Railways
another Olympic inflation - terrorism arrests
Olympics inflation comes in all forms. The Home Office has released figures showing terrorism arrests rose by 60% in the year up to September 2012 by comparison with the previous year with a doubling of arrests in the period April - June almost doubling over the same period in 2011. Around 18% of the 245 arrested, 45, were charged with a terrorism-related offence of which 25 are still awaiting trial.
Submitted by Julian Cheyne on Thu, 21/03/2013 - 16:07.
Blog | London 2012 | Railways | Security
Tube miracle worker off to Sydney
London Tube boss Howard Collins has got a job running railways Down Under. The Standard describes him as the 'Tube boss credited with making the trains run on time during the Olympics'. If they expect Mr Collins to repeat the miracle of making the trains run on time in Sydney then they can look forward to apocalyptic warnings about how the system is about to crack up and they'd all be better off walking, getting on their bikes, staying at home, anything but travelling by train!
Submitted by Julian Cheyne on Tue, 19/02/2013 - 02:01.
Blog | 2012 Transport | London 2012 | Public transport | Railways | Roads | Sydney 2000 | Transport
Miracle on the Underground
We've had the Olympics saving the economy, putting people back to work, being saved by the sponsors. Now it's the turn of Transport for London to describe the miracle on the Underground!
Submitted by Julian Cheyne on Wed, 14/11/2012 - 02:17.
Article | 2012 Transport | Legacy | London 2012 | Public transport | Railways | Transport
Alleged terrorist arrested wearing an electronic tag!
The Telegraph has a story about an Al Qaeda suspect arrested for being on a train which runs through the Olympic Park. The headline states misleadingly that he was caught 'at the Olympic Park' and the article opens with the statement that 'he was caught crossing through the Olympic Park five times' which left me wondering how he had managed to get into the Park, let alone get across it, so many times, until I got to the bit which mentioned the Overground train journey.
We are told this is the most 'serious security alert' to hit the Olympics so far. The article refers to the 'suspect' and various allegations and accusations that have been made against him and says he 'fled' to Somalia while on bail for which he was later locked up for almost two months. Mixed in with all this are various references to Al Qaeda, Afghanistan, al-Shabaab and jihad. The suggestion seems to be that he fled to re-engage in jihadi activity in Somalia but then the article refers in an aside to his Somali origins and his marriage to a Somali woman which makes Somalia a more obvious place to run to. It manages to mention that the person in question denies involvement in terrorism. However, buried in the middle of the article is the telling statement:
'In his absence he was acquitted of any crime.'
Submitted by Julian Cheyne on Sun, 08/07/2012 - 17:21.
Article | London 2012 | Railways | Security
The 'ultimate nightmare' of Getting Ahead of the Games
The hell that is London 2012 just got a whole lot worse. On Wednesday 1st February the Games transport for London commissioner Peter Hendy, as part of the Get Ahead of the Games initiative, called on commuters to go to the pub instead of clogging up stations like London Bridge.
Submitted by Julian Cheyne on Sat, 04/02/2012 - 01:49.
London's Olympics Overload
London faces an Olympics overload. Transport is overloaded. Olympics travel chaos threatens London's transport system, London's motorists face £500 fines if they park in Olympic lanes, a £200 fine and a £300 fee to get their cars back from the pound, and the RMT is ticked off with TfL for not giving its Tube staff the same 'bonuses' as train drivers.
Submitted by Julian Cheyne on Mon, 26/09/2011 - 22:37.
Blog | 2012 Transport | Airways | London 2012 | Public transport | Railways | Roads | Sustainability
Dirty Lying Railway Extension
Yet again the Olympics claims as a legacy a project which had been under consideration years before the Games were even thought of. Conniving in this deceit the BBC describes the new DLR connection between Canning Town and Stratford International as a 'new £211m DLR extension connecting Olympic Venues'. BoJo and the ODA's Hugh Sumner are then given the opportunity to claim it as a legacy.
Submitted by Julian Cheyne on Thu, 01/09/2011 - 01:38.
Article | 2012 Transport | Legacy | Public transport | Railways | Transport
NTAG: Terror threat stops Olympics nuclear trains
Ahead of a planned demonstration in Stratford on Saturday by Nuclear Trains Action Group (NTAG) against nuclear trains passing through London, train operator Direct Rail Services has announced that it has suspended nuclear trains from Sizewell during the Olympics. DRS says: “As responsible operators, we always work closely with our regulators and suppliers in all our areas of operation and making these temporary changes to our spent nuclear fuel movements will ensure that we do not impede on passenger train operators’ ability to deliver an efficient service.”
Submitted by Julian Cheyne on Fri, 22/07/2011 - 14:58.
