Amtrak ridership returned to 85 percent of pre-pandemic levels. Long-distance ridership grew the least after the pandemic because it fell the least during the pandemic. But watch the anti-long distance folks spin that one....

 

Amtrak: Ridership soared 89% in FY22

https://www.progressiverailroading.com/amtrak/news/Amtrak-Ridership-soared-89-in-FY22--68074

 

Amtrak seems to have updated their "Corridors of Interest" proposal. Many subpar routes here, but Ohio gets a lot of love. (Improving passenger rail infrastructure in Chicago would be a better use of money than at least 80% of these routes, but I suppose touching lots of states is the best way to get Senators on board.)

 

 

^ Columbus seems to be quite the little hub.  Does Chillicothe really make sense, except as part of a longer route?

Just eyeballing it, but still seems like Kentucky and Tennessee are underserved. A Cincinnati-Lexington-Knoxville line would help to fill in that hole a little bit. 

Neither Columbus-Athens or Columbus-Chillicothe make sense. Had to have been an MPO from along those routes that suggested it. Some big-time local boosterism there!

 

Ditto for the route breaking off from the Lake Shore line east of Cleveland, heading to Binghamton, NY. That's just crazy. Again, I appreciate the enthusiasm and homerism there, but c'mon. It's hard to take any of this seriously.

58 minutes ago, KJP said:

Neither Columbus-Athens or Columbus-Chillicothe make sense. Had to have been an MPO from along those routes that suggested it. Some big-time local boosterism there!

 

Ditto for the route breaking off from the Lake Shore line east of Cleveland, heading to Binghamton, NY. That's just crazy. Again, I appreciate the enthusiasm and homerism there, but c'mon. It's hard to take any of this seriously.

Wouldn't this shave hours off the Chicago-NYC routes?  Or will the tracks not handle it? 

1 hour ago, Dougal said:

^ Columbus seems to be quite the little hub.  Does Chillicothe really make sense, except as part of a longer route?

I don't know what rail is there, but why not close that gap to Atlanta?

 

Make 2 longer routes there:

1 - Atlanta-Nashville-Louisville-Indy-Chicago

2 - Atlanta-Nashville-Louisville-Cincy-Columbus-Detroit

1 hour ago, Cleburger said:

Wouldn't this shave hours off the Chicago-NYC routes?  Or will the tracks not handle it? 

The “correct” route from Chicago to NYC is via Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, and Philly. The upstate NY route only makes sense when including the population centers (specifically Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, and Albany). The Ashtabula to Binghamton route, especially since it didn’t continue on to Scranton or Albany, was the funniest of funny routes on this proposal. 
 

Columbus to Chillicothe and Athens via bus would be decent feeders, especially if Cbus becomes a mini-hub. Even if it’s just 3C&D it would be useful with properly timed connections.

4 hours ago, KJP said:

Neither Columbus-Athens or Columbus-Chillicothe make sense.

There is a considerable amount of commute between OU and Columbus. I knew several folks without cars who would use the Go Bus to get to Columbus during my time in Athens. I imagine rail would be a preferable alternative. 

3 hours ago, Cleburger said:

Wouldn't this shave hours off the Chicago-NYC routes?  Or will the tracks not handle it? 

 

The fastest route between Chicago and New York is the former New York Central via Buffalo and Albany. It's mostly flat and well-engineered with gentle curves and lots of grade-separations especially from Cleveland east. The former Pennsylvania RR routing via Pittsburgh and Philadelphia is also well-engineered but has tighter curves and lots of up-and-down gradients so it's only 40 miles shorter than the New York Central route.

 

Getting off the New York Central at/near Erie, PA and onto the former Erie RR from Union City, PA east across New York's Southern Tier through Binghamton is a curving route that historically paled in comparison with the speed, service frequency and ridership on the New York Central and Pennsylvania RR routes.

 

 

On 12/5/2022 at 5:33 PM, KJP said:

Neither Columbus-Athens or Columbus-Chillicothe make sense. Had to have been an MPO from along those routes that suggested it. Some big-time local boosterism there!

MORPC shooting their shot apparently! 

Don't expect Ohio to apply. In the remote possibility that they do, it would be for planning because they haven't done any recent planning yet to be eligible for construction funds.

 

Biden-Harris Administration, USDOT Make Available One of the Largest Investments in 50 Years to Expand Intercity Passenger Rail Across America

https://railroads.dot.gov/about-fra/communications/newsroom/press-releases/biden-harris-administration-usdot-make-available-0

On 12/5/2022 at 9:01 PM, amped91 said:

There is a considerable amount of commute between OU and Columbus. I knew several folks without cars who would use the Go Bus to get to Columbus during my time in Athens. I imagine rail would be a preferable alternative. 

 

We should keep in mind that Hocking County is within the Columbus metro, meaning that there's at least a 25% commuting exchange going on with Franklin County. It probably wouldn't be that much of a stretch for such a line to be relatively successful. 

Edited December 8, 20222 yr by jonoh81

On 12/7/2022 at 12:57 PM, KJP said:

Don't expect Ohio to apply. In the remote possibility that they do, it would be for planning because they haven't done any recent planning yet to be eligible for construction funds.

In the grant application, it lists that eligible applicants include "a public agency or publicly chartered authority established by one or more States" and "a political subdivision of a State."

Does that mean that some of the cities and MPOs could apply for a planning grant for 3C+D or any other routes? Is there anything in state law that would block them from at least taking the first step?

On 12/8/2022 at 4:50 PM, jonoh81 said:

 

We should keep in mind that Hocking County is within the Columbus metro, meaning that there's at least a 25% commuting exchange going on with Franklin County. It probably wouldn't be that much of a stretch for such a line to be relatively successful. 

 

Except that Amtrak doesn't run commuter trains except when contracted for and subsidized by a local or regional jurisdiction.

 

6 hours ago, Dev said:

Does that mean that some of the cities and MPOs could apply for a planning grant for 3C+D or any other routes? Is there anything in state law that would block them from at least taking the first step?

 

The law refers more so toward joint powers authorities and other multi-jurisdictional organizations approved by the state. NOACA and other MPOs are allowed by the state to exist but not specifically named or authorized on a case-by-case basis. MPO's exist because they are ratified by participating counties. The bigger question is, how does the Federal Railroad Administration feel about it? From what I've heard, the FRA would rather give money to states, especially states with a proven track record, because the FRA knows the train services are more sustainable over the long term and, thus, their investment won't be wasted.

 

 I wonder if the ORDC planning grant application to FRA to evaluate the congestion issues in Cincinnati may be a precursor to looking at expanded passenger service for the 3C&D Corridor at Union Terminal or elsewhere in Cincinnati.   Seems like there is not enough capacity at Union Terminal for daily Cardinal service and 3C&D with the existing CSX and NS operations.

 

Amtrak Ohio expansion may bypass state government

By Ken Prendergast / December 16, 2022

 

Several initiatives that are in their early stages may instigate passenger rail expansion to Cleveland before the state of Ohio decides to get on board. That could be welcome timing considering the Federal Railroad Administration will solicit applications next week for funding to begin the process for developing new and expanded passenger rail services.

 

Read More:

https://neo-trans.blog/2022/12/16/amtrak-expansion-may-bypass-state-of-ohio/

 

Amtrak unveils new trains that will replace aging fleet

 

By Julia Musto, Fox Business

December 17, 2022 

 

 

Amtrak on Thursday released details of its new Airo trains, which will operate on routes across the country beginning in 2026. 

 

The routes include the Amtrak Northeast Regional, Empire Service, Virginia Services, Keystone Service, Downeaster, Cascades, Maple Leaf, New Haven/Springfield Service, Palmetto, Carolinian, Pennsylvanian, Vermonter, Ethan Allen Express and Adirondack.

 

 

more:

https://nypost.com/2022/12/17/amtrak-reveals-new-airo-trains-to-replace-old-rolling-stock/

On 12/16/2022 at 8:28 PM, KJP said:

https://neo-trans.blog/2022/12/16/amtrak-expansion-may-bypass-state-of-ohio/

Why do I have a really bad feeling about this....

Quote

“ORDC was unaware of NOACA’s conversations with other states until recently so we cannot comment on their actions or intentions,” Jourdan said.

 

Here's a pretty good video of Amtrak's new Siemens trains that will be rolling out in a couple of years. It looks like most trains will have a cab car and it seems these will be replacing a lot of the regional trains. 

 

Yes. The Airo trainsets will replace all current Amfleet cars, which date back to the 1970's. These will be used on day trains.

 

They are ordering 86 sets, with an option for 100 more. This is in addition to the cars of the same design being delivered for Midwest and California trains and will cover trains in the Northeast, New York, the Pacific Northwest and elsewhere, as noted in  the vid above and Mr. NYC's comments.

Edited December 20, 20222 yr by neony

Is Ohio finally on board for Amtrak expansion? State ‘strongly considering’ seeking federal money for new train service

 

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio – The state of Ohio is “strongly considering” applying for federal dollars that could lead to expanded passenger rail service throughout the state, including establishment of a new route connecting Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati.

Meanwhile, officials in Northeast Ohio are definitely planning to pursue funding that could establish Cleveland as an Amtrak mini-hub, with more frequent service to Chicago, New York City, Washington, D.C. and other cities.

 

The source of the funding for both potential expansions is a new federal inititave, dubbed the Corridor Identification and Development Program, part of $66 billion in additional money for rail service included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, passed by Congress in late 2021.

 

https://www.cleveland.com/news/2023/01/is-ohio-finally-on-board-for-amtrak-expansion-state-strongly-considering-seeking-federal-money-for-new-train-service.html

^ well i hope advocates can get around that regressive governor dewine. highly dubious, but we keep hope alive.

On 1/10/2023 at 11:01 AM, mrnyc said:

^ well i hope advocates can get around that regressive governor dewine. highly dubious, but we keep hope alive.

Exactly. Ohio is backward AF at this point. I'm tired of defending it TBH.

5 hours ago, metrocity said:

Exactly. Ohio is backward AF at this point. I'm tired of defending it TBH.

 

i think the hope is with the major intel semi conductor development down there in columbus right in his face, he will see the light, loosen up his ‘i got mine’ tight undies and support new rail services to keep ohio competitive and keep businesses happy. we’ll see.

On 1/10/2023 at 12:01 PM, mrnyc said:

^ well i hope advocates can get around that regressive governor dewine. highly dubious, but we keep hope alive.

 

Sadly, DeWine is a beacon of light of progressivism compared to some of the medieval black holes in the legislature.

Let's keep this discussion to rail.

I was. Look at DeWine's pro-Amtrak/passenger rail votes in Congress compared to most Ohio GOPers.

A couple of past proposals. The SNCF proposal from 2009 is particularly interesting and would still be a great investment.

 

 

As with many things, the devil is in the details. Cars from this order could be 5-10 years away but in the meantime, Amtrak trains are critically short of equipment, even as 170+ cars sit at Beech Grove shops. There are no apparent plans to rehab these cars mechanically and shop forces are stripping them for parts. As a result, trains are operating with abbreviated consists and are being cancelled without notice. The Capitol Limited has been running with just three cars.

Amtrak routes connecting Cincinnati to Nashville, Chicago, head to feds

By Chris Wetterich  –  Staff reporter and columnist, Cincinnati Business Courier

Jan 26, 2023

 

New passenger rail routes connecting Cincinnati to Chicago, Cleveland and Nashville have been submitted to the Federal Railroad Administration.

 

MORE

20 hours ago, The_Cincinnati_Kid said:

Amtrak routes connecting Cincinnati to Nashville, Chicago, head to feds

By Chris Wetterich  –  Staff reporter and columnist, Cincinnati Business Courier

Jan 26, 2023

 

New passenger rail routes connecting Cincinnati to Chicago, Cleveland and Nashville have been submitted to the Federal Railroad Administration.

 

MORE

To be clear, OKI asked for improved service for the Cardinal route. They did not ask for new service to Chicago. This is confusing because Amtrak's ConnectUS plan did outline what a new Cincinnati-Indianapolis-Chicago route could be like but no one has asked the FRA to look into it. The Louisville routes to Cincinnati and Nashville is because Louisville's regional planning organization asked for them. The FRA has a website where you can see all the letters asking for routes to be identified.

Also, to be more pedantic, the linked map is not from Amtrak.

 

finally some action here —

 

Biden to visit NYC next week to discuss infrastructure investments in Hudson River rail tunnel

 

By Ben Brachfeld
Posted on January 23, 2023

 

President Joe Biden will visit New York City next week with plans to discuss investments by the administration in the Gateway rail tunnel project under the Hudson River.

 

A White House spokesperson confirmed that the president plans to visit the Big Apple on Tuesday, Jan. 31, noting the commander-in-chief will “discuss how Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding for the Hudson River Tunnel project will improve reliability for the 200,000 passenger trips per weekday on Amtrak and New Jersey Transit.”

 

more:
https://www.amny.com/transit/biden-will-visit-nyc-next-week-to-discuss-infrastructure-investments-in-hudson-river-rail-tunnel/
 

biden visit —

 

 

https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs...ring-nyc-visit

 

Biden announces 9 'mega' grants for infrastructure projects in NYC visit


January 31, 2023
 

The Biden administration on Tuesday announced nine sites across the country will receive what the administration called a “mega” grant to fortify surrounding infrastructure.

One of those sites, where President Joe Biden appeared later that day, is in New York City: The Hudson Tunnel Project is set to receive $292 million to finish construction.

Biden touted the $292 million “mega” grant, created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law he signed in 2021, during his visit to New York City. 

"This is just the beginning," Biden said of the grants. "It's the beginning of finally constructing a 21st Century rail system that's long, long overdue in this country."

According to the White House, the money will go toward completing the final section of concrete casing near Hudson Yards, protecting the right-of-way for the future tracks connecting Penn Station to the river’s edge. The Hudson Tunnel Project will likely create around 72,000 direct and indirect jobs, according to the White House, and the completed project aims to reduce commute times and increase reliability for NJ Transit and Amtrak riders. 

"This project is critical to transforming the Northeast Corridor; increasing speeds capacity, reliability and safety," Biden said, later adding: "The new tunnel is going to have two tubes with one track and each tube so they can keep operating up to one side breaks down. But it's going to be safer, more resilient, more reliable. The biggest rail line in the United States of America." 

“The Northeast Corridor is the busiest passenger rail line in the country, and the crossing under the Hudson is its most important nexus point,” Biden said. “After a lot of hard work, and a lot of stubborn persistence, our efforts are finally paying off.”

 

one step forward with gateway, two steps back with bx penn access — mta sez amtrak drags their feet again, costing us all $$$:

 

 

 

Dispute between MTA, Amtrak could delay Penn Access megaproject bringing Metro-North to west side

 

By Ben Brachfeld

 

A withering dispute between the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Amtrak could lead to delays in the completion of the Penn Access megaproject bringing Metro-North trains to Penn Station, MTA bigwigs charged Monday.

 

The $2.8 billion project broke ground last month with the start of construction on four new Metro-North stations in the Bronx, enabling residents of the borough’s eastern shore to commute into Manhattan’s west side and, along with the Long Island Rail Road’s new terminal at Grand Central Terminal, creating a more integrated regional rail network in the New York metropolitan area. Work on the project is scheduled for completion by 2027.

 

more:
https://www.amny.com/transit/dispute-mta-amtrak-delay-penn-access-megaproject/
 

 

More:

 

^ yikes!

 

 

lol he literally answered his own question here, didnt he?:

 

 

“Fran and I have done a lot of traveling on Amtrak over the years,” said DeWine, referring to his wife. “So we like trains. But the question is, you know, can we afford it? And is it going to work?”

28 minutes ago, mrnyc said:

\“Fran and I have done a lot of traveling on Amtrak over the years,” said DeWine, referring to his wife. “So we like trains. But the question is, you know, can we afford it? And is it going to work?”

If he and Fran enjoy it, hopefully they would use the 3C line in his official duties as governor and lead by example.  

"will it work"

 

I think that some people who have experience riding long-distance Amtrak trains but not the Northeast Corridor have a legit point, since Cincinnati>Dayton and even Cincinnati>Columbus are very short drives.  It's hard to imagine that there will be a ton of traffic between Cincinnati and Columbus or much at all between Cincinnati and Dayton amongst those who already own cars.    

 

My hunch is that much if not most of the ridership will be Cleveland>Dayton or Cleveland>Cincinnati, since that is the distance where driving turns into a hassle.    

1 hour ago, Lazarus said:

I think that some people who have experience riding long-distance Amtrak trains but not the Northeast Corridor have a legit point, since Cincinnati>Dayton and even Cincinnati>Columbus are very short drives.  It's hard to imagine that there will be a ton of traffic between Cincinnati and Columbus or much at all between Cincinnati and Dayton amongst those who already own cars.   

The population is aging.  How many can/should/want to continue to drive 10 or 20 years from now? There's quite a bulge in demographics in the 45-59 age groups in the following chart (those people are now 55-69).

 

 

http://proximityone.com/chartgraphics/pp39000_2010_001.htm

 

1 hour ago, Lazarus said:

"will it work"

 

I think that some people who have experience riding long-distance Amtrak trains but not the Northeast Corridor have a legit point, since Cincinnati>Dayton and even Cincinnati>Columbus are very short drives.  It's hard to imagine that there will be a ton of traffic between Cincinnati and Columbus or much at all between Cincinnati and Dayton amongst those who already own cars.    

 

My hunch is that much if not most of the ridership will be Cleveland>Dayton or Cleveland>Cincinnati, since that is the distance where driving turns into a hassle.    

 

I think the route will be Columbus centric.  Times are more competitive with driving and business travel will support the destination taxi/rental car costs. Yes, the longer routes will have ridership, but I predict state government business will fill the business class car on every trip.  Notice how lukewarm DeWine was before Columbus civic parties got interested.

2 hours ago, Lazarus said:

"will it work"

 

I think that some people who have experience riding long-distance Amtrak trains but not the Northeast Corridor have a legit point, since Cincinnati>Dayton and even Cincinnati>Columbus are very short drives.  It's hard to imagine that there will be a ton of traffic between Cincinnati and Columbus or much at all between Cincinnati and Dayton amongst those who already own cars.    

 

My hunch is that much if not most of the ridership will be Cleveland>Dayton or Cleveland>Cincinnati, since that is the distance where driving turns into a hassle.    

I don't own a vehicle. The only way I can get to Dayton, Columbus, or  Cleveland is by rental car. The greyhound station laughably  inaccessible even when there is service.

And that is ridiculously silly. It's flat, and empty. Rail here is a no brainer.

Edited February 8, 20232 yr by Dcs3939

I should have been more clear - I was talking about people who already own a car.  Cincinnati's suburbs have mostly grown toward Dayton and Columbus in the past 50 years.  This means they'd have to backtrack to the proposed Sharonville Amtrak station.  Nobody is going to drive from Mason to Sharonville to then ride a train to Columbus since they're already only a 70 mile drive from DT Columbus.  They *might* do that if they're going to Cleveland.  

 

The weird thing about Cincinnati is that the current Amtrak station at Union Terminal is very convenient to...Kentucky.  And the otherwise ignored West Side.  East siders aren't going to want to drive to Union Terminal and many might go to Sharonville, even if it's a slightly longer drive, due to the perception of a hassle at Union Terminal, where long-term Amtrak parking will probably be relegated to the front of the parking lot, which is several hundred feet from the front door.  

hmm, aside from bus or local rail connections, i wonder what kind of development the 3C+D stations would attract?

 

some mite wanna take a peak at recent shaker van aken doins for example … just saying.

 

 

 

 

Cincinnati Amtrak expansion: Improved passenger rail from Union Terminal to Chicago still on the table

By Chris Wetterich  –  Staff reporter and columnist, Cincinnati Business Courier

Feb 14, 2023

 

When Gov. Mike DeWine announced that Ohio would apply for federal grants to study new Amtrak routes in Ohio, he did not include a route from Cincinnati to Chicago.

 

But that route is still on the table as Amtrak itself looks to expand service on the Cardinal line, which runs from New York to Cincinnati to Chicago.

 

There are two active federal programs currently for Amtrak expansion – one is a mostly state-based program where officials have to propose new routes, then seek federal funding from the federal infrastructure bill.

 

MORE

 

^I never thought of Birmingham as a potential regional rail hub but I don't hate it

On 2/17/2022 at 1:50 PM, gildone said:

Good point. I would add that two trains per day isn't exactly visionary on the part of Amtrak.  That's far from adequate service to get a lot of people interested in actually using the train.  Successful passenger rail corridors offer enough trains to give travelers the flexibility they need to get out of their cars.  This corridor should be starting with 3 daily round trips with plans to expand the frequencies further.   I realize that it was probably difficult enough to get the states to agree on just one round trip per day, but a modern passenger rail system needs to do a lot better than that. 

I modify what I said above.  All corridors in Ohio should start with 6 daily round trips with an average speed of 60 mph with plans to go to hourly service.