May-June 2013 Issue #72 Uphill journey for W-Line...
April 26th saw a new era in trans- portation launched for West Den- … key step to strong system to ver, Lakewood and Golden, as well as the adjacent cities of be covered in ColoRail meet Wheat Ridge and Edgewater. Rail access to Denver Interna- State Transit Plan and RTD Built today to meet demand pro- jected decades in the future, the tional Airport and the Airport’s Northwest mobility study. West Rail Line began operations new facilities will be the topic of The meeting will be held at the with festive events - including Col- ColoRail’s Spring Meeting, June Eloise May Public Library, 1471 oRail - and large crowds. 1st. Well known Denver journal- South Parker Road at East Flor- With the start of revenue service ist Kevin Flynn, Public Informa- ida Avenue. It will begin at on Sunday, April 28th, the line tion Manager for the RTD Fas- 12:30 pm and end at 3:30 pm in carries many burdens, including Tracks Eagle P3 Project, will Community Rooms C and D. issues that were pointed out by make the presentation. Officers are to be elected. ColoRail and individual members. Following Kevin, representatives Inside, on Pages 4-5, read how RTD service (Rte 83Ltd) and park- from CDOT and RTD will dis- step-by-step the W-Line can climb ing are available at the library. out of its low beginnings. cuss the newly inaugurated “A Voice for Colorado’s Rail Passengers” Page 2
Outreach to public welcomed More from the ‘Grass Routes’
ColoRail booth successful Even high fares don’t ColoRail Board and at RTD W Line opening prevent sell-outs for Colorado NARP Council by Jim Souby Members: (with telephone numbers) April 26th, 2013 equipment-shy Amtrak and
Great day for RTD, Lakewood, the If you plan on enjoying rail Jim Souby, President, West Line and ColoRail! We travel after the kids are back in NARP Council Member signed up fifteen new members school, plan your trip now. (303-355-7985). and spoke with many more people Space is already being booked
Maintenance ColoRail rides the Southwest Chief needed!
by Jim Souby On National Train Day, thirty Coloradans boarded the Southwest Chief in La Junta and Trinidad for a roundtrip ride to Las Ve- gas, NM. The trip dem- onstrated support for keeping the train in Colo- rado. Due to funding prob- lems needed maintenance for older portions of the route has been deferred and the train may be re- routed and bypass Colo- rado and Northern New Mexico in 2015. Joining ColoRail members for the trip were Colorado State Senator Angela Gi- ron, State Representative Leroy Garcia and Pueblo
The journey over historic Raton Pass be- gan in Trinidad, where Front Range resi- dents met up with Southern Coloradans.
City Council President Steve Naw- rocki. The trip was coordinated by Gary Carter, ColoRail board mem- ber from Pueblo. Las Vegas Mayor Alphonso Ortiz and New Mexico coalition members met the train. The New Mexico dele- gation was led by NARP member Ford Robbins who coordinates Coalition activities in Santa Fe. Rob- bins and ColoRail President Jim Souby convened a luncheon and rally at the depot. The need for maintenance and im- provements on the line was well demonstrated when the train slowed to a stop north of Las Vegas due to signal malfunctions. The problems ColoRail travelers celebrate National Train Day in Las Vegas, NM, one of the cities were corrected and the return trip to which could be bypassed by a rerouted Southwest Chief. This is also a potential stop Trinidad over Raton Pass was on on future Denver - Pueblo - Albuquerque service. time. Page 4
Around, not thru Downtown W-Line launch stirs activity Free ride weekend events drew tens of thousands to the new West Rail Line, but when curiosity rider- ship faded, trains were under-utilized.
Throughout the week, trains ran on time and customers enjoyed comfortable rides -- more com- fortable than on in- tensely popular Light Rail lines in other parts of the metro area.
The most common objection of poten- tial customers was being delivered to out-of-the way sta- tions. E-mail to RTD’s GM suggests a revision From: [email protected] My personal hands on survey of junctions to allow West trains To: Phillip.Washington@rtd- West Corridor travelers reveals downtown access. I have been denver.com that Auraria students want to go told there is currently adequate to the main campus area cur- capacity in the down town loop. Sent: 5/15/2013 4:42:48 P.M. rently served by the D, F & H Mountain Daylight Time Merely starting a new route, call it lines. the "J", from Jeffco to 18th & Subj: The $10 Million Solution The same holds true for a major- California would do this .This ity of the business commuters. would replace the current Golden They do not want a transfer and trips of four per hour. First a disclaimer. shuttle ride of up to twenty min- Now commuters can get where This is all my personal take utes. they want to go with a one seat based on my research. The route 16 is overwhelmed and ride. The new W rail line is not carry- I know RTD is working on this but The cost should fit within my ing the traffic projected due to it will not solve the basic problem topic subject. several serious flaws. of getting people to where they Thank you for your consideration First is the fact it does not go want to go, not where RTD wants to take them. and I look forward to some seri- where people want to go. This ous follow up. should be a basic premise of The real solution is to build the public transportation. Over ten necessary switches at Auraria Ira years ago I brought up this point. West and Central Platte Valley Ira P. Schreiber Page 5
Changes to boost and some criticisms ridership
The ‘W’ in W-Line might stand for a Things will get better. With the bus facility at DUS will work in progress. Planned during a This June, RTD will add Rte 16 shut- come improved circulation service period of expansion, it opened after tle trips to the Colfax Viaduct, linking into midtown and the Civic Center the economic slide led to cuts in Decatur-Federal Station to the Col- area. That will offer commuters forecasted connecting bus service fax at Auraria Station area, the Civic more choices. and weak demand for Downtown Center area and Capitol Hill offices. Three years from now, three com- Denver commuter parking (rates for muter rail lines are due to open at early bird spaces are about the The line taps rental housing and the Auraria campus. Starting at the end DUS. Most importantly, the DIA/ same as transit fares). Planned to East Line forms a logical connection provide a fast ride, it is slowed down of this August, students will have another choice of rail lines for apart- for the W-Line to DIA, a major em- at multiple locations by tedious ployment center. And, commuters grade crossing technology that ap- ment hunting. Each year for the next from East Denver and Aurora pears designed to tempt motorists to four years, there will be more stu- neighborhoods will add to the re- avoid waiting. dents riding. Auraria West transfers with C/E-Lines already are growing. verse peak ridership. Its isolated terminal in Denver, In the meantime, work is underway A year from now, Market Street Sta- shoved into a corner for real estate on office buildings in the DUS area tion will be closed and the Denver development purposes, is in the mid- that will generate peak ridership. Union Station bus concourse will dle of a construction zone. Many of And, the completion of other Fas- the buildings are residential, likely to open. A number of new connections tracks lines will increase activity. generate some pleased reverse will be made with the W-Line. Am- commuters to the Federal Center trak is due to have already moved For the short run, innovative market- area, but most likely to generate into the historic station building, but ing will be needed. It’s a beautiful FREE Mall Riders. will require a Mall Ride connection ride; perhaps instead of wrapping a for Light Rail until the linking bus car with ads, install tables and serve Sounds bad? facility opens. weekend brunch? Passenger: “When the train gets to downtown, it turns away.” Page 6
Long-term investment The coffee barely rippled
Much ink is spent on debating the merits and de- merits of high or higher speed rail, but travelers (and regional economies) can obtain benefits from making a series of minor improvements on existing lines. Last October, your editor had the opportunity to see the changes that a long-term program of capital investment can bring about. In 1970, a trip from Berlin to northwestern Germany plodded along behind steam power in East Ger- many at speeds in the 45-55 mph range, slower than most of the remaining U.S. passenger trains back then. Crossing the inter-German border, speeds picked up to the 55-75 mph range behind D i e s el s and elec- t r i c s , a b o u t the same as in the U.S. As in the U.S. and Canada, a few “name” trains on priority routes moved at higher speeds, but most travelers were on trains that were eas- ily raced by the “unlimited” speeds on the autobahn. ignated seat in Car 12 and settled down as we flew past That was certainly true of trips to backwater Ostfriesland, former Soviet military installations and dashed into and then out of towns. Traffic on parallel roads appeared to the region of Germany by the North Sea. be going backwards, but my coffee barely rippled. I Four decades later, I booked my trip to Ostfriesland on- walked to the vestibule and snapped this picture -- 100 line from Denver, including a seat reservation for a win- mph on a secondary line -- and then settled back to en- dow on this new era. A few weeks later, I found my des- joy my trip to a town the size of Julesburg, Colorado.
Bob Brewster’s travels recently took him to Austin, TX, where he checked out the Diesel multiple unit (dmu) service shown below. With high level platforms it can provide a similar service to RTD’s planned com- muter rail lines, literally without as much overhead expense. Like the San Diego County Sprinter, it is not permitted to mingle with freight traffic, but could run as a feeder to other rapid transit lines on RTD-owned track, such as lines north from Thornton.
SNAP! Cameras catch us everywhere. ColoRail members Bob Brewster on left and Dick Luckin on right were on different itiner- aries, but their paths crossed recently in Grand Central Terminal. Bob contributed the W-Line photos in this edition, as well as the Austin dmu photo on the right. Dick is the noted producer of video documentaries whose work has graced ColoRail meetings.. Page 7
Need for rolling Texas Eagle also sold out stock shown
(Continued from page 2) ColoRail Elections June 1 ColoRail’s open Board rate of $221, and a Bedroom rate of meetings relocated -- but $1034. Going via Sacramento The ColoRail Nominating Commit- still handy to Market Street and would not bypass that, because the tee consisting of ColoRail members Union Stations in LoDo Denver. sleeper space on the CZ was sold Sarah Mc Dowell, Thomas Pey- ton and Donald Zielesch is sub- out. mitting the following list of five COPIRG has graciously agreed to If you were thinking of going to St. nominees for the five vacant posi- host our board meetings in their Louis via the interesting Galesburg tions to the ColoRail Board of Di- conference room at 1543 Wazee - Springfield connection, the CZ rectors for the election to be held at St. Ste 330. I found it to be quite sleeper portion of the trip is sold the Spring 2013 ColoRail member suitable and convenient to most out, as described above, but the meeting. transit. They are between Market coach portion on the Texas Eagle Edie Bryan, Bob Brewster, Street Station and Union Station from Springfield to St. Louis is also Gary Carter, Ira Schreiber, Jim in Denver. The conference room sold out. Bedrooms on that leg are Souby can hold 12 easily and has a tele- also sold out, but a seat in a Room- They are all currently on the Board phone for call ins. It is located al- ette was still open. of Directors and have all indicated most directly behind the Alliance their desire to run again. Some other sample coach fares Center. Parking will be no better one-way from Denver: Nominations are accepted from the or worse than before. floor at the Spring meeting. Jim Portland = $205 Anyone wishing to nominate a can- Seattle = $222 didate other than her/him self must James M Souby, President first secure the approval of the Colorado Rail Passenger Associa- San Diego via Raton = $206 member/s they wish to nominate. tion (ColoRail) St. Louis via Chicago = $169.
P.O. Box 9613 Denver, CO 80209
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Unofficial celebration ‘Grass routes’ celebrate
Denver’s Temporary Station a very good experience and we trust that we will help Amtrak truly cele- Plan ahead: 2014 National Train Gets Train Day Greetings brate next May (when they are Day may coincide with opening of the Denver Union Station bus gates. By Ron Vander Kooi scheduled to be back in a newly renovated Denver Union Station). Amtrak this year celebrated National Train Day on Saturday, May 11. We As with ColoRail's regular holiday decided to host that day for the west time station hosting program, we had and eastbound train times at Den- many interesting interactions with ver's Amtrak temporary station. We the travelers and others and re- gathered a variety of material from ceived much thanks for our participa- ColoRail, the National Railroad Pas- tion and specific helps. senger Association, Amtrak and our We urge others to join the hosting own collection. Seven of us were program. there to greet passengers and their friends waiting in the station as well ColoRail members who participated as those arriving on the California were: Zephyr. Ron Kaminen Many passengers were made aware Keith Dameron of Train Day, of Amtrak's develop- ment since May, 1971, its increasing Hugh Fowler ridership since then and its hopeful Bruce and Mrs. Eller future. They were also introduced to ColoRail and a few people made Ron and Betty Vander Kooi donations or joined. Overall this was
P.O. Box 9613 Denver, CO 80209