Light rail on rail trail?

[alanjh595]

Kelowna Mayor Colin Basran says it’s time to consider light rail service along the Okanagan Rail Trail.

At his annual state of the city address today, Basran said a light rail service along the rail corridor would be an “efficient way to move a lot of people affordably” across the region.

Basran said that, as the population in the region grows, it makes sense to consider alternative transportation option like rapid buses, autonomous cars, or even light rail on that corridor.

https://www.castanet.net/edition/news-s ... htm#217285

[vinnied]

https://okanaganedge.net/2018/01/26/lig ... ail-trail/

Is this guy for real? People were saying this all along. Now the tracks are gone. Too late Basran. Should have hopped on this idea when the purchase was done and made a deal to leave the tracks in place. I swear this guy loves to throw away money. Its a trail now. people want to walk it and ride there bikes on it.

"He pointed to the fact that fewer people in the city are now driving to work, despite significant population growth here"

yeah sure they are. if thats the case you may want to leave the trail as a trail

And my favorite quote “I’m not saying people should stop driving their cars, or that I’m an automobile"
. lol ..Whens the next election?

[Wave101]

The previous rails were old and not suited for a modern LRT. Tearing them out was the right call.

[Bsuds]

All he is saying is that it's something to be considered in the future. What's wrong with that?

It we don't consider all the possibilities then we are doing ourselves a great disservice.

[Dizzy1]

All he is saying is that it's something to be considered in the future. What's wrong with that?

It we don't consider all the possibilities then we are doing ourselves a great disservice.

I agree, but fact is that the old rail layout with all the curves and turns would have been useless - it would have turned into what takes 40 minutes by car, 1 hour by bus into a 2 hour plus trip by train.

I'm all for light rail, bring it on (not that the current market could come even remotely close to sustain it) but we do need to look into the future but we also need to plan it properly - the old railway simply would not have worked.

[RUEZ]

The previous rails were old and not suited for a modern LRT. Tearing them out was the right call.

I disagree. The rails could have been inspected for wear and cracks, and as light rail is obviously far lighter than freight it could have been transitioned with less work than an entirely new line.

[Dizzy1]

I disagree. The rails could have been inspected for wear and cracks, and as light rail is obviously far lighter than freight it could have been transitioned with less work than an entirely new line.

Its not the condition of the rails - its all the curves and turns along the route - especially along Kal Lake.

To make Light Rail even a viable option - you have to offer the service at a comparable level (if not better) then the current system - and the old rail would have easily doubled the time it takes to get from Vernon to Kelowna.

[alanjh595]

What about an elevated system like in Vancouver?

[vinnied]

lots of folks said to do that a long time ago when talks were going on to purchase the rail. Now the purchase is done and people are donating tons of money toward building the trail, and now all of a sudden HE comes up with the idea that we need it for rapid transit
let them finish the trail. He wants people out of there vehicles, I think he will be pleasantly surprised how much use it will get. No one wants to ride on the roads around here if they don't have to. Im all for rapid transit, but leave the trail alone.

[RUEZ]

I disagree. The rails could have been inspected for wear and cracks, and as light rail is obviously far lighter than freight it could have been transitioned with less work than an entirely new line.

Its not the condition of the rails - its all the curves and turns along the route - especially along Kal Lake.

To make Light Rail even a viable option - you have to offer the service at a comparable level (if not better) then the current system - and the old rail would have easily doubled the time it takes to get from Vernon to Kelowna.

It's not going to qualify for a bullet train but don't forget that track in it's current layout used to carry passengers on steam.

[Robin Hood]

Before we get excited about a project that we cannot afford, we should look at running a regular bus service from Osoyoos to Vernon. That way people without a car could get from Kelowna to places like Penticton without having to hitch hike!

[Dizzy1]

It's not going to qualify for a bullet train but don't forget that track in it's current layout used to carry passengers on steam.

It did and it still could carry passengers - but not in a viable manner in its current layout and thats the point. Its not a question if you could put passengers on the track, its a question of how effective the option would be. If our current options take one hour or less, then offering another option which doubles the commuting time simply won't work. IIRC, the current layout has a speed limit of 50km/h due to that very fact.

Realistically, the speed limit would have to be around 100km/h (which is an average speed for a typical commuter train, not even closed to your "Bullet train" remark) to make it an effective option. The stretch between Kelowna and Oyama should be able to handle that with minor modifications - but Oyama to Vernon is incapable of effective speeds.

Also, given the fact that its a single track layout - there could be frequent delays (adding to the commute time) as the trains (assuming there would be more than one) would potentially have to wait on a siding until the other train passed.

[Dizzy1]

Before we get excited about a project that we cannot afford, we should look at running a regular bus service from Osoyoos to Vernon. That way people without a car could get from Kelowna to places like Penticton without having to hitch hike!

Vernon to Kelowna has been running for years and will have an increase in service this year (as well as an increase in fares) and also gave one the ability to connect all the way to Enderby (Salmon Arm one day of the week). Peachland to Osoyoos and even Penticton has always been the stumbling block.

[GordonH]

It just depends how many billions the central okanagan taxpayers are willing to fork out.

[Urban Cowboy]

It's not going to qualify for a bullet train but don't forget that track in it's current layout used to carry passengers on steam.

It did and it still could carry passengers - but not in a viable manner in its current layout and thats the point. Its not a question if you could put passengers on the track, its a question of how effective the option would be. If our current options take one hour or less, then offering another option which doubles the commuting time simply won't work. IIRC, the current layout has a speed limit of 50km/h due to that very fact.

Realistically, the speed limit would have to be around 100km/h (which is an average speed for a typical commuter train, not even closed to your "Bullet train" remark) to make it an effective option. The stretch between Kelowna and Oyama should be able to handle that with minor modifications - but Oyama to Vernon is incapable of effective speeds.

Also, given the fact that its a single track layout - there could be frequent delays (adding to the commute time) as the trains (assuming there would be more than one) would potentially have to wait on a siding until the other train passed.

Meh, how long did that wine train last again? Doesn't seem to be much support for trains here.