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London, Paris, Seoul Show Commuting Power of Fast Regional Rail
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Re: London, Paris, Seoul Show Commuting Power of Fast Regional Rail
#22Earlier quoted context omitted.
Doesn't this describe the Metropolitan line in London, which is the first one? And that's not how the Parisian RER works - they have very few stops in the city of Paris itself, to prioritise long distance travel and make it faster (somewhat as a reaction to how unsuited the Paris metro, which has a ridiculously dense stop network, is for long distances).
> the Paris metro, which has a ridiculously dense stop network, is for long distances I think it's interesting how the most recent line (n° 14) has way less stops, instead focusing on covering more distance
Yes line 14 is very much an express link. The original project name was METEOR, which was an acronym for “rapid east/west metro” (METro Est Ouest Rapide) (although it’s more of a south-east to north-west link).
Re: London, Paris, Seoul Show Commuting Power of Fast Regional Rail
#23Odd to see the Elizabeth Line (Crossrail) presented in such a positive light. As an engineering project Crossrail became famous for being repeatedly delayed (eventually opening four years late) and many billions over budget. Since opening the Elizabeth Line has been beset by high numbers of service cancellations and poor punctuality (usually blamed on having to share track outside the central tunnel section with othe…
It's not perfect but better than the older alternative. Londoners will always grumble about transport, because they pay a lot of money and commuting is a pain no matter how nice the trains are.
Re: London, Paris, Seoul Show Commuting Power of Fast Regional Rail
#24Odd to see the Elizabeth Line (Crossrail) presented in such a positive light. As an engineering project Crossrail became famous for being repeatedly delayed (eventually opening four years late) and many billions over budget. Since opening the Elizabeth Line has been beset by high numbers of service cancellations and poor punctuality (usually blamed on having to share track outside the central tunnel section with othe…
Despite this it's been generally fantastic, has air conditioning, now has mobile service, and has provided incredible commuting and airport access.
Once it opened and started running, I haven't heard anyone complain about the budget overruns or delayed opening date.
Re: London, Paris, Seoul Show Commuting Power of Fast Regional Rail
#25> Trains arrive as often as every three minutes during peak hours along the central spines of both the Elizabeth Line and the RER Line A. I've taken the RER A everyday for few years (both and after automation), and that frequency combined with its size still puts me in awe. My usual connection with RER A, I arrive at the middle of the train platform, and my next connection is at the end of the train. Statistically I…
Took it for a few years too, I think the frequency can be as much as every 90 seconds.
Thanks to the SACEM automation system (with dynamic blocks) you can have a train arriving at the platform while the previous one is departing, it's pretty impressive.
Here's an example... from 12 years ago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCj0yQacKVE
Nowadays these older trains have been deprecated and only double-deckers run the line.
Re: London, Paris, Seoul Show Commuting Power of Fast Regional Rail
#26This article really needs to mention Japan, who pioneered and perfected the idea and its smooth integration into the subway network. It's common in Tokyo for a train to start as a limited express that travels long distances at speed, then transition into an all-stops subway, tunnel through Tokyo, and then morph back into an express for the long haul out. Some trains on the Toyoko Line do this twice: express, subway i…
Doesn't this describe the Metropolitan line in London, which is the first one? And that's not how the Parisian RER works - they have very few stops in the city of Paris itself, to prioritise long distance travel and make it faster (somewhat as a reaction to how unsuited the Paris metro, which has a ridiculously dense stop network, is for long distances).
The Metropolitan line stock only has a top speed of 100kmh and I would reckon it doesn't even reach that
Re: London, Paris, Seoul Show Commuting Power of Fast Regional Rail
#27It feels odd to talk about the US without bringing up BART, which has comparable characteristics to the Elizabeth Line (the yellow line is over 60 miles long, for instance, and headway through the core area is under 5 minutes at peak).
Re: London, Paris, Seoul Show Commuting Power of Fast Regional Rail
#28This article really needs to mention Japan, who pioneered and perfected the idea and its smooth integration into the subway network. It's common in Tokyo for a train to start as a limited express that travels long distances at speed, then transition into an all-stops subway, tunnel through Tokyo, and then morph back into an express for the long haul out. Some trains on the Toyoko Line do this twice: express, subway i…
Doesn't this describe the Metropolitan line in London, which is the first one? And that's not how the Parisian RER works - they have very few stops in the city of Paris itself, to prioritise long distance travel and make it faster (somewhat as a reaction to how unsuited the Paris metro, which has a ridiculously dense stop network, is for long distances).
The TFL service, the actual Metropolitan Line, only goes from London to Amersham. It used to go to Aylesbury, which is at least a moderate sized town, but it hasn't since electrification last century.
Amersham is a 13th century market town. It's not tiny, but it's certainly not a city.
Now, there are mainline services running on the same physical rails which do move passengers between London and other cities, but those don't turn into a stopping underground service, the trains leave those shared rails inside London and run to a terminus station, Marylebone. Marylebone is an Underground station, but only in the same sense as say King's Cross or Waterloo - the Underground is separate though located in the same warren of buildings and tunnels.
The Elizabeth Line is closer to the model explained here, running a fast long distance service, a metro service and then back to fast long distance. Reading isn't a city but it's more significant than Amersham and those are core London services not a terminus with the option to change.
Re: London, Paris, Seoul Show Commuting Power of Fast Regional Rail
#29Odd to see the Elizabeth Line (Crossrail) presented in such a positive light. As an engineering project Crossrail became famous for being repeatedly delayed (eventually opening four years late) and many billions over budget. Since opening the Elizabeth Line has been beset by high numbers of service cancellations and poor punctuality (usually blamed on having to share track outside the central tunnel section with othe…
By most accounts the Elizabeth line in its operational phase has been a great success.
According to the ORR's (Office of Road and Rail) first annual report after opening the central section of the Elizabeth line, passenger numbers have exceeded their "post-pandemic optimistic scenario" and the line is on course to be revenue-positive within a few years.
More details in this London Reconnections post here: https://www.londonreconnections.com/2023/the-state-of-rail-b...
Re: London, Paris, Seoul Show Commuting Power of Fast Regional Rail
#30[flagged]
London could be cleaner but it's in no way wholly "absolutely disgusting" and "the most revolting environments, stations, trains and rolling stock"