gildone

@KJP Thanks. Exactly the point. Good to see someone understands the full context.

You either didn't read the OpEd or you missed the full context which is: Privatizing Amtrak without federal policy reform won't work.

What Amtrak Privatization Advocates Miss: https://usa.streetsblog.org/2025/04/29/op-ed-what-amtrak-privatization-advocates-miss

no you can't. I've ridden it multiple times.

Here's another one, though it's from October: Men Stall Waymo Driverless Car to Catcall Female Passenger Inside https://www.pcmag.com/news/men-stall-waymo-driverless-car-to-catcall-female-passenger-inside

No comment. @Foraker@GCrites Musk can't even design a decent truck. Some of the problems with that vehicle are absolutely ridiculous. Look at all the promises he made about that vehicle that he didn't keep. Hertz is trying to sell their Teslas at deep discounts to people who've rented them because the depreciation is killing them. Then there is the fact that the rest of the Tesla lineup is a 10-year old design. And this is always as funny as it is true. The original commercial is on YouTube

Is he the replacement for Derrick James?

Traffic engineers need to take responsibility for their road and street designs: "In reality, the duty to prevent collisions should fall on the road engineers, car companies, and public officials who create the system in which people drive, bike, or walk—and not on road users themselves. By lumping everyone together, the phrase blurs that distinction, allowing those who can do the most to save lives to dodge accountability." Who’s really to blame—and who isn’t—for America’s traffic death epidemic Politicians love to say that ‘road safety is a shared responsibility,’ but the reality is that some groups have a much larger duty than others. https://www.fastcompany.com/91233037/whos-really-to-blame-and-who-isnt-for-americas-traffic-death-epidemic

Not an excuse but an explanation: It was likely Senator Chuck Schumer that pushed for the original nominations and a Biden staffer handled it. As for the USPS, Biden didn't appoint DeJoy, the previous administration did. If I'm not mistaken, the Postmaster General is one of those 10-year appointments that isn't supposed to be easy to undo in order to try to minimize political interference. That said, the USPS management culture has been a clown show for decades. I know two people who had careers there. Anyway, back to Schumer and the original Biden Administration Amtrak appointments: thankfully, that has been fixed and now Amtrak has a more geographically diverse board.

My shorts aren't in a bind 🙂 I realize I wasn't very articulate. so I edited things to try to clarify a bit. All I'm saying is that Amtrak is not innocent here either. @neony said: "coupled with Amtrak's lukewarm interest in the project led us to this sad outcome." In another article I saw, Amtrak was balking at having to pay an access fee for the station. So I see a dual failure here. What my real frustration here is that our federal passenger rail program is such a sh!tshow that we end up with stuff like this.

Amtrak is not innocent here (and neither is FDOT). If FDOT wasn't doing what Amtrak needed, Amtrak should have halted this years ago.

@KJP@Boomerang_Brian@neony@Foraker Here's a very recent interview with one of the two co-founders of Dreamstar Lines. I highly recommend giving it a listen (there is a podcast option and a YouTube option). They are aiming to begin operating a SoCal-SF night train in early 2026. I've spoken to the other co-founder, Thomas Eastmond. My impression is these guys are very realistic and careful. They are aiming to offer a better product than Amtrak at a competitive price. In addition, they will also be offering the option of shipping your car, but unlike Amtrak's Auto Train, shipping your car will be optional. (Sidenote: Shipping your car on night trains is not uncommon in Europe. It's not an option on every night train, but there are several where it's possible). You can tell from the interview that they want to offer a high-quality product. They are looking at other possible routes on lightly-used freight lines. Denver-Salt Lake City is one. Apparently they found an option for LA-Phoenix that stays off the busy UP route that the Sunset Limited uses. Anyway, I'm rooting for Dreamstar Lines. Here's the podcast link: https://podcast.criticalmassforbusiness.com/e/critical-mass-business-talk-show-ric-franzi-interviews-joshua-dominic-co-founder-ceo-of-dreamstar-lines-episode-1557

@Foraker@neony My understanding is that the platforms were lengthened (though I could be mistaken). Amtrak's final decision seems to rest solely on not wanting to have to shunt trains between the Miami Airport station and Hialeah and pay the little bit of extra crew time. More info here: https://www.miamitodaynews.com/2024/12/30/amtrak-derails-decades-of-deals-to-serve-miami-international-airport/

Amtrak screws over Miami. 27 year of negotiations and millions of dollars spent by the state of Florida, and at the last moment, Amtrak pulls out of a deal to have its trains serve a station at Miami airport. They apparently did a similar thing in Salt Lake City some years back. I have had it with Amtrak. They should be embracing the concept of multi-modalism. We need to completely re-think passenger rail policy in this country, devote the money necessary to build a modern passenger rail system, and ultimately get rid of Amtrak as the nation's go-to operator for passenger trains. Amtrak derails decades of deals to serve Miami International Airport https://www.miamitodaynews.com/2024/12/30/amtrak-derails-decades-of-deals-to-serve-miami-international-airport/

"This is the beauty of Swiss trains — not only are they reliable, they are also frequent, and for the traveller [sic] that equates to freedom. " https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/europe-travel/switzerland/this-is-the-best-country-in-the-world-for-rail-travel-9q9rj6797

"Our results show that beyond a certain point, increases in car dependence yield a decrease in people’s satisfaction with life." https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2214367X24002175

"At the same time, those who were wondering if a new Red Line rapid transit station would be built next to the Brook Park stadium site to connect it to downtown, Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority CEO and General Manager India Birdsong said last week there are no such plans. "The Browns said there are no plans to provide a direct pedestrian path to the planned stadium from one of the existing Rapid stations — at Brookpark Road or a Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. The latter is actually closer to the center of the stadium site as the crow flies. Apparently the Browns want to collect as much parking revenue as they can." https://neo-trans.blog/2024/12/15/a-browns-stadium-quid-pro-quo/

This is the kind of thing you get when a state-owned railway in a country that actually invests in passenger rail actively works to lure passengers. Festive Christmas trains operating by LTG Link (Lithuania State Railway) operating through January 9th. (Sidenote: here in the U.S. stores start pushing Valentine's Day on about December 27th as you'll see them changing their displays about then. God forbid we slow down and let the enjoyment of one holiday linger a bit before moving onto the next one). https://ltglink.lt/en/christmas-trains

@neony Agree. The City needs to take care here.

On August 11, Not Just Bikes is going to release its next video on YouTube (It was released on Patreon today). This one is going look at fire departments and how they have become an impediment to safer streets:

Italy is beginning to launch a series of upscale day and night trains aimed at tourists. Here's one from Rome to the Alps in NE Italy. Cheaper than Amtrak with freshly prepared, seasonal food in a classy diner served on china: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PQysg1_Y14&t=30s

Bipartisan group of Ohio Lawmakers call on ODOT to bring Amtrak service to Akron and Canton: https://www.cantonrep.com/story/news/regional/2024/06/14/amtrak-expansion-akron-canton-supported/74099634007/

Sorry, I had an error. Here's the correct link: https://www.facebook.com/AllAboardErie

The Lakeshore Rail Alliance will be hosting a passenger rail summit in Erie this Thursday at 1pm EDT. It will be live-streamed on Facebook on All Aboard Erie's page: https://www.facebook.com/AllAboardErie

Interesting article. One thing it mentions is that Atlanta held back on building new infill transit stations because of the cost. Why not then build them as mid-rise mixed-use stations apartments/condos and some ground-level retail? To Expand Transit on the Cheap, Cities Explore Infill Stations https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-05-08/from-atlanta-to-dc-infill-subway-stations-are-closing-transit-gaps?utm_medium=social&utm_content=citylab&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&utm_source=twitter