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Stadler Rail Cars Ordered, Rail Agreement in place, Ft. Worth moves forward on Tex Rail

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Stadler Rail Cars Ordered, Rail Agreement in place, Ft. Worth moves forward on Tex Rail
Posted by CMStPnP on Sunday, April 10, 2016 9:50 AM

$100 million in Federal Financing as well.    Yes it has a direct and cross platform connection with Amtrak at Fort Worth ITC station as well as the Fort Worth City Transit system buses there. 

Here is the website with video:

http://www.texrail.com/

So this will be the 3rd new rail transit system in the Dallas - Ft. Worth Area

1.  DART Light Rail.

2.  Denton A-Train........also uses Stadler SPV Railcars.

3.  Trinity Railway Express........Heavy Rail that uses former GO Transit equipment.

4.  Tex Rail..............moving towards construction phase.

5.   Cotton Belt Line.......attempting to obtain financing, planning underway,  land for station sites being purchased (old abandoned rail ROW, largely in place).     This will run DFW Airport to Plano and Wylie, TX.

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Posted by Buslist on Monday, April 11, 2016 11:07 AM

CMStPnP

$100 million in Federal Financing as well.    Yes it has a direct and cross platform connection with Amtrak at Fort Worth ITC station as well as the Fort Worth City Transit system buses there. 

Here is the website with video:

http://www.texrail.com/

So this will be the 3rd new rail transit system in the Dallas - Ft. Worth Area

1.  DART Light Rail.

2.  Denton A-Train........also uses Stadler SPV Railcars.

3.  Trinity Railway Express........Heavy Rail that uses former GO Transit equipment.

4.  Tex Rail..............moving towards construction phase.

5.   Cotton Belt Line.......attempting to obtain financing, planning underway,  land for station sites being purchased (old abandoned rail ROW, largely in place).     This will run DFW Airport to Plano and Wylie, TX.

 

are these FRA compliant or the typical Stadler product?

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Posted by RME on Monday, April 11, 2016 1:39 PM

Buslist
are these FRA compliant or the typical Stadler product?

From the very last item in the TEXRail FAQs:

Regulations stipulated by the FRA will govern train safety, as is the case on all existing rail lines today. The T anticipates using FRA-compliant vehicles, which will be as safe as vehicles operating on freight rail lines

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Posted by Buslist on Monday, April 11, 2016 2:56 PM

RME

 

 
Buslist
are these FRA compliant or the typical Stadler product?

 

From the very last item in the TEXRail FAQs:

 

 
Regulations stipulated by the FRA will govern train safety, as is the case on all existing rail lines today. The T anticipates using FRA-compliant vehicles, which will be as safe as vehicles operating on freight rail lines

 

 

 

Thanks

The Denton services seem to be with noncompliant equipment, same as Austin.

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Posted by CMStPnP on Monday, April 11, 2016 4:10 PM

They had to get agreements from UP, Fort Worth and Western as well as getting Amtrak to run on TRE...........for which the City of Fort Worth is paying insurance for an assumed Amtrak Liability up to $21 million dollars in case of a derailment or accident on the TRE.     That was one of the Amtrak conditions for leaving UP rails in favor of TRE rails.     Which I guess since Herzog runs TRE, might have been a good idea.

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Posted by MidlandMike on Monday, April 11, 2016 7:58 PM

Five rail transit lines in the DFW metro area; is there any thought of consolidation for better coordination and efficiency?

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Posted by CMStPnP on Tuesday, April 12, 2016 12:48 AM

MidlandMike

Five rail transit lines in the DFW metro area; is there any thought of consolidation for better coordination and efficiency?

Yes they will at some point form a regional transportation authority similar to METRA in Chicago and when they do they will have one hell of a repainting task in front of them.      Right now we are enjoying the different colorful paint schemes.Big Smile   

The problem is that the Feds keep spooning them money.    Once the flow of funds stops they will be forced into a local funding source.

Looking at the above though....

1. Trinity Railway Express (run jointly by DART and Fort Worth T)

2. Tex Rail.........run by Fort Worth T

3. Cotton Belt Line.........will be run by DART.

4. DART.....run by DART.

5. A-Train run by Denton County Transit.

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Posted by Dragoman on Wednesday, April 13, 2016 7:52 PM

MidlandMike

Five rail transit lines in the DFW metro area; is there any thought of consolidation for better coordination and efficiency?

 

There is a downside to consolidation -- individual constituencies can feel ignored.

I've seen this happen with local transit districts.  Several small ones consolidate, then stop serving some part of the district, and a new small district is created to serve that area -- again.

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Posted by Mario_v on Friday, April 15, 2016 10:08 AM

Judging from some pictores I Saw, and if the new railcars will be d built by Stadker, they're of the GTW model, but these are of european standards. Were they adapted in some manner to the local saftey standards ('battleship' like), or do these units run with some sort of waiver ?

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Posted by Leo_Ames on Friday, April 15, 2016 11:02 AM

Will the Trinity RDC's play a role at all? Seems a shame for these completely modernized cars to just sit doing nothing now that locomotive hauled consists are needed on Trinity to meet demand. They're perfect for a start-up commuter operation. 

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Posted by CMStPnP on Friday, April 15, 2016 4:09 PM

Leo_Ames

Will the Trinity RDC's play a role at all? Seems a shame for these completely modernized cars to just sit doing nothing now that locomotive hauled consists are needed on Trinity to meet demand. They're perfect for a start-up commuter operation. 

The RDC's are used for peak travel times as well as special event trains.   They used the RDC's to start up the Denton A Train service before the Stadler Cars were built, here is a clip of that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DC3tKf3r4XA

 

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Posted by CMStPnP on Friday, April 15, 2016 4:14 PM

Mario_v

Judging from some pictores I Saw, and if the new railcars will be d built by Stadker, they're of the GTW model, but these are of european standards. Were they adapted in some manner to the local saftey standards ('battleship' like), or do these units run with some sort of waiver ?

Here is a video of the Denton A Train Stadler Cars, though I do not know the answer to your question.     The Denton A train runs on a line that sees some frieght traffic but it is light.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVDMHotMY34

 

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Posted by RME on Friday, April 15, 2016 6:47 PM

CMStPnP
Here is a video of the Denton A Train Stadler Cars, though I do not know the answer to your question.

Aren't these cars the 'fruit' of the 2012 FRA waiver?

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Posted by CMStPnP on Saturday, April 16, 2016 12:54 PM

RME

 

 
CMStPnP
Here is a video of the Denton A Train Stadler Cars, though I do not know the answer to your question.

 

Aren't these cars the 'fruit' of the 2012 FRA waiver?

That might be a good bet because they are the first in the United States but I do not know for sure.

 

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Posted by Buslist on Saturday, April 16, 2016 1:20 PM

CMStPnP

 

 
RME

 

 
CMStPnP
Here is a video of the Denton A Train Stadler Cars, though I do not know the answer to your question.

 

Aren't these cars the 'fruit' of the 2012 FRA waiver?

 

 

That might be a good bet because they are the first in the United States but I do not know for sure.

 

 

 

aren't these basically the same as NJT (2002) and Austin (2008)?

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Posted by CMStPnP on Saturday, April 16, 2016 5:25 PM

Buslist
aren't these basically the same as NJT (2002) and Austin (2008)?

The articles I have read is that they are the first to operate under FRA waiver across a regional transportation system mixed with freight because they have unspecified construction enhancements made to the cars to improve their strength.    

Since they were the first to get the FRA waiver and operate under the waiver, probably a good bet they are not the same as NJ Transit (2002).    I think for details like that you should probably call Stadler and ask.    I have no idea how they compare with Austin but I think the Austin agreement was that freight trains would not operate the same hours as the Stadler cars.......not the same as the waiver for the Denton Transit system which I believe allows simultaneous DMU and Freight Train operations.

Simultaneous Freight and DMU operations was not necessarily their goal but it is what they achieved.    They sought the FRA waiver because they wanted the operational flexibility to continue to operate the RDC's and use the RDC's at the same time as the DMU's and as well as a backup.    Also, they wanted more than a one line waiver so that they could move the DMU's to other transit lines and operate them there (not sure if everyone is aware but the cars are designed to operate on streetcar and light rail lines as well).....which gives DCA the ability to lease or lend the cars out to other Dallas systems.     So the waiver grants operation over multiple lines of the regional transportation system.    I think that restriction is to the transit systems of Dallas and Fort Worth I do not think it applies to other cities but I am not sure in that area either.

As I mentioned to Sam1 in a long ago earlier thread.    The new Dallas battery powered street car has a direct connection to the DART lines and uses the DART lines to transit to it's maintenence base.     Likewise I believe the DMU's will do the same on both DART and TRE if they need to.....when their maintenence base is built.....so the FRA granted that operational flexibility with the waiver and whatever modifications were made to the Stadler cars to make them stronger.

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Posted by Mario_v on Wednesday, April 27, 2016 9:26 AM

CMStPnP

 

 
Mario_v

Judging from some pictores I Saw, and if the new railcars will be d built by Stadker, they're of the GTW model, but these are of european standards. Were they adapted in some manner to the local saftey standards ('battleship' like), or do these units run with some sort of waiver ?

 

 

Here is a video of the Denton A Train Stadler Cars, though I do not know the answer to your question.     The Denton A train runs on a line that sees some frieght traffic but it is light.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVDMHotMY34

 

 

Yep, just as I suspected, those  railcars suffered  maybe  some adaptations  in order to be a little more compatible with FRA standards (altough I think that the crashworthiness standards aret still the ones from this side). Here's a video depicting  a sp+anish 0sister' being unloaded. This unit will be used on a regional line, and for eropean standards it's considered a light vrailcar

 

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Posted by Mario_v on Wednesday, April 27, 2016 9:28 AM

RME

 

 
CMStPnP
Here is a video of the Denton A Train Stadler Cars, though I do not know the answer to your question.

 

Aren't these cars the 'fruit' of the 2012 FRA waiver?

 

So there's a waiver after all Wink

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Posted by chutton01 on Wednesday, April 27, 2016 2:14 PM

I believe this article references the 2012 FRA "Waiver"
Progressive Railroading

"The waiver request “demonstrates that the enhanced crashworthiness and passenger protection systems inherent to DCTA’s new rail vehicles meet the latest and most stringent safety standards in the U.S"

Hmm, if this is now proven, then it should no longer be considered a waiver for new services, but rather just FRA compliant (IMO, at least).

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Posted by RME on Thursday, April 28, 2016 9:46 AM

[quote user="Mario_v"]

RME
CMStPnP

Aren't these cars the 'fruit' of the 2012 FRA waiver?

So there's a waiver after all Wink

Yes, but the point is that the 'new' Stadler cars are supposed to be 'fully' FRA compliant, and not require a new or extended waiver.

a different person...
"The waiver request “demonstrates that the enhanced crashworthiness and passenger protection systems inherent to DCTA’s new rail vehicles meet the latest and most stringent safety standards in the U.S"

My advice is not to mistake claims of press agents for objective fact when assessing whether something is safe or prudent.  While I'm open to arguments that modern construction is safer than 'default' strength values from the transition era, I have also seen no few European cars opened like sardine cans in accidents where they struck heavy or relatively immovable objects, and I still remember the aftermath of the Highliner accident in the early 1970s where 'compliance' turned out not to be enough. 

Arguably, cars that meet the FRA buff and draft specs would be more likely to survive an incident with, say, an unexpected rollaway freight car (like the one in Utica)...

 

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Posted by CMStPnP on Tuesday, May 3, 2016 9:15 PM

RME
Arguably, cars that meet the FRA buff and draft specs would be more likely to survive an incident with, say, an unexpected rollaway freight car (like the one in Utica)...

I looked at some youtube videos and they have yellow derails on the sidings I could see before they switched onto the mainline.    I realize a car could get loose from a freight train but the line is pretty flat and also CTC signaled and monitored.    The A-Train equipment storage yard is cyclone fenced with rolled concertina wire on top and has gates that extend over the entrance and exit track.

I would never compare the kids in North Texas with the kids in Update New York either.    Texas is a law and order state, New York is a make excuses state.Big Smile

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Posted by daveklepper on Tuesday, May 17, 2016 3:14 AM

New York City has a lower crime rate than many USA cities, and the reforms Mayor Guliani effected  plus the no graffiti policy on the subways have held up, so I think you are maligning New York State.  Upstate is no different from downstate.   There are good and bad people in every population.

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Posted by daveklepper on Tuesday, May 24, 2016 1:34 PM

Why iis Trinity Express named Trinity Express?

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Posted by CSSHEGEWISCH on Tuesday, May 24, 2016 1:53 PM

daveklepper

Why iis Trinity Express named Trinity Express?

It's named for the Trinity River, which runs through the DFW Metroplex.

The daily commute is part of everyday life but I get two rides a day out of it. Paul
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Posted by Dragoman on Tuesday, May 24, 2016 2:21 PM

daveklepper

Why iis Trinity Express named Trinity Express?

 

"Named after the Trinity River, which flows between Fort Worth and Dallas, the TRE was launched on December 30, 1996."  ... from Wikipedia.

 

EDIT:  >> Sorry. didn't see above answer when I answered.  Need to get a fasted internet connection!?!

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Posted by RME on Tuesday, May 24, 2016 3:07 PM

Where is the Trinity River Bottom Boomer when we could use him?

(Yes, I know that isn't *quite* what his handle is....)

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Posted by daveklepper on Wednesday, May 25, 2016 3:32 AM

thanks

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