Recent content by bangyuk

Does anyone remember an SNCF freight operation in the '80s or '90s that ran intermodal trains at up to 160kph? I thought it was called Chronofret but I can't find anything on Google (not helped by a freight forwarder having the same name!). Thanks Ian B

When I was a sales exec for Speedlink I had three company cars: a yellow Vauxhall Chevette; a Metro; and a Maestro. As you can guess, it wasn't exactly a prestigious perk! The Maestro was nice though. A lot of paperwork. Every journey recorded by hand. Monthly summaries of business and personal...

Reading this, and having experienced a 387 last week, I seriously think it would be worthwhile bringing some kind of cushion. But it might need to be modified to stop slipping. If I succeed in making something work you may see me outside Three Bridges selling them . . .

Yes, waste wood generates carbon. As does burning wood. Where does that carbon come from? It comes from the atmosphere through photosynthesis. This is different to digging fuel out of the ground and burning it, which genuinely adds to the carbon burden in the atmosphere. On the other hand...

Did anyone attempt to tell passengers any of that? Try trusting passengers instead of corralling them like cattle. I've been behind those barriers and without any staff or explanation is ta frustrating!

A fundamental issue is that double deckers take much longer to load and unload, reducing capacity at termini, and reducing the benefit of the extra deck even further.

Hey, does anyone know where i can find out the oading gauge / structure gauge for South African railways? Thanks!

It certainly works for me in Crawley, even though my bus stop is only a short hop fare from the station. Seems to work on other buses, but Metrobus offers 90% of the services. Free travel in Crawley on buses on weekends and days off is a nice bonus.

Honestly, if I'd wanted your prejudices about the Prius I would have posted to the Top Gear forum or asked Mr. Clarksod. As it is, the answers which kept to the topic have been useful and informative, thanks!

The £100 might include a station access charge to the station operator - sounds a bit much for fuel alone? As for the Prius mpg, I'm not really a car person, but it gets 30% more mpg than my last car, a diesel, it does me nicely and its a nice colour.

Jason, Thanks, that looks like a reasonable estimate. Broadly speaking, perhaps a fiver per stop. It would be better for electrics with regen braking, or, indeed, a hybrid like my Prius!

Anyone know or prepared to estimate how much fuel it would cost for, say, a 3 car DMU to stop at a station (and then start again) that it would otherwise have passed straight through. Probably easiest to assume the track is level and the line speed is 60mph. I have found two schools of...