The Engineering Innovation Team are looking for new ideas but this one from Switzerland shows what the UK is up against.
This from Global Rail News... Clip-Air’ has been touted by its developers, Swiss university EPFL,
as the future of intermodal travel. Passengers could board a train in
London and arrive in New York without leaving their seat.
Train capsules would travel directly to the airport from city centre
railway stations where they would then latch on to the underside of a
specially-equipped plane.
The aircraft would be capable of supporting three of these capsules, each with around 150 passengers on board. Good news indeed. It looks as if there is already a prototype of this exciting Swiss innovation in operation!
And here it is coming in to land!
Hmmm... a bit more work to do perhaps?
UPDATE: This from Trailer Second...
Is this from the same team that brought us the bi-mode IEP?
This from Richard Hebditch of the Campaign for Better Transport... Given Eye's occasional interest in toilets on the network, thought you might be interested in this rather long series of PQs from Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn on toilets on the rail network from today’s order paper:
403 Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions (a) he and (b) officials in his Department have had with train operating companies in respect of the provision of adequate toilet facilities. 404 Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department collects on the provision of toilet facilities or working toilet facilities by rail franchise. 405 Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department collects on concerns raised on the adequacy of toilet facilities provided by train operators. 406 Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what sanctions are available to his Department against train operating companies who do not provide adequate toilet facilities; and what sanctions have been employed against train operating companies in the last five years. 407 Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether it is a requirement in franchise agreements for train operators to have working toilets on all of their services. 408 Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether there is a requirement in franchise agreements for train operators for a minimum level of working toilet provision on train services before a train enters service. 409 Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether there are different requirements for toilet provision in train franchises in respect of (a) commuter, (b) intercity and (c) regional services. 410 Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which body is responsible for monitoring whether train operators provide adequate and working toilet facilities; and what methodology is used for any such monitoring.
Slightly wonder if his interest stems from an unfortunate personal experience…
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