If there was ever a realm where a Hastings SkyTrain line was constructed and it was desired to connect directly to SFU how would it happen? Here some ideas:
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| Bored Tunnel and At-Grade Alignment Suggestions |
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| Sketch of a Bored Tunnel Station for SFU |
Comments
Sheba: The grade is too steep!We can't have a rail line go up Burnaby Mountain to SFU as the grade is too steep - it's why they're proposing a gondola.
Unregistered User: What about an elevator?
I envisioned a very expensive bored tunnel with an express elevator similar to Beacon Hill Station in Seattle.
waves: Not very elegant, but they do exist.
A super fast elevator could work, but it's not very elegant. London has a few stations with express elevators and they feel like the Tower of Terror at Disney Land Orlando.
waves: An 8% Bored Tunnel would get you 1 station at a 10m depth.
If you put the line at an 8% grade starting at Dalla-Tina Ave you could get a station depth of 10m at the current bus loop or an 18 sec escalator ride. 8% is really pushing the grade to the max though. You would only get the one station though. Putting a second station at Univercity would not be practical as you would immediately need to begin descending to connect back to the evergreen line at the same 8% max grade.
Sheba: Max grade is 6% though. Maybe just terminate at Kootenay Loop?
They've [Translink?] already stated a maximum 6% grade so up Burnaby Mountain and back down again is a no go, and unless they decided to build a north - south line waaaay east of Willingdon there's no real terminus in Burnaby. We're better off terminating it at an enlarged Kootenay Loop.
waves: Why the 6% limit when theoretical is higher?
From what I understand the theoretical maximum of the LIM motors is 10% but because of snow and possibly comfort they limit it to 6%. I wonder however, if an exception would be considered if the grade were to be in a bored tunnel where you don't get snow and rain on the rails and people on the train won't likely notice the steepness of the grade because they lack a horizon outside of the train (similar to how an aircraft without IFR goes VFR into IMC).
I did some calcs on what the escalators would have to be in order for the grade to be 6%:
- 6.0% Skytrain Grade = 62 m station depth at Univercity Plaza = 108 m escalator length = 3.5 min standing on escalator
- 6.5% = 50 m depth = 86 m escalator = 2.9 min
- 7.0% = 37 m depth = 64 m escalator = 2.1 min
- 7.5% = 24 m depth = 41 m escalator = 1.4 min
- 8.0% = 10 m depth = 18 m escalator = 36 sec
The likely cost of going this straight line route alone would be likely be about 2.5 billion so its of course not going to happen anytime soon, or ever, particularly if the Gondola is still an option.
I think a more likely scenario if SkyTrain were to ever reach SFU would be for it to follow up the Parkway from Hastings at a 7% grade. Some cut and cover excavation would be needed higher up but it is possible. It would make a nice connection to be able to go up the gondola from Production Way then transfer on to the Hastings Line right at SFU. Also since half of it would be at grade, there isn't much land to expropriate, and, because cut and cover is significantly simpler, cheaper and faster than bored tunnels, the 3km track up from Hastings could be significantly cheaper. If we assume that the project costs about the same as the Evergreen Line, then the whole 12km from Downtown to SFU would be about 1.5 billion in 2016 dollars which is not totally bonkers.
Migrant Coconut: World record escalator length!
And on top of that, an 86m-long escalator gets us into the Top 10 in the Guinness Book of World Records. Win-win for everybody!
waves: At-grade alignment at 7% would be more reasonable for escalator length.
If you went up beside the parkway at 7% rather than a straight line bored tunnel the station depth would be 15m and so the escalator would be a more reasonable 27m rather than 64m.
