[T3G]

as we saw they will stretch the life of the bilevels to beyond our lifetimes.

Yes, many rail operators do, including in Europe. That's the nature of coaches - being essentially empty shells, it is very easy to upgrade them for modern use. Which is a very good thing - why should we retire them, if we can get more use out of them?

There is zero reason why we should retire anything we can squeeze additional kilometres out of. It is not fiscally prudent, nor is it beneficial for the eco system to manufacture something new when we can make use of something old instead.

There's nothing wrong with the BiLevels, leave them be.

once you add more station density as required, the behemoth bilevel trains will be too slow to maintain frequency.

Care to post some facts and figures to back up this claim?

 

[cplchanb]

Yes, many rail operators do, including in Europe. That's the nature of coaches - being essentially empty shells, it is very easy to upgrade them for modern use. Which is a very good thing - why should we retire them, if we can get more use out of them?

There is zero reason why we should retire anything we can squeeze additional kilometres out of. It is not fiscally prudent, nor is it beneficial for the eco system to manufacture something new when we can make use of something old instead.

There's nothing wrong with the BiLevels, leave them be.


Care to post some facts and figures to back up this claim?

Sure. If push pulls were so great why is DB phasing them all out in favour of emus?

just look here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_regional_railway_lines_in_North_Rhine-Westphalia

The vast majority of the express services that we are mirroring are using emus. they are empirically proven to be faster both in dwell times and at rolling performance.

Réseau Express Régional - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

look at the paris rer that we are trying to model against. emus. trains with multiple wide doors.

the bilevel cars work for commuter style travel. if we are to aspire to be an rer with more reliable frequency esp like LSE/W, we cant be dwelling on the past just because its convenient.
thats called complacency.

 

[T3G]

Sure. If push pulls were so great why is DB phasing them all out in favour of emus?

If you look around, you will notice we are not Germany. We have our own pre-existing rail network and rail fleet that we need to reckon with. I do not speak German and therefore can't do a deep dive on the DB rolling stock roster, but I am willing to predict that the push pulls they are phasing out are life expired, unreliable, or otherwise problematic, to justify the investment in their replacement.

The Series I BiLevels were just refurbished a few years back, and the majority of the BiLevel fleet was built less than 20 years ago. If you would like to pony up the cash to see these replaced with EMUs, feel free to open your chequebook and make a personal donation to Metrolinx, but as a taxpayer, I want nothing to do with this scheme. Innovation is all well and good, but there's a place for it, and that place is not when you have reliable, dependable equipment in good working order that you can get many decades of use out of still.

the bilevel cars work for commuter style travel. if we are to aspire to be an rer with more reliable frequency esp like LSE/W, we cant be dwelling on the past just because its convenient.
thats called complacency.

That's all very nice populist rhetoric, but you still haven't provided any hard facts or figures. You said: "once you add more station density as required, the behemoth bilevel trains will be too slow to maintain frequency." Where is your evidence for this? I know we have a low image of Metrolinx around here, but surely even they realize that it is necessary to spec vehicles that they purchase so that they can meet the requirements of the service plan, whatever speeds and acceleration rates it may demand.

Until you produce some technical sheets or reports outlining the acceleration and top speed rates of the different types of equipment you are comparing, you are merely arguing your opinion as though it is a fact, and I don't think that's helpful to anyone's understanding of the issues at play.

 

[RU479]

Image found on Facebook.

Still cannot tell whether the Series VII Cab Cars that were sent to Thunder Bay are getting reactivated like the Series II cab cars or deactivated as some have stated before.

 

[RU479]

Alstom to hire back workers for the Series VII BiLevel refurbishment plan and other works at the plant.

Alstom plant set to hire back some workers

Read the full story and comment on Tbnewswatch.com

www.tbnewswatch.com

 

[RU479]

So it seems the London consists may now be used across the system. I saw 562 with 10 cars going north on the Barrie Line (departed Union at 17:08 PM).

 

[RU479]

Caught at Whitby just a few days ago, 2 Series 8 cab cars (I believe 251 and 252) out of service at Whitby, near the paint shop.

Judging by the fact they have been out of service for around 2 - 3 months, and the fact they're near the paint shop, maybe they're scheduled to be repainted?

 

[SaugeenJunction]

Caught at Whitby just a few days ago, 2 Series 8 cab cars (I believe 251 and 252) out of service at Whitby, near the paint shop.

Judging by the fact they have been out of service for around 2 - 3 months, and the fact they're near the paint shop, maybe they're scheduled to be repainted?View attachment 515444

I’d say it is a good chance. Considering the GO painting contract was something like $19 million I’d expect the entire fleet will get the new livery.

 

[RU479]

I’d say it is a good chance. Considering the GO painting contract was something like $19 million I’d expect the entire fleet will get the new livery.

they only seemed to suggest 150 cars would get repainted

The 56 Series II cars and 94 Series VII cars that are scheduled for refurbishment fits that number.

 

[cplchanb]

time for the monthly follow up question... what happened to the loco bid. who won?

 

[RU479]

time for the monthly follow up question... what happened to the loco bid. who won?

I honestly think it's very likely MX may have cancelled that tender. There still hasn't been any awardee listed, so no contract has been executed yet. That means whoever would win would need to build 8 locomotives within less than a year (if the September 2024 timeline still is to be followed).

 

[cplchanb]

I honestly think it's very likely MX may have cancelled that tender. There still hasn't been any awardee listed, so no contract has been executed yet. That means whoever would win would need to build 8 locomotives within less than a year (if the September 2024 timeline still is to be followed).

 

[RU479]

Then again, I highly doubt GO reactivated the controls in the rebuilt cab cars for no reason. It seems pretty obvious that the 13 locomotive order was meant to go alongside the extra 15 cab cars GO would receive when all of the 200 - 214 batch returned from North Bay (so far 7 have returned, 204, 206, 207, 208, 211, 212, and 214).

As of now, GO has 91 locomotives and 88 cab cars. When all of the 200-214 batch returns, that'll be 103 cab cars. Currently 200 - 214 have no purpose since the number of locos has been the same since they were deactivated, thus they would not be able to add more trainsets. If the 13 loco order does arrive, by 2025 GO should have 104 locomotives and 103 cab cars, which WOULD provide more trainsets.

 

[Bordercollie]

How much longer are the F59PH's going to be around for?

 

[RU479]

How much longer are the F59PH's going to be around for?

The Metrolinx post regarding when someone asked about 13 locos said that they would NOT be retired even once they all arrive. So it seems they will be lasting until 2025 at a minimum.