Train lines

As i sat waiting for a train I was struck by three things: the blue sky and ochre paintwork, the light reflecting off the corrugated iron roof, and the horizontal lines everywhere.

Good night, buses.

Arncliffe station



A splendid piece of Victoriana in Sydney's inner south

 Taken on iPhone 4S

SDP on tour .... Vélib

Vélib. From vélo (bicycle) + liberté (freedom). The public bike sharing sheme in Paris.

Early one morning I came across this relocation worker, who picks up bikes where there are too many and redistributes them to under-resourced stations.

According to Wikipedia, the scheme was launched on 15 July 2007, and now has over 20,000 bicycles and 1,202 bicycle stations across Paris.  Apparently the daily average number of rides is 110, 000.

Vélib’ is operated by JCDecaux, a major French advertising corporation. We know JCDecaux in Sydney as the provider of bus shelters, lightpoles and public toilets.

I am far too scared to try riding in paris, though a friend who has assures me that car drivers are so much more considerate than they are in Sydney, which is where my riding on the road fear comes from. Hats off to Paris for implementing this fantastic scheme. Does your city have anything similar? One issue to overcome here is that it is mandatory to wear a helmet when cycling.

The pricing regime is really affordable. Wikipedia again: "In order to use the system, users need to take out a subscription, which allows the subscriber an unlimited number of rentals. Subscriptions can be purchased at €1.70 per day, €8/week or €29/year. With a subscription, bike rental is free for the first half hour of every individual trip; an unlimited number of such free trips can be made per day. A trip that lasts longer than 30 minutes incurs a charge of €1 to €4 for each subsequent 30-minute period. The increasing price scale is intended to keep the bikes in circulation."

Read more here, including about issues such as theft, vandalism, maintenance and uneven distribution.

Passengers

My last picture from the Great Train Festival held at Central Station over the past weekend.

Loco 3642

Steaming away



To read more about this locomostive and its class, click here.





Loco 3526

Built at the NSW Government Railway's Eveleigh workshops in 1917, loco 3526 remained in service until 1967. It was restored between 1990 and 2004.

For more about this locomotive, click here.

The Southern Aurora

The Southern Aurora's stainless steel carriages epitomised luxury overnight rail travel between Sydney and Melbourne from the early 1960s. The later Indian Pacific carriages between Sydney and Perth were almost identical; I remember spending 3 days to Perth, and 3 days back, playing cards and listening to the radio in a Club Car very similar to this in 1972.

I especially love the etched glass lyrebird.

Meals were freshly cooked in the galley kitchen, and served in three sittings in the dining car.

The carriages were based on American long-distance luxury trains. The first run was on 16 April, 1962, on the newly opened standard gauge rail line. Before that, passengers had to change trains at Albury, from the NSW 4ft 8.5inch gauge line to the Victorian 5ft 3 inch. Competition from road and especially airline traffic saw the end of the Southern Aurora on 3 August 1986.

Sydney Great Train Expo

Steam engines, diesels, old carriages, all on display at Central Station this weekend.

Locomotive 3265 was bulit in 1901 by Beyer, Peacock in Manchester, England. It was painted maroon in 1933 and was used regularly as the "Newcastle Businessmen's Express" during the 1930s.  In 1968, after having travelled 3 million kilometres, it was retired, and relocated to what is now the Powerhouse Museum.

Restoration by volunteers began in 1998, as far as possible in line with its original specifications. It re-entered service on Sep 20, 2009, and hauls occasional steam tours run by rail heritage groups. Its "home" these days is  'Trainworks'  at Thirlmere.

For more about this loco in particular, and its class in general, click here.

(Canon G12, using 'Nostalgia' feature, giving the photo an 'aged' look. Yes, I'm having fun with my new camera!)

Public Transport Theme Day

In Australia, "transportation" has a specific meaning : the removal of criminals from Britain and their transportation to the penal colonies which became Australia.

Public transport is another matter. Trains, trams, ferries, buses....

And here we are in the middle of a teachers' and community campaign for better funding for public schools. Three of these vans are transporting the message around NSW at the moment. Read more about that here.

To see how other city photo bloggers have interpreted this theme, Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Follow the white line

The Hume Highway just south of Sydney - heading down the south coast (by the inland route) for a few
days' Easter break.

Taken about 4:25 this afternoon, all quiet, car on cruise control at 110 kph. Speeding attracts large fines and double demerit points over the Easter weekend.

Goods track, Mascot

Transport options

Cyclist on the bike and walking track along Alexandria Canal near Sydney Airport

Coming in to land

Planes line up along the landing path for Sydney Airport.

Port Botany expansion - the old boat ramp

Sydney Harbour port has closed, and facilities are being expanded at Port Botany on Botany Bay. A new five-berth shipping container terminal is being built.

This public boat ramp has now been closed, replaced by a brand new one I will show tomorrow.

The huge concrete structures are called counterfort units. Altogether 216 will be constructed. They are used in cantilever walls, to retain reclaimed sand. They provide a vertical face for ships to berth against.

If you are of an engineering bent, you can read more here: Sydney Ports Expansion

The Ferry at Woolwich

If you don't want to cross the Sydney Harbour Bridge, or it's more convenient, you can use the tunnel under the harbour.

Theme Day : Big

Have a look at what's big around the world. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Glebe island timber

Rozelle Bay, looking towards Glebe Point.

Homeward Bound

Where Parramatta Road becomes Broadway.