Baltimore MTA Light Rail pics

My buddy Will visited Baltimore, Maryland recently and sent me these pictures of their light rail system. It is a one-line operation with 33 stations and short spurs to Baltimore's Penn Station, BWI airport and Glenn Burnie. The LRV's were manufactured by ABB Traction circa 1991 with a capacity of 85 seated and 91 standing passengers. Also check out the cool bicycle shaped bike rack.

USDOT announces $280 mil available for transit projects

U.S. Transportation Secretary Announces $280 Million for Streetcars
First Funds for Administration's Livability Initiative Will Create Jobs

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced the availability of $280 million for urban circulator projects such as streetcars, buses, and bus facilities to support communities, expand business opportunities and improve people’s quality of life while also creating jobs.

The money represents the first batch of funding by the Obama Administration for its Livability Initiative, a joint venture of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

“This represents a significant effort to promote livable communities, improve the quality of life for more Americans and create more transportation choices that serve the needs of individual communities,” Secretary LaHood said. “Fostering the concept of livability in transportation projects will stimulate America’s neighborhoods to become safer, healthier and more vibrant.”

Press release continues at DOT site

Long Beach looking at streetcars

From the Long Beach Press-Telegram:

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Second District City Councilwoman Suja Lowenthal envisions a downtown crowded not with cars, but people - pedestrians who arrive by bicycle, bus and, perhaps, even streetcars.

Electric-powered streetcars such as those used in San Francisco and Portland - connecting Long Beach's neighborhoods, fostering pedestrian movement and spurring development - are an integral part of Lowenthal's vision.

Last week, the council heard a report on a feasibility study that had been commissioned in 2007 about installing streetcars in Long Beach, and other city officials seem to be warming up to the idea.

"We are at a fantastic time in our city when more and more people want to leave their cars behind," Lowenthal said last week. "People are looking for ways to exercise their right to different modes of transportation."

making conservative arguments for transit

DDOT's LRV's leave Czech Republic for USA!

DC's three LRV's produced by Skoda in the Czech Republic in 2007 are officially on the way to the nation's capital!

Read more at BeyondDC blog

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As an administrative note, I apologize for blog inactivity this fall. My first semester of grad school has been very busy!

Norfolk takes delivery of its first LRV's!

from PilotOnline:

"Locals were introduced to The Tide light-rail cars today when the first two arrived in Norfolk. The cars traveled cross country by freight train from Siemens Transportation Systems Inc. in Sacramento, Calif."

Follow the link to see video of the new vehicles arriving on location.

VIDEO: Light-rail cars arrive in Norfolk

Va. lawmakers question ignoring local road funding

from Forbes.com:

Va. lawmakers question ignoring local road funding - Forbes.com

RICHMOND, Va. -- Some members of the Virginia Senate's money committee questioned Thursday whether it's wise - or legal - to sacrifice the state's local roads in order to secure federal dollars to maintain and build highways.

Transportation Secretary Pierce Homer told members of the Senate Finance Committee that revenue reductions of $4.6 billion over the next six years have forced the state to choose to go after federal highway funding instead of repairing and improving other roads and bridges.

To qualify for federal funds that contribute $4 for every $1 the state pitches in, Virginia must meet minimum construction requirements. In order to get those, Virginia has reduced funding to maintain state and local roads by 25 percent.

Tea Party Protesters Protest D.C. Metro Service

From the Wall Street Journal-

Tea Party Protesters Protest D.C. Metro Service - Washington Wire - WSJ

Evidently the Teabag-Birfers feel their 9/12 unity protest was derailed by sub par service on Metrorail. Some complained that Metrorail didn't increase capacity beyond normal weekend levels to accommodate the tens of thousands of protesters who came out. They didn't plan on requiring such a high level of government service for their anti-government rally. Of course none of them will walk away from this thinking Metro deserves a dedicated funding mechanism. Because that is socialist.

Tide Light Rail begins station construction

from PilotOnline:

Norfolk light rail stations' look is built on flexibility

"...City officials have decided on a neo classical style for the 11 light-rail station shelters that is designed to fit in historic neighborhoods, including Freemason, as well as more suburban settings, including Ingleside.

"The shelters' appearances will vary, with heavier columns and finishes downtown and lighter, more airy features in the outlying neighborhoods, planning director Frank Duke said. Their size will vary as well, with larger shelters at stations that are projected to carry more passengers.

"Each will have benches, trash cans, lighting and a ticket vending machine.

"They're nice, considering we went at it with a bare-bones perspective," said City Councilman W. Randy Wright, who has championed the rail project.

"The original design was very basic, but council members agreed to enhance the look at the city's expense. Hampton Roads Transit is now advertising for bids to build the stations."

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I think this neoclassical station design is really unique. I'm not aware of any other US light rail systems that have tried to blend station design with surrounding historic buildings. Largely because existing light rail systems in the US are few and far between, but also because many are in the West where there isn't the same stock of antebellum neoclassical buildings we have in the East- particularly in Virginia. Also, many light rail systems have little to no infrastructure in the way of stations, rather they are simply signed areas on the street for boarding and deboarding.

So it seems that Norfolk may soon have the world's only modern-neoclassical LRT system!

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By the way- why did the sketch artist for the above illustration choose to draw an SUV in front of the train station?? I guess if they can use bikes to sell SUV commercials they can also use SUV's to sell light rail?

"High-Speed Boondoggle" by Robert J. Samuelson: the Urban Workshop Re-mix

"The Obama Eisenhower and every subsequent administration's enthusiasm for high-speed rail endless highway and road building is a dispiriting example of government's inability to learn from past mistakes. Since 1971, the federal government has poured almost $35 billion $1.89 trillion in subsidies into Amtrak air and highway funding with few public benefits that favor a few over many."

read on at St Louis Urban Workshop blog

VA applies for $75mil for NoVa third track

from the Dispatch:

Virginia seeks $75 million for high speed rail

Virginia is seeking federal stimulus funding for a $74.8 million high-speed rail project in Prince William and Stafford counties.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine announced yesterday that Virginia has submitted an application for funding for a third set of tracks along an 11.4-mile section of the CSX Corp. rail line between Richmond and Washington.

"The Federal Railroad Administration set very specific criteria for states to compete for this first round of historic federal investment in high-speed rail," Kaine said.

"Virginia has submitted a strong project application and we are ready to begin construction as soon the federal funding is awarded," he said.

The application deadline yesterday was for "ready to go" projects fully supported by both the track owner, CSX in this case, and the service provider, Amtrak. The third set of tracks would stretch from Powell's Creek in Prince William to Arkendale in Stafford.

Virginia intends to compete in October for a second round of high-speed rail projects funded by federal stimulus funds.

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Sounds great! This is an interesting section of the route because there are at least three bridges and most of the track is along the Virginia bank of the Potomac River. The train passes some marinas, Possum Point Power Station and goes right through Marine Corps Base Quantico. Virginia Railway Express also uses this entire section of the track so this will increase VRE efficiency as well.

Take a look at this Google map of the proposed $74.8mil track work.

Also, Transport Politic has posted a complete list of the specific Phase I plans the states have applied for.

Bob Samuelson writes an ugly anti-rail piece in the Post

Robert J. Samuelson - High-Speed Rail Plans Defy Experience - washingtonpost.com

"HSR won't work in the US because our population density is 86 people per square mile vs Japan's 880/mi2." Wow, if that's not the most stunningly dishonest factoid about density than it is surely the most naive or ignorant. Read the whole piece for a well-rounded array of strawmen, lies and distortions about passenger rail.

High floor, low floor, bus floor, tram floor!

Greater, Greater Washington reported last week that DDOT and Metro planners have run into an interesting problem with DDOT's planned high streetcar platforms on their H Street corridor. They have planned 15-inch from top of rail platforms so that streetcar users will board level with the vehicle. This design improves accessibility for all streetcar riders. Meanwhile, Metro is operating low floor buses on the route with doors lower than the planned streetcar platforms. This would create a situation where riders exiting the bus have to step up onto the platform. Or if the bus gets too close to the platform, the doors would be damaged by hitting it; too far away and a dangerous gap is created. So Metro has asked DDOT to revise the design either by lowering the platform seven inches, or by changing the length of it so that buses can pull all the way past.

The photo below shows a San Francisco Muni high platform to illustrate the design problem the two agencies face. Imagine riders climbing up on the platform from a low floor bus.

R&CB Rwy Richmond terminal then and now

As the station originally appeared in 1907









Appearance 1974-2009








August 10th, 2009

Richmond and Chesapeake Bay Railway

The fascinating story of this former passenger interurban that connected Richmond and Ashland. All that is left today is the former terminal at Laurel and Broad streets, and a car barn on Brook Road. A mile-long concrete trestle existed here, but was torn down in the 1950's and 1960's.

It says here that the line was constructed for high speeds- up to 90mph!

From the National Register of Historic Places:

Statement of Significance
The Richmond and Chesapeake Bay Railway car barn is significant because it is one of two surviving buildings associated with the independent electric railway that provided service between the City of Richmond and the Town of Ashland from 1907 to 1938. The only other surviving building, the terminal, has been heavily altered and is no longer recognizable as a terminal building. Utilitarian in nature, the car barn incorporates industrial materials of the time – steel structure and corrugated metal siding. A number of innovations incorporated into the line made it unique – the type of car, the current utilized, and the concrete and steel viaduct. The car barn is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places under criteria A and C. It is eligible under criterion A because of its association with an interurban railroad that incorporated innovative technology. The car barn is eligible under criterion C because it is representative of early twentieth century industrial architecture.

Historic Background
Frank Jay Gould, son of New York financier, Jay Gould, envisioned an electric railway from Norfolk to Fredericksburg that would pass through Petersburg and Richmond with branches to the Northern Neck. Gould wanted a high-speed electric railway with large comfortable cars – not the local trolley system the line would later become. Incorporated in 1905, the Richmond and Chesapeake Bay Railway integrated a number of innovations, many never before seen in the United States, namely the type of cars used, the voltage at which they were operated, and the concrete viaduct. Gould wanted cars that were fast and comfortable. The four, thirty-nine ton, fifty-five foot cars, manufactured by the St. Louis Car Company, resembled Pullman parlor cars with mahogany paneling, high backed seats, frescoed ceilings, smoking compartments, and vestibule doors.3 The original rail cars were an oddity– “they were built in two sections, divided with a large transformer in the center. These cars, the only ones of their kind, were designed to absorb only as much power as was required and return the excess to the overhead wire. In this manner, enough power was left in the line to sell to customers along the right of way.”4 The cars used 6,600 volts at twenty-five cycles per second instead of the customary 600-volt direct current used by trolleys. Further, no other interurban railway up to this time had used voltages higher than 3,300. A pantograph extended from the center of the car transferred power from the overhead wire to the motor. Because of high speeds envisioned for the railway, up to 90 miles and hour, the overhead wire could not be strung in the traditional manner from pole to pole. A suspended centenary system was chosen, because the slightest sag in the wire could result in the pantograph losing contact with the wire and arching. For these reasons, too, the rail line needed to be level and straight. To maintain Gould’s high standard for a straight and level rail line it was necessary to construct a half-mile long bridge that would cross Bacon’s Quarter Branch, the double tracks of the Seaboard Air Line Railway, and a number of well traveled roads. A wood trestle with steel spans over the streets and railroads was planned, but while traveling in France, Gould saw aconcrete viaduct. Gould halted construction on the wood trestle and ordered a concrete viaduct be built. The viaduct was designed by the Trussed Concrete Steel Company of New York and was the largest bridge of its type in the United States at the time.
Intent upon building an interurban railroad, Frank Jay Gould purchased the Brook Turnpike in 1902. Chartered in 1812, the Brook Turnpike improved travel between Richmond and northern portions of the state, and for a long time it was the only road leading north from the City of Richmond. In the 1830s, a trip north to Washington still required a thirty-eight hour stagecoach journey along the turnpike. A special act of the General Assembly chartered the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad in 1834. The charter contained a number of unique features, including a statute prohibiting the construction of a railroad between Richmond and Washington or any portion thereof. Based on this statute, the State Corporation Commission was unwilling to grant Gould a charter for is new railroad. After a Virginia Supreme Court decision and no objection from RF&P Railroad, the charter was granted in 1905. The Richmond to Ashland section was the first to be built. Railway management was anxious to begin service and opened the 5.2-mile section between Richmond and Lakeside on 27 July 1907, months before the rest of the line was ready for operation. The single-track railroad could not accommodate the scheduled runs while managing the ongoing construction required to complete the line to Ashland. As a result, business was suspended six days later, until 28 October 1907, when the 14.8 miles between Richmond and Ashland finally opened for business. Construction costs totaled $994,000. Gould had plans to begin immediate construction on the line to Tappahannock, but the stock market panic of 21 October 1907 made investors nervous. The Virginia Passenger and Power Company and the Richmond Passenger and Power Company, both controlled by Frank Gould, were in receivership. As a result of these events, the line was never completed. The railroad continued to operate until 20 December 1917, but the short section of track was never profitable. The heavy Pullman-style cars showed abnormal wear because they weren’t designed for frequent local stops. The line was put up for auction in August 1918 and the highest bidder offered $90,000 and wanted to scrap the assets. The trustees rejected the bid because the tracks and real estate alone were worth $140,000.

In 1919, Oliver J. Sands and Jonathan Bryan bought the franchise for $135,000 and the Richmond-Ashland Railway was chartered on 15 April 1919. A bond issue of $200,000 helped finance the purchase price and start-up costs. The new railway would operate as an interurban streetcar line between Richmond and Ashland. The line was converted to cheaper to operate 600-volt D.C. current instead of the 6,600-volt current originally used and four streetcars were acquired second-hand. There were a number of grade crossing accidents and on 16 July 1922 there was a head on collision between two trolleys that injured six people. “Expenses incurred due to the collision and several crossing accidents strained the financial resources of the company.”5 In 1936 when the original thirty-year franchise expired, the company’s deficit had reached $171,619 and their bond indebtedness was $161,500. The bond interest had been in default for six years. On Tuesday, 22 March 1938 the lasttrolley left Ashland and the copper wire and rails were sold for scrap. Virginia Electric and Power Company purchased the railroad’s right of way to run electric transmission lines in 1937. The City of Richmond purchased the Brook Road right of way lying within the corporate limits. “When Brook Road has been improved, as we plan to improve it, real estate values, both along Brook Road and on Chamberlayne Avenue, are bound to be enhanced, and we will have a new and badly needed outlet to Route 1.”6

Frank Jay Gould was the youngest of six children born to Jay Gould and his wife, Helen Day Miller. Jay Gould was an American financier and railroad speculator – a prototypical robber baron. Along with James Fisk and Daniel Drew, he wrested control of the Erie Railroad from Cornelius Vanderbilt and in 1869 he precipitated a financial panic, when he and Fisk attempted to corner the gold market. When Jay Gould died in 1892, at the age of 57, he left an estate valued at seventy-seven million to his children. In 1909, Frank Jay Gould incorporated the Virginia Railway and Power Company. The goal was to acquire Richmond and Tidewater Railways and related companies, and provide light and power, operate street railways, and distribute manufactured gas. Among the Richmond acquisitions were the Richmond Railroad and Viaduct Company, the Richmond and Petersburg Electric Railway Company, the Richmond Traction Company, the Virginia Passenger and Power Company, and the Richmond Passenger and Power Company. The Richmond Passenger and Power Company, established in 1887 by Frank Sprague as the Richmond Union Passenger, was the first commercially successful electric street railway system in the world. In 1913, the Virginia Railway and Power Company built its head quarters building at 702 East Franklin Street -- twelve-story “skyscraper” designed by Alfred C. Bossom. In 1925, Gould sold his controlling interest in the Virginia Railway and Power Company to Stone and Webster and the name was changed to the Virginia Electric and Power Company (VEPCO). Gould died in Paris in 1956.

With the exception of the car barn and the terminal little remains of the Richmond and Chesapeake Bay Railway. The Richmond terminal at 814 West Broad Street is still standing and occupied by the Richmond Glass Company. However, the exterior has been sheathed with a metal cladding that completely obscures the classical facade designed by the architectural firm of Noland and Baskervill. The former terminal building is listed as a contributing building to the Broad Street Commercial Historic District Boundary Increase. The Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority removed part of the viaduct in 1958 as part of a slum clearance project and to build Carver School. Another portion was taken down to make way for the Richmond Petersburg Turnpike (Interstate 95). The remainder was demolished by the City of Richmond in 1965. The north abutment was still visible from Sledd Street in 1983. The Virginia Dominion Power Company’s, formerly VEPCO, power transmission line has preserved the character of the cuts and fills with little alteration since they purchased the right of way in 1937. The Ashland Depot, at the corner of Maple and England streets was replaced with the Ashland Post Office in 1940.

Monroe Park in 1896

Monroe Park is Richmond's oldest park, laid out in 1855. It has endured changes in use but remains about the same as when it was first designed. I think it is a beautiful park, especially the amazing fountain in the center, but I'm not sure why it has been so difficult to clean up. It's usually full of bums and it is dangerous to visit at night. There is a master plan for the park, so I think its future is bright.

Here is a depiction of it from The Dispatch in 1896. Notice the trolley lines on Main St (also on Laurel, but not pictured) and the heavy rail running on Belvidere.

DDOT making progress on Benning Ave streetcar line

These photos show how the work is progressing on Benning where the tracks are in the ground from Oklahoma Avenue moving west.

Portion of Ft Collins, CO streetcar tracks unearthed

I'm curious to know how much of Richmond's trolley tracks remain buried under the streets. You can see a portion of rail poking out of the asphalt at the corner of Laurel and Cumberland streets.


Road crew unearths long-gone trolley tracks

Encased in concrete, the tracks were paved over after the city shut down its streetcar system in 1951. Keeton said she has no record of maintenance on the street and said her crews had no idea they were there.

“We tried to salvage all the rail, but we have had to take it out in pieces,” she said of the corroded and rusted metal.

Richmond localities leaders in VA car deaths

from the RT-D:

Traffic deaths still high in 3 Richmond-area localities

Chesterfield County, Henrico County and Richmond accounted for more than 8 percent of the people who died on Virginia roads in 2008.

Sixty-eight people died in those three jurisdictions last year, compared with 821 statewide -- the lowest level since Virginia began keeping the records more than 40 years ago and a 20 percent decrease from 2007.

Chesterfield, with 30 road deaths, was second only to Virginia Beach in fatalities last year, while Richmond ranked fifth with 20 and Henrico tied for seventh at 18 in the annual traffic-crash report released last week by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles.

Happy Day!!!

I received my letter of acceptance to Virginia Commonwealth University's Master of Urban and Regional Planning program! Now I can move forward professionally in this field, I'm so excited! Perhaps I will use some of my historic renovation tax abatement refund to buy books!

VA Beach business leaders say "No" to LRT referendum

They believe City Council should just make a decision.

"Top business leaders have come out against the city holding a referendum on a light-rail project, arguing it's a decision the City Council should make.

"It's a complex subject, but it's not above your pay grade," Jim Flinchum, board president of the Virginia Beach division of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce, told the City Council last week. "This is your job."

The comments mark the unofficial start to a debate sure to rage for at least a year while Hampton Roads Transit, the region's transportation agency, carries out its light-rail feasibility study.

In 1999, Beach residents derailed light rail 56 to 44 percent in a referendum. City referendums are nonbinding, but the City Council used it to guide its 1999 decision."

Switching locomotives at Union Station, Wash DC

The passenger train tracks north of DC comprise what is called the Northeast Corridor. Fully electrified, this is the busiest rail corridor in the US. The electrification ends at DC though, so when traveling south it is necessary to change the train's locomotive from an electric traction unit to a diesel unit. Here engineers switch an electric EMD AEM-7AC for a diesel GE Genesis P42DC engine.

A few more random subway shots

We tried to ride the N train from Brooklyn to Astoria but only made it as far as Times Square due to debris on the track.














A train passes the 28th St station on the express tracks






Times Square Subway entrances















Crossing the Manhattan Bridge on the N train







Construction at Pacific Street


















The N train at Pacific Street











In-car station display

MTA New York City Subway Tiles

Here's a few of the tile mosaics I saw in the subway last weekend.

Traveling by train and bus from Richmond to NYC

On July 16 I made the trip from Richmond to New York by a variety of public transportation modes. Admittedly the first leg was by car, from my house to Main St Station (hey that once again proves the rule that people won't take the bus unless they REALLY have to)

So I rode Amtrak from Main St to Union Station in DC. The train is extraordinarily slow on this leg. First it creeps through the Acca freight yard to Staples Mill. This 7.5 mile trip takes- wait for it- 40 MINUTES. Pathetic! Hopefully VA will get some stimulus money to fix this problem- keep your fingers crossed. Once the train gets on the mainline it moves faster, but not fast enough. Ideally we would have two electrified passenger-only tracks to handle more trains.

At Union Station I ate some Indian food before riding Metro's Red Line to Chinatown. Here I caught Megabus to New York. The ride was actually pretty great. I rode in the second row on the second floor so I had a great view of the road. It was actually a little vertigo-inducing sitting up there crossing the Delaware Memorial Bridge. Megabus arrived about 30 minutes late though, but the dropoff at 28th and 7th Ave is at a subway stop, so I bought a four-ride pass and rode the 1 train uptown to Times Square and met my friends for dinner.

So overall the trip took just under 11 hours. Of course it would have been faster to just stay on the train, or to take one of the dragon buses. But Megabus is a great bargain ($8.50) compared to Amtrak so that's why I did it this way. I couldn't get such a cheap ticket on the way home, so I took the train the whole way. More on that in another post.


Here we see the lone Quicktrack ticket machine out of order in Richmond. This was a huge hassle as the conductors asked me for my ticket at EVERY stop. Not sure why they couldn't look at my reservation and confirm that I had paid.








A GE P42DC diesel unit pulls my train along the viaduct into Main St Station. Note the single track configuration.










Passengers board at Main St. Note the low platform forcing passengers to climb the stairs to the car through only one or two doors. Penn Station in NYC has high platforms so passengers board level, it makes more sense.










Union Station's new bicycle transit center. How cool!









The front of Union Station








The bike center project at Union Station.









Union Station's grand interior.








Union Station shopping. Food court on lower level, retail on upper levels. You can also see the Acela ticket counter here.








A Metrorail Red Line train enters the platform under Union Station







An Acela locomotive in the yard. Note how the nose breaks away to couple the train.










Megabus at the 28th and 7th Ave stop in Midtown. It's a Van Hool coach built to special spec to fit through the Lincoln Tunnel. There are windows on the roof and let me tell you, it BARELY clears the tunnel!







An Uptown 1 train pulls into the 28th St station under 7th Ave