Random thoughts #19

1. This says a lot about the nation's transit policy that a successful rail agency is in this position
2. When it comes to possible replacements at the Miami Airport Station in the wake of Amtrak's snub, the city and state couldn't go wrong by urging upstart Lunatrain to occupy the space
3. Ms. Christensen is spot on when it comes to the costly feasibility studies--sometimes, it seems as though they're done as a way of discouraging new passenger train service. In the recent past, it was Amtrak that conducted this practice in order to wave away states that wanted new or restored train service
4. The Northstar was set up to fail in Minnesota
5. After thinking it over the last couple of months, I now understand why the historic location in Palmer, MA was rejected, but it would have provided the perfect connectivity. Imagine traveling from Springfield on Compass Rail and transferring to the Central Corridor to continue onto Storrs, CT to watch a UConn basketball game. A direct Amtrak-New England Central transfer would have done wonders
6. Potential good news for a troubled commuter rail system
7. Some places get it and some don't
8. The current POTUS spent two out of the last three elections complaining about China having faster trains than America but has done next to nothing to catch up, and the Texas fiasco tells me all I need to know about what he really thinks about trains

Amtrak's final verdict on the Miami Airport Station

It's official: Amtrak is staying put at the Hialeah location. It took eight years, but I told ya so! Amtrak management has had a history of standing up communities that built new stations so this isn't anything new. Previously, Salt Lake City was the largest city to receive the cold shoulder. Now, Miami has gotten the same treatment.

The Floridian is coming back...sort of

For the first time in 45 years, Amtrak is providing direct Chicago-Florida service, but if you read the fine print--from the horse's mouth itself--it becomes evident very quickly that it's just a combination of the Silver Star and Capitol Limited and that it's only happening because the East River Tunnels in NYC are being rehabilitated.

This temporary route will use the Broadway Limited/Three Rivers old numbers of 40 and 41, which may be more of a preview of the Long Distance Service Study version of the Floridian, which will serve Atlanta instead of Birmingham (side note: since the Midwest Connect route is a corridor route, it's very likely that the Chicago-Fort Wayne-Columbus-Pittsburgh route will get triple-digit numbers).

What this means for the long-heralded New York-Florida service is that it will once again be reduced to one frequency. For most of 2022, it was the Silver Star that was picking up the slack while the Silver Meteor was suspended due to Covid-19 related issues. Now, it'll be the Meteor having to ferry all the people north of D.C. This is where an extended Palmetto would have been helpful. 

Random thoughts #16

1. The FRA Long-Distance Study is definitely a nice start, but the whole thing of Amtrak being the only operator of the revived routes rubs me the wrong way (entities like AIPRO operators partnering with other companies as part of my rail consortium should also be a part of new long distance routes). That issue aside, I am willing to give this a shot because adding back some long distance routes is something that should have been done more than a decade ago. Existing areas should be amplified and other regions without service should be represented so people aren't forced to make lengthy transfers to New York, D.C. or Chicago.
2. The feds could be forcing Amtrak to focus more on overnight routes than state-supported routes, which would reorient the company into focusing on serving the entire nation rather than just the Northeast. 
3. Another thing about this possible decentralization of Amtrak is that a future Congress could split Amtrak into two or three units and that Stephen Gardner or his successor could subsequently be the leader of only the Northeast Corridor once competition for intercity services is underway while the long distance person ends up being more tuned into the overnight trains.
4. There's no excuse for North America not being more electrified.
5. Ever since the threat of a rail strike loomed back in the fall, there have been calls to nationalize the railroads with one YouTuber even wanting the feds to recreate Conrail at the Class I level. I've been mixed on the idea. I've long understood that railroads are businesses first, but on the other hand, the major railroads have shot themselves in the foot way too many times--lobbying to keep a late 1860s braking system in place rather than adjusting to the 21st century, Precision Scheduled Railroading, the sick day fiasco that almost led to the railworkers striking in the first place.
6. Regarding the station situation in Jacksonville, the Regional Transit Center opened in May 2020 to buses and the elevated Skyway trains. The JTA and FDOT have discussed moving Amtrak closer to downtown since the late '00s. The city's proposed commuter services list the JRTC as the downtown location rather than the Prime Osborn Center. 
7. Speaking of the Osborn Center, the city has deemed the site of the historic Union Terminal as too small given that Jacksonville has lost out on events to cities the size of Daytona Beach. The city is pondering a new, larger convention center.
8. Once the City of Jacksonville has a new convention center in place, it will be possible for both Union Terminal and the JRTC to host passenger rail. Union Terminal: Amtrak, FDOT intra-Florida corridor service, Rail Consortium East, Rail Consortium Central. JRTC: Brightline, future HSR, Nightjet, JTA commuter rail.

Random thoughts #15

1. This is what happens when you have the largest city in the nation without passenger train service for the last 26 years and a state DOT that has been passive at best towards intercity rail. Leaders in Arizona are letting a golden opportunity slip by their fingers.
2. Connects US is proof that Amtrak President Stephen Gardner is the anti-matrix theory guy.

3. As I said almost a decade ago, Amtrak doesn’t have a funding problem, it has a management problem, and nothing emphasizes this more than the various equipment and mechanical issues that passengers have experience over the past year and a half.

4. Also, the way management handled the long-distance trains throughout this entire pandemic is way beyond appalling.

5. The gist of Disney's about face last month is that the organization is acting like a petulant child because how dare Brightline serve Mickey Mouse's competitors when the Disney organization only wanted the operator to cater to them

Open Access, American Style

On the issue of open access, this nation can learn from Great Britain's mistakes. A test run can be done in Florida where the state DOT can allow multiple entities to run passenger service on the same route. 

An example of what such a scenario would look like:

• Amtrak runs the Cross-Florida and FEC Local services
• Bombardier gets the Jacksonville-St. Petersburg A-Line and Jacksonville-Naples routes
• First Transit has Jacksonville-Venice and Tampa-Venice
• Herzog's lone route would be the Jacksonville-Miami A-Line
• Keolis runs the Panhandle and Tampa-Naples routes
• Transdev operates Miami and St. Petersburg S-Line routes out of Jacksonville

Florida by Amtrak

In the Fourth Quarter 2019 issue of Passenger Train Journal, Kevin McKinney took a look at the inverse relationship between Amtrak's presence in Florida and the state's population over the past half century. Going even further, the Sunshine State's rapid growth since the dawn of the 20th century should make one weep over how whittled down passenger service has become.

Even when the Seaboard Coast Line reluctantly handed its trains over to Amtrak, the combined Atlantic Coast Line and Seaboard Air Line entity had more than enough options for travelers. McKinney did a good job in describing the planning of which routes to incorporate into Amtrak. The more I think about it, the more likely that my alternative scenario would have happened had SCL management not been so concerned about ordering new equipment.

Cross-Florida service is something that the FDOT should be responsible for and reminds me of the free ride certain Midwest and Northeastern states were getting prior to PRIIA. Why no one in Congress has moved to rescind ex-congressman Mica's food service provision baffles me (maybe they'll address it in the next rail re-authorization bill but I doubt it).

Advertising has been absent outside the Northeast Corridor for years

The lack of advertising and the failure to recognize winter peak season tells me that Amtrak is has long blown off the state and that it merely tolerates what it already has. The reduced consists speak for themselves

Florida's population has tripled since Amtrak was formed while the the national operator has not only decreased its footprint but is now being lapped by Virgin's Brightline, which has 32 trains even though it's still a glorified commuter route until the Orlando Airport extension is completed. Other metro areas in the state have taken a look at Sunrail and Tri-Rail and are exploring their own commuter systems, and it's up to the folks in Tallahassee to get it together. If the executive and legislative branches do in fact patch everything together by using the Sunrail model and cut Amtrak out of the picture, it may be game over for Amtrak's share.

To be in decline in a booming market is certainly not an impressive feat. To actually be making service less appealing instead of finding ways to improve and grow the business suggests it is time to officially redefine the mission of what a national rail passenger carrier should be, finance it properly, and find management--or a new organization--capable of running a high-quality, growth-oriented business.

Indeed.Amtrak turns 50 next spring and there should be some very hard questions over what a national rail carrier should look like (hint: new operators with new approaches to grow the market). Florida is untapped potential and it's being taken advantage of by Brightline, not Amtrak.

A wasted decade

Around this time a decade ago, the passenger rail community was gearing up for President Obama's announcement of high speed rail funding and it looked like a renaissance was upon us. Rather than the sky being the limit, here's what actually happened:

• The infamous Tea Party backlash that resulted in Wisconsin (Hiawatha extension to Madison), Ohio (3C Route) and Florida (Express HSR Tampa-Orlando-Miami route) returning their stimulus money to the feds
• A trade group composed of Amtrak's commuter competitors being formed but ignored by the press and blacked out among most rail activists
• A failed attempt by Senators Dick Durbin and Harry Reid to drive private operators out of the commuter business
• A successful power play by Joe Boardman, the NEC congressional slate and NARP that kept the Northeast Corridor from being rehabbed based on a clever yet deceitful PR campaign
• The Hoosier State being eliminated
• The loss of the Silver Star diner
• No advocacy for the long distance routes from the people who matter the most
• Congress passing another rail reform bill but failing to enforce competition provisions
• Amtrak stripping ticketing and checked baggage from numerous stations throughout the country
• An ex-airline executive currently runs Amtrak and has alienated almost everyone with his moves

The status quo has prevailed and there has been little progress in the 10 years since. The vast majority of rail advocates have exposed themselves as little more than a bunch of Amtrak shills. As far as NARP, its name change is pretty much an indication that it is taking a step backward.

Gulf Coast Service: The Latest

Recently, part of the Sunset East Route between Pensacola and Jacksonville was sold by CSX to RailUSA-owned Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad.

Just when railfans were trying to figure out what the sale meant for the odds of passenger service being restored, Mississippi Senator Roger Wicker announced that service will return to the western portion of the Sunset East Route between New Orleans and Mobile.

The catch is right there: Only the CSX portion of the Sunset East is involved. It would be up to FG&A to restore the easternmost portion and even then, there would still be a gap between Mobile and Pensacola because neither Alabama nor Florida has shown an interest in restoring passenger service. If only the affected states (Louisiana, which is also paying for the restored service, is the fourth state involved) had actually talked to SNCF, that portion of the country would already have some kind of passenger service. After all, it was Virgin's interest in a Charlotte-Atlanta route for example that forced Amtrak to look at that same area for expansion earlier this year. Had SNCF tapped Keolis to run the 620-mile route, it may have motivated Amtrak management to at least restore the Sunset Limited or produce an entirely new route.

So, what we'll end up with is a third incarnation of the Gulf Coast Limited--the first one ran in the mid 1980s and the second one ran in from mid 1996 to mid 1997. The second version didn't even operate on a flipped schedule vis-à-vis the Sunset Limited--Train #24 operated about two hours earlier than #2 while #23 operated 2-3 hours earlier than #1. That said, an opportunity arises where dueling roundtrips could provide consistent ridership. Not to mention, a revived Gulf Breeze that is extended to the Crescent City should also be on the table after 2021.

2018 Midterms and Rail

Here are my rapid fire responses to the midterms and their impact on passenger rail.

West Coast
CA: The incoming governor may shift which segments of CAHSR get built next. When it comes to the main opponents of the project, two out of the three are gone—Valadao and Denham lost their House races but McCarthy will become the new House Minority Leader.

Southwest
NM: Here’s to hoping that Michelle Lujan Grisham is vastly more pro-rail than her predecessor.

Midwest
MN: Maybe the second Chicago-Twin Cities frequency will accelerate now.
WI: Governor No Train is finally ousted and he lost based on a rule that he created that prevented a recount by a certain margin. Serves him right.
IA: Kim Reynolds holding onto the governor’s mansion and soon to be serving a full term means that a Quad Cities-Omaha extension will be off the table for at least another four years.
IL: Once the Quad Cities route gets up and running, the question is which route will be next on the agenda. The Black Hawk revival? Rockford service? Something else?
OH: Oh dear, Mike DeWine had the most ambiguous position out of the four gubernatorial candidates in regards to transit needs, which may mean the status quo in Columbus.

Southeast
AL: Earlier this year, Kay Ivey passed on providing money to reviving the Mobile-New Orleans Gulf Coast Limited route. That seemed to conclude a spat between the governor and the Southern Rail Commission but a couple of weeks later, advocates pressed forward with building a new station in Mobile. Ivey got elected to a full term but is less inclined to even support any type of passenger rail than her predecessor, who at least explored the possibility of a PPP before an impeachment threat forced him to step down.
GA: As to what the new governor will do in advancing passenger rail, your guess is as good as mine. If anything, Georgians may be better off hoping that Sir Richard’s venture serves the Atlanta-Charlotte market in the interim.
FL: It will be up to the public to push Ron DeSantis to implement a statewide rail system to connect Floridians. Over the past six or so years, region after region has expressed its interest in reviving rail service in some capacity. Now is the time to not only provide a system but to also prove that a state can develop on without Amtrak. Don’t just leave everything to Brightline/Virgin.
NC: Roy Cooper can now veto rail-unfriendly legislation, which would be a sigh of relief for mass transit.

Northeast
CT: We shall see if the new governor is more open to funding the Housatonic and New England Central routes now that the Hartford Line is finally up and running. 
MA: Conversely, we’ll also see if Charlie Baker and the legislature are able to produce any new routes in the Bay State.
ME: Hopefully, the Pine Tree State will move out of its neutral position and develop more routes.

Alternative History #7

Scenario

An agreement is reached between Florida East Coast management and employees, averting a strike

Point of Departure

1963

Storyline A (Seaboard merges with Southern and the ACL merges with N&W)
Amtrak doesn’t serve Florida in 1971 since the three Class I railroads still do. Governor Lawton Chiles chooses corridor service over the high speed Florida Overland Express in 1996, effectively killing future efforts for high speed rail in the state. The Florida Rail System is formed the following year.

In 1993, the Norfolk Coast Line interlines its Gulf Wind route with Amtrak to provide true bicoastal service. A dozen years later, Amtrak withdrew its support citing unreliable Union Pacific timekeeping out west.

Today’s Likely Outcome

There are only modest changes to the schedules.  

Storyline B (the Ripley Plan is adopted)

The FEC became a subsidiary of Southern Railway long before the 1970s in the same way the LIRR is a subsidiary of the ACL (the FEC route officially became a Southern route in 1992). 

In 1997, Congress responded to growing state interest in corridor service by transferring routes that are less than 500 miles long to the states. It was at this point that the former FEC routes were handed over to the FL DOT. Eleven years later, Congress increased the corridor length to 750 miles in response to interstate pacts.

Today’s Likely Outcome

East Coast service is increased alongside Southern’s presence in Florida. There are two overnight frequencies along the route. Due to the increase in intrastate service, the railroads alter their schedules so that certain trains provide overnight service in Florida

Storyline C (the SCL holds out of joining Amtrak)
The Southeast Rail Coalition was formed in the late 1980s to expand passenger rail in Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida so passengers have more daytime options. 
FEC rebranded its overnight routes in 2001 as a premium, all-sleeper service. A few years later, other Class I railroads were so envious of CSX’s success that they got Congress to pass a provision in PRIIA that allows intercity competition against Amtrak.
The Miami Intermodal Center opened ten years ago and continues to serve Amtrak, CSX and FL DOT passenger trains.

Today’s Likely Outcome

Amtrak’s frequency remains as is, CSX promotes several routes to year-round status, the FEC has added another roundtrip, and the FL DOT system continues its expansion.

Storyline D (the FEC competes with Amtrak for Jacksonville-Miami passengers)

Throughout the 1970s, the FEC was very leery of interlining with Amtrak due to there being no other private railroads available. In the mid to late 1980s, FEC agreed to allow commuter service in South Florida as I-95 is being widened. About a decade later, Tri-Rail’s service between downtown Miami and Jupiter intrigues state officials so much that it explores similar service along the CSX route. The result was the 1998 launch of Amtrak Florida. With double decker cars in tow, the first routes the state launched were Orlando-Miami and Tampa-Miami. The state extended service to Jacksonville in 2000 along both the A and S Lines. A daytime Jacksonville-Pensacola route was launched in 2005, months before Hurricane Katrina suspended Sunset Limited service east of New Orleans.

At the turn of the millennium, Amtrak targeted Southwest Florida as a part of its short-lived Mail & Express expansion plan. In late 2004, the national carrier decided to pull out of the Tampa market rather than the S-Line once it terminated carrying mail (the Silver Star is put back on the route once the Palmetto is cut back to Savannah). Sunrail launched service in 2006 without any difficulties.

In the fall of 2011, FL DOT objected to the Section 209 PRIIA provisions and terminated its agreement with Amtrak two years later (this move made Indiana the second state to hold out of the PRIIA standards), opting to contract with Sunrail operator Bombardier at the beginning of 2014.

The FEC did a massive rebranding campaign in 2012: Local stops service became Coastal, night service became the Owl, and a new limited stop service was originally named All Aboard Florida (now known as Brightline) in advance of expansion to Tampa. 

Today’s Likely Outcome
The FEC opened new stations in Jacksonville, West Palm Beach, and Fort Lauderdale in 2014 with Miami Central replacing the old downtown location the following year. Service to Orlando Airport began two years ago while the extension to Tampa opened in time for the Memorial Day weekend last month. FEC now has over 40 frequencies around the clock as a result of the rebranding and expansion.


Divorcing itself from Amtrak has paid the FL DOT huge dividends as it rebranded the rail service as FLORail, added new frequencies, expanded to new cities, acquired new equipment, and taken over certain stations previously neglected by Amtrak. FLORail trains also serve the historic station in Jacksonville and the Miami Airport Station. The former was the result of FL DOT’s vision to relocate corridor trains and the latter happened because the state wanted to make things easier for airport travelers. One of FLORail’s biggest hits is the Panhandle route (a feasibility study on extending service to New Orleans is underway). Southwest Florida service to Venice and Naples is also in the works. 

As for Amtrak? Having its role reduced to being a bit player in the state, it decided to end service to smaller cities and to limit its southbound stops to discharge only and its northbound stops to receive only so no one can travel locally within Florida on Amtrak any more.

Tackling the Headlines 91

Amtrak to MIC next winter
Take: So, it looks like the national carrier is going to make the move after all. Also, check the last comment in this post.

Brightline latest

• Launch dates
• Expansion beyond Orlando
• Regulations
• Response by All Aboard Florida

Take: Even with the nonsense going on in Tallahassee, AAF perseveres.

TX HSR
Take: This measure is exposing the legislature's true colors on rail in general.

L.A. Metro Orange Line

Take: It will finally revert back to its original use.

Edited on 5/17/17: So, there's yet another twist in the Amtrak-MIC saga. So, this now means that everything I said the day after Christmas once again stands. Oh well.

Sunshine State musings 5

The latest with the Miami Intermodal Center is that the 28th Street bypass work was completed on August 12 but it doesn't look like Amtrak will move there anytime soon. My guess is that the carrier may be disinterested in relocating because it doesn't want to do 14 miles of backup moves each day.

It is worth noting that the MIC was built primarily with high speed rail in mind. Given that the Florida HSR has been dormant for almost six years, it is unlikely that the project is coming back--even with a pro-HSR governor in 2019. Another factor is that the previous Amtrak leadership and FDOT officials clashed over platforms, it's unlikely that a new Amtrak administration is going to be any more receptive to leaving the current station in Hialeah, nor that it's going to revive talks with state officials.

So, the end result is that Miami will end up with three separate train stations: Hialeah for long distance trains, an oversized airport location for Tri-Rail, and a grand downtown station for express intercity trains and select Tri-Rail trains.

The only possible thing to alleviate the MIC's potential under-utilization is for the FDOT to step up and implement corridor service in the vein of Sunrail and California Corridor and having such trains using the Airport Station.

Of course, to get to an intra-Florida passenger rail system, the current government has to either be voted out or step down in less than two years' time because as it turns out, Amtrak was the one to reach out to Florida on providing in state service but the state said no thanks.

A twist to Gulf Coast service

Here's something no one's thought about: Extend the Gulf Coast Service to Miami.

That move alone would take it out of the PRIIA 750 mile requirement by making the route 1,033 miles long. A Tampa extension is doable but at 787 miles long, it's barely outside of the area where the four states would have to fund the route.

As I have said before, Amtrak would not operate this version of the route. Instead, it would be in the hands of an independent operator because it would be able to run the route at a lower cost and out of pride rather than the reluctance that has emanated from Massachusetts Avenue ever since PRIIA mandated the company to study restoring the missing link between New Orleans and Orlando. This would not preclude local routes from being operated by Amtrak in partnership with the Southern Rail Commission or regional service by Corridor Capital.

When it comes to Florida, I have the train stopping in two different locations in Jacksonville--the Marietta neighborhood in the west side of town and the Naval Air Station in the southwest portion--in order to avoid backup moves at Union Terminal. However, the Gulf Wind will be complemented by two Jacksonville-Pensacola roundtrips that will stop at the historic terminal as well as the Marietta stop. In Orlando, the trains will call the LYNX Central and Sand Lake locations home. For its eastern terminus, the Miami Airport will host the trains, which would really turn that station into an intercity hub for trains in addition to intrastate Florida service.

Tackling the Headlines 74

It's a tale of two proposed Miami passenger stations

The downtown location is about to begin construction while the airport hub continues to be delayed.

Take: All Aboard Florida will take much less time to complete its hub than the state of Florida will with its version. The miscommunication between "America's Railroad" and the Sunshine State and various money issues plays right into the hands of libertarians who want full-on privatization of passenger services.

New Cleveland intermodal center is on the way

This has been in the works for years but has been delayed due to cost.

Take: I'd like to wish city officials good luck since Union Terminal has only accepted electric trains throughout its history and hasn't had commuter service since 1977.

SNCF expresses interest in operating HSR in Texas

This bit of news is actually a reiteration of its plans over five years ago.

Take: If the French operator can actually launch this plan and keep the slimy lawyers at bay, then, this will provide Lone Star State passengers with alternative travel options and SNCF and Texas Central will provide their own type of matrix effect for high speed systems.

Minnesota getting serious about Zip Rail

There are some links in this story to get you going.

Take: I'll definitely be keeping an eye on this project as Gopher State officials are planning for the future--unlike some of their Midwestern neighbors.

Chinese proposing HSR in Canada?

The route would be between Toronto and Windsor.

Take: This is a long ways away--no matter who operates it--but another player has entered the game. Also, this route should be taken north along the Detroit River to link a potential Detroit-Chicago Express HSR route at a revamped Michigan Central Station so passenger can travel between T.O. and the Windy City either nonstop or with only one transfer in Motown.

Rail and the 2014 Midterms

Florida

Part 1

Only in the Sunshine State can up be down. Over the summer, Rachel Dovey and Fred Frailey talked about how backwards the rail picture was in the state--the Tea Party-backed incumbent governor Rick Scott backing the private All Aboard Florida against ex-governor Charlie Crist who clearly prefers the high speed project Scott scuttled.

Other actors in the AAF saga are Treasure Coast residents and politicians who have exhibited a nasty form of NIMBYism. It's like these people have never seen a train before. They chose to live near an area where a major railroad frequently runs trains so it's ridiculous for them to make all of those demands. I can't help but wonder if these residents are actually upset that after 14 years of unfulfilled promises Amtrak is still nowhere close to implementing East Coast service between Jacksonville and Miami. If Treasure Coast residents want someone to blame, they should be pointing the finger at the feds for not funding the route during stimulus mania. These alleged problems would have never come up if Amtrak were already running trains through the area.

Part 2

Now that Scott has been elected to a second term, All Aboard Florida should all but be in the clear to proceed so Treasure Coast residents need to get over themselves. It really is strange that the same governor who relied on a highly biased study to finish off an HSR project that operators like Virgin were ready to run could go down in history as the guy who restored Florida's status as a major passenger rail hub--albeit accidentally. 

As for Crist, it would have been next to impossible for him to have revived the Florida High Speed Rail route just due to the fact that he would've at best dealt with a House of Representatives who has zeroed out federal HSR funding ever since it flipped to the GOP four years ago. His adversarial stance towards AAF demonstrates the overall problem I have with most Democrats. The TC residents' resistance to private sector operators hurts passenger rail (a Metro Jacksonville moderator hit the nail on the head).

The biggest thing missing over the "which train project is better" debate is the fact that neither Crist nor Scott showed any interest in corridor service along existing routes. The way to have a robust system is to work with what you have. The infrastructure is in place so foresight and selecting operators committed to producing world class service are the only things needed.

Midwest

The only way passenger rail is going to advance in the Buckeye State is for communities and advocacy groups to continue taking the lead since John Kasich is guaranteed to leave Columbus in 2019. Given the recent fiasco in Indiana over the operation of the Hoosier State, I hope that All Aboard Ohio and other groups have enough foresight to talk to other operators about the Hoosier Extension and the Columbus-Chicago routes especially if Amtrak's a no-go.

Mark Dayton and Scott Walker won their reelection campaigns as well but by single digits. Dayton's DOT will continue picking up the whole price tab for not only the feasibility studies of a second Chicago-St. Paul frequency but when the trains actually operate. 

When it comes to the new equipment for the Midwestern trains, IL and MI will get their share and give WI leftovers. If anything, the Hiawathas will consist mostly of leftover Horizon Cars. Any Badger State resident hoping for rail service off of the Chicago-Milwaukee-La Crosse-St. Paul route had better pray that Ed Ellis not only turns the Varsity into a regular route but expands his shortline empire.

North Carolina

In Wake County, Democrats turned a 3-4 disadvantage on the Board of Commissioners into a 7-0 board. These results will make having a referendum on light rail easier. The trick will be convincing the voters to join its northwestern neighbors.

National Outlook

Barring a 2006-like backlash against right wing rule in D.C., HSR won't be getting a dime until 2023 at the earliest. Even though anti-HSR Californians will hold some powerful positions in the House and continue making life miserable for the CAHSR project, the nation's only Express HSR project to be funded with stimulus funds will rely on state and private sector financing until it begins service.

Amtrak will likely see its funding slashed--maybe even significantly--but the real question is whether the new Congress will allow real competition, which would be the national operator's primary threat. With both houses soon to be in the opposition's hands, the Grand Bargain should be front and center as the alternative to the now-myopic national HSR vision President Obama laid out 5 1/2 years ago. 

Noel Braymer's editorial on how Republicans are the only ones who can save the long distance trains may very well be tested now. In order to prove Amtrak's advocates wrong, the GOP should implement any one of the three suggestions Braymer laid out. Second, congressmen and women should talk to their constituents who are starving for more train service as well as advocacy groups who want more trains in their states but aren't relying on "America's Railroad."

TIGER grants will be phased out in all likelihood. The currently negotiated TIGER VII grants will be the last funds the Obama Administration gives out to rail operators of all stripes.

Sunshine State musings 4

As I alluded to last month, I'm using this article to blast opponents of All Aboard Florida. Two articles were published in depth about these NIMBYs.

The WKMG and Fred Frailey articles also showed just how misleading All Aboard Florida opponents have been. Given all of the complaining Treasure Coast residents have done, it's like these people have never seen a train before. They chose to live near an area where there's frequent service by a major railroad so demands like forcing Florida East Coast to move freight service to competitor CSX's tracks, make the Class II railroad only run fright trains at night, and cities wanting to be subsidized for alleged lost revenue once AAF begins service are way beyond ridiculous.

I can't help but wonder if Treasure Coast residents are lashing out because after 14 years of on and off pledges by Amtrak to serve the east coast of Florida, the national carrier is still nowhere close to turning a wheel. If they want someone to blame for Amtrak's unfulfilled promises, they should be pointing their fingers at the feds for not funding the FEC Jacksonville-Miami route during Stimulus Mania in 2010. Had the Obama Administration given the money for this route, the alleged problems these NIMBYs have all of sudden brought up would have never existed because Amtrak trains would be running through the area.

Tackling the Headlines 69

Passenger rail study moves forward

Take: The next step will be the actual report itself. One more step before the Santa Cruz area gets connected to commuter and intercity rail and makes San Jose a true rail hub.

House GOP bill would force Amtrak to rethink its insane boarding process

Take: Anything that forces Amtrak to act less than an airline and more than a railroad is fine with me.

Sacramento Siemens plant to build Florida high-speed rail cars

Take: Huh? I thought that Corridor Capital had AAF's equipment in the bag.

Addendum: Overhauled Amtrak Florida schedule

The Silver Star would split and be combined at Clifford Lane with only the FEC segment serving Union Terminal (a local FEC route will also serve the existing Amtrak station).  This way, Amtrak avoids having to back up at the historic station.  #91’s times have been altered because the Silver Star is expected to be put back on its original route between Petersburg and Raleigh upon SEHSR service starting. #92 has earlier times so it won’t siphon riders from #80 in North Carolina.

In order to preserve the Cross-Florida route (renamed the Silver Palm), the number of local frequencies (excluding the split Silver Star) along the FEC route has been reduced to one. The FEC Locals would be provided with surplus Horizon Cars on an interim basis (the Silver Meteor schedule is unchanged in both directions).

I have assumed that Metro Jacksonville’s rumors of a Palmetto extension to Jacksonville are verified and I've taken the extra step to send Trains #89 and #90 down the S-Line to Tampa via Ocala, once again allowing residents in that part of Florida to experience train travel. At that point, the Palmetto would be equipped with Viewliner I equipment and one of the last remaining Heritage baggage cars while the Silver Palm will get the Palmetto’s Business Class cars.

Amtrak would temporarily use this setup while the Florida DOT comes up with a plan to provide permanent corridor service. Once a plan is in place, Amtrak would likely concentrate on the Silvers and the local stops FEC service (frequencies would be doubled) and the A-Line, S-Line, and Cross-Florida local runs would then be franchised out to other operators.

SOUTHBOUND	Palmetto 89	Silver Star 91	Silver Star 991	Silver Palm 891	Silver Meteor 97	East Coast Local 875
New York	6:15	11:02	Thru Train		15:15
Washington	R9:05	R15:00			R19:30
Raleigh		19:17
Charleston	19:15				5:06
Savannah	21:08	2:32			6:50
Jacksonville-Clifford Lane	23:43	4:55			9:23
	23:58	5:25	5:50		9:48	15:00
Ocala	1:43
Winter Park		8:04			12:27
Orlando-Sligh Blvd		8:41			13:10
Tampa	3:33	10:24a
				12:45
Winter Haven				13:43b	14:24
Jacksonville-Union Terminal			R6:05			R15:15
St. Augustine			6:43			15:52
Daytona Beach			7:35			16:42
West Palm Beach-S. Tamarind Ave.			D11:01	D16:13	D16:54	D19:57
Fort Lauderdale-Broward Station			D11:49	D17:12	D18:02	D20:41
Miami-Central Station			12:27	18:20	19:10	21:18

NORTHBOUND	East Coast Local 872	Silver Meteor 98	Silver Palm 892	Silver Star 992	Silver Star 92	Palmetto 90
Miami-Central Station	6:15	8:05	11:35	14:00
Fort Lauderdale-Broward Station	R6:47	R9:00	R12:30	R14:35
West Palm Beach-S. Tamarind Ave.	R7:36	R9:57	R13:27	R15:29
Daytona Beach	10:42			18:45
St. Augustine	11:01			19:37
Jacksonville-Union Terminal	D12:18			D20:22
Winter Haven		12:10	15:44
Tampa			17:05 c
					14:47	1:57
Orlando-Sligh Blvd		13:35			16:54d
Winter Park		13:52			17:11
Ocala						3:47
Jacksonville-Clifford Lane	12:33	16:48		20:37	20:07	5:32
		17:08		Thru Train	20:57	5:47
Savannah		19:38			23:30	8:20
Charleston		21:23				10:00
Raleigh					6:54
Washington		D7:21			D11:11	D19:57
New York		11:06			15:13	23:47

D-Stops only to discharge passengers

R-Stops only to receive passengers

a-Stops in Lakeland at 9:50

b-Stops in Lakeland at 13:21

c-Stops in Lakeland at 16:04

d-Stops in Lakeland at 15:23