No transportation for you ! or not a whole lot...

[jaxlore]

Interesting Times Union article about underfunding of transportation in Florida.
http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2009-03-01/story/mica_transportation_shorted_in_economic_stimulus_program
I also thought it was interesting how commuter rail was linked to the readiness for high speed rail.



U.S. Rep. John Mica loves to talk about transportation.

Mica, R-Winter Park, is the ranking minority member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and has long been a supporter of transportation projects involving commuter rail and Amtrak.

So, it was an odd moment when he voted  in lockstep with every other Republican in the House to oppose a stimulus bill that included more funding for rail and road infrastructure.

During an interview Friday with the Times-Union, Mica defended his no vote, saying there wasn’t enough transportation funding in the bill.

The Florida Department of Transportation is getting $1.3 billion in funding for the whole state. Will the public notice a difference because of that money?

There are some good things in the stimulus. But I voted against the stimulus, because I didn’t think there was enough funding for infrastructure improvements. FDOT had $6.9 billion in projects they wanted funding for. While they were never going to get that much money, they really should have gotten more than $1.3 billion. The problem is we put a lot of items into the stimulus that won’t really stimulate the economy, and we scrimped on road construction. I introduced a bill that would have doubled the amount allocated for infrastructure improvements, but it was voted down.

  Are you concerned that all the stimulus funds will be going to the major urban areas like Miami and Tampa? No I’m not. I’ve spoken with FDOT, and I think Northeast Florida is going to get a fair share of the money. I don’t know yet what projects will be funded, but I think every part of the state will get funds. 
Do you have any advice for local governments like Jacksonville?

Get on the stick, and move forward with your fixed transportation plans. There’s still [stimulus] money for commuter rail and other projects. Try to go get some of that money.

  The Florida High Speed Rail Authority is going after part of the $8 billion allocated in the stimulus package to high-speed rail. What are the chances that they can get some of that money? I’d say their chances are marginal at best. That money is going to be allocated based on the readiness of a community to get high speed rail, and I’d say Florida is not really ready. 
Could you explain how Florida isn’t ready?

At the moment, Miami is the only community in Florida that has a commuter rail system. Efforts are occurring to get commuter rail into cities like Jacksonville, Orlando and Tampa, but you really need a working commuter rail system before high-speed rail comes. [With] high-speed rail you need a local transit system to connect into. Some states in the Northeast already have rail systems. New York to Washington, D.C., is a no-brainer. You also have states like California that are well ahead of Florida. Local leaders in towns like Jacksonville need to get going with commuter rail before focusing on high-speed rail.



What happens now when it comes to transportation?

I suspect we’ll be doing another stimulus bill later this year. I’m hopeful that bill will have more infrastructure improvements. Then we have to pass a new transportation funding bill by the end of this year that will fund transportation improvements for the next five to six years. Hopefully we can do a better job with those than we did with the first.

[thelakelander]

Get on the stick, and move forward with your fixed transportation plans. There’s still [stimulus] money for commuter rail and other projects. Try to go get some of that money.

Great quote.

[stjr]

....but you really need a working commuter rail system before high-speed rail comes. [With] high-speed rail you need a local transit system to connect into. Some states in the Northeast already have rail systems. New York to Washington, D.C., is a no-brainer. You also have states like California that are well ahead of Florida. Local leaders in towns like Jacksonville need to get going with commuter rail before focusing on high-speed rail.

Here is another interesting quote.  Hope City Hall is paying attention!  It's from one of your own.

P.S. We aren't talking $ky-high-way expansion here either.  No, the real deal.  Commuter rail.  Let's get focused and make this happen.

[thelakelander]

Basically he's saying you need a working local system in place before implementing high priced dreams like high speed rail.  So not only should commuter rail be explored, Amtrak corridor, streetcars and other fixed modes, making it easier to get around our urban areas, are needed as well.

[FayeforCure]

Basically he's saying you need a working local system in place before implementing high priced dreams like high speed rail. 

While that is one way of looking at it,......many of his Florida collegues do not agree:

High-speed rail depends on Crist, board says
Dan Tracy | Sentinel Staff Writer
February 27, 2009
Gov. Charlie Crist is the only person who stands between a hungry group of high-speed-train enthusiasts and a shot at as much as $2 billion in federal tax dollars........

The Florida authority would like to ask for $2.5 billion: A 25-mile section that would connect the Orange County Convention Center, Orlando International Airport and the Walt Disney World development of Celebration would cost $1 billion; or a link from the airport to Tampa would cost $2.5 billion.

Calling into the meeting were Democratic U.S. Reps. Alan Grayson and Corrine Brown, both of whom pledged their backing.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/orl-loc-high-speed-rail-crist-022709,0,4815309.story

Good for you Alan Grayson and Corrine Brown!
Who in the world would pass up on free federal dollars that do not require state matching funds, and that would provide much needed jobs during these tough economic times!!

[thelakelander]

Reality sets in.  The high speed rail dream doesn't sound like it will be receiving billions, but the money could help enhance Amtrak's on time performance.  If anything, we really should be supporting an Amtrak corridor service for the State.  A chuck of this rail money will probably end up going their way and they want to be here.

$8 Bil. of Stimulus to Go to Trains, but Not Bullet-Style



By MICHAEL COOPER
THE NEW YORK TIMES

It may be the longest train delay in history: More than 40 years after the first bullet trains zipped through Japan, the United States still lacks true high-speed rail. And despite the record $8 billion investment in high-speed rail added at the last minute to the new economic stimulus package, that may not change any time soon.

That money will not be enough to pay for a single bullet train, transportation experts say. And by the time the $8 billion gets divided among the 11 regions across the country that the government has designated as high-speed rail corridors, they say, it is unlikely to do much beyond paying for long-delayed improvements to passenger lines, and making a modest investment in California's plan for a true bullet train.

In the short term, the money - inserted at the 11th hour by the White House - could put people to work improving tracks, crossings and signal systems.

That could help more trains reach speeds of 90 to 110 miles per hour, which is much faster than they currently go. It is much slower, however, than high-speed trains elsewhere, like the 180 mph of the newest Japanese bullet train.....

"WALK BEFORE RUN"

"You've got to walk before you can run, and we've just been crawling up to now," said Ross B. Capon, the president of the National Association of Railroad Passengers, an advocacy group for riders.

Many passenger trains run on tracks owned by freight companies, and they are slowed on long stretches of single track, where trains must pull onto sidings so others can pass.

Federal transportation officials said that they were still drawing up guidelines for how the money would be spent, and cautioned that it was too early to predict what they would do. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told reporters in Washington this week that he thought high-speed rail would be President Obama's transportation priority. LaHood said the department had recently given the White House a memorandum describing plans for high-speed rail in "at least six corridors" across the country.

But people who were excited by that prospect may be surprised to hear that the federal government defines "high speed" as much slower than other countries do. A diesel train in the United States that can go 90 mph is still considered high-speed under the government's definition.

So some projects financed by the bill may simply get intercity passenger rail back to where it was earlier in the 20th century, rather than closer to the futuristic vision of the trains of Europe and Asia, like the magnetic levitation, or maglev, train that whisks passengers from Shanghai to its airport 19 miles away in seven minutes, attaining a speed of 259 mph.

full article: http://www.theledger.com/article/20090228/NEWS/902280346/1410?Title=-8-Bil-of-Stimulus-to-Go-to-Trains-but-Not-Bullet-Style

[FayeforCure]

I came across an updated plan that does connect Jacksonville to Orlando.

Estimated ridership numbers project Florida as a Number 1 priority for implementation of a National Highspeed Rail System according to the Transport Politic, listing Florida in Phase 1 of a four Phase implementation of their comprehensive and updated proposal of a National Highspeed Rail Plan.

Florida’s Jacksonville-Orlando-Miami is even listed ahead of California’s San Francisco-LA connection based on ridership.

http://thetransportpolitic.com/2009/01/30/envisioning-a-future-interstate-rail-network/

In 1956, $50 billion was put into the Federal-Aid Highway Act for the the creation of a 41,000-mile U.S. Interstate Highway System. I think that grew to over $200 billion by the time they were done.
What we need is at least a similar amount in todays dollars for a National Highspeed Rail Network. But the article doesn't give any cost projections.

[thelakelander]

This blog is by Yonah Freemark

http://thetransportpolitic.com/2009/01/30/envisioning-a-future-interstate-rail-network/

I believe that is a blogger's proposal.  Its not the actual official map of designated high speed corridors.

[FayeforCure]

I know, but he used ridership numbers that show Florida to be a high priority for (high-speed) intercity rail.

I am really glad Corrine Brown and Alan Grayson think so too.

Construction of the system would be implemented in four phases, each with 2,000 to 3,000 miles of service, and ordered according to relative merit within the network as a whole.

In order to evaluate the different lines, the transport politic developed a system by which it could examine the cost effectiveness of each line both in terms of travel within the corridor alone (the Corridor Score) and within the system as a whole (the Overall Score). Travel between every city pair in the system between 50 and 500 miles apart was evaluated, and the results were compiled by corridor, whereupon they were divided by route mile to appraise potential ridership by mile of new construction. The results provide the basis for prioritizing routes and suggest a method by which the federal government could begin to imagine how such a high-speed rail system might be developed. (PDF with description of methodology, evaluation of every city pair, and scores for each corridor or here.)

http://thetransportpolitic.com/2009/01/30/envisioning-a-future-interstate-rail-network/

[thelakelander]

My thing is his whole study, numbers included, is fake.  No money from the stimulus package will be given to anything suggested by his plan.  So its hard for me to link the two.  Its kind of like Metro Jacksonville drawing up a rail plan.  We can do it and suggest valid reasons why it should be developed that way, but it won't result in stimulus money being given to build it.

Nevertheless, its been known for years that the distance between and population of Florida's major cities make the state a high priority for intercity rail.  Even Amtrak claims they have studies that suggest that they can break even running a statewide corridor service here.  The only thing missing is the State's desire to partner up with them.  Lets just hope Corrine Brown and Alan Grayson really understand rail.  Even "free" money can be bad if its not used in the right way. 

[Ocklawaha]

You gotta crawl before you can run, but Florida wants to skip those lessons. We plan to go from no train service (at least not enough to call a "service") to instant World leader in speed, quality and numbers of trains. The missing factor are the millions of people here who have NEVER gotten on a train, don't think about trains as an alternative, or even realize that they are running. We've done such a poor job with our transportation system that if it doesn't have wings or rubber tires, we don't even try to understand it.

I've watched Official State rail plan after Official State rail plan, come and go since the 1970's. More often then I can count this is the course in Florida:

*(EXAMPLE)

---1978, the rail line belonging to the Seaboard Coast Line, between Mattox and Alachua is no longer used for through freight service. The last passenger train passed along this route in 1971. The State desires to retain mainline rail service through Gainesville via Alachua and Ocala.

--- 1979, the rail line belonging to the Seaboard Coast Line, between Mattox and Alachua is subject to an application for abandonment. The desire to restore through passenger train service via Gainesville has resulted in a feasibility study for state purchase and rehabilitation. A target date for action has been set by the FDOT for November 1, 1979.

--- 1980, changes in the rail map this year feature the complete abandonment of the former Seaboard Coast Line Railroad between Mattox and Alachua.

This year the State will study a joint project with GADOT to rehabilitate the former Seaboard Airline Railroad mainline from Yulee, Florida to Savannah, Georgia.

LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA!

FYI y'all "The Transport Politic" and "Jacksonville Transit Blog" work together and often reprint eachothers ideas or articles for broader circulation. And yes LAKE and FAYE, it's something we improved on ourselves.

OCKLAWAHA

[FayeforCure]

Nevertheless, its been known for years that the distance between and population of Florida's major cities make the state a high priority for intercity rail.  Even Amtrak claims they have studies that suggest that they can break even running a statewide corridor service here.  The only thing missing is the State's desire to partner up with them.  Lets just hope Corrine Brown and Alan Grayson really understand rail.  Even "free" money can be bad if its not used in the right way. 

I second that. Clearly Corrine Brown and Alan Grayson understand the need to put people to work. Amtrak corridor service would be terrific. I will forward the Nov 2008 TU article about Amtrak's plans to Alan, but I think the FDOT will do the prioritizing of stimulus monies.

[Ocklawaha]

You ride your corridor service and I'll ride mine!



Simple projects would bump our tracks up to FAST - FREQUENT - TRAIN service.

Right-of-way fencing along all mainline trunk routes:

INTRA-STATE:
Jacksonville-Pensacola (CSX)
Jacksonville-Ocala-Lakeland (CSX)
Jacksonville-Orlando-Auburndale-Lakeland-Tampa (CSX)
Auburndale-Miami (CSX)
Jacksonville-Daytona-Ft. Pierce-West Palm-Miami (FEC)

INTER-STATE:
Jacksonville-Valdosta-Macon-Atlanta
Jacksonville-Waycross-Manchester
Jacksonville-Jessup-Savannah
Jacksonville-Jessup-Augusta
Jacksonville-Pensacola-Mobile-New Orleans




Railroad traffic control or airplane traffic control?


Minimum track standard, 80 MPH, except for speed restrictive curves. High Speed turnouts. passing sidings or second main track, to eliminate delays.

All railroad highway grade crossings closed or overpasses. Set a yearly goal and target date for completion.

Reconstruction:
(Jacksonville-Yulee) Kingsland-Richland (Savannah)
(Jacksonville - Baldwin) Mattox-Lake Butler-Alachua-Gainesville-Ocala
(Wildwood) Croom-Auburndale (Winter Haven)
(Gainesville-Dunnellon) Inverness-Brooksville (Tampa)
Lake City-Lake Butler-Hampton

Major Rehabilitation:
Lakeland-Ft. Myers-Naples
Tampa-Sarasota-Venice
Tampa-Bartow-West Lake Wales
Jacksonville-Yulee-Fernandina Beach

Entire system signaled, All new tracks Welded Rail CWR-132 pound, on concrete ties on 6 inches of asphalt + crushed hardrock ballast.

Minimum Station Standard -

All stations regardless of size equipped with:
AC/Heat
Interior waiting room with seats
Ticket Office (built but manned according to present demand)
2 ADA/Family friendly restrooms
butterfly type covered passenger platform a minimum of 300' long
Well defined lighting, parking and sidewalk systems.
(In smaller towns the station interior office space may be used by local government or law enforcement)

Later, I'll post sample schedules for a 5-TRAIN network on each line, these will be based on actual track speed, historic timetables and a spread of hours to match connections from the North, West and Midwest.




Railroad running on instruments or Airplane running on instruments?


OCKLAWAHA