Wednesday, July 24, 2002

The Index

Up to and including 10 August 2002

General Transport

Can You Build A Railway (Or Road) Without Compulsory Purchase?
Compulsory Purchase - an update
Compulsory Purchase - a justified grumble
Compulsory Purchase - oh no, not again
Abolish the Ministry of Transport
The dynamics of the relationship between the state and free enterprise - the bigger the state the worse it gets.
That Transport Plan - MPs savage the Government's Transport "Plan"
Abolish the Department of Transport
Public and private transport (generally speaking) do not compete
A Libertarian Transport Manifesto - not finished yet
Now here's a challenge... - one person wonders what all the fuss is about
Dublin metro - actually more about infrastructure and land values.
Book Review: Don Riley Taken for a Ride
Is your journey really necessary?
Stuff from the Ludwig von Mises Institute and elsewhere
The Evil of Subsidy
Pollution Control - libertarian style
The "No shareholders means more being spent" fallacy
Misuses of the English Language #1: Privatisation
Misuses of the English Language #2: the Environment

Rail

A brief history of UK railways
A Short Note On The Structure Of The UK Railway
Nationalisation is NOT the Answer - letter to the Evening Standard.
It's not all Doom and Gloom
Train Driver Shortage
Fare Hike Threatened
High Fares are Good for you - ultimately
The Crisis at Connex
Apologies Connex
How much Money is Railtrack Getting from the Government?
Rail Delays
Just How Bad is a Monopoly?
Book Review: Christian Wolmar Broken Rails
Oh, to be proved wrong
But Passenger Numbers Have Gone Up!
The Sale of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link
The Media: Accentuate the Negative, Disregard the Positive
Graffiti and Vandalism
The Central Railway
Some More On Vertical Integration
Some Meanderings on the Royal Train
Anglia Railways in Financial Trouble
Fight! - personal experience of violence on public transport
What the Victorians did for us - a profile of Edward Watkin
Bullshit Alert - a review of the sort of nonsense people come out with when there's a train crash
Dutch Railways and the Nature of Private Enterprise - a letter to Christian Wolmar
Wolmar Replies
Reply to Wolmar - or why subsidy is bad news
The IoD gets it right - and wrong
Rail smash has buried bad news - Railtrack needs a lot more money. The Government has been operating a double standard.
Rail Crash Update - and why it is unwise to jump to conclusions
More thoughts on vertical integration
Bad railways? Blame it on the 1950s - the Modernisation Plan
UK railways reclassified as "weapons of mass destruction" - harsh and totally unfair humour.
More (potential) double standards - how the State treats the state and private sectors differently.
Is it the EU's fault? - that our railways are in a mess? Er, no. Not this time.
It's all the EU's fault (again) - the debate continues
The Taff Vale Judgement
Long distance trains don't make sense
Of smoke and mirrors - the sums involved in the setting up of Network Rail are staggering - and confusing
Signs of improvement - Brian Micklethwait points out that it's not all bad news
A curate's egg - why some things get better and others worse under pseudo-privatisation
Network Rail - review of article from BBC on the birth of the latest wheeze
The public control fallacy
Government vetoes pay offer
The Evil of Subsidy
Eurotunnel debt refinancing
Eurotunnel - an addendum
High fares are good for you
Told you so - state and private are not treated the same
Misuses of the English Language #1: Privatisation
Have rail fares gone up since privatisation?
Higher fares are good for you - an update

Railways Abroad

More Guardian Lunacy (on Amtrak)
Amtrak - in deep trouble
More on Amtrak and how the state deceived the US public in the early 1970s
More on Amtrak (Part II)
The Japanese System
Japanese Railway Conference
On Being Stunned By The Central Japan Railway Company Data Book 2001
The Royal Train - a follow up - how the Japanese royals get around.
The Plane to Spain is faster than the Train - catch the last train to Mudville
High-Speed Rail in Spain
The Octupus Card - Hong Kong's newish non-ticket ticket system.
Metrocard

Railway Safety

On Corporate Manslaughter
Corporate Manslaughter - An Addendum
A Question of Safety
Safety Costs Soar
Safety is Dangerous
More safety nonsense - or how the Government would like to destroy hundreds of perfectly good trains but can't.
"New" rail crash investigator, eh?
Scandal

Tube

Will Self in the Standard - link to takedown

Road

Pile-up on the ranting super-highway - private roads also have rules.
Brian Micklethwait on Road Pricing in the UK
Our nuthead safety fascists...anti-car stupidity is not confined to the UK.
More on the rules of the private road - James Haney on how bad things are in Texas
Utilities fight hole-in-road charges
Road tolls seen as tax on business - why tolls are good for you.
On helmets for cyclists
The car share to nowhere - why they won't work and what the alternative is
Rules, rules and less rules - fewer rules just might lead to greater safety
Walter Block on road pricing
Are buses and cars compatible?
Coming to a main road near you...
Road tolling by satellite
Eh? - a very odd suggestion
Road pricing and job flexibility
Do you feel lucky? - or would I really privatise the road network? You bet!

Congestion Charging in London

My Views
Andrew Oswald in the Times
Ken's Cunning Car Plan
Tim Evans on Road Pricing in the UK
Congestion Charging: some real losers
Congestion Charging: Good for the rich and bad for the poor?
Road pricing and job flexibility
Congestion charging - just do it!
Does congestion charging work?

Air

British Airways Goes Budget
Flights to London to double
Airport Landing Rights
Air Traffic Control - delays across the UK
Should we fear the EasyJet/Go Merger?
Somes thoughts on the Comet disaster
Stelios on Radio 4
Airline Seats
Some Stelios quotes
The NATS crisis - the difference between privatisation and real privatisation
Compulsory Purchase - a justified grumble
In defence of low-cost airlines
How not to control pollution

Miscellaneous

Prior Planning and Preparation Produces Piss-Poor Performance
L'affaire Byers - or why I am not going to spend my time fretting about it
Transports of Delight - the origin of the phrase
L'affaire Sixsmith - or why spin no longer works
Not satisfied with buggering up the railway... - statistics become collateral damage
Lycra louts
UK Transport Extra