Front Range / High Speed Rail (Denver, Colorado Springs: assess, delivery, design)

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by Josseppie

^

Considering the planed developments and projected growth for the Front Range Urban Corridor this century I would add us to the list of regions that will be able to support a HSR in the next 20 to 40 years. Also, I love the Internet and am on it almost every day but it does not take away the joy I get from actually visiting other cities and live events.

So do you love it enough that you'll pay $250-$300 per person for a round trip ticket? The distance between Pueblo and Denver is about the same as New York - Philadelphia (100 miles) and that's the approximate cost of a ticket on Acela Express in that market.

Heck no, for that kind of money you'll drive right?

[Josseppie]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

So do you love it enough that you'll pay $250-$300 per person for a round trip ticket? The distance between Pueblo and Denver is about the same as New York - Philadelphia (100 miles) and that's the approximate cost of a ticket on Acela Express in that market.

Heck no, for that kind of money you'll drive right?

LOL I have never seen HSR tickets that expensive. I am not sure what the cost will be and I won't guess but I have a feeling it will affordable.

[treedonkey]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

So do you love it enough that you'll pay $250-$300 per person for a round trip ticket? The distance between Pueblo and Denver is about the same as New York - Philadelphia (100 miles) and that's the approximate cost of a ticket on Acela Express in that market.

Heck no, for that kind of money you'll drive right?

Heck no is right... I'll drive.

I think the HSR initiative has gotten all jumbled up with a plain old commuter train. The newspapers keep throwing HSR out there because it sounds modern and sexy. Fact is, the feasibility studies already done have been for commuter trains, so that's what they will most liekly be putting in if anything, not special bullets. The trick is to figure out scheduling and station locations so that they can still run express for commuters. That sort of thing is not unrealistic at all, but it's also not unrealistic to assume that all those rail commissions, transportation divisions and politicos in general will just get everything even more messed up and implement the wrong system in the wrong area. We'll see.

[DarkWolf]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

So do you love it enough that you'll pay $250-$300 per person for a round trip ticket? The distance between Pueblo and Denver is about the same as New York - Philadelphia (100 miles) and that's the approximate cost of a ticket on Acela Express in that market.

Heck no, for that kind of money you'll drive right?

LOL , its only 100$ Round trip and less form NYC / Newark to DC or NYC / Newark to Boston on Amtrak Regional. Amtrak for some reason thinks its okay to have prices that high. But on there other Northeastern Routes it ranges form 20-50$ one way which is ok and pretty good compared to flying or the Bus stuck in Traffic. When our newer Fleet comes which is rumored to hold up to 1200 ppl per train , then Amtrak said they might have a flat off peak fee of 20$. One day it only take 40 mins by Train between Newark - Philly , currently takes 1.3 hrs.

[Josseppie]

Originally Posted by Nexis4Jersey

LOL , its only 100$ Round trip and less form NYC / Newark to DC or NYC / Newark to Boston on Amtrak Regional. Amtrak for some reason thinks its okay to have prices that high. But on there other Northeastern Routes it ranges form 20-50$ one way which is ok and pretty good compared to flying or the Bus stuck in Traffic. When our newer Fleet comes which is rumored to hold up to 1200 ppl per train , then Amtrak said they might have a flat off peak fee of 20$. One day it only take 40 mins by Train between Newark - Philly , currently takes 1.3 hrs.

That sounds better. I would be more then willing to pay 10 to 20 dollars round trip to Denver from Pueblo.

[DarkWolf]

Originally Posted by Josseppie

That sounds better. I would be more then willing to pay 10 to 20 dollars round trip to Denver from Pueblo.

Not roundtrip , one way. Only Commuter Rail in the Northeast comes to 10-20$ round trip Amtrak usually comes to 40-100$ Roundtrip.

[Josseppie]

Originally Posted by Nexis4Jersey

Not roundtrip , one way. Only Commuter Rail in the Northeast comes to 10-20$ round trip Amtrak usually comes to 40-100$ Roundtrip.

This would be more commuter HSR then Amtrak so I could see them keeping the price as low as they can, $10 to $20 round trip.

[DarkWolf]

Originally Posted by Josseppie

This would be more commuter HSR then Amtrak so I could see them keeping the price as low as they can, $10 to $20 round trip.

That's a Dual Corridor , Local Trains and Express Trains. Local Trains stop every station and average 50mph , Express Trains stop at every major station and usually have an Average speed near there top speed. This should be called a Dual Mode Corridor , because its not HSR by Northeast or even US Standards.

[Josseppie]

This will have limited stops. One maybe two in Pueblo, two in Colorado Springs, 3 in Denver and 1 in Fort Collins. Pueblo will, also, be the hub for the connection to the New Mexico line and that should cause Amtrak to come here adding a stop making the downtown train depot very busy again. Giving a NY feel to downtown with all the people and traffic that it had back in the 1950's, from what I am told.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by Josseppie

This will have limited stops. One maybe two in Pueblo, two in Colorado Springs, 3 in Denver and 1 in Fort Collins. Pueblo will, also, be the hub for the connection to the New Mexico line and that should cause Amtrak to come here adding a stop making the downtown train depot very busy again. Giving a NY feel to downtown with all the people and traffic that it had back in the 1950's, from what I am told.

Dream on. Much as I would like to see conventional passenger rail make a comeback in a big way--and I think it will have to--there is a mountain of opposition from the highway lobby (that you also seem to love so much, Josseppie) to keep it from happening. In fact, there have been numerous attempts to discontinue the few long distance Amtrak trains serving the Midwest and Western United States, leaving only the Northeast Corridor and some partially state-supported routes on the West Coast with Amtrak service.

To change that mindset, I think it will take a national energy and transportation crisis and meltdown like nobody has ever seen. I think we will get such a crisis within a decade, but--when it comes--it will destroy any illusion that our suburban sprawl model embraced in Colorado and elsewhere can survive. That will pretty much stick a fork in any grandiose dream of the Front Range becoming a megalopolis like Josseppie wishes. In fact, it won't even be able to hold its current population, and--if it does--it will be at a radically diminished material standard of living such that people will feel lucky if they can travel more than 100 miles from home maybe once or twice a year, if that.