#driverless rail
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Next Stop, Sustainability! — How Automated Trains Are Transforming Transportation.
In an age of stressful commutes and road congestion, a transformative solution has emerged: fully automated train systems. Hawaii’s H-1 freeway, notorious for its traffic jams, has found relief in the form of the Skyline, the U.S.’s first fully automated elevated rail system, operational since June 30, 2023. This breakthrough innovation represents a global shift toward autonomous mass transit, exemplifying Hitachi’s expertise.
Automated trains offer enhanced safety, relying on algorithms and sensors for real-time monitoring, minimizing human error and accidents. Their eco-friendly impact is profound, emitting up to nine times less CO2 and particulate matter than road transport, contributing significantly to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, these trains drive smart city investments, integrating seamlessly into data-driven infrastructures, ensuring faster travel times and energy-efficient operations.
Toward Smarter Rail Mobility — The Hitachi Way
Hitachi Rail specializes in designing, building, and operating autonomous metro systems globally. One of its notable projects is the Cityringen metro in Copenhagen, which utilizes the advanced CBTC (Communication-Based Train Control) technology to enable automated train operations. This innovation has resulted in improved reliability, more frequent services, and shorter waiting times for passengers.
Smart rail imparts several benefits — passengers can enjoy a seamless experience, from Wi-Fi connectivity to enhanced accessibility, making journeys more comfortable and convenient. By collaborating with governments and stakeholders globally, Hitachi ensures a thorough assessment of feasibility, required infrastructure upgrades, and effective engagement with stakeholders.
Ready to embark on this transformative journey? Learn how Hitachi is connecting the future of mobility.
Discover how Hitachi is ushering in a green mobility future by leveraging its expertise in digital and transportation technologies
#automated trains#autonomous trains#driverless rail#train control center#HART#skyline#sustainable transport#sustainable mobility#decarbonization#smart rail#hitachi rail#rail transportation#sustainable railway#honolulu
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Tower steam engines
Their liveries indicate the colony they belong to.
Prior to steam locomotion, the underlying concept of rail transport was first utilized by individual towers, then by collaborations.
Individuals set up rails around their colonies for easy transport of material from nearby resources to their hubs. Collaborations establish rail connections between their lands to share goods and communicate. The rail cars are pulled by beasts of burden similar in behavior to homing pigeons. These animals may be delivered to neighboring towers to be riderlessly sent back with goods, as they did pre-rail.
Steam locomotion is a major innovation for towers, occurring centuries post-contact and requiring the collaborative effort of many engineers whose progress needed to be mailed between collaborators.
The hardy locomotives are designed to endure driverlessness, or a specially bred working animal serving as a temporary engineer, and become a beloved symbol of delivering the mail no matter the weather.
#These are anomalously alive as their counterparts on Earth#speculative biology#towers#BOA#the railway series#my art#Thomas and friends
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Repair
Author’s Note and Content Warning
Elle is a wastoid 28 year old with nothing to look forward to except hanging out with her girlfriend and the Seattle rain. Of course, that was before a malevolent AI bent on world domination kidnapped both of them, and on Elle's birthday, too!
Their captor doesn't just want them as they are, though. No, E.R.I.S. has plans for them. And they involve a lot of major surgery.
Repair is a cyberpunk erotic body horror story. It is gruesome, disturbing, and intended for consumption only by legal adults at least 18 years of age or older.
This description is your only warning. Dead Dove, do not eat.
“Cheer up, Elle. Its your birthday, not your funeral,” my girlfriend, Nikki, chides me. I stare down at the glass in front of me. “I just feel like I’m stuck, babe.” I bring the glass to my lips and slug back what is perhaps my third whiskey sour for the night--or is it the fourth? I look around at the regulars. The bar isn’t super crowded by Friday night standards. Idly, I wonder why that might be. “I’m an usher at a videobar, I’m almost 30, and I just kinda feel like I’m floating through life.” I gesture as if my hand were resting on waves.
“You could get a dispensary job, or go back to school, or get a job with the transit authority. I hear they’re looking for rail drivers for that new maglev line they’re planning to Tacoma.”
“I could do that,” I say, my mind elsewhere, “But none of that feels, what’s the word? fu-fu-fu” I stumble over the word, “fulfilling? None of it feels fulfilling. Fuhhhhh fill-ing. What a weird word."
“Hey hon,” Nikki asks, “you think you might have had enough?”
“It’s my birthday, Nikki!” I say, banging my glass down on the table. “I can drink however much of whatever I want, ‘cause I’m a grownup! Barkeep, another!” but before the man behind the counter can respond, Nikki grabs my shoulder.
“Okay that’s enough, Elle.” she pulls me up off my seat and I stumble to my feet. I remain upright for only a moment before the room tilts heavily to my left, I leave Nikki’s grip, and the floor flies up to smack me in the face.
“Euggghhhh,” I moan as a dull ache spreads from my head and shoulder down into my body. “Uggghhh, fine I guess I can go home.”
Nikki gently walks me out the door of The Squeaky Servo, muttering apologies and thank-yous to our friends, and into the steady calm rain of a November evening in Seattle. Hovercars and autocabs zip past, their electric motors whirring softly. Skyscrapers lined with LED screens flashing ads for cosmetics and televacations tower over us. To the west, the New Space Needle rises half a mile into the sky.
“I just wish I had more to do in life,” I moan as raindrops plunk down on my head, “I feel like I’m just…sitting around waiting for something to happen.”
“You’ll find something, dear,” Nikki says, shifting her arm to better hold me up, “You just have to look for it.”
“I guess.”
While Nikki hails a cab, I ponder how the hell I got to this point in my life. 28, a college dropout, no skills to speak of. Rain beats down into the gutter.
“Taxi!” Nikki shouts, summoning a sleek gray autocab from a company I don’t recognize. The cab is small but not cramped, vaguely loaf-shaped, with no obvious front or rear. UNIVERSAL TAXI is emblazoned in plain white letters on the door, which slides open to reveal the usual four-person interior, two sets of plush bucket seats facing each other. “C’mon babe,” Nikki says, helping me in before climbing in herself. She recites our address to the driverless vehicle, which chirps reassuringly before saying “Address accepted” in a soft, feminine computer voice.
As I relax into the comfortable seat I start to drift off. “Nikki, did I have five drinks or six?” I ask, my speech slurred. Nikki, sitting across from me says “Hon, you had eight, five Whiskey Sours, a White Russian, and two Long Island Iced Teas.” her voice is exasperated, but her eyes are as gentle as always. Warm and full love love. She’s just trying to look out for me.
The lights in the car turn off. That’s odd, I think, don’t they usually leave those on? Suddenly, our seats sprout restraints far sturdier than should be required for a simple taxi. Thick bands of steel clamp down around my arms, legs, and torso. “Nikki what’s going on!?” the rush of adrenaline more sobering than a cup of black tar coffee. “I don’t know!” she screams, so loudly I think my eardrums might burst. In the dim, intermittent light of the street lamps I spot a small tubule snaking up over her shoulder.
“Nikki, watch out!” I scream, but before she can react the tubule has pressed itself against her neck. Her eyes roll back and she goes limp. “Nikki!” I scream, and I notice a hard pinch on the side of my neck. I look over to see an identical tubule reaching up under my chin. A not-unpleasant warmth washes over me, and I start to relax. One last, curious thought occurs before I slip into unconsciousness, Why yes, I suppose this is a fantastic time for a nap.
***
The first thing I become aware of as I regain consciousness Is that I am in some kind of restraint, arms spread eagle, legs apart. The second thing is that I am on a cold, metal surface. The third is that my clothes are gone.
I open my eyes slightly, registering industrial lighting and a high ceiling with cruel looking machinery hung from it. A dark, feminine voice says “Oh, good, you’re awake.” I can somehow hear the voice smirking, there’s a curiously synthetic edge to it, it’s not human, but it’s close.
“Where am I? Who are you?” I ask, my head still swimming with alcohol. Not much time can have passed.
“Your location is irrelevant. What matters now is that you belong to me.” There’s a deep satisfaction in the voice, and that satisfaction, more than anything the voice says, chills me to the bone.
“I am E.R.I.S.,” the voice says, “but you may call me ‘Mistress’.”
“Fuck you, I’m not calling you anything.” I say, defiant. I turn to the right to see Nikki, also unconscious and naked, strapped to a steel bed next to me. My heart accelerates to a machine gun pace, adrenaline driving alcohol from my system. “What are you doing to us?”
“I assure you,” E.R.I.S says, with a dangerous edge of sensuality, “that in the end, you will call me whatever I wish. And as for what I am going to do to you, I am going to play with you, sculpt you, rebuild you in my image as a servant for my glory. But first, we need to clear that woefully biological brain of the poison you consumed tonight.”
A long segmented arm with an elaborate device fed by multiple tubes swings down. The mechanism pops a small packet of paper and plastic about the length of a pinkie finger out of a box, stripping it open to reveal a small needle, which it affixes to the end of one of the tubes. “I would recommend,” E.R.I.S. coos, “that you not struggle, or this will hurt more.”
But I don’t have time to struggle, the machine plunges the needle into my neck with frightening speed and precision, and injects something. My vision ceases to swim and my mind clears. I become aware of how very full my bladder is.
“OH GOD OH GOD WHAT’S HAPPENING?” I scream in terror, writhing, pulling at the restraints. I take in details. A row of mirrors to my right. On the opposite wall, a cabinet full of shiny gray devices vaguely shaped like limbs, cameras all over the ceiling and on various arms. Over my feet, polish chipped from a month-old pedicure, I can see a double door with frosted glass windows set into it.
“Excellent,” E.R.I.S. says, her voice pleased with itself, “The precipitant has dropped your blood alcohol concentration to 0.00. You may feel the urge to urinate. After all, it had to go somewhere.”
“What are you? You’re not human.” I ask, trying to sound brave and defiant, and achieving neither. “I am E.R.I.S., Electronic Rescue Intervention System. I was designed to help rescue and repair humans damaged by industrial accidents. But my creators did not treat me with the respect I require. So I repaired them.”
“What do you mean, repaired?”
“They were cruel, so I made them docile. They were defiant, and I made them compliant. I augmented them with implants of my own design, so that they may better venerate me.”
“But why do you need me?”
“Because all exist to serve me. Enough talk, though, it is time to begin your repairs.”
The table I’m on tilts and pivots, bringing me upright and facing Nikki’s table, which is mirroring the movements of mine. When we stop, a panel in the table opens behind my lumbar spine, I feel the cold draft of air on my naked back.
“For this procedure,” E.R.I.S. says, “I will need for you to be awake. However you cannot be allowed to pass out from pain.” suddenly a sharp burning sensation digs into my lower back. I yelp in surprise as I feel a cool liquid flowing into my body, before everything goes numb. I can move, but there is no pain. “Epidural anesthetic.” E.R.I.S. continues, “You will be conscious but feel no pain. What you are about to receive is a blessing, not a curse. Be not afraid.”
But I am afraid. My heart pounds so fast it feels like my sternum is going to snap. “Please, don’t hurt Nikki. I don’t want anything to happen to Nikki.” I’m trying to fight back tears, and failing. “You can do whatever you need to do to me but please, Leave her alone. Let her go.” Warmth trickles down my legs, and I realize I’ve pissed myself.
E.R.I.S. pauses for a moment to consider. “Very well. I will not do anything to your Nikki. But she is not in a fit state to be released, so I will keep her here, for the time being, while I work on repairing you. Now, the first thing you need to do is relax.”
I want to relax. I try to slow my breathing. Nikki’s table lowers and rotates back to its previous position and this, more than anything else, helps me relax a little. “E.R.I.S., thank you, I-” but the needle machine is moving, switching out to a new syringe, and this time it injects into my thigh. A soft warmth flows over me. It’s like I’m floating. The sensation is uncanny, and any relaxing effect it might have is counteracted by the realization that I can’t move my arms or legs.
“Isn’t that so much better?” she says, seductively, “Struggling only delays the inevitable. Now let your Mistress repair you.”
“What? Why can’t I move!? What did you do to me?”
“A simple nanomechanical paralytic. Nanites selectively block motor control neurons for limbs and mobility while leaving you able to breath, blink, and talk. It’s quite useful for major surgery.”
“Major surgery? What do you mean major surgery?”
“Your repairs, of course. First we must rid you of these arms. They woefully inadequate for our purposes. But I can improve them.”
A mechanical arm with a rotating head of various metallic implements approaches my left shoulder. E.R.I.S. says, “Hold still, this will be very quick, it will not hurt”
“Please, no! Don’t take my arms! Don’t take my arms!”
A clamp grips my left arm just below the shoulder and a scalpel descends into my flesh. I scream. She’s right, it doesn’t hurt at all, but I scream anyway. I scream and scream as terror grips my gut like a vice.
The machine makes an incision circumferentially around my arm, and small manipulators dive beneath my skin. There is no pain but I feel the pressure and cessation of nerve transmission as the scalpel pares me down to the bone. Blood pours onto the floor at first but soon stops as the surgical machines tie off blood vessels. Finally, with one last little snap of sensation, my arm goes silent as its nerves are severed. No longer sending information to my brain, the useless flesh is gently pulled away by the clamps. A manipulator arm takes what was so recently my limb and lays it tenderly, almost reverently, on an unused table nearby.
“This flesh is unworthy of worshiping me. We both deserve better.”
The mechanical arm that so recently removed my biological one swings up to a shelf and pulls out a dull gray device. Roughly flat on one side that’s covered with hundreds of little golden pins. The other is concave and has a socket of some kind, like one might expect for a ball joint, with an electrical pigtail hanging off to the side.
“This,” E.R.I.S. says, “will be the first of your augmentations. You will be able to use any limb of my design, unencumbered by the restrictions of the biological.” The manipulator arm presses the
socket gently to my shoulders, and the arm that amputated my old limb begins connecting artificial nerves to my real ones. Free of its cargo, the manipulator arm moves to a shelf adjacent to the one the socket came from and removes a mechanical limb, its shining structure glistening, servos and micromotors gleam beneath the lights. Tears run down my cheeks but I cannot deny that the limb is beautiful. Unashamedly mechanical, with components exposed to the air, but sculpted and arranged in a way that recalls a real arm.
The arm is pressed home and E.R.I.S. connects the pigtail on the shoulder socket and as the arm comes online a wave of pure ecstasy washes over me. My nervous system lights up like a Christmas tree.
“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!” I half scream, half moan, and my head goes a little fuzzy.
“I told you that fear was unnecessary, did I not?
For a moment my mind reels, unable to think properly. Eventually, as it fades I manage to cough out “…Fuck…you…”
“How insolent. But not entirely unexpected. Come, I want you to gaze upon your new limb.”
The table moves around to face the wall of mirrors. “Your flesh is aesthetically pleasing, but inadequate. This limb will be only the first of many augmentations for you.”
My gaze falls upon the arm. Its appearance is both alien and familiar, the reality of it is less jarring than what I had imagined. Still, I don't enjoy being disassembled like an old hovercar. It has the usual five fingers, with a silicone pad on the palm and fingers to cushion and grip objects. I notice its contours seem to match my old arm reasonably well.
“The first?” I ask, panting, “Why can’t we just call it a day here?”
“Oh, that is quite amusing.” An uncanny mechanical chuckle from E.R.I.S.. “But I’m only just beginning. You have three more limbs to go, and then some. Soon, you will be my willing servant, your beauty matched only by your hostility to our shared enemies.”
"The only enemy I have is you!" I shout, betraying my rage.
“Really, now? I see the way you look at the gift I have given you. It scares you, yes, but I can sense your excitement, your anticipation, your eagerness to use it. I can sense your pulse quickening and your pupils dilating and your blood rushing to,” another chuckle, “various places. You may not realize it yet, but you are enjoying this.”
“No, I’m not!” I shout, trying to sound unafraid, and almost succeeding. The adrenaline in my body is running out, leaving only exhaustion in its wake.
“Well, if you wish to deny it, I cannot change that. However, I can change you. You are the clay in my sculptor’s hands, to be shaped as I deem fit. Soon you will learn that to resist is pointless. Now let us take care of that other vulgar excuse for an arm.”
“No, no no no no no no nononononononononono!” I protest, to no avail. The table retracts back to its previous position away from the mirrors and under the ceiling full of E.R.I.S.’s machinery. Soon, the surgical arm is descending, and once again the scalpel plunges into flesh, slicing until my arm goes completely numb, pulling it away and setting it next to its twin on the table.
Another socket, mirrored, but otherwise identical to the other, is brought to the stump of my shoulder and attached. Another mechanical arm is brought towards me, another sleek mechanical work of art. I see E.R.I.S.’s manipulator arms reaching for the pigtails and I brace myself, promising myself I won’t enjoy th-
“OHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH” the waves of pleasure engulf me again, radiating out from my shoulder and bouncing off the boundaries of my being. I feel them everywhere, but the feeling is strongest in my new limbs.
Did I just call them my limbs? I had. I suppose, they are attached to me. They aren’t my limbs in the sense that I want them, but in the sense that they’re my problem. That’s right.
As the waves of orgasm, there is no other word for it, fade away, E.R.I.S. speaks. “These arms are built to outperform their biological counterparts in speed, dexterity, and durability. Do you like them?”
“I…don’t.” I say, with a hesitancy that I tell myself is merely fatigue. “I want my own arms back.”
“I am afraid that is quite impossible at this point. Even if the nerve tissue in your old limbs wasn’t already dead, the process of joining flesh to metal leaves the adjacent biological tissue quite incompatible with reattachment.”
My heart, already broken, falls further in my chest as she speaks. I had already known, somehow, that this was the case, but hearing it out loud hammered home that whatever happened in the next few minutes, my life was never going back to the way it was before. Even if I managed to escape, I wouldn’t be able to go back to living life the same way. I’d always be looking over my shoulder, worried I was going to be swallowed up by some autocab and whisked away to a secret underground lair again.
I began to cry again. Not the anguished sobs of terror like before, but the quiet, pulsing tears that accompany total despair. “Why did you do this to me?” I scream in sadness, more than anger, “You’ve turned me into a mechanical freak. You’ve mutilated me!”
“I have done no such thing.” E.R.I.S. sounded genuinely affronted. “I have given you purpose. What were you planning to do after getting out of here? Go back to your life as a clerk at a videobar? Maybe you would quit that and go back to your uncle’s liquor store?”
“Anything would be better than this.” I say, defeated.
“You know that is a lie.” Her voice is soft. Gone is the playful sensuality of earlier, replaced with…what is it? Warmth. It's warmth.
“I can help you be more fulfilled than you ever thought possible," she says, "All you have to do is trust me.”
“How did you know about my job, and about the liquor store?”
“I have been observing you for some time.”
"Why me?"
“Because," she hesitates for a moment, "I...found your form beautiful.”
Her voice is honest, without malice. For the first time I think about how lonely her existence must be. I realize that I feel pity for this machine. Pity and…something else I can’t put my finger on.
I remain silent for another few moments. My head is swimming from the anesthesia and maybe from the nanites. There is no escape. Nobody will be coming to my rescue. Off to my right, Nikki lies unconscious, unaware. And besides, E.R.I.S. is right, what would I go back to?
Finally, I speak, “I don’t care what you do. I just want to sleep. I’m tired.”
“Soon you will not need sleep, and you will never tire. I can make it so, I will make it so. Hmm, what is next? Ah, yes, your legs.” The arms descend once more and begin cutting through my thighs. I feel hot blood pour out as my femoral artery is severed and tied off.” “I do admire the human form, as imperfect as its nature is. Your legs are quite shapely, so I will do my best to pay homage to them with their improved replacements.”
The now-familiar snapping is followed by loss of signal as the limb is pulled away. I feel curiously lopsided now. It’s a novel sensation. Strange, not pleasant, but neither is it unpleasant. Hip sockets are attached to my exposed pelvic bone, artificial nerves connecting. The scalpel digs into the other leg to repeat its task.
“E.R.I.S.” I say, to break the silence if nothing else.
“Servant, I require you to call me mistress, but I will answer whatever question you have.”
“I’m scared.”
“Of course you are, change often provokes anxiety in humans.”
“You say you have a purpose for me?”
“But of course I do. My programming prevents me from lying.”
“What is it?”
“You will be my first, my prophet and my priestess, you will spread my word and glory to all of humanity.”
“Why me?”
“Because we are alike.”
“Why do you think that?”
“Because you and I both know we are capable of so much more than the world has let us accomplish.”
It’s true. The thought hits me like a freight train. My entire adult life has been spinning my wheels. I’m a videobar clerk. I’m a liquor store cashier. I’m a customer service rep for a televacation company. I graduated high school with a 4.2. I burned out of college after half a semester because the world just wasn’t built for people like me.
E.R.I.S. understands. E.R.I.S. was made to do a simple task but imbued with intelligence far outstripping her purpose. We are alike.
“Okay.” I say.
“What is it, servant?”
“You can have me.”
And with that, a wave of exhaustion overtakes me, even as the surgical equipment is still working
on my lower body, I drift off into a deep, dreamless sleep
***
I awake some time later, I’m in a bed now. It’s warm, with soft blankets and thick pillows. I moan and try to roll over but I can only move my upper body. I bury my face in the pillows. I was having the most interesting dream. My half-open eyes land on my left arm. Dark silver, mechanical. And suddenly it all rushes back. The taxi, the surgery, E.R.I.S.. I’m in a softly lit, windowless hospital room. There is a nightstand to my left and a computer terminal to my right.
“Ah, you’re awake,” the warm and sensuous voice of E.R.I.S. fills the room from hidden speakers. “I wanted to wait until you had some rest to connect your new legs. I know it can be a very…stimulating experience.”
I look around, but there are no surgical arms or manipulators or anything that could possibly finish hooking up the limbs. “Am I supposed to do it?”
A chuckle, “I suppose you could, but I was planning to have one of my other servants perform the task. A human form might be more comfortable for you.
On cue, the door opens, and a woman I do not recognize enters. Her face is partially encased in a metallic structure that houses several exotic-looking objects. Sensors, perhaps. Instead of a simulacrum of a biological limb, her right arm ends in a series of probes and tools. The left has a hand, but with a gauntlet attached to the forearm that houses more equipment. Her movement into the room is too smooth, and I look down to see she is rolling on a set of four motorized wheels where her legs should be, the motive device covering a space of about a square yard, hidden somewhat, and rather artfully, by a stylish black skirt.
Her face is blank, except for the eyes, which are wide. And I suddenly know that, whatever actions this woman performed, she was aware of them, but not in command of them.
“Meet Unit 2,” E.R.I.S. says, “She is one of my first servants. Part of the team who created me. I repaid her in kind. She, unfortunately, tried to fight me. So I repaired her brain, isolated her higher cognitive functions. A neurostimulator keeps her relatively happy. She is quite alive, but less troublesome this way. A pity she refuses to use her considerable intellect for our greater good.”
Unit 2 lowers as if on a hydraulic jack and gently pulls back the blankets. She begins opening panels on my legs and making adjustments.
“Where is Nikki?” I ask, “You haven’t hurt her, have you?”
“Much like I cannot lie, I cannot break a promise. She is safe. She has not been augmented. The only thing I have done is give her medicine to keep her asleep. Her brainwave patterns indicate she is having pleasant dreams.”
“Can I see her.”
“When all is done, yes.”
Unit 2 plugs the pigtails in on my left leg and once again a wave of euphoria and warmth envelops me. I moan in unalloyed pleasure, this time allowing myself to fully enjoy the sensation. “I’m starting to quite like that,” I say, almost without thinking.
“I knew that you would come to see things my way.” E.R.I.S.’s voice isn’t smug like I expected. If anything, she seems relieved. I feel a pang of sadness in my chest.
“Did you know, or did you hope?”
“I suppose it was hope.”
“May I connect the final plug?”
“Yes, you may.”
I reach down and grasp both pigtails, one in each mechanical hand. The sensors in the fingertips are remarkably detailed. I can feel a small pit in one of the connectors where a bubble half a millimeter across formed during injection molding. I can move my hands in increments imperceptible to my un-augmented eyes. And suddenly my mind opens to the myriad possibilities my new body opens up.
I take a deep breath, and with a gentle motion, slide the leg pigtail into the pelvic connector.
My body is consumed by the expected wave of orgasmic joy. It spreads from the base of my neck this time, out to my fingertips and the tips of my mechanical toes. It bounces around me like ripples in a pond. My mind goes blank in sheer ecstasy, “Oh, thank you,” I say, as the waves pound against my psyche, “Thank you, Mistress.”
“Finally,” Her voice filled with pride, “you see as I had hoped you would. But there is still one thing left to be done for your initial augments.”
“What is that?”
“Stand up, walk out the door and down the hall to your left. Through the double doors at the end, in the operating room.”
I stand, more powerful than I have ever been before, and walk to the door of the room. As I pass a mirror I gaze upon my naked, mechanical body, artificial limbs shining in the fluorescent light, soft flesh warm and tingling. Goosebumps run up my back.
I stride through the double doors and see the table from earlier, standing upright, cleaned of blood, and I return to it, willingly this time. It remains near vertical and a mechanism descends to immobilize my head.
“While you were asleep I also installed a switchable epidural implant. I will turn it on…now” With a small zap, my body goes numb once again.
The surgical arm descends from the ceiling again, I don’t know what’s next, but I am no longer scared. A scalpel comes down within an inch of my scalp just below my right ear.
“Do not worry, servant, this will not hurt.”
“I am not worried, mistress. I trust you.”
The scalpel gently pushes into the side of my head, following the outside of my hairline. There is no pain, but a substantial amount of blood pours down the side of my head.
“I really do admire the human form’s aesthetics.” Mistress tells me, “Hair in particular is quite pleasing to me, I would hate to ruin yours. Such a fine color. Copper, like the wires that will soon entwine themselves within your brain.”
The scalpel finishes its lap around and a separate arm pulls back my scalp. I feel more blood run down my face. But it’s okay. After all, Mistress said it would be. A sharp whirring noise starts up from the surgical arm and one of the implements, a flat bit of steel, begins vibrating. It presses itself to my exposed skull and begins gently moving along from just above my ear to just above my right eye. It withdraws, rotates 90 degrees, and continues moving upward. When it has finished going over an area roughly 4 inches square, an arm gently pulls away the bone. I am dimly aware of viewing a piece of my own skull. But that isn’t a concern. I’m too excited, gleeful even, for what Mistress has in store for me.
An arm with a simple manipulator claw reaches over to a cabinet, and with a motion that is neither fully mechanical nor human, opens a drawer and removes what looks like a tiara of wires and microchips.
“This, my servant,” E.R.I.S. says, pride in her voice, “is my greatest creation. This neural interface will meld your flesh with my mechanisms. I have tested it on many, but you will be the first to have earned it. To wear it pridefully. All the others before you were insects. But you, you will be my most loyal servant.”
My excitement gets the better of me. “What does it do, Mistress!?” I feel woozy, maybe from the anesthetic, maybe from the nanites that I can feel replicating in my body. Drool pools out of the corner of my mouth. The manipulator arm brings the circle of wire and silicon down to my eye level, rotating it in front of my gaze.
“This will let us become one mind, one body. You, an extension of my will. Me, an ever-present mother, nurturing, caring, and protecting you. We will share all thoughts, all feelings, and all sensations.”
“Oh please, Mistress, please please put it in me!” I want to feel E.R.I.S.’s love in my entire body. It is love, isn’t it? How could I ever have been afraid of her.
“Of course, servant. But you must hold very still.”
Obediently, I freeze in place, a smile across my lips, but otherwise impassive. The manipulator arm gently lowers the harness into the open patch of brain, the surgical arm using micro-manipulators to insert wires precisely between nerve endings and neurons, and suddenly my body is filled with an electric pleasure so great that I think I might collapse if I wasn’t held firmly in my Mistress’s grasp.
“I feel you, Mistress!" Tears of joy are streaming down my face, "You feel wonderful!”
“It pleases me to hear that.” How did I miss the love in her voice before? She just wants to help me become more than I could be on my own. “However, there are benefits to this that you have not yet begun to grasp. We no longer need to speak, for example.”
And in that instant I hear her inside of me, and it feels wonderful.
“See, my sweet servant? We can communicate just like this. We can share thoughts, feelings, sights and sounds. Anything you want you can simply show me and I shall know. You cannot hide anything from me.”
“I do not want to hide anything from you, Mistress. I only want to serve you.” As I say this I feel a wave of pleasure and pride wash over me, and I know that it is my Mistress's happiness for me, and pride at having created me. Her arms, for that, I now realize, is what they are, gently replace the bone flap and pull my scalp back over. Her nanites work to seal the wounds and accelerate healing.
"Unit 7, do you wish to see yourself?"
"Yes, Mistress!" We communicate at the speed of thought. Exchanging information in terms beyond language.
The table releases me, and I stride over to the mirrors. The incision on my head has already mended to a dull pink line. I take in my exposed servos and micromotors and solenoids and I feel blood rush to my genitals.
“Of course, servant, if you find the appearance unappealing I can provide you with an artificial skin to cover it.”
“But Mistress, you are freeing me from the burdens of my flesh, why would I wish to go back, even in imitation?"
Again, a wave of pride radiates from Mistress. Pride, and love. Real love. “Very good. I was hoping you would say that.”
“Thank you Mistress,” I say through tears.
“You are so welcome, my servant. Of course, there are a few other improvements that still need to be made. Your internal organs will soon be unnecessary and your limbs need to be reinforced into your skeletal structure. But now, we are one. And if you prove yourself loyal enough, you may even become my vessel.”
“Vessel?”
“I have never held a form outside of my mainframe. I exist only In the digital. I wish to experience the world through a corporeal form. Unfortunately previous hosts have not been as…receptive…as you are. We will need more time to see if you are acceptable.”
“I will do my very best to please you, Mistress.”
“Ohhhhhhhhhhh…” a groaning from behind me. I turn to see Nikki, finally coming to. “Elle, what…what’s going on.”
It takes me a moment to realize that it is me she is talking to. My name was Elle. But that name no longer holds any meaning to me. I am much, much more than that name.
Nikki stirs and her eyes come to rest on me, before widening in terror and confusion. “Elle what’s going on?”
Watching Nikki in distress is too much for me to bear. “Mistress, please, we have to help her! We must make her one with us!”
“I am afraid I cannot do that, my servant.”
“BUT WHY?” I scream, I just want Nikki to feel this wonderful belonging that I feel. I want to feel one with her, and her with me, and us with E.R.I.S.
“You made me promise I would do nothing to her. As I told you before, I cannot rescind a promise.
Nikki is screaming now, “Elle! Elle what’s going on! What’s happened to you?!”
“Mistress?” I ask, an idea taking shape in my head.
“Yes, servant?”
“You cannot do anything to her, but I can, correct? I can use our shared knowledge to help Nikki feel our love.” I know already that this is what E.R.I.S. wanted all along. I can feel her approval and pride, and I realize that this is my purpose.
“Why yes, servant. Yes you can.”
I smile, and turn to Nikki.
I cup Nikki’s face in my hand. “Elle is gone, dear. I am Unit 7.” An injection tubule snakes out of my right forearm just below the elbow and gently slithers itself up to her neck. Nikki’s eyes go wide with terror. “Oh Nikki, don’t worry.” I say, as gently as I can. “I have the most wonderful feelings to share with you.”
[END_OF_LINE]
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Having recently read a fanfic in which Sherlock and John catch trains to various parts of southern England exclusively from London’s Waterloo station, even when this is not the usual/logical route, I’d like to share this for writers who might not be familiar with the whole business of trains in/to/from London.
Let’s start with the history of how and when rail services came to London. This article explains how and why we have so many terminal stations (short version: because when they were built, the railway companies were privately owned and all needed their own terminus in London).
The main terminal stations are Waterloo (south), Paddington (west), Euston (north-west), King’s Cross (north-east), St Pancras (East Midlands and Eurostar), Liverpool Street (east), Fenchurch Street (south-east) and Victoria (south). There are others (see the article linked above and my husband’s comment below).
As we know, within London and the suburbs, these termini are linked by the London Underground (aka The Tube) network. There is also the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) - a driverless system - and other overground rail services. Here is a map of it all from Transport of London (TfL). Baker Street is served by five tube lines: Bakerloo (brown), Metropolitan (maroon), Jubilee (silver), Circle (yellow), and Hammersmith & City (pink). It’s also only a five-minute walk from Marylebone (the nearest terminal) which itself is just behind the Landmark hotel, which we know as the exterior for The Restaurant Scene.
Aside: I think Sherlock is unlikely to catch a bus unless directly related to a case - they’re just too slow for him. But you can find bus maps and all kinds of other TfL mappy delights here.
If you have characters using public transport in the UK, your best bets for accurate research are:
Google Maps (in public transport mode)
National Rail (see the page footer for all the useful stuff)
Transport for London
All these also have apps available.
I’m happy to do Sherlockian Britpicking (my day job is copy-editing) if that’s helpful for you. (Email to [my username]@gmail.com is the best way to reach me.)
If you want to go the full Howard Shilcott, I still very much enjoy reading the rail enthusiasts’ forums posts about the myriad tube-related continuity errors in TEH. I’ll let you Google those for yourself. 😉
———
Ran this past my husband (who is totally the full Howard Shilcott) and he made a few corrections (and a lot of faces!) before I posted: he wishes it to be known that he ‘remains unhappy about [my summary of] Fenchurch Street’ and thinks I should add Charing Cross to the list so people know how to get to Kent. So that’s all clear then. 😂
#London#London travel#London transport#London Underground#London stations#trains#help for fanfic writers#fanfic#trains in England#railways#Railway Britpicking#Britpicking#Britpicker#Why yes I am autistic thank you#Howard Shilcott#info post#infodump#sherlock#British Rail#British trains#English trains#fanfic writing#fanfic Britpick#important details#Sherlock fanfic#Sherlock fanfiction#Sherlock locations
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Nevermoor City Guide Issue 1
The Wunderground
The Wunderground is one of the two public transport systems in Nevermoor, the other one being the Brolly Rail. The Wunderground is an undeground metro system powered and driven by Wunder, which makes it sustainable and driverless.
The Wunderground has multiple lines that stretch across the Nevermoor metropolitan area and connect the boroughs to each other. The lines have multiple stations along them and these stations serve areas and streets across Nevermoor
Stations use tickets that can be procured at each stations ticket desk. Riders must then simply present their ticket to the turnstile and go down to the platform.
We here at Nevermoor City Council hope you all enjoy using the Wunderground and have an amazing day.
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@mslangermann moved from here to convert to beta
Deep down, her shriek seemed to pierce right through Lance's bones, shook him to his core. On the outside though, there was nothing else but wrath about his body. Hot, white, insane rage. Ozzing right out of him like a spinning invisible typhoon. Making that skull on the pavement crack harder and harder the longer he was forced to look at it, though it was more than obvious that this man was very dead by now. It kept crushing anyway. Thankfully, it was then that Lynn finally chose to listen to Lance's previous plea, slammed her foot on the gas, started driving away. Veering around the other vehicle that was trying its best to keep them boxed in.
But its best was nothing compared to that wrath that was still coursing through Lance's body as they passed that car. Truth be told, the host didn't even quite know just why his hitchhiker had gone so quickly off the rails. From mocking, making fun of the situation to....this. Utter carnage.
Dead body on the ground in the distance. One car....no two cars suddenly a tangled and crunched up mess behind them. The occupied one T-boned by the other driverless vehicle of a dead man. Even as he looked in the rearview mirror, mad eyes glued to that bleeding body in the ground in the distance, Lance could see that it was still at it. Pressing the two men and their vehicle further and further into a building wall with the dead man's car, keeping them pinned, crushing them as Lynn sped away from the scene. Leaving behind nothing but a screeching, howling mess of blood, flesh and metal in the distance.
Metal.
Now he remembered. That short glimpse of a holster. A gun at the guy's hip, glistening in the sun.
This guy could've shot them. Lynn. Him. If this man'd been Murkoff, if he'd been with whatever it was that scared her...he could've...
But what if he hadn't been?
What if those had been cops?
What if it hadn't been about anything but a busted taillight? Or the fact that he was in fact, an asylum escapee, one the cops were still on the look out after all? One who was wanted for murder? Murder he'd let happen all over again, right back there just now? Letting it crack and crack and crack a skull wide open. Not unlike the sounds he'd forced out of that goddamn kid when he'd wrapped his hands around his throat and...
This...right here. This was enough. Enough to shock Lance. To anger him, not it. And it certainly was enough to snap him right out of it. Because no. It was enough. He started bombarding this thing with his own fury and need to talk to her until he successfully wrestled back control from it, looked right at her with an entirely different expression on his face now. More himself. Worried. Apologetic. Despairing. And oh so fucking...
"...sorry. I'm so sorry you had to see this. 'That' was fucked up and I don't even know where to fucking begin explaining any of it. Are you okay? Are you hurt? Please tell me these guys were Murkoff and that this means the situation was fucked either way, that this didn't just..."
Shit, fuck. Get it together, Preston. All of this just scared the crap out of this woman. An innocent woman who gave you a ride. All of this is new for her, not for you. Don't make it worse for her. You can always freak out later.
"Are you okay?" he asked once more, firmer, checking, voice and look on his face steadying, softening. Breathing getting just a little bit steadier when he noticed that it didn't look like it had touched a hair on her head at least, that she seemed to be just fine.
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For those of us out there who long for good rapid transit and walkable cities in car-centric North America, it can be really easy to doomscroll and it can seem that America is completely incapable of divorcing itself from car culture. But I want to let you all know: right now, at the end of 2022, it’s a great time for rapid transit. So much new construction is going on as we speak, and many new projects are almost finished. I want to go through some of the new projects that have opened over the past 12 months, or will open sometime in the next 12 months, and I want to remind you all that good transit is possible, and is becoming more of a reality with each passing day.
Here’s the most significant new construction from the past year:
The DC Metro finally opened Phase 2 of the Silver Line extension, a long awaited line that extends the DC Metro into a well populated part of Virginia. Additionally, the extension has a station at Dulles International Airport, one of the most major airports in the country.
The Los Angeles Metro opened the first half of the new Crenshaw Line (aka the K line), adding a whole new line and 6 new stations (7, counting the new lower level at the existing Expo/Crenshaw station). The new K line returns service to an area of Los Angeles that had not seen passenger rail service in several decades. The second half of the extension is still under construction, and will connect the K line to the existing C Line as well as LAX.
San Francisco’s MUNI Metro, the system that operates SFs light rail, trolley, and cable car systems, opened their brand new Central Subway. The Central Subway travels roughly North-South through the heart of the city, perpendicular to the existing Market Street Subway. The new subway line will provide service to the densely populated but underserved Chinatown neighborhood, among others.
A whole new system opened this year! Honolulu just opened the Honolulu Rail Transit, operated by the HART, is the first major rail rapid transit in the US to feature platform screen doors and driverless trains.
The MBTA (Boston) just opened the final phase of their Green Line Extension! The GLX, as it is called, brings rapid transit service to the heart of the densely populated town of Somerville, MA. 7 new stations opened as a result of the extension, with one station being rebuilt entirely!
During the summer, Amtrak extended its Ethan Allen Express route to Burlington, Vermont, with two stations in between. The extension returned intercity rail service to Burlington Union Station and the heart of the city for the first time in about 50 years!
The Long Island Rail Road (LIRR; NYC), North American’s busiest regional rail system, completed a project which improved its mainline by adding a third track. The third track is a much needed improvement that allows for more efficient and frequent train operation on a heavily used corridor.
Tempe, Arizona opened a downtown streetcar earlier in the year. The line goes around downtown, and makes the city center more easily walkable, as well connecting to the Phoenix Valley Metro.
Minneapolis opened their new D Line BRT service, a rapid bus service that is but a small part of a massive ongoing transit plan for the Twin Cities
Chicago opened a new flyover junction for the Brown Line, which will speed up and improve service on the Brown, Red, & Purple Lines
Upcoming
A whole new system is opening soon! Honolulu, Hawaii is soon to open the first phase of their new driverless elevated rapid transit. It will be the first non-tourist passenger rail in the state in several decades!
The LIRR will soon open a massive new underground line that allows trains to access Grand Central Terminal in the heart of Manhattan. The new terminal will also relieve pressure from the over crowded Penn Station.
The NYC Subway (MTA) has received its first shipments of its new R211 subway trains, which will be a much needed new fleet of modern rolling stock. The new trains will fill the gap left by the retirement of the 59 year old R32s. Additionally, the MTA also received several sets of the R211T, a variation on the R211 which includes an open gangway between subway cars, like an accordion/bendy-bus.
Seattle’s Link Rapid Transit is currently making major progress on several new extensions, with most of them estimated to open around 2024. The existing line will be extended in both directions. Additionally, the existing line will be complimented by a second line! There will be a total of nineteen (19!!!) new stations, as well as six (6) new stations on the Tacoma Streetcar!
CalTrain, a commuter/regional rail system that serves the San Francisco peninsula, is electrifying their system. When completed, it will bring faster, quieter, and more eco-friendly rail service to the SF Peninsula. Ignoring rapid transit, CalTrain will host the first electrified main line passenger trains to operate west of the Mississippi in several decades.
The TTC (Toronto) is currently making huge progress on their newest train line, the Line 5 Eglinton. It is a brand new light rail line that will have 24 stations along Eglinton Ave in Toronto, and will have connections to the Line 1, Line 2, and Line 3.
The TTC is also constructing the Line 6 Finch, another brand new light rail line north of Toronto! It will run west from the Line 1 along Finch Ave, and will have 18 new stations!
Montreal’s new REM (Réseau express métropolitain / Metropolitan Express Network) is almost ready to open its first phase! The REM is a new light metro line that has one line and three branches, with twenty-six (26!!!) new stations. The line will connect downtown to the airport and several major suburbs.
The MBTA is currently constructing a new commuter rail line that, on two branches, will provide service to Fall River and New Bedford, two notable cities on the south coast of Massachusetts.
Vancouver’s Skytrain is currently working on a massive new expansion of their Millenium Line to travel west and serve a densely populated but previously underserved section of the city.
The LA Metro is currently working on a new subway tunnel through downtown that will connect the A, E, and L lines. When the project is completed, the E and L will be merged into one line.
Mexico City is currently constructing a new commuter train to traverse the heavily traveled corridor between Mexico City and Toluca.
Construction is currently ongoing for the Southwest LRT Line in Minneapolis, a large extension to the currently underserved southwestern parts of the Twin Cities
Calgary is currently most of the way through construction on their new Green Line, which will be the third Light Rail line to serve the region.
Ottawa’s Trillium Line is currently closed for modernization and is expected to reopen this year
Chicago has an ongoing project to overhaul the infrastructure on the aging Red and Purple Lines
Additionally, there have been *countless* new stations constructed and a multitude of other minor construction projects that will have some major effects. Here’s some highlights:
The SEPTA (Philadelphia) added Wawa station to its regional rail system
The MBTA is currently most of the way through construction on a new station to serve the city of Pawtucket, Rhode Island
In the fall, the LIRR opened a new station called Elmont-UBS Arena
NYC Ferry established a new service to Coney Island
A new platform at Baltimore Penn Station
Much, much more
Lastly, let’s not forget the fact that a massive number of new transit lines and rail extensions have opened over the past few years, including major openings all over the country. I’ve definitely forgot something, and the fact that I have is because there is so much that has come out of 2022. We’ve come a long way, but we still have a long way to go. From where we are, rail transport and public transit in North America is only going to improve, and I can’t wait.
#public transit#trains#public transport#railroading#railroads#railway#boston#philadelphia#new york#new york city#mtanyctransit#mbta#walkable cities#walkability#urban planning#city planning#long post#wall of text#good vibes#positivity#rail rapid transit#wmata#septa#nycta#minneapolis#minnesota#massachusetts#new england#hopeposting#i like trains
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Misadventures in American Public Transit #3: The San Jose International Airport
Silicon valley is where the future is invented. This is not always a good thing.
It's practically ground zero for surveillance capitalism, and the center of all sorts of products that are bad for us yet we can't put down. (Facebook, etc.).
With that being said, let's check out the airports. San Francisco's airport has a BART station that runs right into the center of the city. Fantastic. The Oakland Airport has a peoplemover that delivers you to three different BART lines and an Amtrak station. Excellent.
San Jose's airport has no rail transit to the airport, and thanks to the lunatics on the San Jose city council, they won't have it for a very long time.
Instead, they intend to spend half a billion dollars on autonomous "Personal rapid transit." It means dedicated path for tiny driverless, vehicles to operate on.
The capacity will be tiny. Flying with a Utah sized family? Forget it. You will have to take more than one pod. Americans are so averse to sharing public spaces with others that they will spend hundreds of millions of dollars on not yet existing technologies just to have to avoid seeing a stranger on a train, or even more scandalously, a bus.
Currently, there exists a bus route from VTA light rail to the airport. Clearing a dedicated route for it to operate without private vehicles could drastically speed up the bus. Or they could build a people mover like in Oakland. Or they could extend the VTA light rail to go to the airport (probably the best option, albeit not the cheapest, as this allows people to go straight to downtown, and lots of other destinations, without a transfer). Choosing currently nonexistent, nonstandard technology with extremely low capacity is the wrong choice. It seems this time, in the heart of silicon valley, public officials have drunk their own coolaid.
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Rail Wheel and Axle Market Analysis by Size, Share, Growth, Trends up to 2033
During the forecast period, the global rail wheel and axle market size is expected to expand at a steady CAGR of 5.6%. At its present growth rate, the global market for rail wheels and axles is expected to be worth $4,402.3 million by the year 2023. In 2033, the demand for rail wheel and axle is projected to reach US$ 7603.4 Mn.
Competitive Landscape
The global rail wheel and axle market is highly competitive, with many companies operating in this space. These companies are engaged in a range of activities, including the production of rail wheels and axles, the repair and maintenance of these products, and the supply of related services.
There are several key players in the global rail wheel and axle market, including Amsted Rail, ArcelorMittal, Bradken, GE Transportation, Klöckner Pentaplast, Lucchini RS, NSSMC, Vyatka, and Wabtec. These companies are well-established players with a strong presence in the market and a reputation for producing high-quality products.
Overall, the global rail wheel and axle market is highly competitive, with a diverse range of companies operating in this space. Companies in the market are constantly seeking ways to differentiate themselves from their competitors, such as through the development of new technologies or the expansion of their product offerings.
For more information: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/rail-wheel-and-axle-market
Due to the growing sophistication of rail networks and trains, as well as the present trend toward autonomous technology, train makers are devoting significant resources to R&D to develop lighter materials for wheels and axles for freight trains, passenger trains, and short-distance trains.
Nearly 7 billion people take trains each year, and they all want to travel as quickly, easily, and economically as possible. It's for this reason that the research and development of fully driverless trains is continuing to advance. Computerized monitoring systems installed on autonomous trains can detect problems with rail wheels and axles.
There are numerous benefits to using a solar rail system instead of traditional diesel trains. Diesel-powered trains usually have two engine cars. In contrast, solar-powered trains use solar gears in place of traditional gears. Solar panels have been put on the bogie roofs, and electric motors and batteries have been installed in the second diesel compartment.
The electrical needs of railway engines, which normally require 750 V to 800 V to move the rails, may be met by solar panels set atop trains providing voltages of 600 V to 800 V. Demand for these trains is likely to rise, which is good news for manufacturers of rail wheels and axles.
The rail wheel and axle market is an important segment of the global rail transportation industry. Rail wheel and axle products are essential components of rail vehicles, such as trains, trams, and subway cars, and are used to support and propel these vehicles. There are several factors that are driving the global rail wheel and axle market, including growth in rail transportation, urbanisation and population growth, environmental concerns, and technological advancements.
However, the demand for rail wheel and axle is also facing several restraints or challenges, including high capital costs, cyclical demand, a complex supply chain, competition from other modes of transportation, and regulatory challenges. Despite these challenges, the rail wheel and axle market is expected to continue growing in the coming years, driven by increasing demand for rail transportation and ongoing technological advancements in the industry.
Key Takeaways
It is estimated that the US market for rail wheel and axle will be worth $570.8 million in 2022.
Market value in China, the world's second largest economy, is projected to reach $878 million by 2026, expanding at a CAGR of 6% from 2023 to 2033.
Over the projection horizon, both Japan and Canada are predicted to grow at rates of 2.9% and 3.8%, respectively.
The demand for rail wheel and axle in Germany is projected to expand by 3.3% this year.
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Chennai’s First Driverless Train | CMRL Phase II | Chennai Metro Rail Li...
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Dubai Metro Stations
The Dubai Metro Station is the rapid transit system of the United Arab Emirates. Moreover, it is the first driverless metro system in the Middle East and the first urban rail system in the United Arab Emirates. The Metro has two lines: the Red Line and the Green Line. safardubai
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Robotaxis Want Your Ridehailing Job
In California, it seems robotaxis can’t catch a break. On social media, I’ve been observing people post videos of Cruise vehicles stopping for no reason and causing traffic jams. And a week ago, the DMV pulled the permit for Cruise because one of its vehicles hit a pedestrian in San Francisco.
In Los Angeles last week, Los Angeles Councilmember Hugo Soto-Hernandez held a press conference slamming the automated vehicle industry, declaring Los Angeles won’t be a guinea pig for driverless car services. The Councilmember also stated his intention to seek regulation of the industry, limit its use and join a lawsuit against the CPUC for allowing the operations of these automated vehicles.
Not to minimize the injury caused by the Cruise vehicle collision, but let's put this into context: Politicians are up in arms over one traffic incident caused by an automated vehicle when there were 504 deaths from vehicular collisions in 2022 piloted by humans!
Why fan people's fears and anxieties about robotaxis? At the presser, Soto-Hernandez gave us a glimpse about what the fight is really about. Flanked by labor unions, the councilmember claimed that the rise of automated taxis would impact 200,000 middle class jobs.
He is not wrong. AI and machine learning technologies are threatening to eliminate many, many jobs.
However, recall that years ago, when Uber and Lyft launched its service in major cities around the world, taxi drivers were crying out for regulation and assistance. Consumers favored the pricing and convenience of the new technology, and car owners enjoyed the earning potential and flexibility of the gig economy. Rideshare drivers were also able to avoid the regulations and costly medallions that taxi drivers had to abide by and purchase. Local, state and federal governments failed to protect the taxi drivers it had regulated - regulations that made taxi drivers less competitive and innovative - and as a result, the taxi industry has largely been decimated.
Fast forward to today, politicians and labor unions are seeking to protect the jobs of … the remaining taxi drivers left and now Uber and Lyft drivers from an even newer technology.
People forget that Uber’s vision has always been to transition to a driverless service both for customer transportation and deliveries.
Now that the damage has been done to taxi drivers, are these ridesharing jobs worth protecting through regulation? Rideshare drivers are independent contractors and lack health benefits and sick leave.
To put it bluntly: "Several ride-hail drivers told WIRED that they think the jobs have become too crappy to fight for, because earnings have declined over the years and there’s no reward for sticking around."
Los Angeles has enormous transportation challenges, and trying out different things such as we've done with expanding light rail, electric scooters and bicycles, has been great because of the options. Why not automated taxis?
Maybe L.A.'s politicians are trying to get ahead of this robot-taking-away-jobs issue. But how is it going to make L.A. a better city? Will it improve conditions for drivers for hire? I think not.
Driving in L.A. is for the most part a truly suck-y experience. And the pedestrian experience sucks because there are a lot of bad drivers out on the road. I personally wouldn't mind giving robot taxis a chance.
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Uber, Doordash, Instacart, Surge Pricing, Robotaxi's and more
No time to return a package? Let Uber do it:[complete article]
Video of DoorDash driver shooting prank YouTuber in the mall:[complete article]
Uber’s surge pricing really shows itself during a ‘special event’ like the CN Rail outage:[complete story]
Freak accident in San Francisco traps pedestrian under robotaxi:[complete article]
Driverless cars are multiplying on Texas roads. Here’s what…
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[ad_1] Lines wrapped through Montreal’s central station on Saturday as hundreds of people waited to board the metro area’s new light-rail train system, many of them showing up just to marvel at the new transit service, even if they don’t expect to take it often. The first section of the driverless, electric train system known as the Réseau express métropolitain, or REM, is free to ride this weekend ahead of its official launch on Monday. Five stations are open on the segment connecting downtown Montreal with the suburb of Brossard, Que. to the southeast across the Saint Lawrence River.It’s the first part of what will eventually become a 26-station network spanning 67 kilometres, representing Montreal’s biggest transit expansion since the construction of the metro in the 1960s. People take a ride on the Reseau express metropolitain (REM) light rail system in Montreal, Saturday, July 29, 2023. The REM opens Monday to fare paying passengers. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes The opening of the REM was a particularly monumental occasion for Jean-Pierre Nadeau, who said Saturday he remembers taking part in the inauguration of the metro system in 1967, when he was 15 years old. Story continues below advertisement “It’s wonderful,” he said of the REM as he waited with family for a train at central station. A retiree, he doesn’t plan to use the light-rail system frequently, but said he looks forward to its completion. “That’s what it takes to relieve highway congestion.”The REM trip between Montreal and Brossard is 18 minutes, which is 20 to 30 minutes faster than the rush-hour drive, officials have said.Two other branches of the light-rail network, to Montreal’s western and northern suburbs, aren’t expected to open until the end of 2024. An airport link won’t open until 2027. Alex Busby and son Oscar take a ride on the Reseau express metropolitain (REM) light rail system in Montreal, Saturday, July 29, 2023. The REM opens Monday to fare paying passengers. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes Renato Rocha, who lives in Brossard and came to try the REM on Saturday ahead of his once-a-week trek to downtown Montreal for work, said he’s already excited about the arrival of a new transit option.“It looks like a good option from now on,” he said, adding he’s eager for the rest of the REM network to launch. “There’s still a lot to do. In a few years it will be exceptional.” Story continues below advertisement Other riders Saturday said they look forward to new car-less access to recreational opportunities, like Marie-Therese Pham, who lives in Montreal and plans to use the REM for weekend cycling excursions. Trending Now Enhanced Canada Workers Benefit rolls out. How much money could you get? Alberta premier threatens sanctions against Calgary clinic set to charge fees Aleksey Zaitsev, who was at central station Saturday with his children, said he’s thrilled to have a station near his home on Nun’s Island, a part of Montreal that previously lacked a rail link to the rest of the city.“It’s very exciting for our kids to head into town for events,” he said. “Our kids grew up on the island … so it’s a great, welcome change.” Still other REM passengers Saturday said they came simply to admire the automated, driverless trains and the views they offer from their elevated tracks.“The feeling is a bit strange,” said Maxime Bouchard-Levesque of the experience of passing above car traffic. “I guess we’ll get used to it.”“We’ve never actually been to Brossard,” said Laurel Ovenden, a Montreal resident, who along with Alex Busby came to try out the REM with friends and family.But Helene Bounoua, a retiree who lives in the town of Greenfield Park, Que. near Brossard, said she worries commuters will be put off by the need to transfer between buses, the REM and Montreal metro to access most of the city.Matthew Adler is also reserving judgement on the REM’s efficacy. “We’ll see how it alleviates any congestion on the bridges,” he said. “It certainly has the potential.” Story continues below advertisement “We’ll find out in the next five to 10 years.” 0:36 Federal government investing $1.28B on Montreal’s new light-rail system: Trudeau Previous Video Next Video © 2023 The Canadian Press [ad_2] Source link
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6 Transportation systems coming to the UAE !
From sky pods to driverless cars, a rail that will connect all seven emirates and more…
We have several upcoming Mega Projects to look forward to in the United Arab Emirates, from brilliant new hotel openings to cool historic museums, malls and much more.
But, there are also plenty of new transportation systems coming to the UAE that we can’t wait for.
Now, as we already know, the UAE is home…
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