DavidB-AU

S302 is doing well for a 61 year old, outliving some of the locos acquired to replace the S! Cheers David

Vivarail D-Trains for Wales & Borders Incoming Wales & Borders franchisee KeolisAmey is to take delivery of five three-car Class 230 D-Train diesel-battery multiple-units from Vivarail, which is to produce them using the bogies and aluminium bodyshells of withdrawn London Underground D78 metro trains. Intended for use on the Wrexham – Bidston, Conwy Valley and Chester – Crewe routes, the units are scheduled to be delivered in early 2019 for testing ahead of entry into service from mid-2019. http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/passenger/single-view/view/vivarail-d-trains-for-wales-borders.html

Makes you wonder why the welsh Assembly doesn't pick a name and livery that will be constant whoever the operator is, like ScotRail. Call it CymRail? Cheers David

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWZ5Vkrrs5g

An interesting summary of the fleet.

Queensland Pioneer Steam Railway has launched a GoFundMe page to replace the original 90 year old water tanks on Kilrie (Perry s/n 265 of 1924) so she can be returned to service. https://www.gofundme.com/kilrie-tanks-alot?member=261440 Cheers David

18,000hp on a 5,200t grain train from Wyalong to Port Waratah. Cheers David

Just saw a video about the conversion come up as a "suggested for you" on Youtube. Cheers David

I thought it was quite good, much better that I thought it would be. I put that down to Ron Howard. Personally I think the best performance was Donald Glover who had many of the mannerisms and speech patterns of Lando down pat (I read he spent a few days with Billy Dee Williams). A lot of great references to other parts of the canon and great to see Warwick Davis in yet another SW movie! No question there is potential for a sequel. The speeder Han was driving on Corellia looked a lot like a 1950s convertible. I think that might have been a nod to American Graffiti, directed by George Lucas and starring Ron Howard (with a very young Harrison Ford in a minor role). Cheers David

MALAYSIA’s newly-elected prime minister Mr Mahathir Mohamad announced on May 28 that his government will abandon its commitment to the construction of a high-speed line linking Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, which is currently in the procurement phase. https://www.railjournal.com/index.php/high-speed/malaysia-to-scrap-kuala-lumpur-%E2%80%93-singapore-high-speed-project.html

Reversing loops are common, but not common inside an oval like many 8 x 4 layouts. Cheers David

A double track oval with a reverse loop isn't prototypical, right? http://cultivatesewardcounty.com/economic-development/rail-campus/

I was going to mention it showed the dotted Northern Heights extension. Cheers David

134 retired Melbourne trams are up for sale, although some will be offered free to not-for-profit groups. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-05-15/iconic-melbourne-trams-for-sale-for-thousand-dollars/9759268

Watch Gary Oldman's Best Actor 2018 Oscar Speech http://oscar.go.com/news/oscar-news/best-actor-2018-gary-oldman-wins-2018-oscar

I've finally got my hands on the DVD and it does look like the 1940 Beck map. Cheers David

Once again truth is stranger than fiction. Cheers David

They have an fast charging system that can connect without human intervention. AIUI a static battery bank is charged from the mains and discharges to the train as required. Cheers David

Cabinet has agreed to launch a procurement process to build two light rail lines from Auckland's CBD to the airport and from the CBD to Northwest Auckland alongside the motorway. https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2018/05/09/108258/government-green-lights-plan-for-2-auckland-light-rail-lines

I've seen some good ones. Industries such as a rubber chicken factory and a bagpipe factory, and (one for the Carry On fans) a station called Long Hampton. But if you look at the Whacky Signs thread, sometimes truth is stranger than fiction. Cheers David