hide your eyes kjp. can you believe this is the screaming headline story of today's daily news? "euro trash" lol!

 

Are you kidding? That's hilarious! Leave it to the NY Daily News to entertain as well as inform.

 

I guess the Euros have a hard time tagging trains going by at 180 mph so they come here. Their culture may be 20 years behind the U.S.'s, but their transportation system is at least 20 years ahead of ours.

Multilevel trains pull into stations today

Monday, December 11, 2006

BY MICHAEL LAVITT

Special to the Times

 

The man standing at the train station stooped down to peer in the window of the train car's lower level, just a foot or so above the platform in the wee hours of Wednesday morning.

 

"You can ride it starting Monday," said someone who was getting off the train.

 

"NJ Transit?" asked the man, who was waiting for one of NJ Transit's more conventional trains.

 

Yes, NJ Transit. The state's first production set of multilevel vehicles or MLVs will start carrying passengers starting today with a noon departure from Trenton that is scheduled to reach New York at 1:27 p.m.

 

More at:

http://www.nj.com/news/times/index.ssf?/base/news-2/1165813748231540.xml&coll=5

Tremendous news! Expanded service and its success in Ohio can happen, too, but please support All Aboard Ohio in whatever way you can -- by joining, donating, writing letters to elected officials, newspapers, etc. See www.allaboardohio.org

__________________

 

From www.elpc.com

 

The numbers are in: new Amtrak trains in Illinois are succeeding!

 

On October 30, 2006, Amtrak began running two additional trains each

day to St. Louis and one additional train each day to Carbondale and to

Quincy. Comparing November 2006 ridership data with November 2005

ridership data shows just how popular this new service is:

 

Chicago - St. Louis (5 trains per day) ridership up 91%

Chicago - Carbondale (3 trains per day) ridership up 61%

Chicago - Quincy (2 trains per day) ridership up 35%

 

Not only is ridership up dramatically on all three corridors, but the

difference in growth between these corridors demonstrates the

importance of trip choice in attracting riders. The more trains are

offered, the higher the growth, since the more trains there are, the

more likely that one will be departing and returning at times desired

by the traveler.

 

###

A similar story from the United Transportation Union on-line newsletter:

 

Ridership breakthrough! Chicago-St. Louis passenger traffic virtually doubles in first month after new trains added—Carbondale, Quincy corridors also see strong growth

[12/12/2006]

 

SPRINGFIELD (Dec. 12)—Intercity passenger-train ridership in Illinois skyrocketed in November after Amtrak began operating four additional daily frequencies paid for by the Illinois Department of Transportation.

 

IDOT said the 284-mile Chicago-Springfield-St. Louis corridor, which got two new state-sponsored daily round trips, was the system’s growth leader--up 91 per cent over November 2005.

 

But growth also was impressive on the 310-mile Chicago-Champaign-Carbondale corridor, where a new morning departure from each end of the line drove ridership up by 61 per cent, and on the 258-mile Chicago-Galesburg-Quincy route, where a second daily frequency raised patronage 35 per cent.

 

More at:

http://www.illini.utu.org/board/news-display-current.jhtml?DB=update/dbase&DO=display&ID=1165965607_10220&current=current

“The bottom line is that as the frequencies grow by addition the choices grow by multiplication—and so does the ridership.”

 

A great quote!

From the Pocono Record.

 

 

Revive Phoebe Snow rail line to NYC

By BEN GOTTFRIED

Empire State Passengers Association

December 10, 2006

 

Scranton to New York City rail service may be moving forward thanks to, interestingly, upstate New York.

 

Proponents of restoring passenger rail through northeast Pennsylvania have always considered the service a commuter-oriented project.

 

Perhaps we need to examine the wider significance of the route as a new environmentally friendly piece of the national transportation network. New York State seems to understand this and has come forward in two significant ways which suggest that they have a stake in rail service proposals being developed on the Scranton-New York City route of Phoebe Snow.

 

In January 2006 the New York State Senate task force on high-speed rail included, for the first time, the Syracuse-Binghamton-Scranton rail route in their rail system master plan map, calling the route a “corridor extension” worthy of further consideration. The significance here is the Amtrak connection at Syracuse and the integration of the new route into the national transportation network as a connecting route to New York City.

 

Amtrak service through Syracuse to New York City via Albany has passenger trains often mired in heavy freight traffic congestion. The CSX Transportation tracks shared by these “Empire Corridor” passenger trains are running at capacity now. A new route via Scranton to the Big Apple could relieve some of the pressure on the existing Amtrak-CSX route.

 

Train service on this new corridor would reintroduce the legendary Phoebe Snow passenger experience to the American public. The Phoebe Snow passenger train was the creation of the Lackawanna Railroad to promote passenger travel along its “route of scenic delight” between New York and Buffalo.

 

In support of expanding the role of rail service through Binghamton, New York’s Broome County has begun a study of Binghamton as a transportation hub. This new study will focus on trade and traffic flows through the greater Binghamton region. It will also examine what the infrastructure needs will be to restore a modern passenger rail service to the crucial Scranton-Binghamton section of the larger Syracuse to New York City route.

 

In preparation for the re-introduction of a rail service plan for this route, a new group, the New York Pennsylvania I-81 Rail Corridor committee, was called for. This new group formed in 2004 with the help of Pennsylvania railroad authorities in Lackawanna and Susquehanna counties, participating railroads, Greater Binghamton Coalition and a wide array of interest groups including the Empire State Passengers Association. Like the existing bi-state group which has advanced the Scranton- NYC proposal, this new group can assist in service beyond Scranton and add an intercity component to existing planning under way.

 

The addition of intercity passenger traffic to discussion of rail service to Scranton may add potential new funding resources, too.

 

For example, New York State rail service to upstate relies entirely on trains crossing the Hudson River in Albany and entry into Manhattan through the complex underground network to Grand Central or Penn. Station. Service via Scranton and New Jersey Transit’s Hoboken terminal offers a logical alternative rail route and new gateway point for New York at Binghamton, giving the project a homeland security angle.

 

The route through the Poconos does not rely on electric trains and underground facilities to access New York City, and the New Jersey Transit Terminal in Hoboken is the only rail terminal in New York City accessible by ferry. Simply stated, Hoboken’s role in the transportation network of New York City and its ability to serve as an intercity launching pad can no longer be over looked.

 

As multi-state rail corridor projects across the country emerge and compete for federal funding dollars, those with multiple benefits to the nation as a whole would logically be in the strongest position to gain necessary political support and approval of federal dollars. The current commuter-only focus of the Scranton to New York project limits the proposal to the Federal Transit Administration process. Intercity rail corridor projects have a wider array of public and private funding resources available at the state and federal level.

 

The challenge here lies with us and our elected representatives. We must ask for projects which promise to benefit our economic, security, and environmental agenda. We should pursue a transportation system here in the northeast serving the New York City region including the route of the legendary Phoebe Snow in the national rail transportation network.

 

Ben Gottfried is the Susquehanna region coordinator for the Empire State Passengers Association, a New York-based rail passenger advocacy group.

 

 

 

 

BAY AREA

Capitol Corridor riding high

On Amtrak line's 15th anniversary, train has shown that a clean and comfortable trip draws passengers -

Michael Cabanatuan, Chronicle Staff Writer

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

 

 

Fifteen years ago, Amtrak and Caltrans began a new passenger train service connecting the Bay Area and Sacramento with three round-trip trains a day. The Capitol Corridor trains quickly drew standing-room crowds on some trains and prompted some predictions of a rail renaissance.

 

They appear to have been prescient -- at least where the Capitol Corridor is concerned.

 

Today, the rail service runs 16 round-trip trains between Oakland and Sacramento, including seven of those that go as far as San Jose and one that goes to and from Auburn. A total of 1.3 million passengers rode the Capitols in the past 12 months compared with 273,000 in the first year of operations.

 

URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/12/13/AMTRAK.TMP

 

 

That corridor had two daily long-distance round-trip trains on it, serving it during daylight hours. It had service on it that the state didn't pay for, and was usable even with the delays suffered by these long-distance trains.

 

To my knowledge, only one corridor service like this started from scratch -- Portland, Maine to Boston. Even there, a large portion of that route had commuter rail service on it, meaning it had fewer barriers to overcome than it would otherwise if the commuter service hadn't existed. Amtrak trains had some stations to serve, decent tracks over the southern portion of the route and layover facilities in Boston.

Still no accord on how to pay for rail

 

By GORDON DICKSON

STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER

 

IRVING -- With less than a month before the state Legislature convenes, North Texas lawmakers still can't agree about how to pay for a regional rail system, and on Monday, opposing sides butted heads over it.

 

Dallas-Fort Worth transit officials, city and county leaders and some state office holders support raising the state's sales tax cap by a half-cent to 8.75 cents to build an expanded commuter rail system.

 

more at:

http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/legislature/16220828.htm

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/295798_pugetrail14.html

Tearing up rail line a visionless plan

Thursday, December 14, 2006

 

By J. CRAIG THORPE

GUEST COLUMNIST

 

In the 1960s, as the last of U.S. passenger trains faced the chopping block,

the prevailing argument went something like this. Europe may still need them

but we don't. Europe is compact and we're spread out. U.S. cities are built

for cars. Besides, Americans want their privacy, and for speed and distance

we have planes.

 

Fast forward to the present. Have we learned nothing over the past 40 years?

Apparently not, because in a deal that would embarrass any serious

politician or planner, King County wants to tear up the Eastside rail line

for a trail.

 

More at above link:

I hope they build that high speed line in California, it would make exploring the rest of the state seem much less cumbersome.  I'm emphatically going to vote "yes"!

Detroit - Ann Arbor Commuter route gets support

 

Amtrak, Norfolk Southern willing to discuss service from Detroit to Ann Arbor for transit authority's market test.

 

Andy Henion / The Detroit News

 

DETROIT -- Amtrak, which runs long-haul trains through southeastern Michigan, and Norfolk Southern, which owns the track, say they're open to the possibility of commuter service from Detroit to Ann Arbor.

 

The companies' buy-in is crucial for the potential $100 million project to move off the drawing board.

 

More at:

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061218/METRO/612180334/1003

^given the location of detroit's amtrak station, I think an LRT for woodward between the new center and downtown would make an excellent demo project (ignoring any and all logistical issues in my perfect world)

big news is: feds chip in $2.6B or 40% for largest transit project in history  :-o

 

the bad news is that its all for commuters  :whip:

 

 

       

Top Stories 

 

East Side Access Project Gets Funding Boost From Feds

 

December 18, 2006

 

A long-awaited project to give Long Island Raid Road commuters easier access to Manhattan's East Side got a big boost from the federal government this morning.

 

U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters was at Grand Central today with Governor George Pataki to sign what is known as a Full Funding Grant Agreement, giving the MTA a guarantee of $2.6 billion in federal transit funding over the next seven years to be used to help fund the East Side Access project, which will connect the LIRR to Grand Central Terminal.

 

Under the proposal, the LIRR will be linked to the existing 63rd Street subway tunnel to cross the East River. Then a new tunnel would be built from the Manhattan end of that tunnel to connect to the Park Avenue tunnels down to Grand Central. It would also create a new terminal space at Grand Central.

 

The deal is being called the single largest transit investment in American history. The addition would shave 40 minutes off the daily commute of Long Island commuters, and it would cut cross-town congestion from Grand Central to Penn Station.

 

"This project – underway right now – it is going to open up Grand Central and the east side to tens of thousands of commuters from Long Island, commuters who currently take the train into Penn Station and then have to get back to the Grand Central area," said Governor Pataki.

 

"At 150 feet deep, we are going to carve out a brand new terminal under this existing terminal. That's not like doing an addition on a house; this is a big project," said FTA Administrator James Simpson.

 

The federal money virtually guarantees that the project gets completed. The full construction cost is just over $6 billion. The rest of the project will be funded through the MTA's Capital Program. Initial construction has already started. It's scheduled to be finished by 2013.

 

video & renderings here:

http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=1&aid=65168

^given the location of detroit's amtrak station, I think an LRT for woodward between the new center and downtown would make an excellent demo project (ignoring any and all logistical issues in my perfect world)

 

True, the Amtrak station is in a poor spot. But there used to be track access from near the western portal of the Detroit River rail tunnel (just east of Michigan Central Station) to near Joe Louis Arena. You can still see some of the tracks through the weeds, along the riverfront south of the arena. If a station at Joe Louis Arena were built, that would put the commuter trains within walking distance of the Detroit People Mover.

that would take some extremely creative track work to get a station anywhere near joe louis.

Thanks. I've always thought of myself as a creative guy.

i was just looking at it from a perspective of how far from the joe and the angle where it goes underground.

Actually, from a railroad construction perspective, it's not hard at all. All that really needs to be done is put back the tracks that were removed or replace those left to rot. Instead, the hard part is getting past an NS intermodal facility just west of Michigan Central Station. Any commuter trains that travel past it could not cause conflicts with existing yard operations. NS wouldn't permit it. And building a commuter train-only track in this area may be expensive given all the other diverging tracks at a major junction west of the yard.

Yes, I tend to think putting commuters off at that dinky Amtrak station, a good 1.5-2 miles north of where downtown fades out (really, just north of Grand Circus park) is counter productive -- though it's better than nothing.  A terminal near the Joe is much better.  Not only would it connect with the PM, it's near to core of downtown biz and entertainment; most notably Hart Plaza, Cobo Conv Center, the planned Riverwalk (and condos) and at least one of the casinos.

Well, ideally, it would have been much better to utilize the track through the Dequindre Cut east of I-375 that led directly the the Renaissance Center (GM World Headquarters).  But, someone decided it was okay to let GM demolish the track stub to build more parking lots.

 

 

Problem is, that track comes into downtown from the wrong director for Ann Arbor - Detroit commuter rail. Unless.... There someday is a high-frequency commuter rail service between Ann Arbor and Pontiac via downtown Detroit. Now that would be a cool, U-shaped routing!

I would think given the more ideal increased frequency of stops between Detroit and Pontiac, LRT would make more sense for that leg.

There is a hybrid type of equipment called diesel light rail. It can operate on streets like streetcars, on rapid transit tracks like Cleveland's Rapid, or on freight railroad tracks as long they aren't too busy with freight traffic.

 

Here is the model....

http://www.riverline.com/

 

...which operates every 15 minutes during rush hours and 30 minutes off peak. Here are some photos of New Jersey's RiverLINE.....

 

 

 

so bottom line:

 

it the most flexible option for long distance routes, like the imaginary U line for AA>Detroit>Pontiac?

It may well be. But don't discount traditional commuter trains. Some make very frequent stops, like every mile in close-in urban areas. In outer areas, they may stop every 5-10 miles. You can design a rail service to suit virtually any needs a region has.

two biggie projects rake in the fed transit loot:

 

 

Long Planned, Transit Projects Get U.S. Help

Fred R. Conrad/The New York Times

 

By WILLIAM NEUMAN

Published: December 19, 2006

After decades of planning and dreaming by officials, two major expansions of the city’s mass transit system took important steps forward yesterday, with the federal government promising to pay billions of dollars for a Long Island Rail Road connection to Grand Central Terminal and for a Second Avenue subway.

 

some video here too:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/nyregion/19transit.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

 

 

L.A., Long Ruled by Cars, Becoming a Transit Leader

Evolving Region Pushes for More Rail Lines

 

By John Pomfret

Washington Post Staff Writer

Sunday, December 17, 2006; A03

 

LOS ANGELES -- Demeaned as a car-crazed megalopolis where people drive two blocks to valet-park at the dry cleaners, Los Angeles is on the road to fashioning one of the best public transit systems in the nation.

 

Los Angeles is No. 2 in the nation in bus ridership and No. 3 in light rail, according to industry statistics. Since 1993, it and Detroit are the only major metropolitan regions in the nation that have succeeded in lowering the annual hours of delay per traveler. In October, the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) named Los Angeles County's Mass Transportation Authority the best public transportation system in the country -- truly a man-bites-dog turnaround for an agency that for years was known for incompetence and shady deals. Other cities interested in expanding their public transit systems, notably Atlanta and Tampa, are even studying Los Angeles.

 

More at:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/16/AR2006121600923.html

Deseret Morning News, Wednesday, December 20, 2006

 

Officials push mass transit to top of list

 

By Leigh Dethman and Nicole Warburton

Deseret Morning News

 

Forget traffic: In 10 years, residents along the Wasatch Front will be able to hitch a ride on a commuter train, luggage in tow, all the way to the airport, without ever stepping into a car.

 

The Salt Lake County Council and county mayors on Tuesday laid the groundwork to build a network of rails over the next 10 years that will span the Salt Lake Valley, by endorsing a list of projects that will be funded through a quarter-cent sales-tax hike that voters approved in November.

 

Morea at:

http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,650216501,00.html

Ultra conservative Utah is being this forward-thinking?  It just makes Ohio look bad, doesn't it?

from Otis White's Journal on http://governing.com/notebook.htm

 

Transit Done Right

 

Among cities that have developed rail transit in the past 40 years or so, a few have stood out for doing it right: Washington, D.C., Portland, Ore., Dallas. It’s time to add another to this list: Denver.

 

Denver has vaulted to the front thanks to a crash-construction program called Fastracks, which is pouring $4.7 billion into constructing 119 miles of light rail and commuter rail over a 12-year period. How big an expansion is it? Consider that it includes 57 new stations, and officials say it will pretty much cover the region when finished. (Fastracks is financed by a sales tax increase passed overwhelmingly by voters in 2004.)

 

How do you add that much rail that fast? A long stretch is along highway right of way, which makes land acquisition easier but doesn’t allow the kind of development you’d like to see in a rail corridor. Even so, Denver is creating some exciting transit-oriented developments.

 

One, in fact, was featured in a Wall Street Journal article recently. It’s the main station in suburban Englewood, and by looking at it you see how thoroughly rail transit can transform communities when transit planners and local officials work together.

 

As the Journal explained, Englewood is hardly a glamour town. It’s an older, lower-middle-class city whose main feature has been a threadbare shopping mall called (we’re not making this up) Cinderella City. In the early 1990s, city officials decided that the 55-acre Cinderella City site should be redeveloped. Their first thought was, gulp, a collection of big-box retailers. But then the light bulbs went on and city officials settled on building a hip mixed-use district called CityCenter surrounding the rail station. (And we do mean mixed. CityCenter includes hundreds of apartments, 350,000 square feet of retail, offices, a new city hall and the city library.) “Our community has a new core,” the city manager told the Journal.

 

Precisely. And that’s what rail transit gives you: an anchor as well as a ride to work. Because rail stations (unlike bus stops) are hard to move, they create long-term investment. And a different kind of investment: dense, walkable, mixed-use developments, the kind that both feeds off transit and feeds it.

 

But these things don’t just happen. It takes a smart and sensitive transit system (which Denver has) and visionary but patient local government. Why all the patience? Because, as the Journal noted, most localities aren’t set up for mixed use. In many cases, their zoning prohibits mixing land uses, so they have to go through the arduous process of creating new zoning classifications and establishing mixed-use districts. Then there’s the pursuit of good development, the city’s own investments, and so on.

 

In Englewood, the city manager said, creating CityCenter “was like climbing Kilimanjaro.” Was it worth the struggle? The Journal pointed to a new resident of downtown Englewood. Zachary Bradshaw is a 28-year-old employee of a software development company in Denver who takes light rail to work and walks most places. And he finds most of the things he wants, including entertainment, in walking distance or a train ride away. “The location,” he told the newspaper, “is awesome.” It’s hard to imagine that word being used about Englewood before the trains arrived.

 

 

http://governing.com/notebook.htm

Ultra conservative Utah is being this forward-thinking?  It just makes Ohio look bad, doesn't it?

 

Ohio is very conservative, even backwards when it comes to such public and public works programs like public transportation... Surprising for for such an industrial state.  We're very balkanized; a bunch of warring cities with cities vs suburbs; north vs South; rural vs urban, etc.  Hard to agree on anything worthwhile here.

More good news on rail ridership.... this time from Michigan.

 

here's a link to the story....Ann Arbor Amtrak ridership is up 10%

 

 

 

http://www.mlive.com/mbusinessreview/stories/index.ssf?/mbusinessreview/se/stories/20061221_3.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I want this good news to start rubbing off in Ohio to the point that we start getting better trains service here!  It's good to see good news in other states, but at the same time, it's depressing because it just highlights how far behind Ohio is.

Next stop: Prosperity, doors to my left

County leaders say the MAX line extension will carry a business boom along its rails

Thursday, December 21, 2006

PETER ZUCKERMAN

The Oregonian

 

Planners say the MAX line on its way to Clackamas County in 2007 will lay down track for more than just a light-rail train. It also will carry an economic engine for jobs and business stretching into the next decade.

 

The real estate and business boom -- anticipated as a result of stores and services created for commuters -- could start as early as next year, planners said.

 

Full story at:

http://www.oregonlive.com/metrosouth/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/metro_south_news/1166424965228470.xml&coll=7

Patrick’s transport chief eyes new rail

By Casey Ross

Boston Herald Reporter

 

Wednesday, December 27, 2006 - Updated: 08:58 AM EST

 

The state’s incoming transportation secretary says he wants to increase public investment in roads and rail and will pursue a promise by Gov.-elect Deval Patrick to extend train service to New Bedford and Fall River.

 

    During an interview with the Herald yesterday, Bernard Cohen, 60, said he has already had discussions with Patrick about expanding “the resource base” needed to pay for the state’s ailing transportation infrastructure.

 

More at:

http://news.bostonherald.com/localPolitics/view.bg?articleid=174068

Director has Downeaster on the fast track

 

By TOM BELL, Staff Writer

 

Thursday, December 28, 2006

 

 

Patricia Quinn Douglas was never much interested in trains. She didn't even ride one until five years ago, at age 37.

 

Today, as executive director of the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority, she manages the Downeaster, the Amtrak service that runs between Portland and Boston.

Since she took the job in June 2005, revenue and the number of people riding the train have increased substantially. In the 2006 fiscal year, ridership rose 23 percent, the biggest gain in the entire Amtrak system. Revenue grew to $4.35 million, a 32 percent increase.

 

Full story at:

http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/state/061228seriesday5.html

Last summer, when at Amtrak's request she traveled to Ohio and Louisiana to talk about starting a train service, she began each presentation with the same line: "I don't come from this business. No one in my family ever worked for a railroad. I don't have a toy train in my basement."

 

I don't remember her coming to Ohio. And at Amtrak's request? To start what train service?

The reporter got it wrong.  She came to Ohio at ORDC's request for their Station Area Development Workshop and to get briefed on the Ohio Hub and give her insights on what it was like ramping up service along the Downeaster route.

 

I was able to spend a lot of time talking with her.  This is one very dynamic and saavy woman and very customer service oriented.  I also got the impression that the folks at the Guilford Railroad thought she was a pushover and found out quickly that she was a tough negotiator when it came to holding her ground on issues like track speeds and other right of way issues.

 

I'd love to have her working in Ohio, but she's got a good gig in Maine.

let's end the year on some utterly silly transit nonsense  :laugh:

 

 

December 30, 2006

Subway Riding Record Shattered!

 

 

Congratulations ot Brian Brockmeyer, Stefan Karpinski, Andrew Weir, Jason Laksa, Bill Amarosa and Michael Boyle (left to right) for shattering the 17 year old subway riding record and hitting all 468 stations in 24 hours, 54 minutes, and 3 seconds. Their website, Rapid Transit Challenge, is full of tidbits about their journey, and here's what they say about the finish:

 

- There were 75 transfers made over the course of the run

- We traveled on all but one of the 26 subway routes, missing the Z train

- The approximate distance covered during the run was 292.1 miles of track

- Our average speed was 11.7 miles per hour including all waiting time

- The total travel time was 18 hours, 8 minutes, 17 seconds

- The total waiting time was 6 hours, 45 minutes, 46 seconds

 

Bathroom breaks are a popular topic for questions. It was never really an issue for us during the ride. We drank only small amounts of liquids and visited four restrooms in the system at the following locations:

- Chambers St after getting off the C around 7:13pm

- 179 St after getting off the F around 12:59am

- Roosevelt Ave after getting off the V around 7:34am

- Lexington Ave/60th St after getting off the R around 1:05pm

 

Also awesome: Friends visited them on the route, bringing food, and transit workers were enthusiastic, with one conductor on a B train telling other riders, "Everybody, you should know you're riding on the train with the guys who are trying to break the record." And this chart showing how much ahead of the old record they were at each transfer? Brilliant.

 

 

But does this chart mean that subway service has gotten better? Hmm.

 

The team is submitting their results to the Guinness Book of World Records - they caveat it by saying it may take several months for the information to be officially accepted. Guinness, Schmuinness, they rule for their feat of transit endurance. We hope they put all sorts of other information up on the site after they've gotten some rest.

 

http://www.gothamist.com/archives/2006/12/30/subway_riding_r.php

 

 

 

 

 

Seattle Area residents fault light-rail decision process

 

By Ashley Bach

Seattle Times Eastside bureau

 

Sound Transit's decisions this month on light-rail routes through Bellevue were motivated more by frugality and politics than maintaining the quality of the system, say some west Bellevue neighborhood leaders.

 

The neighborhoods south of downtown have been most vocal about where they want the trains to go, and their preference is to run them near Interstate 405, either on 118th Avenue Southeast or an old rail corridor, and then perhaps through a tunnel under downtown.

 

More at:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/eastsidenews/2003501963_eastlink30e.html

MARTA studies closing rail gaps

Stations too few and too far between

 

By PAUL DONSKY

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 01/02/07

 

Nearly three miles separate the Arts Center and Lindbergh rail stations on MARTA's north-south line.

 

In transit terms, that's a vast gap. Most people will walk no more than a half-mile to catch a train or bus, experts say.

 

Find this article at:

http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2007/01/01/metmarta0102a_3DOT.html 

 

Good info for Columbus, Cincinnati, Toledo, Dayton and Cleveland which are considering downtown streetcars. Lots of comments follow...

 

http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/2007/01/ding_ding_ding_went_the_trolle.aspx#more

 

Ding, ding, ding went the trolley

 

Perhaps you noticed a cartoon today in the Democrat-Gazette. It poked a little fun at the low ridership of the River Rail streetcar.

 

Keith Jones, executive director of Central Arkansas Transit, certainly noticed. He sent a letter around to various folks noting the relatively high ridership of the trolley compared with bus routes and noting that the Democrat-Gazette puts newspaper boxes at several stops, which must mean something, right?

 

His letter is on the jump.

 

Readers' thoughts?

 

UPDATE: The Argenta News blog notes that it has been bulldogging this issue for a good while, most recently yesterday, and calling for months for a monthly pass for trolley users. The Argenta blogger believes the streetcar is more tourist attraction than transit. And another reader wonders about the lack of marketing, pointing to Portland as a city that promotes its rail transit, sells advertising and otherwise seems to be making it work.

 

MEMO FROM KEITH JONES

 

The 2006 ridership for River Rail Streetcar has just been tabulated at 121,500.  Considering the low ridership during the extremely hot August, and the slowdown  in summer tourism  due to the high gas prices, I am very pleased with the ridership.  The two streetcars (we only put the third car out on peak Saturdays and for other special events) would be in the top tier of our highest ridership bus routes.    That is why T. Boone Pickens, who made and makes millions by filling up our cars with gasoline,  in his talk to the Little Rock Regional Chamber last month, said "you ought to be building more rail".

 

Since the streetcar opened in November 2004, more than $260 million in private and public projects have been started within two blocks of the line.  Most of these developments will open for business in 2007, generating even higher ridership.  The opening of the extension to the Clinton Library and Heifer International will add at least 2,000 riders per month.  We recently learned that from National Archives officials that River Rail will be the first light rail line of any type to serve a presidential library.

 

As more and more attractions come on line, and as more people move to the two downtowns, ridership trends will continue upward.    Many conventions coming here 2007 are buying "convention passes"  and promoting the streetcar to their groups as a way to get around the two downtowns.  We are working on some options  for the Board to consider for multiple-ride or monthly  passes for local users, as we are getting more and more requests for that.  Two weeks ago, even though we operated a free bus shuttle that carried thousands to the recent sellout of the Tran Siberian Orchestra  concert at Alltel Arena, more than 300 riders paid the streetcar fare to ride it to the event. 

 

The River Rail line continues to get great publicity around the nation.  It is featured in the new book "Street Smart", was mentioned in a Washington Post article last week concerning the efforts of that city to build a similar line, and is scheduled to be in, of all things, Southern Living magazine, in a few months!  The yellow and red cars have become an icon, and are used in countless print and electronic ads promoting businesses and events in the two downtowns.  Delegations from Lancaster PA and St. Charles, Mo are the most recent visitors here on "study missions" to learn how we got the streetcar line built.

 

When the County, Little Rock, and North Little Rock asked CATA to build a streetcar line back in 1996, the Board and staff had plenty of questions, conducted studies with lots of public participation and input, and came up with a very successful project.  It was built at one of the lowest cost-per-mile figures of any light rail project in the past 20 years. 

 

By the way, without commenting on any editorial opinion you may have noticed today, a statewide daily newspaper places its vending boxes on several of the River Rail platforms.  Their circulation department must know something.

 

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this is just a fantastic good samaritan hero story that has been at the top of the local news:

 

Good Samaritan Risks Life To Save Man On Subway Tracks

 

January 02, 2007

 

A Good Samaritan jumped onto the tracks at a Manhattanville subway station at 137th Street and Broadway Tuesday afternoon to save the life of a stranger who had fallen after having an apparent seizure.

 

The man stumbled off the platform onto the tracks, where he could have been killed if not for the heroic efforts of 50-year-old Wesley Autrey who did the unthinkable and jumped onto the tracks with a train approaching.

 

some video here:

http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=5&aid=65571

 

more story:

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/col/story/485439p-408708c.html

 

And it's been on CNN, MSNBC and everywhere else.

From Trains Magazine...

 

In Salt Lake City, mass transit is a priority

Print | Email | Contact Us

January 3, 2007

 

 

SALT LAKE CITY - The Salt Lake County Council and county mayors endorsed a list of mass-transit projects in December 2006 that will be funded through a quarter-cent sales-tax hike that voters approved in November. Over the next 10 years. a network of commuter rail and light-rail transit lines will span the Salt Lake Valley, the Deseret Morning News newspaper reported. Officials approved funding for four projects, three of which are mass transit.

 

In total, $2.5 billion will be spent on commuter rail, TRAX light-rail lines to West Valley and South Jordan, and on repairs to Interstate 80. Officials with the Utah Transit Authority said that funding those projects also would free other dollars to build TRAX light-rail lines to Salt Lake City International Airport and to Draper, Utah. TRAX already runs a north-south line from the capital city southward.

 

The West Valley line will require $700 million to build, with the sales-tax money coverin g $450 million of that cost. The South Jordan line will be about $750 million, which will all come from the sales-tax increase.

 

Commuter rail will cost about $1.3 billion to build, with all of the cost covered by the sales tax. The first segment of the commuter rail system, to be called FrontRunner and operate between Salt Lake City and Pleasant View, just north of Ogden, began construction in 2005 and is scheduled for completion in 2008.

 

UTA general manager John Inglish promised the agency would build all four TRAX lines and commuter rail in the next seven to 10 years. "This means we have a lot of work to do, and we're committed to it," Mike Allegra, chief capital-development officer for UTA told the News.

 

When built, the transit lines will put 70 percent of county residents within three miles of a TRAX station, he told the News.

 

###

Glad to know I'm not the only one who reads Trains magazine.

 

There's an encouraging piece in the February issue about the breadth of pro-rail ballot proposals that passed this past November. ("November elections show strong support for transit").

 

Unfortunately, the article doesn't appear to be online, not even for SUBSCRIBERS like my three year-old son.

 

The nerve.

this thread makes me sad. (and want to move)

Salt Lake City welcomes you with open Mormons.

And it's been on CNN, MSNBC and everywhere else.

 

i didnt know that. figures.