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Just What is HSR?

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Posted by KCSfan on Tuesday, March 17, 2009 12:18 PM

passengerfan

 I think I have the perfect name for American High Speed Rail. From now on we can refer to it as Snail Rail.

Al - in - Stockton

No go Al, the name's already taken. In my first message when I started this thread I chose Snail Rail to define todays average Amtrak speeds for use as our baseline.

Mark

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  • From: Central Valley California
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Posted by passengerfan on Tuesday, March 17, 2009 12:58 PM

KCSfan

passengerfan

 I think I have the perfect name for American High Speed Rail. From now on we can refer to it as Snail Rail.

Al - in - Stockton

No go Al, the name's already taken. In my first message when I started this thread I chose Snail Rail to define todays average Amtrak speeds for use as our baseline.

Mark

Sorry Mark but I think it will be perfect for the most part on what is being proposed. It is a lack of leadership at Amtrak that has caused the US to trail the world in HSR technology. We can't even operate trains at the speeds we did in the 1930's and 40's. Look at the Hiawathas, Zephyrs, 400's, Super Chief, Texas Chief, Empire Builder, and City streamliners. Even the Florida Streamliners from NY were faster than they are today. All of the funding is put into the Northeast corridor and we get a train that operates at 150 mph for 11 miles. Until the people get off there A** and demand we have trains it will continue on the downward spiral we now have. Let gasoline reach $4 per gallon again and the rush to trains will be on once again and like the last time Amtrak will not be prepared or have the equipment. Amtrak got rid of the heritage equipment far to soon much of it could have been rebuilt and used for years to come. Look at what Canada has done with there Budd equipment and they even purchased used cars from us as well. There HEP is not compatible with ours and they are equipped with holding tanks something we failed to do with our heritage equipment. There cars look every bit as good as the day they rolled out of the Budd plant and the newest cars are over fifty years of age. If we had kept the heritage fleet and gave them upgrades as the Canadians have done we would not have a shortage of sleepers now. And they want to add more Viewliners. In my opinion the worst pieces of junk owned by Amtrak. They are noisy have a terrible ride and the public should be outraged at the price they paid for them, The 10-6 sleepers were quiet comfortable and had thicker mattresses. They are now talking about replacing the last heritage dining cars. That is really to bad as they are much better than anything else Amtrak has to offer. And where is the Viewliner Diner that was built. I understand it sits in the dead line behind Beech Grove. What a waste of taxpayer money that was. I must say that Amtrak made the right move with the Superliners the only problem is they have never had enough. The other thing I don't understand about Amtrak was why not keep the ex Santa Fe Hi-levels in service, they were HEP equipped and had retention toilets. They could be used in the Superliner equipped trains for the summer peak travel periods. Surely two P42s could handle up to four extra cars per train. I for one would like to know how many people are turned away by the Amtrak reservation system. I bet if they overbooked like the airlines the trains would carry more passengers. Summers there is not enough sleeping car space on any of the Superliner equipped trains. I have a friend who is confined to a wheelchair and even two months in advance he has trouble booking the Handicapped space on the Superliners for him and his traveling nurse. He hates flying but rarely is able to take the train due to the lack of handicapped space. Apparently they sell the one handicapped superliner space as a family room and get more for it. He has now contacted a very good ADA lawyer and is looking to bring suit against Amtrak. I wish him all of the luck in the world. It should be an interseting lawsuit.

Al - in - Stockton 

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Posted by oltmannd on Tuesday, March 17, 2009 1:02 PM

So, we are going to argue semantics?

I can do that.

We have no shot at ICE, AVE, TGV, etc. or anything like it in the near future.  If things break just right, we might get "Acela lite" in some places.  The press and gov't are GOING to call it HSR.  If it's a smashing sucess, then, maybe there will be money for what's next.  If not, arguing semantics might be all we have left to do (once the blame for failure has been properly assigned to the pre-designated scapegoats.  Step 1A in any project plan is to identify the scapegoats, you know.)

-Don (Random stuff, mostly about trains - what else? http://blerfblog.blogspot.com/

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Posted by Chafford1 on Tuesday, March 17, 2009 2:24 PM
oltmannd

So, we are going to argue semantics?

I can do that.

And so can I. Try American Rapid Rail.
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  • From: Trois-Rivières QC Canada close to Montreal
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Posted by Syltrain on Tuesday, March 17, 2009 10:42 PM

oltmannd

Syltrain

Smile These days,they often speak about of the high speed train project on the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor,which was returned back many times since the year of 1984 when the project was discussed for the first time. He was back in 1995,1998 and 2003.

The last time in 2004,the former Canada's Liberal Government of Paul Martin which it was against this project had canceled a $ 400 million to Via Rail fast train to Quebec City-Windsor Corridor. Who is blocking this project it's of cource the airlines and coaches lobbyists who are fiercely against this project to the high speed train. Including the president of Orleans Express a bus company is fiercely against this project and his a staunch supporter of the Canada's Liberal Party.

A bus company and an airline against a gov't subsidized construction project that would steal their business?  Shocking! Shock

Yes,that's very shocking.

I agree with you.Angry 

Recently the Canada's ex-minister of transport David Collenette under the former Canada's Liberal Party government of Jean Chretien said in a telephone interview in a Quebec City french Canadian daily news newpaper Le Soleil at the beginning of this month in march 7 that the starting of HST between Quebec City and Windsor is the solution to privilege,at least in the near future. He said that there is no doubt that the option of an high speed train is the one is who is the most desirable,but it is the one is realistic and whom at we can obtain a present. There are not enough travellers to justify the investment of an high speed train",asserted David Collenette,during a phone interview at Le Soleil newspaper.

Instead of a train speeding to more than 300 km/h (187,5 mph),the ex-Liberal minister facilitate a considerable improvement of the service of Via Rail with trains running up speed to 200 km/h (125 mph). With this express,the duration of the route between Quebec City and Montreal would be reduced unless two hours instead of fifteen minutes past three o'clock. The same route with an HST will be made in 55 minutes.

From 10 to 20 years are needed,is possible be 30 years,to prepare the sitting-up of HST. With a less fast train,we would have possibility of increasing the clientele at the lower cost. ",he added.

He recongnized that the high costs of a HST train ? Between 15 and 20 billions $? Are the main factor which brings several Canadians to oppose to the project.Mr Collenette said that opponents to the HST also use the argument of the astronomical costs to harm any debate on the need to improve rail service for passengers. He has identified the "powerful" lobby for road builders,airlines companies on the lucrative market for the Montreal-Toronto and to a lesser extent,the coach companies as part of opponents of the high speed train.

Less expensive.

At the difference,the cost of fast train project ViaFast was estimated close to $ 4 billion in the beginning of the 2000s. « The idea is to use existing railroads and improved so that trains can roll faster. That will be much less costly than building new railroads reserved to the bullet trains. Between Quebec City and Montreal,the trains was traveling by the north shore of the St.Lawrence River on tracks that belonged in the past by the CP (Canadian Pacific Railway),"he explained.

He argued that there would be no wait time to allow priority to freight trains. «Between Quebec City and Montreal on the north shore,there is much less than freight trains. In addition,they would move at night. By day,this will be reserved for passenger trains»" said Mr Collenette.

With the support of the Minister Collenette,the project ViaFast was put forward by the former mayor of Quebec City Jean Pelletier,of the time when he chaired the Via Rail Canada's administration board. That latter was warn the actual Quebec City Mayor Regis Labeaume not to request an high speed train was convinced a federal refusal.

The project ViaFast provided eight round-trip trains a day between Quebec City and Montreal with stops in L'Ancienne-Lorette,close to the Quebec City international Airport and in the Trois-Rivières and in Laval cities then reaching Montreal's Central Station and then going to Ottawa,Toronto and Windsor.

Sylvain

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Posted by tnchpsk8 on Wednesday, March 18, 2009 9:05 AM

 Maybe looking further outside the box, wind and solar power should be developed for residential/light industrial usage and newer generation nuclear/coal should be developed for rail/heavy industrial usage. It takes quite bit of using the gray matter to develop these concepts and acieve viability but isn't that a large part of what the American heritage is all about? Recognizing a new concept and bringing it to fruition.

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Posted by BaltACD on Friday, April 3, 2009 4:07 PM

BNSF President Matt Rose's comments to Congress on HSR

http://www.railwayage.com//content/view/708/217/

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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