Trainee neophyte
Established Member
I didn't think you were allowed to call people that any more. Even if he does swish.
EVs again - the sensible approach
- Thread starter Jacob
- Start date
Help Support UKworkshop.co.uk:
RobinBHM
Established Member
So it’s you getting all the best fruit
Cooper
Established Member
What we need is not EV's with wheels but electric boats, the amount of rain we seem to get now puts an end to EV's, or perhaps some form of hover craft.
A bit tricky on the highstreet
Watched a vid the other week on E-Canal boats.
Last edited:
I share your affection to train travel, however I also share your pessimism for rail freight.
About 25 years ago the rail siding that unloaded ICI's methanol made at its Teesside works (Billingham) to its Runcorn works (Rocksavage) subsided and was out of action for months. During that time they switch to road transport, instead of 1000s tonnes in one shipment every few days in went in a continuous stream of 40te road tankers day and night. The costs plummeted, not only that but the working capital fell as stocktanks and inventories could be reduced, it became like a just in time basis. The whole thing was more reliable, so much so that they closed the line.
We found a similar thing shipping goods to Spain via the channel in road rather than the previous ships and rails operations across Spain. The freight times were incredibly long just crossing Spain took 2 weeks.
By contrast I had to buy thousands of tonnes of a chemical from a Russian plant on the Mongolian boarder and the good arrived by rail 5000 miles from the Mongol border to Rotterdam in about 2 weeks at very completive rates. I presume Siberia relies on its rail or subsidises it. It was cheaper than (what was low cost sea frieght via China at the time.
Terry - Somerset
Established Member
I can understand how bulk freight by rail could once have made sense. As a child living in a house that backed on to a main line I occasionally saw very long freight trains moving slowly.
In those days the UK needed bulk transport for iron ore for steel works, coal for power stations, etc. The motorway network was relatively undeveloped and the ability of trucks to haul heavy loads at reasonable speeds was limited.
We now have a better (albeit congested) motorway network and trucks routinely capable of hauling large loads. We have lost most of our bulk industries for one reason or another.
The bulk freight argument for rail seems to have gone much the same way as the argument for maintaining the canals. Canals - an 18th century development rendered largely obselete by rail in the 19th. Rail - a 19th century phenomenon past its best by the end of the 20th.
In those days the UK needed bulk transport for iron ore for steel works, coal for power stations, etc. The motorway network was relatively undeveloped and the ability of trucks to haul heavy loads at reasonable speeds was limited.
We now have a better (albeit congested) motorway network and trucks routinely capable of hauling large loads. We have lost most of our bulk industries for one reason or another.
The bulk freight argument for rail seems to have gone much the same way as the argument for maintaining the canals. Canals - an 18th century development rendered largely obselete by rail in the 19th. Rail - a 19th century phenomenon past its best by the end of the 20th.
Jacob
What goes around comes around.
Maybe so but with things as they are we are faced with urgent need for radical change.
It looks extremely unlikely that technological advance will provide this, except marginally, so the alternative will be more in the way of a retreat; by a route we choose, or if not, by a route forced upon us.
Some things could be done very quickly e.g. moving from animal farming Reduce methane or face climate catastrophe, scientists warn but it doesn't seem to be on any popular agenda.
COP26 should be very significant.
Droogs
Not the Sharpest Moderator in the box
Is this the future of container ships
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/08/25/...y-crewless-container-ship-spc-intl/index.html
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/08/25/...y-crewless-container-ship-spc-intl/index.html
