Posted December 26, 200519 yr http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051226/NEWS08/512260303/-1/NEWS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Article published December 26, 2005 Concerns, complaints bring action by police [i]Railroad, city act to resolve 37 cases[/i] By CHRISTINA HALL and DAVID PATCH BLADE STAFF WRITERS The train cars sit motionless on the tracks, separated from the waiting vehicles by red, blinking lights on crossbucks or on crossing gates blocking the road. Some motorists are so used to the sight in some parts of Toledo that they instinctively perform U-turns or skirt down side streets seeking ways to bypass the blockage. Others with a little more patience or naive about the possible alternative routes sit and wait for the train to move, something that can take anywhere from a few minutes to more than an hour. Full story at above link:
December 27, 200519 yr As the article points out, much of what the problem is can be traced to bottlenecks on the Toledo area rail system itself. Vickers is a huge choke point for rail traffic, as is the Nasby Tower (another rail junction). The good news is that ODOT is beginning a study aimed at all of the state's rail bottlenecks and how they might be cleared up. Cities like Los Angeles and Kansas City were faced with similar problems and worked with the railroads to build "flyover" tracks that avoided choke points and allowed prioreity freight traffic to move more freely and not tie up other trains or local vehicular traffic. It is not a an inexpensive solution but it has turned out to be well worth the investment. If you want to see the "mother" of all rail bottlenecks, look no farther than Chicago. But there is a major plan to correct this that has brought together an odd (but welcome) alliance of highway, trucking, transit and rail interests. It's called CREATE and here is an article on what it's all about from the website of the Midwest High Speed Rail Assoiciation. CREATE - A Big Step Towards High Speed Rail By Mike Blaszak The Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency Program ("CREATE"), announced by the City of Chicago, the Illinois Department of Transportation and the major railroads in June 2003, calls for a $1.5 billion program of railroad infrastructure improvements in the Chicago area, most of which would be funded by local, state and federal governments. The completion of CREATE would result in four high-density, shared freight routes through the city. Although not stressed by its proponents, the plan also would improve the infrastructure available for operation of intercity passenger trains. Three of the six rail flyovers included in CREATE are along current Amtrak and potential high-speed routes. Chicago-St. Louis-Texas Amtrak trains, like all other train movements, currently must stop before proceeding through the Brighton Park interlocking. Under CREATE, that interlocking would be grade-separated, allowing trains to proceed through without stopping. Similarly, the crossing at CP Canal would be grade-separated, eliminating another source of freight interference on the Chicago-St. Louis route. At present, Amtrak trains must slow from 79 to 50 m.p.h. for this crossing; grade separation would eliminate this speed restriction. At Englewood, the crossing of Norfolk Southern's main line with Metra's Rock Island District also would be separated. NS considers Englewood one of the primary causes of delay on its entire system. Since all Amtrak trains between Chicago and points East operate through Englewood, as presumably would high-speed trains to Detroit, Cleveland and Indianapolis, the elimination of conflicts with Metra trains at the crossing would improve reliability. Additional service to points east of Chicago cannot be added until the Englewood project is complete. Construction of the proposed Central Corridor to bypass the St. Charles Air Line would include restoration of the "Nickel Plate Connection" at Grand Crossing. This abandoned connection, for which right of way and structures remain, would allow passenger trains to Champaign, Carbondale and the South to operate to and from Union Station without backup movements, saving about 20 minutes. CREATE also includes upgrading the route presently used by Metra's Southwest Service into a dedicated Passenger Corridor leading to LaSalle Street Station. Removing the Southwest Service from Union Station would create additional platform space and departure slots for high-speed trains. Finally, computer projections indicate average freight train speed through the Chicago area would increase by about a third if all of the CREATE improvements are constructed. This would reduce freight train delays, along with the potential for interference with passenger schedules, and increase the throughput capacity of the network, thus opening additional slots that could be used by new high-speed trains. Article from Association of American Railroads www.aar.com
April 12, 200619 yr http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060412/NEWS02/604120419/-1/NEWS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Article published April 12, 2006 Judge voids citations for blocked rail crossings By CHRISTINA HALL BLADE STAFF WRITER More than 200 citations against Norfolk Southern Railway for blocking crossings in Toledo were dismissed yesterday after a Toledo Municipal Court judge decided the state's blocked-crossing statute is pre-empted by federal law. The decision, signed by Judge Francis X. Gorman, to dismiss 219 citations could have statewide implications for police and motorists stuck at railroad crossings by stopped trains. Read more at link above
April 12, 200619 yr We're probably going to see a lot more blocked crossings as rail traffic increases and public and private sector funding for more track capacity fails to keep up. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
April 17, 200619 yr http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060417/OPINION02/604160360/-1/OPINION -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Article published April 17, 2006 Frustrated motorists railroaded It is the rare Toledoan who has never been stuck at a railroad crossing staring at a stopped train blocking the street. In the last two years complaints from motorists waiting at railroad crossings for trains to move led to more than 250 police citations against three railroads. Stopped trains were cited for blocking streets for longer than five minutes in violation of city and state law. Concern about emergency vehicles that could be delayed prompted police action. More at link above
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