A Passenger Rail Coalition?

[Ocklawaha]

THINKING OUT LOUD!

Should/could metrojacksonville.com assemble, organize or lead a coalition of cities and their citizens between Cocoa and Jacksonville to visit our thoughts to Flagler? Amtrak? Norfolk Southern? We might start a movement!

As a bi-product we could assemble a team to pressure reluctant politicos and encourage the city to ABANDON the JRTC plan and focus on a rail station in the, well, uh, RAILROAD STATION DOWNTOWN! Hey at least we know the concourse is still there...6 feet under!

[Elwood]

Absolutely! Why not take the lead?

[Charles Hunter]

There is a Facebook group: Amtrak/FEC Corridor Coalition: https://www.facebook.com/groups/106795702676987/
Looks like there is a meeting Friday down in Daytona:
FLAGLER LINE FORUM II - Friday, March 30
10:00 a.m. to 12:00 Noon - Registration - 9:30 a.m.
DAYTONA BEACH CITY HALL, 301 S. Ridgewood Avenue, Daytona Beach, FL 32114

AGENDA
ALL ABOARD
Welcome, Mayor Glenn Ritchey, City of Daytona Beach
Agenda Overview and Forum Goals, Leigh Holt, Multi Modal Program Manager, Space Coast Transportation Planning Organization
RAIL REMARKS
AMTRAK, Todd Stennis, Director, Government Affairs-South, AMTRAK National Railroad Passenger Corporation
FDOT, Fred Wise, State Rail Manager, Florida Department of Transportation
STATION STORIES
Marianne Gurnee, SunRail Public Liaison, Florida Department of Transportation
Mayor Bob Garcia, City of DeBary
John Omana, Community Development Director, City of Lake Mary
NEXT STOPS
Calendar/Next Steps

Would it be worthwhile to work with them?

[Ocklawaha]

There certainly has been a lot of 'strange activity' on the rails around here.

Doubt I can make it to Daytona, Friday, but I am working on something and yes, somewhere down the track we might join forces.

Here is my prediction, if we make even a modest effort.

FECI Will NOT get that new Railroad link built into Orlando by 2014, and the trains will start rolling to Cocoa-Rockledge. Disney, Mears, Annett, US Coach and a host of others will pile on to offer direct links to various Central Florida destinations right from train side.

The frequent trains are not going to perform to their expectations as long as Cocoa is the terminus, so they look at a way to pack in a few more passengers. 1.4 Million people in the Jacksonville SMA are only 120 miles or so up the track and THAT is going to be pretty hard to miss when you get called into the board room to explain why the numbers fell short. I expect we can attract from 2 to 4 trains each way daily.

Time for a 'Butler or Morgan Steel Building' out in the west parking lot of the grand old Jacksonville Terminal Station (The Prime Osborn to the children and unwashed masses lurking on here) A couple of sidings can be thrown down literally within a week if needs be, and temporary platforms of low cost materials would do the trick. Meanwhile our little coalition can be calling on Amtrak, City Hall, JTA, FDOT, USDOT, FECI, and start tire kicking all the way to Valdosta-Macon-Atlanta. Norfolk Southern is an FEC partner railroad and each enjoys run-through rights on the other. Then Forbes Magazine comes out with a blog that says the CEO or Norfolk Southern said ANY future passenger trains over their lines would be THEIR PASSENGER TRAINS...

Somebody pinch me.

OCKLAWAHA

[thelakelander]

If you want them in Jax, you'd should pitch an Atlanta/Miami connection.  That way, we'll get pulled in despite ourselves.