Archive for March 2019
Oakridge Development
Walking through the mall this morning I passed this illustration of what the new mall development will look like. I then crossed the 41st Ave and Cambie Street intersection to take a photo from the diagonally opposite corner for comparison purposes. You will note that the rendering adopts a much higher viewpoint than street level.
The rendering also eliminates the overhead wires for the 41st Avenue trolleybus.
Preparatory work for the development is already underway, hence the traffic control officer and the bollards in the street.
If you also follow me on flickr you will already have seen the following photos there. The exhibit is still open in the mall as part of the marketing effort for the condos.
Note the brewing vessels top centre.
The view below shows the proposed brewpub
This will not be like the usual mall food court. No franchisees allowed. Guest chefs from all over will be showing off their skills here.
This is a sample of the Green Walls that will be a feature of the new buildings.
Transit Line Usage
This diagram was created by Mark Pope who posted it to the Facebook group Expo Line Memes for TransLink Oriented Teens (ELMTOT). He has given me permission to use it here and he has also provided links to the original data and his spreadsheet.
This is a very good way to understand how the transit system works, and changes one’s perception of the relative importance of the lines. I think the thing that surprised me the most was the difference between the 99 B-Line and the Millennium Line – and also how ridership quickly tapers off on the west side of Vancouver.
West Coast Express is not shown but had 2.3 million boardings in 2017 compared to 105m on the combined Expo and Millennium Lines.
I am not going to close comments, but I think it would be a good idea, if there are any questions, to ask them on the Facebook group rather than here.
Equinox Full Moon Spring
We are really lucky right now that the spell of dry weather is also accompanied by clear skies. We simply miss out on a lot of widely publicised astronomical events due to cloud cover. Not this week.
The warmth has also started the blossom/pollen season
This stitched panorama is huge: it is worth clicking on the image to see it at the original size. It being spring break there were quite a few people out at Kits Beach.
And the seals at Jericho
Not another award!
The Daily Hive reports “Vancouver has been ranked as the second best city for public transit in Canada.”
While some residents (particularly transit users) may be surprised, the new ranking comes from Redfin, a tech-powered real estate brokerage.
You have to do a bit of digging but by following the links you do finally get the methodology of the transit score
“The value of a route is defined as the service level (frequency per week) multiplied by the mode weight (heavy/light rail is weighted 2X, ferry/cable car/other are 1.5X, and bus is 1X) multiplied by a distance penalty.”
So basically they use the schedule to determine frequency. Not actual performance.
Note too that even if you had a bus system that had exclusive right of way, or signal priority and lots of bus lanes, it would still score less than rail – no matter if that is grade separated or in mixed traffic. That’s how “modern streetcars” get such a good press, I guess. Just pay no attention to video shot from a bus in Boston whipping past congested traffic. Or to Jarrett Walker who is adamant that the choice of steel or rubber wheels is not really significant.
For the actual experience of using two of Translink’s “high frequency” routes – see the previous post.
The reason I groan at these awards is the effect they can have on Management. Far too often they did not want to hear anything that sounded like criticism – or the need for improvement. What they wanted staff to be were cheer leaders. “We’re Number 1” (in a contest that was no contest at all) was their mantra. I think there has been some change in recent years.
While I’m reposting video from Twitter take a look at this one from Brent Toderian. This is a modern light rail system in Nice, France crossing the Place Massena – and using its batteries. Elsewhere in the city it raises its pantograph to collect power, but what struck me about this delightful urban space is the total absence of overhead wires. While the trolleybuses we now have here can operate on their batteries, it is not an everyday occurrence because the bus is then much slower, has a short range and requires someone to lower and raise each pole individually. So to divert the #14, #16 and #17 during Millennium Line extension construction under Broadway new wire is now being strung along 12th Avenue.
Diagram from Translink via the Facebook group ELMTOT
Hopefully the next batch of electric buses that get bought for Translink will have better off wire capabilities.
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