Trip on the Sunset Limited from Los Angeles to Yuma June 12th, 2010
Report and Photos by Mike Palmer, RailPAC correspondent, Torrance, CA
My work sent me on an assignment to Yuma, Arizona for two days, May 19-20. As luck would have it I was able to work my visit around train times – it also helped that there is limited LA – Yuma air service. (Side note: the locals said they usually drive to San Diego or Phoenix for flights. Either drive is 3 hours for them).
Tracking Rail News: May 2010 May 18th, 2010
Commentary and PHOTOS by Russ Jackson
. . . On Time Performance.
April was again a good month for the Amtrak western long distance trains. There were more “on time” than late, but when it was late was it late! The big exceptions were #6, the California Zephyr, was almost 11 hours late into Denver on April 23, but on other days in April it was close to OT every day; #7 the Empire Builder was late 168 minutes into Spokane on April 14, and its counterpart #8 was late almost 20 hours into Minneapolis on April 10. For the rest of the system, “close to OT” is the operative word and the medal for this month goes to Texas Eagle #22, which was OT or early into St. Louis every day but one, and that was on 4/2 when it was only 45 minutes late. For the FY, since October 1, 2009, the Sunset Limited has been OT close to 90%, and the Coast Starlight (photo) is now 88%. It’s almost getting to be non-news to comment on this topic. On the other hand, we looked at the Acela Express performance on April 6 and found since the FY began Acelas had been delayed 71,700 minutes. Nothing is perfect, even on the Northeast Corridor, but perfection is closer for the long distance trains in the west!
Our Vision for Rail in California and Nevada May 7th, 2010
CONNECTIONS! It’s all about connections. Depending on your journey you may live close to a station that has a direct service to your destination. But there’s a good chance that you’ll need to transfer, from bus to train, light rail to high speed rail, Surfliner to long distance Amtrak. RailPAC’s campaign is all about connections between these modes so that all of us can enjoy mobility without the automobile.
Our map attempts to portray the statewide system that we want to see over the next two decades. What it cannot show, but is equally important, is the electronic ticketing and information system that is needed to make passenger rail easy to use for 40 million Californians.
Amtrak California Railcar Development Open House April 26th, 2010
Report by Jarrod DellaChiesa, Director and Website Editor
As we all know, there are currently no funds available for new railcars. In 2006, Californians approved the procurement of new railcars through Proposition 1B. The budget crisis has caused the release of the Prop 1B bonds to be put on hold indefinitely.
In the midst of this, Caltrans is once again being a leader in intercity rail and is, on their own, working with Amtrak, other states, railcar builders, rail groups and riders to design the third generation of California Cars – a National standardized railcar. This design will allow any state to purchase railcars quickly, at a lower cost and will provide railcar manufactures an incentive to tool a shop for continuous building of bi-level intercity railcars. Since the cars are being designed now, once funds are released, a bid will be able to be sent out without further delays. Any state will be able to add onto the car order and make any minor modifications to suit their own needs.
Read the rest of this entry »
Steel Wheels in California Presentations April 20th, 2010
As promised, we are providing the files presented on April 17, 2010 at Steel Wheels in California, our annual RailPAC/NARP Joint Annual Meeting. Some files are large, so please be patient.
Tracking Rail News: April 2010 April 13th, 2010
Photos and Commentary by Russ Jackson
. . . On Time Performance. As usual, we start with some current facts, and then take an historical look at the Amtrak Western long distance trains. The Sunset Limited fell back slightly in March, but is still above 90% since October 1. Its companion, the Texas Eagle, also fell back to an acceptable 77%. The Southwest Chief is at 86%, the Empire Builder is 77%, the Coast Starlight is 88%, and the California Zephyr still struggles at 58% for end-point OTP. RailPAC correspondent, Ralph James, reports from Blue Canyon in the Sierra Nevada overlooking the UP main line that Zephyr #5 can be as much as 2 to 5 hours late while #6 is normally only several minutes down. Also, recent consists are back to three coaches after a few weeks running with only two. Now for history: According to the Fall, 1979, “CRC News”, the predecessor publication to this one, in “July, 1979 the OTP for the Starlight was 37.1% compared to 69.4% in July 1978; the Sunset is down from 50% to goose eggs; the Zephyr goes from a fatal 12.9 to an atrocious 33.9%.” What else is new? Read the rest of this entry »
Report and Photos by Russ Jackson
Originally published in the April 2010 “Tracking the News”
Tracking Rail News . . . for March 2010 March 9th, 2010
PHOTOS and Comments by Russ Jackson
. . . Amtrak Western On Time Performance. On February 19, Train #1, the Sunset Limited arrived at Los Angeles Union Station at 8:20 AM. Nothing remarkable about that since its due at 8:40, but as crew members will tell you they consider that arrival time as being late as they usually arrive in the 7 o’clock hour these days.
Introducing RailPACmobile! February 22nd, 2010
Reported by Jarrod DellaChiesa, RailPAC Director and Website Editor
As smartphone sales continue to grow, mobile sites are becoming increasingly popular.
Mobile sites take content available on a website and reformat it to look great on mobile platforms.
Today, we’re excited to announce
Connectivity Works for High Speed Rail Too February 9th, 2010
Commentary by Paul Dyson
Our RailPAC/NARP meeting in Las Vegas last December revealed one important nugget. Guest speaker, Desert Xpress (“DX”) CEO Tom Stone announced that the project team is planning to extend the Las Vegas – Victorville core route across the high desert to Palmdale where it will connect with the California High Speed Rail system. This is excellent news for those that believe in the matrix theory of connectivity and passenger train productivity. Read the rest of this entry »
