Transport disasters are mostly a thing of the past – fingers crossed
An intelligent feature in CityAM - http://www.cityam.com/forum/helicopter-tragedy-why-disasters-are-so-thankfully-rare#.UPfMmHaWffI.twitter - argues that disasters are few and far between. Indeed, yesterday's helicopter crash was a rare event for a form of transport that is generally very safe - though there have been the odd disaster and Chelsea FC even has a stand named after Matthew Harding, a director of the club killed in a helicopter accident.
There is, though, a wider point. There is ...
Oh, daddy, when did the London Underground open?
On Thursday, January 10, the London Underground is 150 years old. It is a fantastic milestone, the anniversary of the world's first underground railway and the only one ever to have been operated by steam. The first line, between Praed Street and Farringdon was operated by the Metropolitan Railway, which has given its name to this wonderfully effective mode of transport that has ensured, in many ways, that cities retain ...
Enter Ms M at the Department
While most people have been celebrating with mince pies and Xmas crackers, the Department for Transport has been busy rearranging the deckchairs in the run up to the holiday season following the West Coast franchise fiasco. According to the Daily Telegraph, Peter Strachan, one of the three civil servants suspended after the franchising process was terminated, has quietly packed his bags and another, Kate Mingay, who sued the Department over ...
Cyclists can be the problem
It is impossible to shirk away from the problem of problem cyclists. I can't claim to be 100 per cent law abiding given that at times it is far safer for me to commit minor transgressions but I do pay attention to pedestrians, I thank motorists who let me through and I try not to get in their way unnecessarily. I do, though, tend to bang on their roof if ...
Moscow at last
The last couple of legs on the Transsiberian were not quite as exciting as the earlier ones. On the third one, we had had the benefit of the Rossya, train number one, far more comfortable and even luxurious than the other trains.
Now from Novosibirsk to Ekaterinburg, it was back on the older stock which is comfortable but rather worn. It must be said that the ride quality throughout the line ...
Transsiberian – the prettiest section
The 450 km journey from Ulan Ude to Irkutsk oddly takes one from Asia to Europe. It is a beautiful ride with first a river, then quite steep mountains and then the lake, as big as the sea, bordering the railway. Ulan Ude was cold, stark and very Asian in feel,with a huge central square dominated by the biggest Lenin head in the world, carved badly out of a dark ...