BaltACD wrote the following post 11 hours ago: If the race organizers would design their course so that the rail crossing is very near the start, the time the rail route would need to be blocked would be minimized - if the rail crossing is near the finish line the rail line blockage is maximized. I have no idea of the route that was designed in Sacremento.
If the race organizers would design their course so that the rail crossing is very near the start, the time the rail route would need to be blocked would be minimized - if the rail crossing is near the finish line the rail line blockage is maximized. I have no idea of the route that was designed in Sacremento.
Given that the crossing on L street is a couple of blocks from the Capitol Building which appears to be the finish line, the potential disruption to the UP is maximised....
M636C
All this reminds me of some of the sailboat races around here from New Orleans to Gulfport, MS and N.O. to Pass Christian, MS. There are four drawbridges on the way, and if a boat was delayed by one, the skipper was on his honor to log the time of the delay and receive credit for it. A fellow sailor laughingly referred to them as the lying races.
_____________
"A stranger's just a friend you ain't met yet." --- Dave Gardner
The cyclists at the back probably weren't complaining too much...
M636C Having checked a map of Sacramento, I realise that the UP line in question is the former Western Pacific line that runs north to south through basically downtown Sacramento only a a couple of blocks from the Capitol building. It is at street level all the way, but only major streets cross the line, minor streets are cut by the line. The SP runs east-west basically north of town and is not relevant to the foot race. I expect that the line can cope with normal traffic on the major streets, but the impact of closing the line for a number of hours to allow all of the runners from leaders to stragglers would impact rail traffic. If the runners would agree to wait for trains as normal traffic does, there would be no problem. I've found Sacramento to be quite pedestrian friendly, but I've never asked UP to stop trains for me. M636C
Having checked a map of Sacramento, I realise that the UP line in question is the former Western Pacific line that runs north to south through basically downtown Sacramento only a a couple of blocks from the Capitol building. It is at street level all the way, but only major streets cross the line, minor streets are cut by the line.
The SP runs east-west basically north of town and is not relevant to the foot race.
I expect that the line can cope with normal traffic on the major streets, but the impact of closing the line for a number of hours to allow all of the runners from leaders to stragglers would impact rail traffic.
If the runners would agree to wait for trains as normal traffic does, there would be no problem.
I've found Sacramento to be quite pedestrian friendly, but I've never asked UP to stop trains for me.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
And in some cases they do block off limited access roads for bicyclists. Every once in a while we have foot races on the Ben Franklin Bridge, and I'm participating in 2 fundraising bikeathons, cancer society and survivors of dead police officers and fire fighters, which not only use the bridge but also several miles of the limited access US 30 on the bridge's east side.
The authorities are pretty weird. They close the bridge's automobile lanes to all traffic about half an hour before the bikeathon starts. And I mean ALL traffic, they won't even let bicyclists like me, a New Jersey resident, who are participating in the bikeathon bike west over the highway lanes to get to the Philadelphia start. Instead I have to use the bike path.
Here's another example
http://www.mackinacbridge.org/annual-bridge-walk-7/
The two EAST lanes on the bridge are used by walkers until 9:30 a.m. and the two WEST lanes by vehicular traffic. After 9:30 a.m. only one EAST lane is available to walkers.
Patrick Boylan
Free yacht rides, 27' sailboat, zip code 19114 Delaware River, get great Delair bridge photos from the river. Send me a private message
Rader Sidetrack Scaramento CA 'half marathon' race stopped by Union Pacific Railroad: http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article18807495.html Here is the first part of that article. Click the link to read the rest. Every year for a decade, organizers of Sacramento’s Kaiser Permanente Women’s Fitness Festival took care of an important detail without much difficulty: asking Union Pacific Railroad permission for runners to cross the train tracks that separate midtown from downtown. Kim Parrino, the event’s race director, put in the request to the railroad for safe passage for about 4,000 participants in a June 5K and half-marathon back in September. She got the return call two weeks ago. And for the first time ever, the answer was no. “It was a very short conversation,” she said. Parrino was forced to cancel the half marathon portion of the fitness festival and reroute the 5K so it doesn’t cross the Union Pacific track. Note the linked article mentions both the incident in Texas and also the one in Paris, France. ead more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article18807495.html#storylink=cpy
Scaramento CA 'half marathon' race stopped by Union Pacific Railroad:
http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article18807495.html
Here is the first part of that article. Click the link to read the rest.
Every year for a decade, organizers of Sacramento’s Kaiser Permanente Women’s Fitness Festival took care of an important detail without much difficulty: asking Union Pacific Railroad permission for runners to cross the train tracks that separate midtown from downtown. Kim Parrino, the event’s race director, put in the request to the railroad for safe passage for about 4,000 participants in a June 5K and half-marathon back in September. She got the return call two weeks ago. And for the first time ever, the answer was no. “It was a very short conversation,” she said. Parrino was forced to cancel the half marathon portion of the fitness festival and reroute the 5K so it doesn’t cross the Union Pacific track.
Kim Parrino, the event’s race director, put in the request to the railroad for safe passage for about 4,000 participants in a June 5K and half-marathon back in September.
She got the return call two weeks ago. And for the first time ever, the answer was no.
“It was a very short conversation,” she said.
Parrino was forced to cancel the half marathon portion of the fitness festival and reroute the 5K so it doesn’t cross the Union Pacific track.
Note the linked article mentions both the incident in Texas and also the one in Paris, France.
Thanks to Chris / CopCarSS for my avatar.
gardendanceAnd what snail wouldn't want to drive around in a fancy stylish vehicle and have the envious onlookers say to each other "look at that S car go"?
Of course, if the snail were in California, the onlookers might be envious indeed... Yes, they'd make 'em fly!
"S car go For sure please send me more snail jokes ha Laughed for a good time"
-- Shane crites, on the Boy Scout Trail web site, May 16, 2014
You caught me, I guess I'll have to admit that I'm Ray's child, and am delelpementally challenged, especially at 4am. I was trying to make fun of BaltAcd's post where he said California is the home of the car, when in my opinion California is no more car friendly than most of the rest of the world. Maybe they lead early, but other places have caught up.
And what snail wouldn't want to drive around in a fancy stylish vehicle and have the envious onlookers say to each other "look at that S car go"?
gardendanceIn general the industrial delelped world, like the part we see in the video in this thread's first post, is the world of the car.
How did trackrat888 hack gardendance's account?
What about a French rural road, no shoulders and looking about 3 meters wide at most, is supposed to be typical of 'the industrial delelped world' (whatever that is; I assume it means 'developed'), or demonstrate that it is part of a "world of the car"?
In a true world of the car there would be an overpass, a wider road, better crossing protection than a couple of arms that bicyclists easily interfere with or go around en masse. And if that overpass and road were closed, politically, for the use of bicyclists during a major race, a Mickey Mouse incident like the one in the video would not have happened. There evidently wasn't enough French traffic (or enough disposable French highway money or whatever) to justify putting an overpass on that dinky little road. I do not find it particularly surprising that there isn't one. If that area is typical of a 'world of the car' it's a world of Deux Chevaux and S-Cargos, scarcely something that translates to a discussion of urban Sacramentan or other Californian road development priorities.
In general the industrial delelped world, like the part we see in the video in this thread's first post, is the world of the car. There are parts of it that are friendlier to pedestrians than others.
ACY When I mentioned at least 14 over/underpasses in my city, I did not include any Interstate Highways because I was only thinking about pedestrian-accessible routes. We have several additional bridges that involve limited access highways. I still don't understand why Sacramento should be such a pedestrian-unfriendly city. Tom
When I mentioned at least 14 over/underpasses in my city, I did not include any Interstate Highways because I was only thinking about pedestrian-accessible routes. We have several additional bridges that involve limited access highways. I still don't understand why Sacramento should be such a pedestrian-unfriendly city.
Tom
In general, California is the home of the car.
ACY wrote the following post an hour ago: It's kind of hard to believe that the Capital of California, in 2015, hasn't built a single overpass in their town during the 146 years since the First Transcontinental RR was opened. I really don't know anything about Sacramento, and there may be a good reason, but it sure seems strange to me. Offhand, I can think of at least 14 RR overpasses or underpasses in my small city (pop. 40,600) in Maryland. Sacramento is over 10 times as big and has the former S.P. and former W.P. main lines running through it. Tom
It's kind of hard to believe that the Capital of California, in 2015, hasn't built a single overpass in their town during the 146 years since the First Transcontinental RR was opened. I really don't know anything about Sacramento, and there may be a good reason, but it sure seems strange to me. Offhand, I can think of at least 14 RR overpasses or underpasses in my small city (pop. 40,600) in Maryland. Sacramento is over 10 times as big and has the former S.P. and former W.P. main lines running through it.
There are many overpasses in Sacramento, but most of them are Interstate Highways or major roads, not suitable for a pedestrian foot race.
When I was last there, in 2013, there was an overpass under construction just West of the passenger station replacing a couple of crossings. If this were complete it should allow pedestrians to cross the UP (former SP) in both directions.
It isn't a problem for main road traffic, but there are a few crossings still in the generally flat downtown area. The former SP carries a number of long distance Amtrak trains and mainly to the west carries the Amtrak/California DOT Capital Corridor trains as well as a number of UP freights.
I think UP are just being careful, depending upon which lines are involved.
Would that incluse the light rail?
From the article (emphasis mine - zug):
Rerouting the race would require adjusting the mileage and could potentially disrupt local traffic and inconvenience participants who are staying in downtown hotels.
Yeah, wouldn't want to disrupt traffic. Wonder how long they are requesting a shut down of the railroad for their marathon? Being a good neighbor is nice, but c'mon... there have to be limits.
It's been fun. But it isn't much fun anymore. Signing off for now.
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.t fun any
There may be some legitimate safety concerns here, but after reading this account, I can't help but recall the years of ham-handed public relations which characterized UP until the early 2000s.
Things have changed a lot in Omaha, but this is more like old times.
BaltACD What I saw was bad organization of the event. Crossing the tracks without having coordinating the crossing with the organization running the railroad.
What I saw was bad organization of the event. Crossing the tracks without having coordinating the crossing with the organization running the railroad.
Yeah! It brings to mind a recent parade in Midland, Texas.
Leo_AmesWere there disqualifications?
Probably not. Usually what happens in this situation is that they simply subtract time at the end. I suspect a lot of the riders got into the race mentality and weren't thinking about their safety. Glad nothing bad happened.
TGVs on conventional lines are restricted to a much slower speed, but I forget what it is.
Perhaps those bicyclists are just as ignorant about trains as too many people in this country are?
Johnny
I was expecting a rural diesel railcar....
That was a TGV capable of more than 150 mph...
I wouldn't try to race one of those across a crossing.
Were there disqualifications?
Not much common sense, nor sportsmanship shown that I could see. Good thing that Formula One drivers a few decades ago over there weren't like that, or they'd of been killing off half the field and a lot of spectators at every race.
I don't know about other European sports back then, but people like Dan Gurney, Jim Clark, Graham Hill, and Jackie Stewart were the definition of class, used their heads, and knew what sportsmanship was all about.
All I saw here was a bunch of idiots on bikes.
That was great. Thanks for posting!
fax the french!
http://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2015/4/12/8395247/paris-roubaix-cycling-race-interrupted-by-a-train
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