And Now Drones Reunited!
This article on the BBC is entitled UK Drone Pilots Have 25 Days To Register With Regulator.
This is an extract.
CAA spokesman Jonathan Nicholson said: “Our aim is for the Drones Reunited platform to become an essential service for the drone community – the first port of call for anyone who has lost, or found, a drone.”
I like the name and the concept!
It might even encourage drone owners to register!
Max Delays Force Job Cuts At Ryanair
The title of this post is the same as that5 of this article on The Times.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Ryanair is to close bases and cut jobs because of the continuing delay in delivering the grounded Boeing 737 Max.
It obviously was going to happen, as if you haven’t got the planes, you’ll have to cut routes and that needs less staff and fewer bases.
MPs Demand £2 Online Betting Limit
This was a headline in The Times on Tuesday.
- I’ve never gambled in a casino; either for real or on-line.
- If I did have a gamble in the past, it was always on the horses and it usually concerned horses, where I knew something the bookies didn’t!
But I have either been clever or lucky several times in the past.
As to this plan from MPs, I think it will be a bad idea.
Those that provide on-line casino services will get round any limit or be based in a country, where either gambling is a legitimate way to fleece the mugs or UK laws are not respected.
I hope my taxes won’t rise to pay benefits to those, who’ve lost all their money.
Chaos Between London And Leeds
On Tuesday, I had booked myself between Kings Cross and Leeds on the 11:03 LNER train. My idea was to do a short round trip to Harrogate from Leeds before going across the Pennines to Manchester and sign in to my hotel, before going to see Ipswich play at Rochdale in the evening.
But it all went wrong, as someone decided to commit suicide and was hit by a train at Grantham.
Finally, I got to Leeds at around two, which was too late to carry out my plan.
- I just missed a Harrogate train and it was getting too dark for photographs.
- I eventually got a very crowded TrainsPennine Express to Manchester Victoria.
- My supper was just a gluten-free egg and waterfresh sandwich from Marks and Spencer.
At least, I’d only paid just under thirty pounds for my First Class ticket to Leeds, which was only six pounds more than I paid to cross the Pennines.
Conclusion
This is the second time recently, after Did Someone Try To Steal The Electrification?, when I’ve been seriously delayed by problems on the railways, which are nothing to do with the trains or train companies.
Staff at LNER told me that suicides are common in November, as Christmas approaches.
Short of putting a security guard every hundred metres along the railway, I don’t think there’s a certain way of stopping these incyursions.
Electric Cars Can Beat Petrol For Value After Less Than Two Years
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Times.
The article is based on work by the consultant; PWC.
This is an example of what was found.
The electric Zoe cost from £21,920 compared with £19,795 for the petrol Clio. The £2,125 difference was made up in less than two years, three months for a motorist with an average annual mileage of 8,351 miles. A higher-mileage driver clocking up 13,355 miles a year could make it up in 18 months.
The day when electric cars will be good value is approaching.
Labour’s Four-Day Week ‘To Cost Taxpayers £27bn’
The title of this post, is the same as that as an article of the front page of The Times.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Jeremy Corbyn’s aim to introduce a four-day working week would cost the taxpayer at least £17 billion a year because of the impact on the public sector wage bill, a new analysis has shown.
Surely, if we go from a five to a four-day week , to do the same amount of work, you will need 25% more workers.
- This would raise the wage bill by 25 %
- It would also need more workers, so where will they come from?
- The only place to get extra workers is through immigration, as in this country most who want to work are already employed.
As I edit this, I’m just hearing another giveaway policy from Labour on the television.
Let’s hope the good British public rumble Labour and realise that their promises don’t add up.
Remember, that my specialism was writing scheduling algorithms to build projects in the most efficient manner possible, using a limited pool of resources.
- Labour’s promises will need so much money, that international lenders will probably not be conned to lend it.
- Corbyn’s friends; the Russians and the Iranians might help.
- Labour’s promises will need lots more workers, which would need large amounts of immigration.
Just look at the arithmetic.
Home Kits Signal End Of Cervical Smear Test
This is a headline on the front page of today’s copy of The Times.
Being male and living alone, I wouldn’t know what a woman thinks!
But there must surely be some women, who would think this is at least an improvement.
Health services across the world will also be able to save money, as the procedure must be more efficient and need less staff, who can probably be redeployed, where they are needed.
Football At Rochdale
My trip to the North was partly to see Ipswich play at Rochdale, which is a ground, that at which I’d not seen a match before.
I had been to the ground before, as when I went to all the ninety-two clubs in the Premier and Football Leagues in alphabetical order by public transport, I visited on a very hectic day 31, which is described in 92 Clubs – Day 31 – Rochdale, Rotherham, Scunthorpe, Sheffield United, Sheffield Wednesday.
On this visit, I took the Metrolink to Rochdale from outside the Arndale Centre and then it was a walk of thirty minutes, with the last section up a steep hill.
I did have a guide in a friendly Rochdale supporter.
This Google Map shows the route.
The football ground is in the North-East corner and the red the red arrow indicates Rochdale Interchange, where the tram terminates.
- My companion said there used to be a special football bus, but now there is just an occasional regular service.
- I estimate the distance was about a kilometre and a half.
Going back, a very kind Ipswich supporter and his brother gave me a lift to the tram, which was much more a personal taxi, than mass transit.
It was a good night for the six hundred or so Ipswich fans, as Ipswich won by the ony goal and went back to the top of the League.
Conclusion
Most people seem to have driven to the ground and parked in the surrounding streets. As did my lift!
In London, supporters would be more likely to go to any sporting event on public transport, as it is more frequent and parking doesn’t exist.
As population gets more dense in Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester, public transport will have to get more comprehensive to serve new housing, as the roads will not be able to cope.
I should say, except for getting there, it was a good stadium to visit and the Away seats were some of the best, I’d used in a smaller ground.
Tesla Has A Rival In New Hyundai Hydrogen-Powered Semi-Truck Concept
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on designboom.
This is the introductory paragraph.
hyundai has revealed two new hydrogen-powered concepts – a fuel cell electric semi-truck and refrigerated trailer. both vehicles are part of the automaker’s fuel cell electric vehicle 2030 vision, which includes the widespread use of hydrogen-powered fuel cell technology in vehicles.
The concept looks to be aimed at large countries like Australia, Canda and the United States, but surely one scaled to the United Kingdom market, would be a very useful truck.
- It would be a very efficient motorway cruiser, with those aerodynamics..
- It would be zero-emission with no pollution, so could operate in cities.
- The cab could be designed to meet all present and future driver visibility regulations.
- It might not be liable for extra charges in cities like London.
- Would battery trucks have enough range?
These trucks will be seen on UK roads in the next few years, as I believe that there is no other way to decarbonise heavy road transport.
Eight-Wheeler Trucks
If I walk two hundred metres from my house to the Balls Pond Road or the Kingsland High Road, the most common truck, that I see is an eight-wheeler heavy truck, that is transporting building materials, cement and spoil to and from the myriad building sites around where I live.
The pictures show typical eight-wheeler trucks working during the installation of the subway at Hackney Wick station.
Note the space under the truck between the front and rear axles. Surely, those clever Koreans can fit all the hydrogen gubbins under and in the truck.
- Many of these trucks are in large fleets, which return to a depot, that is close to the city centre on a regular basis, so refuelling should be easy to arrange.
- These trucks would probably need less fuel per day, than a large artic.
- I doubt they would pay any access charges.
- As they would be pollution-free, zero-carbon and probably a lot quieter, would they be able to work near sensitive sites like hispitals, schools and transport hubs?
They could be a very good economic proposition in a large city of urban conurbation.
Other Trucks
I also believe that hydrogen would be a sensible fuel for several classes of other trucks.
- Four-wheel box vans.
- Refuse trucks
- Skip lorries
- Larger vans
Hydrogen buses already seem to be running successfully in several cities.
The Missing Hydrogen Vehicle
I have chatted with black cab drivers in London, about the use of hydrogen as a fuel for taxis. Black cabs are getting larger and I believe that hydrogen could be their ideal fuel.
Conclusion
I believe that hydrogen will play a big part in decarbonising transport in the next few years and especially in urban areas.
Thoughts On The Design Of A High Speed Freight Shuttle
I am enthusiastic about the concept proposed by Rail Operations Group, that will see Class 769 trains running freight shuttles between London Gateway and Liverpool Street station, which I wrote about in A Freight Shuttle For Liverpool Street Station Planned.
But if you were starting from scratch, how would you design the ultimate freight shuttle train?
Consider these objectives.
The Amazon Objective
Amazon and their suppliers would like next day delivery for all of their customers.
Probably within a country the size of the UK, next day delivery can be achieved.
But I suspect that Amazon and their competitors would like anybody in the world to get as near as next day delivery as possible from anywhere in the world.
Giving worldwide next day delivery is obviously impossible, but giving it to as much of the world as is currently practical is clearly an Amazon objective.
We live in a I-Want-It-Now world!
Destinations To Be Served
I feel that places to be served by high speed light freight shuttles fall into various groups.
Major Cities
The proposed shuttle into Liverpool Street station will be the first of many.
Liverpool Street station is also an easy station at which to run such a service.
- There is level access from the street for vehicles like electric vans and cargo bikes at Platform 10, using the old taxi cab road.
- The station and the approaches are fully electrified.
- Crossrail will release platform space at the station.
Three trains per day can probably be accommodated in the Off Peak hours, with more services during the night.
It would not be possible to fit a light freight facility into all city-centre stations, as easily as it appears to be at Liverpool Street.
But I do think light freight facilities of this type at the following stations could be possible..
- Brighton
- Bristol Temple Meads
- Glasgow Central
- Liverpool Lime Street
- London Euston
- London Paddington
- Manchester Piccadilly
- Nottingham
Some recently rebuilt stations like Birmingham New Street, would be very difficult, so I would recommend that all station developments, should take possible light freight facilities into account.
Logistics Parks, Ports And Airports
London Gateway is a large port and logistics facility, to the East of London.
This Google Map shows London Gateway.
The logistics park is still being developed to the North of the port, with the rail lines in between the two.
- I have searched the rail lines and I can’t see anything like a loading bay for a freight shuttle, which surely will be something like a platform for passengers.
- It is early days yet and this map could be a couple of years old.
- There would also be space to the North of the rail lines for someone like Hermes, UPS or Yodel to build a large secure shed with a siding alongside, served by a platform, so that goods could be rolled into the trains.
- It should be possible to electrify the siding, in a similar way to Platform 10 at Liverpool Street station.
It’ll all come clear, when the service starts.
Other ports like Felixstowe, Immingham, Liverpool and Southampton might also want to develop high speed light freight services as will the various logistics parks and freight terminals dotted around the country.
Most are served by rail connections, although in many cases like Felixstowe, London Gateway, Liverpool and Southampton, the last few miles need to use some form of independent power.
Could these light freight services connect to airports like Heathrow, Manchester and Stansted?
Retail Parks And Out-Of-Town Shopping Centres
Large retail groups, like Marks and Spencer, Sainsburys and Tesco have set up large distribution centres often in the centre of England, some of which have rail access.
Could major retail centres like Lakeside in Essex, Sheffield Meadowhill, Gateshead Metro Centre and others receive goods by rail.
Specialist Terminals
If you go to Montrose station, you can see the remains of sidings, where Scottish fish was loaded to be taken by rail to ports for export to places like New York.
But it is likely that specialist terminals will be setup to handle goods, such as seafood, flowers and Scotch whisky.
Some seasonal products like Cornish flowers would only need a part-time facility, but these would only be rudimentary.
Long Rural Routes
I can see the requirement for light freight deliveries increasing in all parts of the UK.
Some destinations are probably expensive for delivery companies.
But could an integrated delivery system be setup using the long rural rail routes.
- Inverness and Wick
- Inverness and Aberdeen
- Glasow and Oban
- Chester and Holyhead
- Settle and Carlisle
Services might automatically roll pallets off and on at stations, which would then be handled locally by a purpose-built van or light truck.
- Some services would start in London and the South-East, but others could start in the East Midlands or the Scotland’s Central Belt
- Some services would connect with ferries to serve islands, like the Hebrides and the Orkneys.
- A daily service might do wonders for business in rural areas.
London and Wick takes thirteen hours by passenger train. This would enable, somebody in Wick wanting an urgent part for a machine that has broken, to order it from London and certainly receive it within forty-eight hours.
Great Britain And Ireland Services
Services between Great Britain and Ireland will be a problem, as trains will have to unload on one side of the Irish sea onto trucks for delivery after the sea crossing.
Unless politicians do what I suggest in A Solution To The Northern Irish Problem!, which is to build a high speed rail system connecting Scotland and Northern Ireland.
- The main crossing would be a bridge or a tunnel, where my preference would be for a bridge.
- The main route would be Glasgow and Dublin via Stranraer and Belfast.
- There would be a 125 mph connection between Carlisle and Stranraer
- The Irish section of the route would be an electrified standard-gauge railway capable of running trains at 125 mph.
- The route would handle passengers and freight.
- There could a branch to Shannon, where some proposals have been made to create a deep water port.
I estimated that London and Belfast would take four hours, with an hour longer for Dublin.
But as this fixed link would probably not be built this century, as Ulster always says no, unloading on to trucks would probably be necessary for a long time.
Continental Services
Why not? Unlike Ireland, there’s a rail connection and it’s standard gauge!
Eurostar has shown that the same trains can run successfully on British, French, Belgian and Dutch railways and trains can now be fitted with systems to access the various electrification voltages.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see a Europe-wide high-speed light freight service for appropriate cargoes.
Summing Up Destinations
I can sum up the destinations as follows.
- They will not be large grand affairs, in many cases.
- There must be easy access for local transport, which will include a proportion of electric vehicles.
- Destinations are generally within a few miles of an electrified main line.
- Some services like Cornish flowers or Scottish seafood will need an independently-powered train, with a moderate range.
You can see why Rail Operations Group have chosen to use bi-mode Class 769 trains, as they will be ideal to connect to places perhaps a hundred miles from electrification.
New Or Refurbished Trains?
The proposed service is to be run with a Class 769 train, which is a bi-mode rebuild of a 1980s Class 319 train.
But would it be better to use a brand new train, rather than an old conversion?
In the future, if the experiment is a success, a new train will probably be designed, that will be based on the experience of the trials.
But at the moment modifying an old train, is probably a more affordable approach and one that carries less risk.
Operating Speed
The Class 769 train can operate at 100 mph on electrified lines and at around 90 mph, when relying on the diesel generators.
In High Speed Urban Freight Logistics By Rail, I talked about Rail Operations Group’s plans for running high speed freight services between Thames Gateway and the Central Belt in Scotland.
Surely, a faster train would be desirable for services along high speed lines.
Train Capacity And Interior
This will depend on the application and I suspect Rail Operation Group’s trial will show the optimum design.
But I wouldn’t be surprised to see trains based on British Rail’s standard length of eighty metres, as this would mean, they will easily fit so many existing stations without expensive modification.
If longer trains are needed for busy routes, then the trains could work in twos or threes, as many British Rail electric multiple units have done for decades.
Are Freight Shuttles Ideal Trains For Battery Power?
The train will not need the full air-conditioning and toilet services of a passenger train, which could mean.
- Electrical power needed for services other than traction would be lower.
- Underneath the train could be relatively free of equipment.
In addition, it should be noted.
- Most routes will be run for the major part on electrified lines.
- Charging technology for batteries at remote destinations could be easily provided.
- Battery-electric trains have operational, environmental and marketing advantages over trains with diesel engines.
So why not efficiently fill space under the train with batteries?
For their initial service between London Gateway and Liverpool Street station, Rail Operations Group would probably only need to use diesel for less than a dozen miles.
Could Modified InterCity 125 Trains Be Used?
The fact that they are diesel is a major drawback, but there are other problems too!
- Major structural work would be needed to create cargo doors.
- I suspect that they may be too long.
- They may not be very operator friendly.
Other companies have proposed them for high speed freight, but nothing has materialised so far.
Conclusion
Rail Operation Group’s thinking is spot on!
The Anonymous Widower 