John Mica Calls Florida's High Speed Rail Application a "Dog"

[CS Foltz]

I know how to fix the problem.............we need another "STUDY"! I bet tufsu1 can suggest someone willing to do that for us right?:-)

[tufsu1]

sure CS...another study would be good...and I'd like to recommend that you lead the effort because I'm sure you can do it for pennies on a dollar compared to all those high-cost consultants....but do keep us all up to speed on how your study is received by the approval agencies (FDOT, FTA, EPA, etc)!!

[Ocklawaha]

http://www.dailymotion.com/swf/x6mr9&related=0
Enjoy the countryside view from the cab of the Surfliner, through Anaheim. Clicking on the full screen box, under the video is like a mini I-Max kind of mind blowing view (just hit esc to go back to MJ).  BTW the in cab signaling is a very nice addition, you'll see actual speed, max authorized speed, and signal indication.

OCKLAWAHA

[tufsu1]

Ock...have any video of the train just north of San Diego....the part where it traverses 20 minutes through nothing?

[CS Foltz]

tufsu1..............I would be more than willing to lead since I have lead most of my life........by the way you forgot about the FFA!

[tufsu1]

do you mean FRA?

[CS Foltz]

Nope............FFA is Future Farmers of America..........had to yank your chain once dude! Have  you ever noticed just how many acronyms there are out there?

[Dog Walker]

CS, If you think we have a lot of acronyms in English, where we usually put together a string of letters, you should try a root based language like Arabic, Hebrew or Russian.  Their acronyms turn into new words and they do it to EVERYTHING!  Horribly confusing to anyone already trying to learn an already difficult language.

[Ocklawaha]

Ock...have any video of the train just north of San Diego....the part where it traverses 20 minutes through nothing?

Sorry you thought you were in the middle of nowhere TUFSU1, You were in ROSE CANYON OPEN SPACE, which headed north starts out in a rather narrow canyon, then appears to be out in the mountains or some such... It's not, surrounded by development perched above you on all sides and hopefully, someday park and preserve land. After that you branch left into a tangle of curves in another narrow confine called Sorrento Canyon, as you come out you pop over the salt marshed then assume the waterfront mainline. I believe we did 90 on the salt marsh. Yes I have the ENTIRE trip on video, vhs, I'll be glad to let you see it.

OCKLAWAHA

[tufsu1]

yes...I knew it was preserved open space....just thought since the Orlando Airport is in the "middle of nowhere", this would be too :-)

[Ocklawaha]

Nice try, but the Kissimmee River Valley and the St. Johns Rise, are just a wee bit larger then Sorrento Canyon. Except for greater metropolitan Kennansville, and Yeehaw Junction, or west into Green Swamp and the Withlacoochee Rise.

OCKLAWAHA

[tufsu1]

there is nothing close to this much open space along the Tampa - Orlando HSR route

[Ocklawaha]

there is nothing close to this much open space along the Tampa - Orlando HSR route

Uh, yeah, like Disney to Tampa via I-4... Sure there is some freeway clutter at the intersections but so much open or wooded land, it's sad that it will be destroyed by sprawl developers. You and I both know, if this lousy plan is adopted, every home builder in the Southeast will want to fill in the gaps, from Haines City to Leesburg, Lakeland to Dade City.

I really don't care if you designed it TUFSU1, guess I'm known in town for the one that keeps calling the City and State on dumb planning, and that's what this is. If we want the benefit of rail, City Center to City Center, then damn it, build it that way. Tallahassee needs to pick up the phone and dial 1-800-USA-RAIL.

OCKLAWAHA

[CS Foltz]

So tufsu1 had a finger in the design, or proposed design of that Orlando escapade? No wonder he is so positive about that project! Idea has merit but I still say that Jacksonville to Miami would be a better showcase for true HSR! Have no problems with thinking outside of the box (most times) but Orlando is not the one to showcase a system such as that...............one issue that has cropped up is where does the maintenance yard sit in relation to the system! If the HSR end is supposed to hit 150 mph plus, braking is paramount and high speeds equal high wear and have yet to see or hear of any proposal regarding where that particular yard will be situated? LRT with fully articulated cars would be a better fit for that area....pretty high speed, 3 or 4 car elements run on a timed element schedule and 24/7! Something along those lines is more of a fit for that part of the world not HSR!

[thelakelander]

Commuter rail with express trains (aka Caltrain) or an Amtrak corridor service (aka Pacific Surfliner) would be the best options for a Tampa to Orlando link.  LRT would be ideal for linking Orlando's airport with Disney and I-Drive.