click on the pic to see it bigger and grosser!
EWWWWWWWWW. At least it was light out or I probably would have stepped in it's guts.
Took a pic of the train that day too.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
You never know what you might find
While doing some switching in the yard, something told me to look over my shoulder as I lifted the pin to separate the cars.
click on the pic to see it bigger and grosser!
EWWWWWWWWW. At least it was light out or I probably would have stepped in it's guts.
Took a pic of the train that day too.
click on the pic to see it bigger and grosser!
EWWWWWWWWW. At least it was light out or I probably would have stepped in it's guts.
Took a pic of the train that day too.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Monday, March 17, 2008
I think I just peed myself
Funny video of guy who dubbed his own HORRIBLE guitar playing over Eric Clapton performance. Found at Boing Boing.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
High Speed Passenger Rail Service in America?
Well, almost. South America. Maybe someday we will wake up as a country.
In the past 20 years we've pulled up or abandoned more rail than most developed countries have built.
Article:
High-speed rail is finally coming to America. However it's Argentina and not the United States that will be the first Amercian country to build a high-speed rail system and join the modern age of transportation.
In the past 20 years we've pulled up or abandoned more rail than most developed countries have built.
Article:
High-speed rail is finally coming to America. However it's Argentina and not the United States that will be the first Amercian country to build a high-speed rail system and join the modern age of transportation.
The popularity of high-speed passenger rails is picking up in cities throughout the world. Latin America, Europe, and China have big plans to construct or expand such rail systems in the near future.
From the International Railway Journal:
Argentina has shocked the world by deciding to build the first high-speed railway in the Americas. Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori (NTV) in Italy looks set to be the world’s first open-access high-speed rail operator. China has unveiled its first 300km/h train and started to award contracts for its huge Beijing-Shanghai high-speed project.
These events look set to have a profound impact on the future development of high-speed rail and give it a major boost. They could also pave the way for a major revival in intercity rail travel in parts of the world that haven’t seen long-distance passenger trains for decades.
In Argentina, newly elected President Christina Kirchner, wife of former President Nestor Kirchner, is rallying behind high-speed rail systems as an alternative, efficient mode of transport, and, unlike most politicians, she’s putting her money where her mouth is. Kirchner signed a $1.35 billion contract with a consortium led by Alstom, a French company, to construct a 440 mile (710 km) high-speed rail system that would connect the country's major cities. According to TreeHugger, the train will eventually cut travel time between Buenos Aires and Cordoba from fourteen hours to three hours.
Apart from the planned rail project, Kirchner intends to build a 28km electrified railway tunnel through the Andes to Chile, which would link the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the continent. The rail project has already been approved, though the tunnel risks being beaten out by a highway project in Buenos Aires.
Brazil is also planning a network of inter-city rail systems between Sao Paolo and Rio de Janeiro.
High speed rails have also taken hold on the other side of the world, with China leading the East.
From the International Railway Journal:
In Asia, China has been putting a tremendous and increasing effort into developing its long-distance passenger services. A series of so-called speed-ups have cut journey times substantially. Construction of a huge high-speed network is underway, and as I write this work is about to start on the massive Beijing-Shanghai project.
China has also unveiled its first home-produced 300km/h train - 250km/h trains in the CRH series are already in service. Increasing technical expertise in all spheres of high-speed rail will make China a force to be reckoned with in the rapidly expanding high-speed rail market.
Others, like Russia, Morocco and Saudi Arabia are making preliminary plans to implement high-speed rail systems.
Despite its big-budget and high-tech innovations, North America is woefully behind the rest of the world when it comes to introducing high-speed trains
—and, really, transit systems, in general. In the West, it seems we love our carbon-belching cars too much to invest in fast, affordable, and efficient modes of transit—instead freeways. If North America were to follow suit and make mass transit more convenient, commuters might be more likely to hop onboard with the rest of the world.
Photo via flickr by juicyrai & Strychnine.
Original link
Scary stuff. Hope nobody was being stupid
This is the kind of scary stuff we deal with every day. Glad no one was hurt and that it's not me.
MECCA, Calif. (AP) — A freight train derailed in the Southern California desert and two tanker cars full of chemicals caught fire, sending up a cloud of fumes and forcing home evacuations, authorities said.
No one was injured when 28 of the Union Pacific train's cars derailed Monday night about 140 miles southeast of Los Angeles.
About 60 residents in nearby homes were evacuated because of potentially hazardous fumes, fire officials said.
One of the burning tanker cars contains hydrochloric acid, fire and railroad officials said. Hydrochloric acid is highly corrosive and can cause burns if it comes into direct contact with skin or eyes. It is used in the production of fertilizers and dyes, and in photographic, textile and rubber industries.
The other tanker ablaze contains phosphoric acid, which is milder and used for rust removal and for the preparation of steel surfaces for painting.
The cause of the derailment is under investigation, said James Barnes, director of media information for Union Pacific.
Authorities have set up a one-mile radius around the accident site and no one is being let inside because of the fumes, Riverside County Fire Capt. Julie Hutchinson said.
"We plan to go in and take a look as soon as we can get some sunlight on it," Hutchinson said.
Barnes said the 65-car train was on an intrastate route, heading from West Colton to El Centro.
The accident site is next to Highway 111, which has been shut down for a seven-mile stretch south of State Road 195.
Originally at charter.net
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