The Rail Passenger Association of California took several positions regarding current rail passenger issues at its Board meeting July 8, 2006, in Oakland. RailPAC vigorously supports the startup of the Coast Daylight train, which will operate between downtown San Francisco’ s Caltrain Station and Los Angeles Union Station daily. This project has been in the…
By Frank Busalacchi –Travelers across America and throughout California are voting in record numbers for expanded passenger-rail service in the United States. These “votes” are coming in the form of record passenger-rail ridership. Amtrak ridership increased in fiscal year 2005 to 25,374,998, marking the third straight year of passenger gains for the national intercity passenger…
By Richard Silver, Executive Director — RailPAC has just heard that there will be a change in the California portion of the Sunset Limited Route in the Ontario/Pomona area. Specifically, the train will follow the current route out of LA Union Station, stop at the Pomona station, and then after leaving Pomona will change to…
By Noel Braymer, Editor, Western Rail Passenger Review –Since last October, the COAST STARLIGHT on-time performance has dropped to about 2%. Most of the delays happen between Dunsmuir, California, and Chemult, Oregon. In this mountainous area rail breaks are so common that welding crews can’t keep up with the repairs and 10 mph slow orders…
A SPECIAL REPORT by Anthony Lee, RailPAC director, Oakland — The proposed schedule is designed to provide advance train schedule of the Coast Starlight train 11/14, since the Coast Starlight is often sold out during peak periods such as holidays and during the summer period Given the significant population growth along the Central Coast as…
(Op-Ed from the San Jose Mercury News, Published July 23, 2006) By Arthur L. Lloyd and Paul Bendix — Bay Area Amtrak service to Seattle and Los Angeles has declined so dramatically that state rail agencies must intervene. The Coast Starlight, once the most popular train in America, now limps into San Jose hours late,…
By Paul J. Dyson, RailPAC President — It may come as a surprise that a 40 year veteran of passenger and freight rail advocacy is opposed to the idea of reopening the former Southern Pacific line linking Santa Clarita with Ventura (“the Santa Paula line”). The line parallels the busy state highway 126 for most…
Sacramento — Reported by Russ Jackson. Highlights: Improvement seen in on time performance of San Joaquins (photo) New engineer crew districts Two new studies in the works, and an interesting possibility of a new rail line south of Bakersfield Yosemite service to return New ACE train starts August 28, connecting with San Joaquins Liz O’Donoghue…
By Noel Braymer, Editor, Western Rail Passenger Review — The biggest turn-off for most people using public transportation is the need to transfer between services to make connections to get to where they want to go. It has been estimated that half the potential ridership on a trip is lost each time people have to…
By Ralph James Railroad Operations.All three routes we used, California Zephyr, Empire Builder and Coast Starlight, incurred very substantial delays enroute. The causes of delay, however, were very different on each route, as were the operating responses of the host railroad.