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The good thing is that since it's built, it can be like the other two with the requisite building for transit-oriented development and some actual funding from the regional municipalities and the state.
Another point to consider - though not directly related to urban rapid transit - is BART's connectivity with Caltrain. As many of you know, Caltrain is currently in the midst of a system-wide transformation, upgrading to a fully-electric fleet with rapid-transit like frequency (trains every 5-10 minutes all day), along with a very sleek fleet courtesy of Swiss train maker Stadler Rail.
It's easy to underestimate this transformation, but the current Caltrain upgrade is a BIG deal - Caltrain will become one of the first North American commuter rail systems to deliver all-day, high-frequency inter-city rail service, moving away from the typical commuter train system seen in most North American cities today. Also, Caltrain will be become one of the few commuter rail systems in North America to deploy a modern and fully-electric fleet. This will essentially place the quality and service level of Caltrain on par with similar European systems like the Paris RER and German S-Bahn/Regio system. Again, it's a big deal.
This is what Caltrain is going to look like 5 years from now:
- Stadler Rail, Wiki Commons
Another point to consider - though not directly related to urban rapid transit - is BART's connectivity with Caltrain. As many of you know, Caltrain is currently in the midst of a system-wide transformation, upgrading to a fully-electric fleet with rapid-transit like frequency (trains every 5-10 minutes all day), along with a very sleek fleet courtesy of Swiss train maker Stadler Rail.
It's easy to underestimate this transformation, but the current Caltrain upgrade is a BIG deal - Caltrain will become one of the first North American commuter rail systems to deliver all-day, high-frequency inter-city rail service, moving away from the typical commuter train system seen in most North American cities today. Also, Caltrain will be become one of the few commuter rail systems in North America to deploy a modern and fully-electric fleet. This will essentially place the quality and service level of Caltrain on par with similar European systems like the Paris RER and German S-Bahn/Regio system. Again, it's a big deal.
This is what Caltrain is going to look like 5 years from now:
- Stadler Rail, Wiki Commons
Yea, it's a great move and one that several commuter rail systems in the US should be making in general.
Of the three cities essentially being compared here, DC also has a slight possibility of reconfiguring its two commuter rail systems, VRE and MARC to be electrified and through-running, but it'd be difficult with so many municipalities, states and agencies.
Yea, it's a great move and one that several commuter rail systems in the US should be making in general.
Of the three cities essentially being compared here, DC also has a slight possibility of reconfiguring its two commuter rail systems, VRE and MARC to be electrified and through-running, but it'd be difficult with so many municipalities, states and agencies.
Only the MARC Penn line (from DC's Union Station to Martin Airport via Baltimore) is electrified due to it running on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor. Getting from DC to Baltimore in less than an hour is always an awesome option. The other MARC lines are on freight corridors and have to abide by their rules.
VRE's tracks are owned by CSX. They still don't have weekend service even over 25 years since the service started. It would be awesome if the lines could be electrified to accommodate that type of service.
Only the MARC Penn line (from DC's Union Station to Martin Airport via Baltimore) is electrified due to it running on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor. Getting from DC to Baltimore in less than an hour is always an awesome option. The other MARC lines are on freight corridors and have to abide by their rules.
VRE's tracks are owned by CSX. They still don't have weekend service even over 25 years since the service started. It would be awesome if the lines could be electrified to accommodate that type of service.
Kudos to Caltrain for its overhaul.
Yea, it'd be amazing for MARC and VRE to be electrified, compatible, and run jointly while running through DC rather than terminating and backing up from there.
Only the MARC Penn line (from DC's Union Station to Martin Airport via Baltimore) is electrified due to it running on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor. Getting from DC to Baltimore in less than an hour is always an awesome option. The other MARC lines are on freight corridors and have to abide by their rules.
VRE's tracks are owned by CSX. They still don't have weekend service even over 25 years since the service started. It would be awesome if the lines could be electrified to accommodate that type of service.
Kudos to Caltrain for its overhaul.
The bolded. This is essentially what killed North America's commuter rail systems, by letting freight companies control your intercity rail routes and severely limiting your ability to expand service or increase the frequency of existing service. The only way out of this mess is to buy back the tracks, mile by mile, until a regional train operator like MARC has complete control and say over the scheduling of its own tracks.
Toronto's regional transit operator - Metrolinx - faced the exact same predicament, and basically spent the last 10 years buying up over 400 miles of trackage from freight companies. Toronto region now owns 6 commuter rail lines and is currently in the midst of electrification and service expansion, very similar to what Caltrain has undertaken.
who wins the battle of the best rapid transit system among the 3 major, massive systems that emerged after WWII?
I can't speak about MARTA (I've never seen it) but I lived in DC in the early '80s, and have been in SF since 1989. BART doesn't come close to Metro in quality. With a few exceptions (e.g. Georgetown), Metro rail thoroughly covers the DC area, while BART doesn't even adequately serve SF. If you live anywhere in the northwestern half of SF (Richmond district, etc.) there's no BART line anywhere nearby. The Geary Blvd corridor is served only by slow diesel buses, even though it's one of the busiest transit routes in the region. In the time I've lived here, BART has ignored SF, and expanded farther and farther into the suburbs. More recently, they've at last gotten around to matters like seismic retrofitting and replacing the old rolling stock. But still no improvements for SF.
I can't speak about MARTA (I've never seen it) but I lived in DC in the early '80s, and have been in SF since 1989. BART doesn't come close to Metro in quality. With a few exceptions (e.g. Georgetown), Metro rail thoroughly covers the DC area, while BART doesn't even adequately serve SF. If you live anywhere in the northwestern half of SF (Richmond district, etc.) there's no BART line anywhere nearby. The Geary Blvd corridor is served only by slow diesel buses, even though it's one of the busiest transit routes in the region. In the time I've lived here, BART has ignored SF, and expanded farther and farther into the suburbs. More recently, they've at last gotten around to matters like seismic retrofitting and replacing the old rolling stock. But still no improvements for SF.
Ive ridden all three and truthfully speaking ,BART is only marginally better than MARTA but its due to the compactness and density of SF moreso than the design of BART itself.
not understanding what doesn't make sense.... the list is purely a measure of mass transit use %'s by city/census jurisdiction thus Arlington is listed separate from DC.
So that does not raise a red flag to you or seem at best questionable?
So is Decatur included in Atlanta totals because MARTA runs through that city as it does College Park,East Point,Avondale etc.?All are separate cities in the Atlanta Metro served by the same transit system. Also what about the counties like Cobb and Gwinnett that have their own systems.
How can this conflict so differently when you look at daily and annual ridership numbers?It doesnt give an accurate view of how these systems are used.
Last edited by SenseSoCommon; 09-19-2017 at 01:54 AM..
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Dc metro
