<A side trip to Scotland The Oil Drum TOD Inbox: From Investment Resource to 'Eco-nitwits' in Under a Year>
<DrumBeat: October 18, 2008 DrumBeat DrumBeat: October 20, 2008>

118 comments on DrumBeat: October 19, 2008

Comments can no longer be added to this story.

Show without comments | PDF version

AlanfromBigEasy on October 19, 2008 - 6:40pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

What is the object of human society? Is it to dazzle the eye with an immense production of useful things? Is it to cover ... the earth with railways?

Well ...

Alan :-)

Comments can no longer be added to this story.
ccpo on October 19, 2008 - 10:29pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

Speaking of railways... how to build more when the ones we have are going bankrupt?

MTA may have to cut commuter service

The next potential victims of the nation's credit crunch: nearly 1.5 million people who ride buses and trains each weekday in Los Angeles County. Transit officials say riders could soon be facing serious service cuts...

"The potential is pretty horrendous across the industry," said James LaRusch, the chief counsel for the American Public Transportation Assn., a trade group for transit agencies.

"It's typically going to impact the largest transit agencies," he said, "because they were the ones that had the kind of assets necessary to get into these kind of deals."

LaRusch said about 30 of the largest transit agencies in the nation have some involvement in such deals...

Cheers

Comments can no longer be added to this story.
AlanfromBigEasy on October 20, 2008 - 3:54am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

You will note that I have not strongly advocated fossil fuel buses. The most I have supported is small buses serving as collectors and limited electric trolley buses.

We are seeing the first steps of what I expected. Rising fuel costs and a strained economy are putting diesel buses in jeopardy. The failure is not with electrified trains but with diesel buses.

Alan

Comments can no longer be added to this story.
ccpo on October 20, 2008 - 9:02am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

You need to read the full article.

Cheers

Comments can no longer be added to this story.
AlanfromBigEasy on October 20, 2008 - 3:20pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

Yes, my fault !

They are talking about a complex method of selling depreciation expense (useless to a gov't entity) to private investors. Loophole as noted closed in 2003, but if the investors fall through (as AIG seems to be doing) then financial/cash flow problems ewsult. I vaguely remember that a lot of non-profit hospitals did the same thing.

Another failure mode for our overly complex system :-(

Best Hopes for reading before Commenting :-(

Alan

Comments can no longer be added to this story.

118 comments on DrumBeat: October 19, 2008

Comments can no longer be added to this story.

Show without comments | PDF version