? If you take of all the styling, cars look ugly as sin. I think these busses look cool and the fact that the roofline is fake does not alter that.
I take it the LFRs you mention, Oran, are older? I was under the impression that ST was going all-hybrid too. Greener, cheaper over the long run, and less likely than CNG to explode.
They’re not older. They rolled out the same time as the new style hybrids. Other than Swift’s DE60LFAs, Community Transit doesn’t have any hybrids.
This question might seem dumb but I’ll ask it anyway, but how does Sound Transit ensure that the tunnel boring machines that are about to be launched on Capitol Hill know how to reach their ultimate destinations, the correct way to go and at the right depth? Does each machine have a command module built into it that stears the thing? If so, how even do they make that work? We don’t just launch these things obviously and expect them to know but if someone could explain as simply as possible how the guidance of these machines operates, I would appreciate it.
Just curious? Will it be the same for the deep bore tunnel?
Tim
This Science Friday podcast covers some basics…
http://www.sciencefriday.com/program/archives/201102185
For some badassed old-school engineering, you can’t beat the Otira Tunnel in New Zealand. 5.3 miles long and steep, taking 16 years to construct, when they broke through in the middle the two sides were less than 1/4″ out of alignment.
I’m glad Metro is still considering a stop further north on Avalon. It means people can park at the park&ride and walk to a Line C stop. It means connectivity to other routes serving northern West Seattle. It means a bigger walkshed.
I was surprised to see in a density map that that corridor along Avalon is one of the densest little areas of the city outside Greater Downtown. So it certainly merits one stop in the dense residential area and one to serve some of the residential plus the little business district and the park and ride.
PT Riders, Heads up starting Monday: http://piercetransit.org/CNG/downloads/CNG_RiderAlert_3-3-11.pdf
This is related to the CNG Fire
Sigh… CNG is an inexpensive fuel and domestically produced. While it’s environmental credentials are suspect, I think we can all agree that oil isn’t any better. I read a report a while back about why Metro chose not to go with CNG back in the 90s. In short, it was due to the massive cost to upgrade Metro’s facilities to avoid fires in maintenance areas since natural gas floats. There were also concerns about whether PSE had enough pipeline capacity into the area to handle Metro’s needs.
I bet the report didn’t say anything about having redundant fueling stations and/or contract with outside private providers. Going forward, somebody should add this item to the list should Metro reconsider CNG as a fuel.
Never mind maintenance areas, what about the tunnel? If Metro used CNG busses in the tunnel, I would refuse to go in it.
The best environmental thing Metro could do is continue and expand the trolleybus network. Hands down, nothing else even comes close, and it would cost less and involve vastly less risk than CNG. If they discontinue the trolley network this year, they’re utterly, hopelessly retarded.
Actually, how much does Metro move busses around between bases? Would it be possible to run CNG busses out of (say) East and South Bases but keep the rest diesel (except ETBs out of Central?)
Anything is possible. I used to believe CNG was the magic bullet but a fair deal of research really make me believe Metro made the right choice to not go down this rat hole. On green house gas emisions CNG seems to be a loser. Reliance on more domestic sources of energy a winner. Overall environmental effects… unknown. CNG actually produces more “green house gases”. Recovery of US reserves has also been linked to earthwakes and contamination of water supplies. All of this is in a very early state of misunderstanding.
Yeah, I’ve actually been doing some reading since I wrote that, and I’m back to being skeptical.
Except about trolleybusses! Such a no-brainer.
I don’t know about “no brainer” but everything I’ve been able to research about the ETB fleet makes it a winner except for extremely short term capital replacement cost.
Not sureno clue what the answer is there.There are *absolutely huge* reserves of natural gas out there that can be converted into a very clean diesel fuel using Gas to Liquids technology. Many resources are still foreign but are more spread out and located in more stable countries. Qatar is one that comes to mind.
Short term it probably won’t help much but long term GTL should provide some downward pressure on diesel and aviation fuel prices. Take a look at BP’s Statistical Review of World Energy 2010 under “Natural Gas” for a list of countries and their reserves.
Bernie is referring to the environmental issues related to “hydraulic fracturing” a new technology that the potential to dramatically increase US Natural gas supplies. The documentary “Gasland” is a one-sided look at some of the consequences. I suspect we can safely harness this fuel but I don’t doubt that the drilling tech is ahead of the environmental and safety tech and that we need to slow down. (Read that as the “R” word – Regulation) The NY Times had an excellent piece on this subject although I can’t find it off the top of my head.
As for ETB’s: They are a “no brainer” if Metro can buy buses that will be around for 15-20 years. I sure hope they are talking to SF Muni as well as Vancouver about their purchasing decision to help keep at least one or two manufacturers viable.
I’m not convinced that all the money Metro “saved” by reusing the old trolley motors was worth it. They’re only 9 years old and we’re already talking about parts they can’t replace and buses that are dead in the water. With the 70 route currently running diesels we still have plenty ETBs though.
I wasn’t aware of the GTL technology. It sounds a lot like liquification of coal which has been around since WWII. The problem is how much energy you have to put in to convert it. Much of the natural gas isn’t economically recoverable until gas it north of $5/gal. It’s a shame so much is just flared off at the well head. It seems like at least small scale generator systems could be set up and used on site or dumped back into the grid. One advantage of GTL is it makes it much easier to transport on a tanker than a gas under pressure.
For transport on tankers, natural gas is liquified. But then, it needs to be kept at low temperatures, so fuels that are liquid at ordinary temperatures are still more convenient.
Gillig, eh? Are they going for the Low Floor HEV or the BRT HEV, since the Phantom has been discontinued?
I still think it’s a bit odd they aren’t buying DE40LFRs, but Gillig’s buses may be cheaper.
I seem to recall (and someone correct me if I’m wrong) that ST purchased a DE40LF to evaluate a while back (it may still be in the fleet) and ultimately didn’t like the small seating capacity. So maybe the Gilligs have a few more seats, or else they could just be cheaper.
Jason – you’re right that ST has a DE40LF running around. I used to see it a number of times on the 560. From my limited knowledge of the situation, ST was evaluating whether it would work in the tunnel for routes when demand was low. Unfortunately, I don’t have a source for this and I think I may have read it here in the comments a while back.
Sound Transit explains their single DE40LF.
Coach 9200 is still frequently assigned to the 560; I see it at Bellevue TC often.
A couple of random things…
– Pro-rail piece in the Seattle Times: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/soundeconomywithjontalton/2014387244_ridership_may_go_up_and.html
– My friend Ross Fotheringham captured an awesome photo on I-5 of an LRV being delivered to ST a couple weeks ago: http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=354900
I liked the article High-speed rail: State eyes extra funding from Obama
What other States are using this affordable incremental approach with proven results?
Hey, no fair, that’s a rhetorical question!
I saw 138 in service yesterday.
Downtown need a makeover? More cities are razing urban highways
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2011/0302/Downtown-need-a-makeover-More-cities-are-razing-urban-highways/%28page%29/2?source=patrick.net#mainColumn
So, tell me again why the taxpayer is funding all the improvements on his tracks, instead of the other way around?
We’re the renter, he’s the landlord. Yet we’re paying for the new boiler. Doesn’t make sense…
Your renter/landlord corollary is looking at the situation backwards. Why should BNSF, a privately-owned, for-profit business, fund capital improvements that they would not need if they were only hosting their own traffic? If we want publicly-funded passenger service to operate on privately-owned infrastructure, it makes perfect sense to me to compensate the owner for interfering with the operations that permit its business to function efficiently.
Think of it as if you were the landlord of a building, you and your fmaily lived on the ground level, and the folks renting the basement apartment want to intall a practice studio for their heavy metal band. Would you pay for the upgrades to the building’s electrical system needed to power their equipment and all of the sound insulation that would be necessary to prevent their loud music from interfering with your family’s life, or would you insist that they provide the funding since their intended use goes beyond the basic purpose of the service you provide?
Paying those railroads to upgrade the rail lines really does help all the businesses that depend on rail to move their goods as well, as well as passenger traffic. Maybe that is how it should be phrased- we are paying money to help businesses make more money. $$
Or should that say “invest for economic growth”?
Ideally, we would be economically efficient and invest passenger rail dollars into improvements so that the added service does not impact freight traffic and economics negatively while not giving away the farm and benefiting the freight railroads excessively.
The fact that improvements to BNSF’s ROW indirectly helps various industries is a peripheral benefit, but it’s still a dubious use of money. This is one of the reasons I’m very skeptical about expanding Sounder. If we built out Link and Sounder as provided in ST2 and then never built another mile of track, in 30 years Link’s cost per boarding would be less than a buck but BNSF would still be charging us a big chunk of change to run Sounder (as is their right.)
Ideally, we’d be building a separate passenger rail network for high-speed operations and the freight railroads use their own profits to solve their own congestion problems.
It’s an optimization problem. Someday, we may need the capacity of a separate high-speed passenger railline. I’m not sure we’re at that point now.
In the meantime, investing public dollars to get shared benefits is a sensible thing to do.
Charges from BNSF are for operating the trains and a small portion to cover track maintenance. ST still has to pay operators and cover the cost of maintenance of Link track and catenary wire. Cost per boarding isn’t a fair metric since Sounder trips are so much longer. A better comparison is cost per mile. What kills Sounder is that they will remain primarily one way trips (same issue with ST Express) whereas flow on Link is more evenly spread out over a much longer period. I was looking for the cost per boarding data for MTA/New York. Didn’t find it but came across this tid bit:
I did some looking at the budgets and performance reports on the MTA website and even did a cost per boarding. They’re not big on these sort of metrics. The budgets are all bottom line numbers (hey, they’re New Yorkers ;-) and the performance metrics are all on time, number of breakdowns, complaints, that sort of thing. The only cost per boarding I found was for LIRR and it’s very close to Sounder but fares are about double allowing for a 44% fare recovery.
Bernie, try looking at National Transit Database statistics. It should have more than you need.
It probably does but I don’t know enough about NY to figure it out. All the MTA reports I looked at didn’t single out a line item “subway”. Basically, I have no idea what I’m looking at. I don’t know if cost per boarding on the NY “subway” is even something that makes sense. It just seemed a bit low ball to me that Link cost would be $1 per boarding because at that point it would be making money hand over fist.
What any landlord would do is make the minimally necessary upgrades then asap massivily jack up the rent.
When you lease space in a retail mall or office building, YOU the lessee are responsible (in most cases) for all construction upgrades to the space to make it useable for you. It is possible to negotiate with landlords for them to pick up certain things that may have utility after your lease expires.
Where this analogy with BNSF lies, is in the eye of the beholder I suppose.
Having been a commercial tenant who needed new HVAC, yes, the tenant does normally pay for the improvements, and yes, if the tenant moves out, the improvements belong to the landlord, not the tenant.
If your landlord used your space to run a business while your shop was closed you would expect him pay for part of the improvements.
same experience Josh had, twice. They’re big capital improvements the landlord wouldn’t normally put in.
Is there any performance data for the King County Water Taxi system?
I know this is an open thread ao I’ll ask this question:
When are the other bases gonna get 6800’s? I’m tired of them being exclusive to South!
Florida Supreme Court upholds Gov. Scott’s decision to kill Tampa-Orlando HSR:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/05/us/05florida.html
Local relevance:
“And in the last several weeks, in an effort to allay Mr. Scott’s concerns, the federal Department of Transportation, along with the mayors of Tampa and Orlando and other Florida political leaders, had crafted an arrangement in which the contractor hired to build the rail line would have been responsible for all of its construction and operating expenses as a way to further insulate taxpayers if something went wrong. It was not immediately clear why Mr. Scott rejected the proposal. ”
What a dumb-ass. It’s amazing that in the year 2011, ideology is still the main factor in political decision-making.
I experienced a weird error at an ORCA TVM yesterday. I went to add value to my ORCA “card” and a Windows pop-up displayed an error message. This was interesting but freaky in that it exposed the underlying OS as Microsoft Windows based probably circa Windows 2000. I of course immediately removed the card and cancelled the transaction.
I’ve reported the error to ORCA.
I’m actually appalled to see this because they may be relying on an OS that is officially deprecated by the manufacturer, and which has significant security implications especially when used in a public setting.
It could be nothing or it could be indicative of a potentially serious problem. In any case, I wasn’t going to stick my credit card in that machine at that point.
ATMs ran on old versions of OS/2 for years and years. What sort of security are you worried about?