The November
meeting was a site visit to the brand new Canada
Line rapid transit system 0peration Management Centre, located just south of
the North Arm of the Fraser river in Richmond.
The tour was organized by Grant Bailey, Engineering Manager and assisted by his
Maintenance Supervisor. Approximately 22 WCGCE members and guests were present
to view the facility.
The group heard a
Power Point presentation by Grant on the Canada Line system.
The system consists
of some 20 double car trains under fully automatic control, that run on an
electric railway which is 18.5 kilometers long, running between Downtown
Vancouver and either Richmond or Vancouver International Airport. The system in
Vancouver is a subway and then becomes an
elevated line when it crosses the FraserRiver. Only a short
section on the way to the airport is at ground level.
The system cost
some $1.9 billion and was financed by the Federal Government and 3 equal
partners; 33% SNC Lavelin, the contractor and operator, 33% CDP and 33% bcIMC.
The Federal Government provided $1.25 billion and the debt partners $657
million ProtransBC is the operating arm and employs about
200 staff, and is contracted to operate the system for 35 years.
The twin tunnels
are bored under False Creek and downtown Vancouver
and cut and cover for the rest of the underground part. There are two bridges
over the north and middle arms of the river, one of which is a cable stayed
with a low profile because it is under the approaches to the airport.
The group also went
on a tour of the Train Hall where the 41 meter long double car units are on
raised platforms to allow easy inspection and maintenance. The Hall has a
capacity for 3 trains and a staff of 67 is involved in the maintenance.
The trains are
powered by 750 volt DC. There are manual controls at each end of the train to
maneuver the cars when off the main line or in an emergency. These controls are
covered by a locked panel during normal operation. Rail cleaning is carried out
about every 6 months or more frequently as needed. In frosty weather a coating
of glycerin is applied to the above ground rails to improve traction.
The group was then
taken to the Control Centre where the group was given an explanation of the
operation of the facility.
The system operates
from 4:45am to 1:45am daily, and is designed to handle 100,000 passengers per
day and has already reached 80, 000 which was not expected until 2011. The
maximum is on Friday and the lowest is on a Sunday. It has become very popular
for people traveling to YVR to catch flights or return from trips. The system is
performing above expectations with the only weakness the station cleanliness
caused by a few less careful passengers. The only stoppage was due to a medical
emergency of a passenger last week.
THE ChallEnge 2009 ISSUES
Both Summer and winter
editions are now available online. An Acrobat
reader is required to view the content. Click on the appropriate link for
the necessary download(s).
Future
meetings
If you have an interesting product or project at work that
you feel our Group members would like to know more about, please don't hesitate
to contact James
Canova, who can arrange
with you a suitable time and date for a talk or tour. Our technical
meetings program comprises an eclectic mix of engineering topics as well
as general items of interest to engineers, and the Group welcomes a
further broadening of its topic base.
Founded in 1987
as an amalgamation of the Western Canada branches of the Institutions of Civil,
Mechanical and Electrical Engineers, the Group expanded in 1994 to include members
of the Institutions of Structural and Chemical Engineers. In 1998 the Group
expanded again to include the Chartered Institution of Building Services
Engineers. It now represents over 1000 members of these U.K. engineering Institutions, residents of
B.C., Yukon, Washington
State, and Alaska.
Mission
The Group
exists not only to extend the Institutions' services to their overseas members,
but also to assist local engineers, EITs and technologists with an interest in
European practices and technology, and/or aspirations to register
professionally in Europe, to join the
appropriate Institution.
Activities
The Group runs
a technical meeting and site visit program out of Vancouver, B.C., and publishes a newsletter,
the ChallEnge,
twice a year. Additional services include this Webpage, assistance with the
APEGBC mentoring program, and assistance to members with Continuing
Professional Development
Those visiting this website in order to
research prospects
for an engineering job here in British Columbia, should navigate to a new page identified on our main
services menu. This is based on a letter we have been using as a reply to
inquiries over the last couple of years. We have tried to portray a realistic
appreciation of what your chances of getting a job here might be, and not we
hope either too rosy or too negative a picture.
This page and
all subsidiary pages are currently under continuous development. If there's
anything you need to know about the Group, further details of the Group may be
obtained from the Group Webmaster,