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As well as a few other states receiving or applying for more Rail / High Speed Rail money. Unfortnatly most people outside the Northeast don't think this is worth it. But i can and people in the Northeast will probably tell you that the line is over capacity and jammed. The Northeast Corridor is one of a few Profitable Amtrak lines and has always been profitable. Some Bridges and Tunnels are being used even though there at risk of collapsing. Since we put band aids on the Problems for decades its finally gotten to a point. NY Penn Station is almost at Capacity , and is a safety hazard due to the limited and small amount of exits. The Catenary and some places is older then 90 years and is starting to fall apart leading to daily delays. About 490,000 + people use the Northeast Corridor each day and in the Summer that sometimes balloons to 600,000+ people. By the End of the decade the Corridor will be used by 2x the amount that it is today. About 1,200 trains use the Northeast Corridor daily. Amtrak and other agencies want to one day have service every 10 mins. Which means 2-4x the amount of trains we have now. In some places the NEC will need to widened to 3 tracks form 2 and up 6 form 4 tracks. Constant Tension Catenary will be needed for True High Speed Rail and added Capacity. On some places of the NEC Constant Tension will be done by next year. East of New Haven , Constant Catenary Tension is already in place. All Interlocks will need to be replaced and High Speed Rail Flyovers will need to be built to allow trains to cross over the Railway without holding up 4 tracks of traffic. Station upgrades are also needed in some places. A Few feeder lines will need to upgraded like the New Haven - Springfield corridor , Keystone Corridor , Richmond,Va to DC. Those Corridors outside the Northeast Corridor will be upgraded to 110-120 mph and Electrified at a later point. If we don't upgrade these corridors , deaths will occur form derailments and worse.
I've taken Amtrak twice and was unpleased twice. I took the Vermonter line from Newark to Amherst. It took about 8 hours (it literally takes about 5 hours to drive even during rush hour). It seemed like it just stopped in the middle of nowhere for no reason. There were stations we passed in tiny towns with one rail in and one out. I think it was a congestion problem and a lack of tracks. This would mean a giant revamping of all the lines and stations. This would also mean fair hikes too. Then again apparently there's a big market. Those numbers shocked me.
On a different note, it agitated me when people referred to last year's WS as the "Amtrak Series". A real New Yorker/Jersite/Philadelphian/ knows Septa and NJ Transit are cheaper and with all the stupid delays on Amtrak, quicker.
I have used the NE corridor quite a few times. Most recently, it took 3 hours 20 to get from NY Penn to Boston 128. That is about the same time it would take to drive assuming no delays. NY Penn to Philadelphia takes about 1 hour 15 mins. Maybe you could drive it in that time but it can also take an hour just to get through the Lincoln tunnel.
But you really have to look at this rail line in terms of an integrated transportation strategy assuming an overall increase in use in the next 20 years.
The only feasible road alternative is I95. In places, this road is horribly crowded. In parts of NJ it is already 6 lanes wide and crowded with it and getting over the George Washington Bridge and through the Bronx can be a bear. Also, I95 needs to be widened to 3 lanes between New Haven and Providence; one accident and that stretch is at a standstill. So, if you are not going to invest in rail, how much will road improvements cost?
Then there is air travel. Only feasible between the big cities so no use if you are going from Trenton to Stamford. Try getting the shuttle from La Guardia to Washington or to Boston. It can be great, but it can be horrible too. Ever sat for an hour on the tarmac at La Guardia? I think most people who fly through there on a regular basis have done it multiple times. So what is the cost of increasing runway capacity and can the air corridors hold more flights.
It is easy to rubbish plans for improved rail infrastructure but when you really look at it, the alternatives are not that great. If we are going to invest in transportation then rail might just offer more bang for the buck in terms of speed, reliability and flexibility.
One question..where is Amtrak getting this $52 billion from ?
Its a Muti-State & Amtrak upgrade , states have realized the aging NEC and have agreed to upgrade it. Also to a certain extent states make money off the NEC. Of those 1200 trains that use the NEC daily , about 570 of them are state commuter lines. Freight companies are also paying for this , so they can use the NEC more. Amtrak is really aiming for on time ness rather then High Speed Rail. Its a Japanese type model. But it think they want to upgrade & add more tracks so the Acela Express can average 140mph during the day and hit 160mph at night. Currently its 79mph during day & 120mph at night. We should have done this 10 years ago , but Bush Denied funding. But if we don't do it now , we will have seriously and hazardous problems in 10 years.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Frank DeForrest
to include the sound of a toilet flushing.
hehe , its money coming in....Billions invested , billions coming out......The Northeast produces 25% of GDP of the US , & 17% of the US population which mainly uses highways and roads for now. But in 20 years that will be shifted to Rail and Transit. The NEC is like a spine , it connects the region.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jaggy001
I have used the NE corridor quite a few times. Most recently, it took 3 hours 20 to get from NY Penn to Boston 128. That is about the same time it would take to drive assuming no delays. NY Penn to Philadelphia takes about 1 hour 15 mins. Maybe you could drive it in that time but it can also take an hour just to get through the Lincoln tunnel.
But you really have to look at this rail line in terms of an integrated transportation strategy assuming an overall increase in use in the next 20 years.
The only feasible road alternative is I95. In places, this road is horribly crowded. In parts of NJ it is already 6 lanes wide and crowded with it and getting over the George Washington Bridge and through the Bronx can be a bear. Also, I95 needs to be widened to 3 lanes between New Haven and Providence; one accident and that stretch is at a standstill. So, if you are not going to invest in rail, how much will road improvements cost?
Then there is air travel. Only feasible between the big cities so no use if you are going from Trenton to Stamford. Try getting the shuttle from La Guardia to Washington or to Boston. It can be great, but it can be horrible too. Ever sat for an hour on the tarmac at La Guardia? I think most people who fly through there on a regular basis have done it multiple times. So what is the cost of increasing runway capacity and can the air corridors hold more flights.
It is easy to rubbish plans for improved rail infrastructure but when you really look at it, the alternatives are not that great. If we are going to invest in transportation then rail might just offer more bang for the buck in terms of speed, reliability and flexibility.
The Newer Fleet will have a Capacity of 600-1500 Passengers , Wifi , Hotel style bathrooms for ADA compliance and more luxuries. I also heard that Amtrak will lower tickets down to 15-20$.
No , since they have lowered fares to 49-68$ ridership has hit the roof , some trains are sold out. Mostly people taking Amtrak over the airlines.
So what you're saying is that the $49-$68 tickets cover operating and capital costs?
Or they lowered an already losing money ticket and AMTRAK is now losing even more money per passenger?
You need to live ... or have lived in the NE to realize that rail is a very viable alternative. How much would it cost to upgrade the George Washington Bridge. The Tappanzee Bridge is near the end of its design life. How much to fix that or build a new one? Try getting through the Bronx or through the Stamford - Bridgeport corridor on a busy day? How much to build new lanes on I95 for four hundred miles?
$56 billion sounds like a lot of money. But it might well cost a whole lot more with huge traffic disruption to build a viable road alternative and that is all taxpayer dollars too.
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