Pittsburgh Maglev, Dead or Alive? (Greensburg, Oakland: tax, live in, price)

[youngabe]

So this weekend a very interesting topic came up...the Maglev! I remember that was all I heard for quite a while, and now, nothing. Now granted with the economy and the North Shore Connector barely getting finished, Maglev is just a glimpse into the future.

BUT...what is the official word? Is it dead for good or never officially canned?

[PeterRabbit]

When and where did you hear about this?

[dugdogmaster]

Never officially canned. I heard it mentioned not too long ago as well, I can't remember where now though. I seriously doubt it'll ever happen though. Much like the East End LRT, I'll believe it when I see it.

[TechieTransplant]

What are you talking about in the first place?

[Awesomo.2000]

Maglev still has a small regional office that still competes with Baltimore. There is still a small group that designs the Maglev if funding for it actually would ever occur. I knew somebody who worked there that was pretty much designing a train for La La land on Tax Payers money.

The good thing, is 500 years from now when people actually would want to fund a train that can go 250 mph on average, there will be a good amount of design started for it.

I am not communist in anyway. However, you have to hand it to the communist, because when it comes to something like building a Maglev, they do it right away, and not sit on it for 150 years bickering and arguing.

[Awesomo.2000]

Originally Posted by scottrpriester

What are you talking about in the first place?

Maglev is a magnetic train that glides on a magnetic track at high speeds. It is very efficient, and you could ride it across the state in the time it takes you to park at a airport, go through security, wait for your plane, sit on the runway, and finally fly to Philly.

It works on opposing magnetic force created by electrical current through the track. It is German technology, and a German company. They were going to fund one here in the US during the Clinton years. It was either going to start of in Baltimore or Pittsburgh. At that time Pittsburgh looked like it was going to win because a lot of it had to do with Maglev wanting to showcase their train in our hilly and unique topography. Imagine what would happen to this city if it was the first to get a futuristic train out of all American cities.

[Kippy]

Wow! I just read about the proposed project on Pennsylvania High Speed Maglev Project - Connecting Pittsburgh International Airport, Downtown, Monroeville, Greensburg , and it sounds like amazing technology! Imagine -- Greensburg to the airport in just 35 minutes including the 5 station stops!

[hempfield mania]

That is the problem though, too many stops. You really don't take advantage of the speed and technology if you are stopping all the time. It is best suited to long runs where it can maintain speed.

It would have been a good "showcase" though to demonstrate how flexible the technology was but the down and dirty application here in PGH would most likely be a bust, as far as ridership goes. Just what we need, another taxpayer funded/supported/propped agency like the Port Authority as a whole and its tunnel to nowhere.

[Awesomo.2000]

^It wouldn't be a bust. They were going to extend it both east and west to major cities like Chicago and Philly/N.Y., and from those cities it would keep extending to others in the US. However, I feel ridership would be high on a Maglev. Do you really think people enjoy sitting in traffic and paying 20 bucks a day to park downtown if they could hop on a train that takes 10-15 minutes to get them to work or the airport? The Pittsburgh Metro stands pretty high in it's percentage of people who ride public transportation. A train like this could cut into the extremely overpriced airlines, as there is no other way to travel besides busses.

Maglev would be a huge upfront cost, but the benefits in the long run would pay off.

I do agree that the tunnel is retarded, but we should still spend the federal money we got, just differently though. We should of spent the federal money linking Oakland and the South Side with light rail which would effect people who would ride it everyday. Instead of drilling a useless tunnel for our sports stadiums which effects Steelers games 8 times a month. The only good thing about it, is maybe we can keep extending it further north.

But, yes the Port Authority is a tax funded/supported agency. But is that a bad thing? Should we not support public transportation? On this forum, I really think majority would rather live in a city with no public transportation.

[slamont61]

Why Oakland and the South Side were left out of the Light Rail plans while the North Side - walking distance from town IS? Are you kidding me? Just think of the advantage there COULD have been.

So, way back when they decided it would be nice to hook up MAGLEV and get some remote communities quick and easy access to the airport. Sounds kind of silly huh? It wasn't. This project stood to creat many jobs, long lasting jobs at that. It also would have been the beginning link to the Pittsburgh to Philly Maglev project that would have come next, it woud simply have been logical.

The Port Authority is backassward. The Northside connection that is both needless and expensive and somehow exists in the form of a tunnel to nowhere. *how apropriate that? While a Maglev project is deemed somehow insignificant and we have our South Side sitting further back, and an Oakland link that could be so very useful both completely non-existant. My oh my who is running that show?

**I realize the Maglev project is unrelated to the Port Authority. It's just an example of how forward thinking somehow is lost in translation. If they were involved the project would somehow be sitting halfway done and going no where too.