Even though we’ve been hearing our fair share of bad news regarding all flavors of downsizing going on in the airline business, the Global Fortune 500 List comes back, in 2008, to remind us that some airlines out there are still doing very well for themselves.

To put it simply, some people just need to fly.

For business or leisure, lots of sky travelers simply can’t do without their airplane link to another location on our Blue Planet. The airlines that are performing the best are those which properly cater to these people — and they’re not necessarily selling the cheapest seats either, it’s actually quite the contrary.

While the budget challenged airplane travelers need to cut back on their travel expenses, the richer crowd doesn’t really bother with the extra charges related to homeland security, fuel or various other fees being piggy-backed on the ticket prices.

Planes consuming less fuel, flying with less (empty) seats and serving busier routes will help the airlines who dare to reinvent themselves to thrive, even with the bargain-hunting passenger crowd.

So who’s on top, in the 2008 list of the Global Fortune 500?

Let’s take a look at the numbers:

The profits aren’t anywhere near those from banks or pharmaceuticals but this is airline transport, an industry where the competition is fierce in the air but also from alternative transportation like high-speed trains, direct bus routes, marine shuttles, people’s cars and others.

In this particular context, turning a profit -at all- is a good sign.

Because of anticipated market pressures on the airlines, in the US and abroad, the next few months and years could prove to be bumpy for the investors who need to keep in mind that with technological breakthroughs and advances, planes will likely get more affordable to operate and as such, profits could be looking up. Also, the current price of fuel, which is at an all-time high, is expected to go down enough for the airliners to breath, at least for a short while.

Let’s see how these and other smaller airlines perform in these challenging times, in the months and years to come. Expect major and not-so-major mergers and acquisitions to reshape, yet again, this industry.

Tags: airlines, airliners, airplanes, planes, sky travelers, tourists, business travel, air travel, airplane tickets, bargain prices, bargain hunters, lower prices, high fuel prices, fuel prices, airplane fuel, passengers, us, world, global, fortune, money, revenues, profits

The Ambassador Bridge, linking Windsor to Detroit, is privately owned by Michigan-based businessman Matty Moroun. He profits from a generous 60 million dollars annually, in toll revenues and it’s no big surprise since this bridge serves North America’s busiest trade corridor, handling 500 million dollars daily.

So the Windsor-Detroit link is very important, for both Canada and the United States but there’s a huge problem. As it stands, the bridge is a bidirectional traffic nightmare featuring ongoing bottlenecks and congestion that doesn’t even spare the trucking industry which is hurting badly from this state of affairs.

In short, the clogged Windsor-Detroit crossing is a heavy barrier to both trade and travel.

Matty Moroun knows this and he’s planning another “twin-span” bridge to be erected just a few meters from the current 79-years-old Ambassador Bridge but his plans aren’t moving fast enough so the DRIC has studied alternative locations to build a new bridge, intended to resolve the massive traffic problems at the border, on both sides.

After evaluating several routes, the DRIC is said to have chosen a preferential corridor that spans from Brighton Beach, on Canada’s side of the Detroit River and lands just northeast of Zug Island, on the US side, to then travel into a plaza located in an industrial area of Detroit known as Delray.

So who’s part of DRIC?

Decisive public partners such as Transport Canada, the Ontarian Ministry of Transportation, the US Federal Highway Administration as well as the Michigan Department of Transportation are in charge of the Detroit River International Crossing Project (DRIC) binational border transportation partnership group.

The entire end-to-end project, including the Windsor-Essex Parkway, is anticipated to cost 5 billion dollars and create up to 25,000 person years of employment — this is very good news for both Windsor and Detroit workers. The final say on the new bridge’s location will however be officially announced sometime in the summer of 2008 by officials from both sides of the border.

Get a feel for the whole project with the following images from the WEParkway web site:

It’s important to note that Canada is experiencing its second-longest period of economic expansion in history. That’s mainly why Canada is investing in such modern, world-class infrastructure projects in order to foster a stronger economy, a cleaner environment and hopefully safer, more prosperous communities.

While the new bridge isn’t built yet, commuters and truckers on both sides of the border will benefit from a massively upgraded crossborder highway transportation system.

Tags: ambassador bridge, windsor, detroit, bridge, north american, trade, travel, border, prosperity

The entire supply chain is under great financial stress as the spot price of WTI crude oil rose steadily to over US$110 per barrel, on March 13th of 2008 — a record-setting price.

While the price for WTI crude oil is expected to average near $100 per barrel through the rest of this year, transport companies and everybody else getting their supply through their services are bracing for the effects of higher fuel prices during the summer season, defined as the period from April 1st to September 30th.

Pricewise, let’s start with the regular grade gasoline retail prices, which averaged $2.93 per gallon last summer (of 2007) and are projected to average $3.54 per gallon during the current driving season.

The trucking business is going to be hit even harder as diesel fuel prices, which averaged $2.85 per gallon last summer, are projected to average $3.73 this summer.

In fact, the monthly average gasoline price at the pump is projected to peak at just over $3.60 per gallon in June while the monthly average diesel price is expected to peak at just over $3.90 per gallon in April.

These rather scary retail price projections reflect higher prices for the refiners’ average acquisition cost of crude oil, projected to average close to $97 per barrel, up from about $67 per barrel last summer which account for a hefty $30 price hike, per barrel. Furthermore, strong world distillate demand growth, especially in Europe and Asia, will do nothing to help the situation domestically, in America.

It is important to note, however, that even if the US national average monthly gasoline price comes to peak around $3.60 per gallon this summer, it’s entirely possible that prices, at some point, will cross the $4 per gallon threshold, severely hurting the transport industry and those who depend on it.

Countless consumers may be forced to reconsider driving their cars at all and the same kind of dilemma may happen for transport operators of all sizes as well as petroleum-based product manufacturers.

Transportation and logistics companies, especially in America, need to plan (and provision lots of “emergency money”) right now for this summer’s potential fuel price explosion.

Tags: gas, fuel, wti crude oil, oil, diesel, petroleum, pump, america, usa, transport, logistics, summer

Back in the 1960′s, taking the plane was a “special event” where the passengers were treated like kings, from the moment they entered the departure airport to the moment they left the arrival one.

For instance, the meals that Air France served to it’s Montreal-Paris liaison passengers were prepared by the very prestigious Ritz-Carlton, on Sherbrooke Street, in Montreal. If you’ve flown this Air France lately, you know it’s not as glitzy anymore, even if you fly in the more expensive business class.

So things have changed in the airlines business and not everyone agrees it’s for the better.

Companies like Air Canada, after being sold to American interests, lost interest in the less traveled routes, such as Atlantic Canada, Quebec and Northern Canada, thus severely penalizing smaller communities which had, under Canadian management, been decently served — globalization, privatization and shareholder greed have apparently trumped over all basic consumer satisfaction obligations.

Air travel horror stories abound.

From the fact that it’s still complicated to deal with the airlines, to buy tickets or worse, to get customer service, to the continuous stream of mismanagement imbroglios (think about the luggage nightmares), many modern day airlines have dumbed down their service to the point where it’s not even close to what their marketing promises.

For air passengers, the bread and butter of the airlines, the multiplication of fees (for everything, really), the grossly exagerated security paranoia, the flight delays (with little or no compensation to the ticket holder), the arrogant attitude from the airline personnel and the plastic-like food served on flights (when anything is served, at all) taking the plane has become a pain more than a “generally pleasant experience”.

Regular air travelers are now even attempting to opt-out of today’s air travel madness by asking their companies to buy sophisticated “always-on” teleconferencing solutions to minimize the air commuting back and forth from the various company locations — in itself, this is a good thing but still, it’s precipitated by the fact that taking the plane, for many people, is not exactly a walk in the park, at least not anymore (because it used to be much easier, more expensive but easier nonetheless).

Some airlines specialize in high-yield market niches like the C-level business travel and that’s fine but their ads feature “great service” as a plus… shouldn’t that be a bare minimum for even the “regular” flights?

While the airline industry isn’t too bothered with customer satisfaction, a study published earlier this week by American universities reveal that over 25% of the flights were late, in 2007. Accordingly, the number of traveler complaints filed was up by a whopping 60% last year, making it the worst year for air traffic, in America, ever!

Even more preoccupying is the fact that experts in airline customer satisfaction predict the current situation will continue to worsen as the price of tickets, the fees and the barriers to free movement of travelers continue to mount while, at the very same time, the service level continues to drop.

This being said, let’s keep in mind that the current state of affairs could translate into a unique opportunity for venturing airline entrepreneurs with an astute sense for customer satisfaction.

Tags: airlines, air travel, planes, customer satisfaction, passengers, great service, tickets, fees, security

The number of elderly drivers will skyrocket across the United States, over the next 20 years. That could pose significant problems for states concerned about highway safety, according to William Neikirk of the Chicago Tribune.

Slightly over half the states have taken steps to deal with safety problems posed by older drivers but there’s growing concern that as the Baby Boom population retires, states might have to do more to prevent additional age-related accidents.

The Government Accountability Office (GOA) cited the issue in a report, in April of 2007, as a looming problem that will mean more public expenditures to help the aging Boomers stay safe, on the roads.

For those who had lost count, here’s a reminder: the oldest Boomers will turn 61, this year.

“Older driver safety issues will become increasingly significant in the future because older adults represent the fastest-growing segment of the American population”, said the GAO. “By 2030, the number of licensed drivers aged 65 and older is expected to nearly double to about 57 million”.

Nifty ideas like multigenerational households, customized public transit, home office employment alternatives, intelligently integrated proximity services, elderly-friendly neighborhood designs, drivers retraining as well as safety-enhancing car technologies might help deal with this influx of Baby Boomers driving from point A to point B.

The states that still haven’t tackled this important demographics issue should look into it promptly before they’re overwhelmed with requests they don’t know how to properly handle.

Tags: baby boomers, elderly drivers, gao, states, population, driving

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has granted, on March 21st, 2007, a waiver to allow for the testing of electronically controlled pneumatic (ECP) brakes on BNSF and NS locomotives and rail cars.

This new tested braking technology could significantly enhance rail safety and efficiency. It offers major benefits in freight train handling, car maintenance, fuel savings and network capacity.

With the current braking system, developed back in the 1870’s, freight train cars brake individually, at the speed of the air pressure moving from car to car, along trains that are often well over a mile in length.

This conventional braking contributes to excessive in-train forces, challenges in train handling, longer stopping distances, and safety risks of prematurely depleting air brake reservoirs. These problems are greatly reduced in the ECP brake mode of operation,
during which all cars brake simultaneously, driven by an electronic signal.

ECP systems simultaneouslyapply and release freight car airbrakes:

• Through a hard-wired electronic pathway down the length of the train;
• No delay, and no run-in of slack from the rear of the train.

Joseph Boardman, FRA’s administrator, said he believes the technology can prevent accidents, in part because ECP brakes allow the engineer to “back off” braking effort to match track grade and curvature, without completely releasing the brakes — with these significant added benefits:

• Saves fuel and reduces emissions;
• Reduces wear / stress on wheels and brake shoes;
• Reduces chance of run-away from overheating of the brake shoe / wheel interface.

Futhermore, ECP brakes provide a tool to manage in-train forces and reduce train handling derailments as well as reduce chances of runaway trains.

The FRA said the brakes are designed to allow trains to travel up to 3,500 miles without inspections which is more than double the distance normally allowed by the government.

The agency adds that the waiver allows it to gather data to be used in developing a proposed rulemaking on ECP brakes.

Several conditions were placed by the FRA on the waiver approval, including requirements that the railroads (1) clearly define a process for handling brake problems discovered en route, (2) ensure that qualified individuals perform ECP brake inspections and that (3) they provide appropriate training to crew members.

Tags: ecp, ecp braking, pneumatic brakes, train brakes, braking system, fra, bnsf, ns

Rail carriers keeping crews on duty for over 12 hours while also responsible for wild fluctuations in start time contribute to the aggravation of the limbo time side effects, especially on the rail workers’ family life.

Workers in the rail industry are familiar with the harsh reality of limbo time where time on duty is seldom paid for and not counted towards the total hours of service. Limbo time is a carrier’s bean counter dream but the side effects can’t be overlooked.

In typical two-earner families with children, the combination of limbo time and carrier policies make it nearly impossible, for the spouse, to get a regular job. Worse, countless divorces are a direct result of the work demands imposed by the railroad carriers, in the first place. This has a profound effect on the quality of life for rail workers and their loved ones.

Let’s consider the following limbo time effects on family life:

• Limbo time keeps train crews away from home for no valid reason and in turn, fractures families;
• Crew members can’t predict, after a 12 hour shift, how much longer limbo time will keep them on the train meaning they’re often unavailable for life’s common events, like making a doctor’s appointment, attending a religious service or tending to any other important personal business;
• Limbo time, combined with hours of service and time spent preparing for and traveling to an on-duty point often result in crews being awake 24 hours… or more;
• Limbo time, combined with the carriers’ availability policies, forces crew members to consume most 24 hour periods working, eating and sleeping with no time for family or other activities required for healthy physical and mental well-being;
• Sadly, limbo time also causes children to suffer from reduced parental supervision which can have an adverse impact on society when the child grows into his or her teens and then, adulthood;

The United Transportation Union has eloquently exposed the limbo time effects on the family life of its members but that hasn’t been enough for the US Congress to take decisive actions to fix this major labour, health, security and social problem.

People’s internal clocks (also called circadian rythms) can’t be tampered without risking accumulated fatigue, stress and health issues.

Things need to change, sooner than later.

Tags: limbo time, family life, divorce, health, security, children, rail workers

The mighty locomotives that haul hundreds of tons of material, all over the world’s railways, are usually powered by diesel engines.

Consequently, these locomotives emit toxic diesel exhaust which contains particles and gases that float in the air until they’re drawn into the lungs of anyone unfortunate enough to breath them in — namely those who work, on a daily basis, around trains.

No less than forty (40) sustances found in diesel exhaust are listed as hazardous material by the EPA. Yikes! Keep in mind that the microscopic particles in diesel exhaust are less than one-fifth the thickness of a human hair so they’re small enough to penetrate deep into the lungs where, predictably, they contribute to a range of health problems.

No less than forty (40) sustances found in diesel exhaust are listed as hazardous material by the EPA. Yikes! Keep in mind that the microscopic particles in diesel exhaust are less than one-fifth the thickness of a human hair so they’re small enough to penetrate deep into the lungs where, predictably, they contribute to a range of health problems. Workers in places with extremely bad conditions such as poisonous emitting gas should get life insurance along with their contracts.

The rail workers are the first to suffer from diesel exhaust since the health problems multiply and become more serious the longer it is inhaled. Longer-term exposure can lead to health problems like asthma, chronic bronchitis, heart attacks, permanent nervous-system disorders as well as cancers of the lungs and the bladder.

Even if some rail workers have become accustomed to diesel fumes, they shouldn’t be taken lightly. In fact, the State of California found that long-term exposure to diesel exhaust poses “the highest cancer risk of any toxic air contaminant”.

That’s not all, The New York Times also reported that workers with long-term exposure to diesel exhaust suffered lung cancer rates up to fifty 95) times higher than other workers.

You won’t hear about those “details” from the rail carriers when they hold their career days but nevertheless, it’s something any current -and- potential worker should think about.

Tags: diesel exhaust, diesel fumes, fuel, health problems, locomotives, trains

The United Transportation Union recently published a preoccupying report on limbo time.

For those unfamiliar with this rail industry-specific terminology, limbo time refers to the time on duty that is seldom paid for -and- not counted towards hours of service. Simply said, it’s that time when a worker is exhausted and therefore, more dangerous to himself, his colleagues and the public.

The US Congress is expected to look into this widespread problem, causing (among other things) more train collisions, caused by human factors, in 2006 than any other year in recent history. Until then, the limbo time issue continues to be a major security problem.

Obviously, limbo time or similarly named situations where workers work longer than expected to end up being a danger to themselves and others, is a problem in transportation, at large — not just in the rail industry.

While limbo time eats away at the quality of life of the employee and his loved ones, it’s the security issue that should command swift action to end this situation.

A train accident is already bad enough, per se. Learning that over 90 of them were directly caused by human errors (generally related to limbo time issues) in 2006 alone should prompt the US Congress to stop talking and start moving.

While carriers are unwilling to eliminate limbo time, mainly because they multiply their profits because of it, it’s up to the worker’s unions, the workers themselves and the general public to put some pressure on their elected leaders — it’s also very sad to see the carriers acting so carelessly about their employees’ and the public’s security.

Tags: limbo time, rail workers, rail industry, carriers, transport, utu, congress

The Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities and Minister responsible for Quebec, and Mr Michel Després, Quebec Minister of Transport and Minister responsible for the National Capital Region, are pleased to announce that their governments have committed to contributing $16.5 million to innovative public transit initiatives as part of the Urban Transportation Showcase Program (UTSP) in Gatineau, Montreal and Quebec City.

These contributions will help put electric buses into service in Old Quebec, and in Gatineau, implement various measures designed to make public transit more attractive and user-friendly in a corridor that will accommodate a combination of regular buses and hybrid diesel-electric buses. In Montreal, the Société de transport de Montréal is also planning to put hybrid buses into service.

“Canada’s New Government is proud to be working with all levels of government and transit authorities to encourage Canadians to incorporate public transit into their lifestyle. This will be a legacy for future generations,” said Minister Cannon. ” Today’s announcement is a step towards making public transit more energy-efficient and more attractive to riders.”

“These projects are perfectly in line with the objectives of Quebec’s Public Transit Policy, to which we have introduced an innovative component, and the Climate Change Policy, which were tabled in June 2006,” said Mr. Després. “The Public Transit Policy sets out the objective to increase public transit ridership by 8 per cent by 2012, and we are certain that we will meet this objective. I am also very pleased that one of these exceptionally innovative projects will be implemented in the National Capital Region.”

“Once again, Québec is demonstrating its avant-gardism in the area of new technology,” added the Honourable Josée Verner, federal Minister responsible for the Québec region. “This initiative highlights the importance of environmental issues to the people of Québec, and shows our Government’s commitment to implement solutions that will improve air quality and protect our environment.”

For Benoît Pelletier, Minister responsible for the Outaouais Region and MP for Chapleau, this announcement is yet another sign of the importance of the environment issue in the region. “The announcement of the hybrid bus in our city, and the Urban Transportation Showcase Program for all of Quebec and Canada emphasizes the importance of the environment on our daily lives. Residents of the Outaouais Region will have access to efficient, environmentally sound urban transportation services.”

In Gatineau and Montreal, the total cost of the projects is estimated at $19.7 million. The partners will contribute the following amounts:

• $6.4 million from the Quebec government;
• up to $4 million from the federal government;
• $2.2 million from the Société de transport de l’Outaouais (STO);
• $3.2 million from the Société de transport de Montréal (STM); and
• $3.9 million from the Société de financement des infrastructures locales, which is co-funded by the Governments of Canada and Quebec.

In Quebec City, the total cost of the project is estimated at $12.2 million. The partners will contribute the following amounts:

• $4.1 million over two years from the Quebec government;
• up to $2 million from the federal government; and
• $6.1 million from Quebec City.

Funding for these pilot projects is contingent on the signing of contribution agreements.

UTSP funds community showcase programs that highlight and assess ways of reducing transportation-related greenhouse gases. The program was developed following consultations with provincial, territorial and municipal partners, among others. Following a Request for Qualification issued across the country, eight municipalities were selected to present their strategies for facing these urban challenges.

Tags: bus transit, public transport, utsp, canada, quebec, gatineau, montreal, municipal