Rail-Related News, Tuesday, January 8, 2019

Posted on January 8, 2019 by admin
San Bernardino County leaders want to look at alternatives to Gold Line extension
Is upgrading Metrolink line a better option that light rail so far from Central L.A.?

Fixes to Del Mar Bluffs to go forward after series of collapses

Oklahoma City streetcar opens for business

Ride-hailing companies steal passengers from BART at Oakland and SF Airports

Flaggers return to Denver A-Line grade crossings, electronics problems still not solve

Fairfield OKs plan to rename its new train station after former legislator Tom Hannigan

New Walnut Creek BART station parking garage almost sold out before opening

First section of Seattle Sound Transit’s east line nearly completed

Sacramento has turned out to be a major train manufacturing center

So WHY is California’s high-speed rail so unpopular in the San Joaquin Valley?

A number of factors account for SalesForce Transit Center steel beam failures

City of Montclair’s plan for bringing Metro Gold Line to San Bernardino Count

New commuter rail line opens in Fort Worth, TX (Editor’s Update: opening delayed due to lack of Federal personnel to sign off on grade crossing inspections due to Trump shutdown)

100 Days and Counting: The Salesforce Transit Center shutdown continues

Another reason to take the train (or bus): 200,000 “clean” cars get bumped from HOV lanes

New steel beams ordered for Transbay Transit Center fi

The same crowd stays in control of the California High Speed Rail Authority board: Brown’s parting appointments

Amtrak wants to study NY Governor’s proposed fix for New York Subway L-line fixes for its own tunnels under the Hudson River

Soon-to-be-retired BART cars may be converted for a number of new uses such as AirB&Bs, homeless shelters, etc.

New streetcar in Oklahoma City a big success as weekend ridership exceeded 10,000 in trial runs

BART wants your ideas for creative re-use of soon-to-be-retired cars

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Rail-Related News, Saturday, December 15, 2018

Posted on December 15, 2018 by admin
Somewhere under downtown San Francisco…

Dan Walters: Newsom to inherit troubled bullet train project

California high-speed rail in review

Marina District NIMBYs may want extension of T-Third Subway from Chinatown in S.F.

Los Angeles Metro approves Green Line / Crenshaw Line operations plan

Competing firms want to start Milwaukee area commuter rail system based on real estate opportunities

San Diego considers its version of “Grand Central” station to bring together transit and airport

When will San Francisco’s Central Subway be extended to the Marina District?

Caltrans announces $600 million in funding for rail, transportation projects

City of Santa Rosa, SMART continue tug-of-war over proposed Jennings Ave pedestrian crossing

Answers in Transbay Transit Center broken beams expected in January 2019

Sacramento State University proposes self-driving shuttle minibuses, may connect 65th St LRT station

Los Angeles Metro begins process for developing aerial gondola to Dodger Stadium

Ten years of light rail transit in Phoenix, AZ

Cutting holes into Transbay Transit Center beams contributed to failure, investigators say

Visitors and locals ride the rails in Bay Area, like they did 100 years ago

Video: no date set for Salesforce Transit Center reopening into 2019

Do the newest BART cars reduce the famous “BART howl?” Transit advocates take test ride

Letter-designated rail lines coming to Los Angeles, to replace color coding

Southern California Metrolink keeping San Bernardino Line discounts

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Two Weeks of Rail News, Thanksgiving to December 7, 2018

Posted on December 15, 2018 by admin

BART getting quieter as wheels are re-turned to better design

Los Angeles Westside and South Bay disagree on how to connect future Crenshaw Line and existing Green Line light rail

Del Mar opposes safety fencing to keep people falling off their bluffs next to the railroad tracks

Four damaged rail cars arrive at SMART yard in Santa Rosa, delaying expanded service

California Cap & Trade revenues increase significantly, providing more funds for high-speed rail and other programs

NY governor Cuomo meets with Trump, says Trump “understands” need for additional Hudson River tunnels into New York City

Salesforce Transbay Transit Center not likely to reopen until sometime in 2019

After local homeowners sue over City of L.A. attempt to exempt his project from environmental rules, Elon Musk drops plans for West Los Angeles tunnels

Streetcars and development: “It’s Complicated”

Santa Rosa cancels little-used downtown SMART shuttle

San Mateo County voters give transportation sales tax measure bare 2/3 majority; some funding for Caltrain

New BART train toy both mocked, praised on Twitter

Bay Area bridge tolls to go up, again, in January 2019–no one shows up at public hearing to oppose future increases

Cuomo to Trump: Take Amtrak off Gateway Tunnel project. Multi-state authority for Northeast Corridor?

State audit recommends California High-Speed Rail Authority take construction management in-house, away from consultants

Buses, trains key to reaching proposed ~20,000 jobs “Googleville” in downtown San Jose

In light of declining ridership on its long-distance trains, Amtrak offering 2 for 1 roomette service

Santa Ana-Garden Grove streetcar breaks ground, obtains Federal grant approvals

S.F. Muni misses another deadline on T-Third construction

Alaska Railroad returns passenger and freight service to its entire route within a week of 7.0 earthquake

Ten years of high speed rail in China

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Happy Belated Thanksgiving!

Posted on November 26, 2018 by admin

It’s not a train, but…

“That’s not the real destination. Pass it on.”

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Rail-Related News, Friday, November 22, 2018

Posted on November 24, 2018 by admin


In downtown Toronto, Canada, lanes are given to streetcar riders, who outnumbered car users by at least two to one.

Voters reject California gas tax repeal, pass transit taxes in Florida, Texas

Milwaukee starts long-delayed downtown streetcar

First light rail cars arrive for Crenshaw.LAX line in Los Angeles

More on defeat of Proposition 6 that would have repealed the recent California gas tax increase

Marin passes transportation sales tax continuance, may help improve connections to SMART

San Mateo sales tax for transportation “too close to call” two days after election

About major transportation projects “spared the knife” from gas tax repeal’s defeat

The ongoing saga of the Salesforce Transbay Transit Center: determining cause of beam cracks to take even more weeks

Opening of BART extension to San Jose still a year away, though nearly 100% of construction is complete

How to increase streetcar ridership: Toronto shows how by giving streetcars their own lanes

Notice that trains and ferries tend to have lower operating costs and subsidies than most bus systems

Hey, I thought they already owned it! New York MTA purchases Harlem and Hudson Lines, Grand Central for $35 million

Cracks in Salesforce Transbay Transit Center due to bad materials, not flawed terminal design

BART unveils new entrance canopy at Powell Street station entrance

From the Dark Side(tm) Dept.: Bay Area freeways that were never built (video)

Gullible Mainstream Press(tm) Dept.: Despite this article, “Rolling Bordellos” unlikely to happen since AVs many decades away, if they arrive at all

A second BART Transbay Tube could happen

Gold Line construction authority mulls plan to deliver Gold Line LRT extension two years earlier

BART announces plan for 2nd Transbay Tube

Audit of CA high-speed rail program says rushing construction cost at $600 million, caused other delays and cost overruns

In move that may kill current L.A. Union Station plans, after FBI raid L.A. City Councilman stripped of assignments

Costs of California high-speed rail continue to grow

Crenshaw Line between mid-city Los Angeles and LAX may be delayed a year

Tacoma breaks ground on 2.4 mile streetcar extension, to open in 2022

Acquiring land from farmers in San Joaquin Valley for high-speed rail is a “lifetime job”

Morocco in Africa gets its first true high-speed rail line before North America

Opinion: California high-speed rail runs on deceit, should be scrapped

Another story on BART proposal for a 2nd Transbay Tube between Oakland and San Francisco

Amtrak San Joaquins facing ridership declines despite recent schedule changes

Well, dogs and coyotes are know to be transit riders. What about turkeys, perhaps trying to flee Thanksgiving? ;-0

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The Adventures of “Miss Alignment” at L.A. Union Station, Part Deux

Posted on November 5, 2018 by admin

It’s very attractive architecture inside Union Station, but it’s a jungle!

Episode Deux

Bureaucrats do nothing:

Dear Ms. MacAdams,

Thank you for contacting us to share your experience at Union Station on August 14.  We are sorry to hear your property was stolen and you had difficulty getting assistance from Union Station’s security and law enforcement.

Please know that the safety and security of our riders, as well as the patrons of Union Station, are a top priority to us.  While Metrolink security at Union Station is limited to our train platforms, we will follow up with Metro to see how we can be of support.

If you have any questions about Metrolink service, please visit our website at www.metrolinktrains.com or call us at (800) 371-5465.

Sincerely,

Metrolink Customer Relations

 

Moral: Watch your valuables at Los Angeles Union Station! If they get lifted, you’re out of luck!

 

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