OT: Steering a train?

[Andy Hall]

Why do the railway unions have a part to play in the discussion?

They are irrelevant to the delivery of a cost effective and safe train service.

[Andy Hall]

Quite. I felt the same coming out of Canary Wharf Underground the other day. There are still too many red braces around for my liking.

Taxis are a much more comfortable option and provide the personal space.

[Andy Hall]

Well it would be safer because the comparison is between two options.

As a statistical option a third one would be better. Invulnerable car with spikes on the outside.

[David Hansen]

On Thu, 01 Mar 2007 22:51:29 +0000 someone who may be Andy Hall wrote this:-

Because the employees have formed and maintain trade unions to represent them. Just like employers have formed and maintain organisations to represent them.

[David Hansen]

On Thu, 01 Mar 2007 22:58:27 +0000 someone who may be Andy Hall wrote this:-

The question remains, which would be safest?

I suggest that your third option would certainly not be the safest for those outside it. Unless people are to work, rest and play in such a car everyone will be outside it at one time or the other.

[Andy Hall]

Curious idea.

It was predictable to see the union leaders immediately saying that the track operatives should not shoulder any blame.

[Andy Hall]

Ah, but nobody specified safest for who.

Besides, it would depend on how much of the time they would be outside it and where.

[bobrayner]

camerais either slam on the brakes, or look at their speedos and

Quite. You don't need a camera inside any given box for drivers to slow down; and there's a correlation between the amount-that-drivers- slow-down and the reduction in injuries &c.

THere's more detail on page 45 here:

none of the bright yellow boxes had cameras in, then people wouldn't slow down as much (if at all) so there wouldn't be much safety benefit.

[bobrayner]

That's strange; the areas around speed cameras have seen much greater safety improvements than the rest of the UK's roads.

Are the safest cars only driven near speed cameras?

[bobrayner]

camerais either slam on the brakes, or look at their speedos and

Yes, it has. For instance:

this: this: this: this: this: this: so on. There's *plenty* more evidence out there.

[Neil Williams]

But are rather an expensive option, and aren't exactly carbon-neutral; you might as well use your own car.

I personally like the DLR, except for the violent side-to-side hunting of the coaches that occurs, which I'm told is to do with tram-profile wheels riding on rail-profile rails.

Neil

[Andy Hall]

In the overall scheme of things, they are rather cheap. It is a matter for the taxi driver to deal with the issue of carbon neutrality

- I'm simply paying him to transport me from A to B - I don't control what vehicle he uses to do that.

Taking my car into Central London is the last thing I would want to do. There is the hassle of driving through the traffic and then finding somewhere to park. Much more sensible to let the taxi driver deal with the first of those and not needing the second.

Horrible thing, which I avoid if at all possible.

[Roger Mills]

little gem in its conclusions: "The level of evidence is relatively poor, however, as most studies did not have satisfactory comparison groups or adequate control for potential confounders."

It wouldn't surprise me if there were similar disclaimers in all the other references.

You must be well versed in this propoganda to have all these references at your fingertips. Care to tell us how you earn your living, and who pays your wages?

[Huge]

And has caused the maximum speed to have to be limited and rather worrying sinusoidal wear patterns on the rails.

Once again demonstrating that PT cannot successfully operate a simple

200 year old technology.

[Dave Liquorice]

In the big picture which is better:

1) One taxi used all day moving say 20 people from A to B. 2) 20 individual cars each moving 1 person then doing nothing all day.

The fuel used will be more or less the same but as most of a cars carbon footprint comes from manufacture...

[Neil Williams]

You are controlling the fact that only one vehicle is being used, and that said vehicle can't be shared by anyone else. By taking a bus or Tube you'd be making a statement in the other direction.

I don't find taxis cheap at all. Ignoring the 4 quid Tube single, which exists only to encourage people to use Oyster, other modes are

*far* cheaper. [DLR]

What don't you like about it?

Neil

[Neil Williams]

If this is worrying/dangerous, it surprises me that they have not considered replacing the wheelsets with one with the correct profile. Presumably this would be cheaper than early renewal of the track.

Neil

[Neil Williams]

Fair point. However, all those people using Central London's rather excellent (compared with elsewhere) public transport system would be far preferable.

Neil

[Dave Plowman (News)]

While agreeing in principle I'm constantly amazed, given their cost and tight regulation, that London black cabs are one of the most polluting vehicles of their size.

[Andy Hall]

Precisely.

You're assuming that I would *want* to make a statement in that direction.

I'm not buying on the price of the transport itself. During a taxi ride through central London lasting 15 minutes I can have made several phone calls and answered several emails. The cost benefit associated with that far exceeds the difference between a tube and a taxi fare, always assuming I wanted to go on the tube in the first place, which I don't.

Packed whenever I've been on it and lurching around as has already been mentioned.