Amtrak delivers required report on Pittsburgh train service

[Impala26]

I've noticed a good deal of overlap of topics between this thread and the TDP one. Perhaps starting a new thread is in order? Even I have been considering making a transit map of sorts. I was throwing one together on google maps, but I have noticed it's a good deal harder to read than say a schematic one. However, it is good at showing the precise location of routes and ROWs are.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by ctoocheck

I also drew up a schematic map (like the metro one) but for the PITTSBURGH OF THE FUTURE!

That one is exactly what I have in mind (albeit with real services, of course). Obviously you want accurate maps too, but I just think for visitors you want something that looks really, really simple to use.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by ctoocheck

Also because it just seems (perhaps) near-impossible that the current station would be able to handle a large increase in ridership/service considering its rather tiny location, now that the rest of the Penn Station building is private . But I dunno. Just a thought.

So here is a conceptual plan for an elevated Pittsburgh Maglev station behind USX, as an indication of what a HSR terminal downtown could look like it:

Passenger Stations (http://www.maglevpa.com/magport.html - broken link)



http://www.maglevpa.com/images/downtownmagport2.jpg (broken link)

Edit: Link to a higher-quality version of the picture above:

http://www.portauthority.org/PAAC/Po...re4.11.2-2.pdf

[Impala26]

Ctoocheck, nice work on that "ideal" transit map! I shall definitely consider making one of my own. What program did you use, like some sort of CAD program or just something like Photoshop?

[pman]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

I'll take whatever funding we can get, but I guess I don't know if that premise is true--the folks in Ohio and points beyond seem to get that a high-speed connection to Pittsburgh is in the interests of their markets, so they may well come up with the funding sooner than the folks in non-Southwestern PA. Generally, I don't think it is a coincidence that the state has put virtually all of its passenger rail funding into Philly-Harrisburg, and we'll just have to see if that political situation in PA can be changed to widen the scope of those efforts.

It's definitely not a coincidence, though the submitted Keystone project will benefit the route at large. While it certainly would have been nice if they had funded Keystone II, the west of study they submitted should have been done long ago. that said, PA has gone much further than the midwest, they actually funded half of the Keystone program, not just studied it, this may go a long way with the FRA. Whether western PA gets more say remains to be seen, but certainly, I think some support is to be had in the state legislature.

Originally Posted by BrianTH

It starts out comparable in each direction, but then gets much easier toward the west than toward the east. So I am fairly confident that if you were doing a new ROW, it would cost less on average per mile to the west (assuming the same technology).

possibly, but it's not as simply as upgrading the right of way, grade crossing removal in flat areas is quite expensive.

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Again this is a loaded comparison because you aren't including Chicago. I understand what you are saying about local transit generally being better in the east, but I don't think it helps to overlook that Chicago is a big attraction as a destination if you are going west.

eh. I'm aware of chicago, but south bend is probably in a worse situation than harrisburg. it's not just transit, it's station location and layout getting off at pittsburgh's station, it's easy to walk downtown, perhaps even moreso than chicago (whose station isn't downtown, like Philadelphia's, nor on a transit line...not that it's in the sticks like Atlanta). When visiting, say, Philadelphia, you may be able to do a lot on foot, same with pittsburgh. chicago is a great destination, but certainly not greater than ny nor is cleveland/toledo greater than Philly. Harrisburg's station is in an excellent location, five minute walk from the capitol and the downtown district with restaurants and hotels.
regarding the station, I always figured they'd simply reopen the old station. everything is there from benches to ticket windows. nothing new ill compare, passenger rail just doesn't get that kind of money. it'd be far cheaper, it's all there, and the platforms.

[ctoocheck]

What program did you use, like some sort of CAD program or just something like Photoshop?

I have County-wide GIS info in CAD, that I imported into Adobe Illustrator (kind of like Photoshop + CAD; it uses vector graphics which makes this sort of thing easy) and worked with/drew on top of there.

So here is a conceptual plan for an elevated Pittsburgh Maglev station behind USX, as an indication of what a HSR terminal downtown could look like it:

Yeah, I think I've seen this... the only thing is, while it might work alright for Maglev alone, it looks like it would be in a strange place (above Centre Ave?) for any sort of larger station (something with more than 2 tracks) or something inter-modal. I imagine the new tracks would have to go above the Crosstown or something to get there. Kind of awkward, I guess....
Anyway, I thought of the North Side location since that location seems to be fed by tracks from pretty much every direction, so it could also be a pretty good hub in the case that existing ROWs would be used for commuter rail. There also seems to be enough space to expand/add extra tracks along the route, so new tracks for HSR could be added as well. It could be a good location for inter-modal connections, should said connections one day be made available. Maybe one day....

[BrianTH]

You are right the maglev proposal is based on just two tracks using the Crosstown as its ROW in that section, and it is located basically in the area between Centre and Bigelow (a little over Bigelow, in fact). The idea is that from there it would have indoor walking access to both the T at Steel Plaza and the end of the East Busway. They actually considered alternatives at Station Square and in the North Shore, but determined that the Downtown location would be the best for ridership because of walking access to Downtown and the aforemetioned indoor walking connections to local public transit. The idea is also that it would help foster development in the Lower Hill area (particularly now that the Mellon Arena complex is going to be redeveloped).

[Impala26]

Originally Posted by ctoocheck

I have County-wide GIS info in CAD, that I imported into Adobe Illustrator (kind of like Photoshop + CAD; it uses vector graphics which makes this sort of thing easy) and worked with/drew on top of there.

I definitely want to consider making something similar. I even sketched a basic topological map on some engineering paper. However, now that I look back at yours, I realize it's strikingly similar to the one you posted.

Great minds think alike, perhaps?

I also was reading a Post-Gazette article from earlier this year about Altmire and others vying for a piece of the stimulus money for transportation. The project specifically listed the expansion of the T from the airport to downtown to Oakland. It also listed a people-mover type project linking many of the eastern neighborhoods directly to Oakland and this T. Specifically referenced was the South Side, Hazelwood, PTC, Shadyside, and Bloomfield/Lawrenceville. All this said, these of course are long-range plans

Now as if I haven't made my opinion vocal enough, I'm strongly opposed to both extending the T to the airport and utilizing the existing ROW of the East Busway to get the T to service Oakland. However, the people-mover side of this concept is actually quite intriguing to me. For those not familiar, a "people-mover" in this case refers to a sort of fixed-guideway bus of sorts. I'm assuming that a new system would be comparable to Bombardier's systems currently in place at Pittsburgh Int'l, as well as a 8.6 mile line servicing Morgantown-WVU. I did not know about such a system in Morgantown until recently, and I've been fascinated by the idea. I think that such a system for this purpose, an eastern-neighborhood shuttle/feeder to Oakland, would be an excellent idea and could be more implementable than a much larger-scale T network in this same region.

I'm not sure of the data, but I could assume that such a system would be well suited for the area given the varying topography compared to light rail. Who would've thought we would be revisiting the whole "Skybus" concept once again?