Salt Lake City visit by Jack May

[daveklepper]

 

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The two final segments of this report relate to my day trip from Denver to Salt Lake City on Friday, May 7. 

Rather than using the A line for a one-stop ride to the Denver Airport I saved $5.25 and rode in the complimentary van from the hotel.  DIA was not terribly crowded, nor was the Delta flight, which I estimated was about 50 percent full.  The middle seat was empty in my row (21) and I enjoyed my orange juice and snack in comfort.  The B-737 operated better than on-time, pushing away at 8:15 (five minutes early) and arriving at the gate in SLC at 9:36 (20 minutes early) in sunny weather.  With only my camera as "baggage," I automatically headed for the light rail terminal where I remembered it (without thinking), but when I got there it was all torn up, being in the process of being rebuilt and relocated; signs urged would-be riders to take a free shuttle bus to the Green Line's temporary station.  The vehicle pulled in at 9:57 and got underway again two minutes later, depositing me and another fortunate rider at the austere platform at 10:05 after having been treated to a tour of many of the airport's roadways.  I didn't see any Trax ticket machines either at the airport or at the temporary station where the bus dropped us.  There was a pair of S70 LRVs waiting and I ran up and tapped on the operator's window to ask whether I had time to take a picture--and received an affirmative answer, so I quickly grabbed a photo and then boarded.  We pulled out at 10:09.  At the next stop I asked the operator what I should do about having been unable to acquire a ticket.  He told me to buy one after I got off.


A two-car Siemens S-70 LRV train waits for its departure time at the Airport temporary platform.  The double track line is reduced to single track at this jury-rigged facility.


The forecast was for a sunny morning with clouds gradually moving in after noon, so I decided to ride and photograph the Sugar House streetcar line before covering the Blue Line extension from Sandy to Draper, both of which I just missed, as they opened after the Memorial Day weekend E. R. A. convention of 2013; the 2-mile long Sugar House line commenced operations on August 18 and the 3½-mile extension to Draper on December 8 of that year.  As a result, I enthusiastically rode to the Central Pointe stop, where the streetcar line begins and connects with all three of the light rail lines (see https://www.rideuta.com/-/media/RideUTA/Maps/UTA_RAIL_Map.ashx).  I purchased my day ticket at that point as soon as I alighted.



No. 1014, one of the original 23 high-floor SD-100 LRVs built by Siemens for the introduction of light rail to Salt Lake City in 1999, pauses at Center Pointe stop.  One could say this station is at the focal point of the Trax system, as it hosts all three light rail lines and the Sugar House streetcar.  The single track streetcar platform and bumper block is behind the photographer.  Just south of the platform a single track connection allows streetcars to reach the light rail system for operation to the carhouse and shops.


Like the light rail lines, the Sugar House streetcar (officially called the S line) runs every 15 minutes.  A single-unit Siemens S70 streetcar* soon pulled in and changed ends.  I boarded the 70-percent low-floor car and rode out to the outer end of the 7-station line, a ten-minute journey.  I then walked back most of the distance, stopping here and there for photos of the two cars assigned to the service.

* The streetcar version of the S70 (now called S700 by Siemens) is about 10 to 15 feet shorter than the light rail version.  Its top speed is usually lower than that of its LRT compatriots and it does not run MU in trains.  Such cars are also in service in Atlanta and Charlotte.


 
Fairmont, the outer terminal of the streetcar.  This one of two places on the line that sports two tracks (the other is a passing track that runs from about 2200 S 300 E to 2200 S 500 E).  Salt Lake City's street numbering system is unique.  See https://www.usu.edu/science/pages/getting_around_in_utah for an explanation.




Above and below:  In many places, particularly at its eastern end, the streetcar's right-of-way has been beautifully landscaped, being paralleled by a bicycle and pedestrian path called Parley's Trail.  The upper view was taken just west of the Sugarmont stop, which is located at 900 E.  It is named for Sugarmont Road, which parallels the right-of-way at that point.  The lower photo shows the corridor looking west from 800 E.  Note the sign at right, which displays the stylized logo of the line and Parley's Trail.

 


The inbound platform for the 400 East stop can be seen in the background along the streetcar line's double-track section in the area surrounding its midpoint.  Paths are located on both sides of the tracks.




The western end of the line has not yet gotten the beautification treatment and so is not as attractive as the eastern end.  This location of this single track is just west of 200 East.


I planned to meet my friend Paul around noon, so after returning to Central Pointe I rode a Blue Line LRV train to Historic Sandy, where he had just arrived by automobile.  We proceeded to ride the new three-station extension to Draper and look for good locations for photos, finally settling on Kimballs Lane, the middle stop.  One of the interesting aspects of the ride was that we saw some Siemens high-floor LRVs painted in the livery adopted for the S70 cars, and hoped our lenses would find them as well.



 

Above and below:  The pedestrian/bicycle path leading from the northern end of the Kimballs Lane stop alongside the rail line is fortunately endowed with a sufficiently low fence.  A southbound high-floor train is pictured above, while a northbound one, in the new livery, is below.

 

A third view in the same area shows a southbound train led by an SD-100 in the new color scheme approaching the Kimballs Lane station.


After finishing our "work" here we decided to ride the Red Line out to its terminal at Daybreak Parkway, mainly to observe the degree of development that has occurred in the ten years since the line was opened in 2011.  The remainder of my visit to Salt Lake City will be covered in part 2 of this report.

 

[daveklepper]

 

Breaking COVID's cabin fever Salt Lake City part 2 - Trax and FrontRunner

 

 As mentioned in part 1, after finishing our "work" at Kimballs Lane we decided to ride the Red Line out to its terminal at Daybreak Parkway, planning to observe the degree of development that has occurred in the decade since the line was opened in 2011.  On my trip in 2013 I observed there area was just scrub land, with a certain amount of industrial activity taking place.  We would drive to the nearby Jordan Valley station to board a Red Line LRV train and make a round trip covering the four stops beyond

But we also recognized that the South Jordan station of the UTA's (Utah Transit Authority) FrontRunner commuter line was close at hand and realized that we would not lose much time by stopping there for a photo.  Consisting mainly of single track (except in the vicinity of various stations), the agency's regional rail system covers some 82 miles between Provo, located to the south of Salt Lake City, and Ogden in the north, all operating alongside the Union Pacific Railroad's right-of-way (that once saw varnish like the City of Los Angeles and the Challenger).  As it happened the sun dipped under some clouds when we first stopped there, so we came back to the station again after our round trip on the Red Line--and then were much luckier.

 


Above and below:  Two pictures of push-pull trains along the UTA (Utah Transit Authority) FrontRunner commuter line taken from the park-and-ride lot at South Jordan station.  Placed in service in 2008 and extended in 2012, the passenger trains run roughly every hour over the Union Pacific Railroad's right-of-way.  A northbound train from Provo, en route to Ogden, is shown leaving the South Jordan station in the upper photo, while in the lower view, a southbound train, pushed by a similar MPI Wabtec subsidiary Motive Power Industries) MP36PH-3C locomotive, approaches the same station.  Most of the roster of passenger coaches is made up of Bombardier/GO Transit style bi-level cars, but each train is also endowed with a surplus former NJ Transit Comet car that was built by Pullman-Standard a half century ago. 



We then parked at the Jordan Valley station of the Red Line and rode to its southern end at Daybreak Parkway.




Above and below:  There has been a great deal of development along the outer end of the Red Line during the 10 years after the line was built--and certainly since my last visit in 2013.  The Wasatch mountains loom in the background of both photos.  A southbound train of S70 LRVs is shown at the Jordan Valley stop of the Red Line in the upper photo.  The lower view illustrates the Daybreak Parkway terminal of the Red Line.  




Seeing the mountains, some with snow still on their peaks (as shown above), gave me the idea of trying to get more photos with similar backgrounds.  Thus after we returned to Jordan Parkway we drove to a grade crossing just below the Meadowbrook station of the combined Red and Blue lines.




Above and below:  The Red (and Green) lines are served by 70-percent low-floor cars, while the Blue continues with high-floor SD-100 and SD-160 units, with wheelchair-bound riders using ramps to reach short high-level boarding points at the front end of each platform.  Having just been in Denver, I couldn't help thinking that the RTD's latest orders for rolling stock could have followed Salt Lake City's example, with more rider-friendly equipment.  The Wasatch Range appears to be just a hop, skip and jump from the trunk line.  Gobbler's Knob and O'Sullivan Peak may be in the background. 




It appeared there was some development east of the outer section of the Red Line, although the following photo shows only one house--and a curb to the left of the tracks.




Above and below:  Now and Then on the Red Line at the South Jordan Parkway stop, just one in from the end of the line.  In eight years a curb has been put in to the west of the right-of-way and a house has been constructed to the east.




After an excellent outdoor dinner Paul took me back to their airport.  My Delta flight back to Denver, which had every seat occupied, would have been uneventful, had there been a gate attendant to open the door in Denver.  We pushed away at Salt Lake City 2 minutes early (9:25) and hit the tarmac in Denver at 10:26, but passengers were unable to disembark until 10:50 (50).  As a result I missed the 10:58 A-line train and had to settle for the 11:27 to get me back to the hotel.  Interestingly there was no PA announcement aboard the train for the 61st & Pena stop.

The next morning I repeated the trip to DIA, using the hotel's free shuttle van, but not so early.  Security was quick and our United B-757 pushed away at 9:43 (45) and landed at Newark at 3:05, arriving at the gate at 3:15 (19).  It was a 100 percent full (ly masked) flight, and the performance of the flight attendants was excellent, with two services of beverages and one of snacks.  Clare had the car at our usual spot--at the front of Terminal C's top departure level, and it was a quick drive home.  All in all, I had an excellent trip.  

This concludes my series of reports of railfan activities in the spring of 2021.  Thanks to those who sent comments.

Jack May

For those wishing keep the entire squence, it is Boston, Philadelphia, Northern New Jersey, Danver, Salt Lake City  --- DLK

 

 

 

[MidlandMike]

The Sugar House trolley line is on the ROW of the D&RGW branch that once ran to Park City.  The Blue Line to Draper is on the ROW of the former UP line thru Provo, that was sold to the transit authority after traffic was moved to the parallel Rio Grande mainline after the merger.  The Red Line toward South Jordan partly follows a former Rio Grande branch ROW toward the Bingham Canyon copper mine.

[daveklepper]

Thanks for this valuable information.

[MidlandMike]

Also looking at Google satellite view, there is still freight traffic on sidings off the Red Line in the Midvale/South Jordan area.

[daveklepper]

Thanks again for the information.  The last photo has been  corrected.

[MidlandMike]

Your welcome, and thanks for posting your friend's tour of the light rail.  We were in Salt Lake a couple of years ago to the NRHS convention that coincided with the Golden Spike 150th anniversary.  We only rode TRAX in the downtown free zone.  We also rode the Front Runner to the Ogden meet between UP 844 and the Big Boy.  It seems we rode buses more than trains, to the Golden Spike site, and to the Heber Valley tourist train.  Even then we only got to ride Heber Valley less than 100 yards before the train derailed without ever leaving the yard.  I've also been to Salt Lake three times on ski trips, but never had occasion then to ride the rail transit.  I did occasionally ride the UTA buses to the ski areas.  Those buses are four wheel drive on account of the steep, snowy access roads.  They are considering constructing aerial gondolas from the SL valley up to the ski area bases, and possibly over the mountain to the Park City side.  Glad at least to get the flavor of the light rail thru Mr. May's lens and prose.

[daveklepper]

I forwarded your comments to Jack.

[daveklepper]

Front Runner is planning on removing their single-level Comet cars from service3 and is planning an all-high-platform double-deck futuure.

[[e-mail]]

[daveklepper]

Thanks!   That's MAX, the light-rail system.  Front runner is the diesel-locomotive psh-pull commuter system.  Can you post a photo of that also?