Search results

True, but ours is a fully integrated transport system using every known form from bike hire to an airline. Overall it still needs income from elsewhere, such as income from congestion and low pollution zones and subsidies. .

Not modest batteries though, especially for rerouting. An empty small two car tram typically weighs 36 tonnes. Add the full complement of 150 passengers that rises to around 45 tonnes. A loaded three car tram will reach 65 tonnes. Those halting in an uncabled section will need a lot of...

Not quite so low cost as might seem. It's not so much the daily costs, which are very low, but the high intermittent costs. The trains work very hard around 19 hours a day, for some 24 hours for two days of the week. There's a lot of wear and tear so plenty of inspections, brake pad and...

In fact Ford have been seriously considering pulling out of Europe altogether, so Brexit isn't the only factor. If that seems unlikely to you, remember that a year ago their big rival General Motors pulled out, selling off Vauxhall and Opel to PSA. .

It looks that way, but it's the timing of the ignition point. Diesel compression ratios are usually in the 15 to 20 to 1 range, but for smoother running lower than 15 is better. Trouble is then the precise point of the self ignition becomes unreliable, subject to minute retard variation. The...

The spark plug enables a precise ignition timing point with a lower diesel compression ratio for smoother running. The compression ratio is probably low at around 14 to 1 or even 13 to 1, ratios which would give an imprecise ignition point on compression only ignition. Very long ago Mercedes...

Possibly the benefit of a lower population density? Here with a huge population and packed commuter trains, the 11 miles from East Croydon to London Victoria is a fixed £6.32, taking 16, 18 or 20 minutes, depending on which service. .

Rail deaths since 1st January 1950 = 790 Road deaths since 1st January 1950 = 101,000 (rounded) .

Yes, the rail line. Everyone knows the future of retail is on line. ;) .

I had previously read this, but as I've posted previously, it's not compulsory so we can ignore it. Even if it were compulsory, we could do like many of the other member nations and still ignore it. The EU isn't obsessed with this, they just have to make their laws consistent with policy. In...

I wish all our roads did go downhill, wouldn't need e-bikes. .

Thanks largely to our politics and national failings, not the EU as you are trying to imply. Where the EU has had a hand as in industrial investment, we've grown since 1972. All the car factories and Airbus and satellite production for example. That we've failed to directly invest in...

Because the greatly increased use of good and reasonable priced services justifies further expansion. In Spain's case they now have superb high speed trains running on the longest network in Europe. Need I remind you of how backward we are in that area? .

Strange how it works for all the other countries, often far more successful than us. It's the investment that drives the economic growth. Or we don't invest and continue with what is probably Europe's worst and certainly most expensive and inadequate train service. .

Not quite, subsidised by all who pay tax, including the passenger. .

See my reply on this link, last paragraph in particular. Why do you think our most successful competitors provide top class low cost subsidised train services?. .

With our chaotic fares system under privatisation it's impossible to be definitive, many cheap but very limited offers. I've just looked up London to Birmingham at a typical travel time on trainline.com and these were the offers: Slow journey: £5.50 but limited availability. Fast journey...

For environmental reasons E-bikes should have a purchase subsidy, similar to that e-cars get. I got £4500 of the price of my e-car, though the government has reduced that to £3500 now. Pro rata that would be about 15% of a popular model's price. Taking popular as a £1500 e-bike would mean a...

Because that won't work! It's because so much cost is put on the tickets that rail isn't being used enough. Most of our ticket prices are far too high. Everything I posted depends on rail travel being cheap as well as good, as it is for so many of our successful competitors. Thats done by...

Hang on while I find my magnifier. ;) .