[micheal_can]

Indeed.... the trace line that keeps something warm at just below freezing will not work at minus forty (either scale). And the lubricants might as well be glue.

It's interesting just where things start to misbehave.... often much closer to the freezing point than one imagines. And get worse as the temp drops from there.

- Paul

It reminds me of the movie 2012 in which the helicopter carrying the UK PM crashes. They remark that it was caused by the fuel freezing. It was so cold they needed to look up that point of freezing.
It also reminds me that if you have a vehicle operating in those temperatures, you mix more coolant than water otherwise it will freeze.

Cold weather really does wonders to mechanical things.

 

[ARG1]

Ottawa: not really accessible till the LRT opened. Still in a sea of parking lots.

This is transitway erasure, and I will have none of it.

Hell, the transitway station was in a better/more convenient location than the current LRT station.

That is good to know. What about the NDP? Would they see any reason to cancel it?

The NDP were actually campaigning for its reintroduction back in 2018. I like how people here are dogging on Ford for trying to bring back the Northland, but in the political sphere it was basically the liberals vs the world.

 

[lenaitch]

This might not bode well for on board connectivity on the PBX and upcoming Northlander.

Ontario pausing retaliatory measures after tariffs postponed, Doug Ford says

Ontario Premier Doug Ford says the province is pausing a suite of retaliatory measures that it was set to begin implementing following an 11th hour postponement of U.S. tariffs.

www.ctvnews.ca

 

[Bordercollie]

This might not bode well for on board connectivity on the PBX and upcoming Northlander.

Ontario pausing retaliatory measures after tariffs postponed, Doug Ford says

Ontario Premier Doug Ford says the province is pausing a suite of retaliatory measures that it was set to begin implementing following an 11th hour postponement of U.S. tariffs.

www.ctvnews.ca

ONTC owns the fibre link along the rail corridor (which was sold to Bell) thing stops them from building a 5G network along the route if they wanted to. They don't need starlink.

 

[lenaitch]

ONTC owns the fibre link along the rail corridor (which was sold to Bell) thing stops them from building a 5G network along the route if they wanted to. They don't need starlink.

Then you should call them up right away because it seems they don't know that.

The fibre cable was sold when the divested Ontera. It might follow the rail ROW but they no longer own it.

As far as I know it never did run north of Cochrane where the PBX operates. They did look at doing a tower string between Cochrane and Moosonee but the cost - both installation and maintenance - was prohibitive compared to Starlink. If this impacts them they might have to re-visit that if the government feels on-board entertainment is that important.

They don't own the ROW south of North Bay and they have determined that there are several areas where the existing coverage is inadequate.

 

[Bordercollie]

Then you should call them up right away because it seems they don't know that.

The fibre cable was sold when the divested Ontera. It might follow the rail ROW but they no longer own it.

As far as I know it never did run north of Cochrane where the PBX operates. They did look at doing a tower string between Cochrane and Moosonee but the cost - both installation and maintenance - was prohibitive compared to Starlink. If this impacts them they might have to re-visit that if the government feels on-board entertainment is that important.

They don't own the ROW south of North Bay and they have determined that there are several areas where the existing coverage is inadequate.

It's a train that runs twice daily. It doesn't justify spending that money to build infrastructure for that service. Rogers is working on 5G from space and should be more available soon. Unfortunately it's a space X partnership.

Rogers Signs Agreement With SpaceX to Bring Satellite-to-Phone Coverage to Canada - About Rogers

First wireless company in Canada to bring satellite connectivity to Canadians coast to coast Companies will deliver new service to connect 5G and 4G phones in remote areas without networks TORONTO (April 26, 2023) – Rogers Communications Inc. and SpaceX today announced the companies have agreed...

about.rogers.com

 

[lenaitch]

It's a train that runs twice daily. It doesn't justify spending that money to build infrastructure for that service.

Exactly my point.

Rogers is working on 5G from space and should be more available soon. Unfortunately it's a space X partnership.

I wasn't aware. I don't know enough about the technology to understand how that is any different that the satellite phones that are currently available. I also note that they are touting "satellite to phone" which isn't a lot of bandwidth compared to data (which ONR throttles on the PBX to manage costs. The trains also have an on-board 'entertainment system' that has movies).

Seeing as it involves Starlink, I'll bet that would remain a poison pill for an Ontario government entity right now. I won't call my contact at ONTC. If he just got this announcement today along with everybody else, his day will be bad enough without me bugging him.

 

[Bordercollie]

Exactly my point.


I wasn't aware. I don't know enough about the technology to understand how that is any different that the satellite phones that are currently available. I also note that they are touting "satellite to phone" which isn't a lot of bandwidth compared to data (which ONR throttles on the PBX to manage costs. The trains also have an on-board 'entertainment system' that has movies).

Seeing as it involves Starlink, I'll bet that would remain a poison pill for an Ontario government entity right now. I won't call my contact at ONTC. If he just got this announcement today along with everybody else, his day will be bad enough without me bugging him.

It is a low earth orbit satellite which is close enough to the earth for you to use 5G technology from any 5G device. As opposed to SAT phones use a totally different technology.

 

[Admiral Beez]

Now that Doug Ford has won the election and those northern pinkos all voted for the NDP, is there any risk that the ONL railway program is now scrapped?

 

[Bordercollie]

Now that Doug Ford has won the election and those northern pinkos all voted for the NDP, is there any risk that the ONL railway program is now scrapped?

It would be foolish. And they would need to sell the trainsets.

 

[Admiral Beez]

It would be foolish. And they would need to sell the trainsets.

Doesn't VIA use (and need) the same ones?

 

[lenaitch]

Now that Doug Ford has won the election and those northern pinkos all voted for the NDP, is there any risk that the ONL railway program is now scrapped?

The only change was the PCs took Algoma-Manitoulin from the NDP; everything else stayed the same, including the PCs holding onto the two ONTC population centres of North Bay and Timmins.

*Correction: The Algoma-Manitoulin incumbent Mike Mantha sat as an independent since around 2023 when the NDP kicked him out of caucus.

 

[micheal_can]

... it was never going to happen, so if it is canceled, then they will only prove my thinking. However, as @lenaitch pointed out, both North Bay and Timmins remained PC. It is expected to open in 2026. My expectations are that it will be completed by then, unless someone knows any reason for it to be delayed.

 

[urbancog]

It is a low earth orbit satellite

Starlink isn't the only low earth orbit communications network available, there's also Eutlesat OneWeb, which is France-UK-India owned. There business model says its market would be primarily to businesses, governments including defence, phone network operators and clusters of communities, rather than to individual domestic customers which Starlink primarily targets.

It's seen as a replacement for Starlink for the Ukraine military.

Galaxy Broadband and Network Innovations are a Canadian distributors. Network Innovations supplies Maritime customers which would seem similar but more challenging than a railway.

 

[Admiral Beez]

... it was never going to happen, so if it is canceled, then they will only prove my thinking. However, as @lenaitch pointed out, both North Bay and Timmins remained PC. It is expected to open in 2026. My expectations are that it will be completed by then, unless someone knows any reason for it to be delayed.

Good stuff. I do enjoy a train ride and will take it to Timmins.

See & Do – Tourism Timmins

tourismtimmins.com

Now if the ONL would only add a motorcycle railcar! Like Amtrak's auto train.

Rally ’round a train trip: Amtrak eases cross-country to the BMW MOA Rally

blueridgemotorcyclingmagazine.com