Category: Overseas

The Texas Railroad Commission regulates things – just not railroads (railways in proper parlence). From their website:

The Railroad Commission of Texas (Commission) is the state agency with primary regulatory jurisdiction over the oil and natural gas industry, pipeline transporters, natural gas and hazardous liquid pipeline industry, natural gas utilities, the LP-gas industry, and coal and uranium surface mining operations. The Commission exists under provisions of the Texas Constitution and exercises its statutory responsibilities under state and federal laws for regulation and enforcement of the state’s energy industries. The Commission also has regulatory and enforcement responsibilities under federal law including the Surface Coal Mining Control and Reclamation Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, Pipeline Safety Acts, Resource Conservation Recovery Act, and Clean Water Act.

https://www.rrc.texas.gov/about-us/

What has them in the news is the interesting campaign launched by a prospective candidate, Sarah Stogner, for the forthcoming election for the post of commissioner.

Using the tagline “I have other assets”, this 37 y.o. lady stripped down to her underwear and donned cowboy boots and hat and had a photoshoot conducted with her atop an oil well.

They said I needed money. 🤣 I have other assets. pic.twitter.com/OI9z9EDRRG

— Sarah Stogner (@Sarah4RRC) February 14, 2022

you can buy anyone.

The BBC reports that a bridge in Rotterdam will be “temporarily” dismantled to allow a yacht built for Jeff Bezos’ to pass through.

Funny how they didn’t consider the height of the yacht before building it.

Trains hitting road vehicles on the line is, unfortunately, not uncommon, especially at level crossings.

RTE reports on an incident involving a light aircraft crash landing onto a railway line in Los Angeles in the USA and being hit by a train shortly afterwards.

Per RTE, the original footbridge which inspired A. A. Milne to include the concept of Poohsticks in his Winnie the Pooh books, is up for sale by auction.

The bridge was located in Ashdown Forest in East Sussex and was dismantled and put in storage, due to having been worn down by visitors, with a replacement bridge installed.

The auction takes place on October 5th with an expected sale price of £40-60k.

Spain has the Caminito Del Rey, Switzerland has the Torrent Neuf.

The latter is a 15th Century, suspended water leat system which was used to divert water from glaciers to otherwise dry valleys. Per the BBC, some 200 such systems spanning 1,800km in length still operate. One such systems is the Torrent Neuf. Initially put out of service in 1935, it was restored in 2013 as a tourist attraction.

Not in Ireland (but I am genuinely surprised that CIE haven’t tried this as an excuse).

Highways England have engaged in an outrageous act of encasing an historic arch railway bridge (no longer in use for railway purposes) in concrete to “protect” it.

Thankfully, the local council have stepped in and demanded that they apply for retrospective planning permission (I hope that this is to allow the council to refuse such permission).

The BBC reports on a re-activated proposal (first floated in 2012) to turn 400m of disused railway viaduct in Manchester into a High Line style park on a temporary basis.

The BBC have an article about John Hume (not he of Northern Ireland’s SDLP fame) and his contribution to the recording of Scotland’s industrial heritage.

The BBC reports that an alcoholic drink made from apples grown in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone has been seized by Ukranian authorities before it could be exported to the UK.

Notwithstanding its origin, the manufacturers claim that it is “no more radioactive than any other vodka”.

As a teetotaler, I won’t be partaking of this new product but wish its producers well.

I’m sure when the relevant authorities commissioned and installed an art work in Spijkenisse in The Netherlands, the sculpture (of a whale) playing a part in railway safety wasn’t part of the consideration.

Nonetheless, this is what happened when a Metro train overran its buffer stop and came to rest on the tail of the whale.