Monday, January 15, 2007
Capitol Corridor Report
Our local train expert, Tom Appelbaum, sent in this report on the latest news on the Capitol Corridor rail service:
This report is the latest news I have on the possibility of Capitol Corridor rail service between the Bay Area, Sacramento, and Reno/Sparks. Nothing much has changed since the last report.
As most of you know, you can travel eastbound or westbound from Truckee on the California Zephyr, a train that leaves from Oakland going eastbound and from Chicago going westbound. Neither train is very reliable as far as stated arrival times, but the train from Oakland is usually less late into Truckee than the train from Chicago.
The other alternative, either from the Bay area or from Reno/Sparks, besides Greyhound, is to take a combination of the Capitol Corridor trains and buses, using various arrival/departure points, including several daily trains from the Bay Area to Sacramento and a bus to Soda Springs and Truckee, or a train (one per day) from the Bay Area to Auburn and a bus to Truckee; or the reverse of both if leaving From Reno/Sparks. You can get details of those trips from Amtrak.
After having spoken with many different people in several different agencies that are involved with the Capitol Corridor trains, including federal, state, county, and private groups, it is evident that, at least for the near future (3-5 years at the very least), the only improvement in the route mentioned above will be in the number of trains that go eastbound to Auburn, and the subsequent increase in buses leaving from there to points east. The return trips westbound would increase at the same level. It's an old story, but the capacity for increased rail use through the Sierra is non-existent at this time, and won't happen for years to come.
The details of the current situation are many, more than I'd like to get \ninto for this short report. However, if you'd like reasons \nfor why things are the way they are and how long it will be before things \nchange, including a list of all the players and what they've done or not done to \nhelp the cause, please feel free to call me on my cellular phone, (510) \n816-7720, and I'll take the time to explain in greater detail what's up. \nGive yourself at least 15 minutes if you want the full story. You can call \nbetween 6 am and 9 pm any day of the week.
Thanks very much.
Tom Appelbaum
Orinda and Soda Springs
This report is the latest news I have on the possibility of Capitol Corridor rail service between the Bay Area, Sacramento, and Reno/Sparks. Nothing much has changed since the last report.
As most of you know, you can travel eastbound or westbound from Truckee on the California Zephyr, a train that leaves from Oakland going eastbound and from Chicago going westbound. Neither train is very reliable as far as stated arrival times, but the train from Oakland is usually less late into Truckee than the train from Chicago.
The other alternative, either from the Bay area or from Reno/Sparks, besides Greyhound, is to take a combination of the Capitol Corridor trains and buses, using various arrival/departure points, including several daily trains from the Bay Area to Sacramento and a bus to Soda Springs and Truckee, or a train (one per day) from the Bay Area to Auburn and a bus to Truckee; or the reverse of both if leaving From Reno/Sparks. You can get details of those trips from Amtrak.
After having spoken with many different people in several different agencies that are involved with the Capitol Corridor trains, including federal, state, county, and private groups, it is evident that, at least for the near future (3-5 years at the very least), the only improvement in the route mentioned above will be in the number of trains that go eastbound to Auburn, and the subsequent increase in buses leaving from there to points east. The return trips westbound would increase at the same level. It's an old story, but the capacity for increased rail use through the Sierra is non-existent at this time, and won't happen for years to come.
The details of the current situation are many, more than I'd like to get \ninto for this short report. However, if you'd like reasons \nfor why things are the way they are and how long it will be before things \nchange, including a list of all the players and what they've done or not done to \nhelp the cause, please feel free to call me on my cellular phone, (510) \n816-7720, and I'll take the time to explain in greater detail what's up. \nGive yourself at least 15 minutes if you want the full story. You can call \nbetween 6 am and 9 pm any day of the week.
Thanks very much.
Tom Appelbaum
Orinda and Soda Springs
# posted by Daniel Wexler @ 10:07 AM 
Comments:
<< Home
Has anyone looked into private train cars that could get uncoupled like a freight car, then picked up on a round trip? The Truckee Lumber Yard gets railcar delivery and I was wondering if this method would be a possibility rather than scheduling a complete train. A throw back to the private rail cars of old.
We haven't officially discussed the issue of private rail cars, but I have been chatting a bit with Tom Appelbaum about various other, similar, possibilities. One that seemed particularly interesting is the idea of a separate, gasoline powered vehicle that rides along the rails, sort of like a bus. The idea was to have a sort of local service from Cisco to Truckee with stops at Soda Springs and Sugar Bowl along the way.
Post a Comment
<< Home
