Earlier in 2010, former national transport secretary Andrew Adonis said that installing much needed passing loops on the single track was unaffordable if the line remained a heavy rail route, but such improvements could be achieved at a fraction of the cost if the line were converted to light rail.

It is envisaged that stations along the line will benefit from at least two trams every hour.

The cars came in one by one, piloted and mastered by men of the writer’s own generation, respectable men, some of them as old as myself.

There was nothing wrong with the Dalkey tram-men, and it is no secret that there is hardly a man over twenty-one in this town but has been carried off the last car, and at the right stop, by one of these blue-liveried men, and left, decently propped against the railings, to be called for. For fourpence! Would one of these saintly pilgrims, the taxi-men, do as much – for four pound?

The drivers and conductors of the last trams were smiling as they got to the Pillar, because there was a large crowd, and each tram was greeted with a friendly roar. The tram-men had done nothing to make them realise that this was the same noise as a cannibal makes when he sees a missionary. Each tram when it came to rest was infested with democ-rats.

They fused the lights, cut the trolley cords, broke out the glass, ripped out the route indicators, and removed the metal advertisements with the appropriate tools. They removed the tram-men’s hats and went to work on the framework of the cars with hammers. To keep the thing right, their drunken mothers and sisters sang, danced and got sick.

The last tram was a sort of mobile pantheon of the nation’s liberties: bystanders reflected that there cannot be much wrong with our State when the public are free to behave in the streets as if they were in Croke Park. A public demonstration is the great safety-valve of democracy and the right of the sovereign people to destruction of its property must at all times be safeguarded if the State is not to be exposed to the pernicious doctrines of nineteenth-century libertarianism.

I would say that these old tram-men were manhandled, but I do not know if it is accurate to refer to the canaille as men. It strikes me that Grand Canaille Street might be a better name for O’Connell Street now and again!

But the night was memorable for two other things. First, the talent of Radio Éireann for improvisation! Their capacity for doing the unexpected never shone brighter – they decided to abandon their plan to give a commentary on the robust ceremonies, apparently because the said ceremonies took place in the shadow of the G.P.O. and, therefore, that the thing was too easy! Unpredictable mentors, strange wayward aeragogues!

BVB has been using computer-controlled vehicle location and control since 1980. In 1999 BLT was integrated into the system through a remote control site located in Oberwil.

The basis of the AVLC system is formed by optimal data and voice links from the control system to the vehicles. On-board computers serve as communications hubs in trams and buses. Supported by GPS satellite navigation, they enable a comprehensive display of the operating condition in real time. The dispatchers at the control centre see whether a vehicle is early, on time or late. Passengers benefit from consistent real-time information, knowing before and during their trips about their next transfers both under normal conditions and when delays occur

The new twin-axle Eem923 design will be derived from the 21 electric-only, dual voltage Ee922 locomotives which Stadler is currently supplying to SBB under a SFr44·2m contract placed in December 2007.

Like the Ee922, the Eem923 will be able to operate under both 15kV 16·7Hz and 25kV 50Hz electrification, but it will also have a 360kW auxiliary diesel engine for use in non-electrified sidings. Weighing 42 to 45 tonnes, it will have both axles powered, a top speed of 100km/h, and a maximum power at wheel rim of 1,500kW in electric mode or 290kW on diesel power.

SBB Cargo invited six companies to tender for the contract, and chose Stadler’s bid on the basis of the lowest life-cycle cost.

A two-year construction period is envisaged, which seems ambitious for a 1,100km line.

On 17 April 2008, an agreement was signed by Libyan Railways and Russian Railways for the construction of a line linking Sirt and Benghazi, after RZhD won a tender issued by Libya’s national committee for organising, managing and implementing railway projects.

In terms of the project, a modern high-speed 1,435mm gauge line is being built between Sirt and Benghazi, running along the Mediterranean coast and linking the main cities of Libya. The railway is to form part of a future North African international transport corridor. In the first phase, speeds up to 160km/h will apply. In the second stage, following electrification, speeds up to 250km/h are foreseen. The contract runs for four years, and is worth €2.2 billion.

Computer guru Matthew Somerville has plotted station information onto a map, then added “live” trains – small red blobs that progress from one yellow dot to another. His system isn’t perfect – yet. In the words of one reviewer, “duplicate IDs cause trouble, apparently, so every now and then a train appears to break free and career across Hyde Park, well away from any tracks.” He adds: “But with wifi-equipped underground stations and mobile phones with map applications I could see this becoming a commuter’s best friend.”

The government’s transport secretary Philip Hammond explains: “HS1 is a national success story and a world-class railway operating to international standards. The money generated by this sale will make an early significant contribution to the crucial task of reducing the public sector debt.”

The successful bidder will become the owner of HS1 Ltd, with a 30-year concession to run the line and stations. Following the sale, the performance of HS1 Ltd will be independently regulated by the Office of Rail Regulation to safeguard passengers’ interests.

General Secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union Bob Crow – representing most tube employees – asks: “What will happen in a terrorist attack, a derailment or a massive signal failure? You could have 600 or 700 people trapped down the tube with no driver – there would be utmost panic.
Safety has not been thought out.”

But the proponents of the idea point out that the Victoria and Central lines already use driverless technology which has reduced train crews to door openers. Trains on the Docklands Light Rail system too are driverless. Removing drivers on the other lines, it is suggested “would end the stranglehold militant unions have on the city’s tube network and seriously curtail their ability to bring London to a standstill. Driverless trains offer a safer, faster, more efficient level of service.”