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Transportation Demands Pressing Colorado High-Speed Rail Issue October-November 2010 Issue #64 Transportation demands pressing Colorado Transportation and land use experts may disagree on treated to facts and figures, but also to lively -- though solutions, but there is generally agreement that trend line sometimes indirect -- debates between well-informed growth like that shown on the C-DOT graph below is speakers. causing and will cause problems if it continues. Sandi Kohrs, Multi-Modal Planning Branch Manager of Those who want to build more lanes each year may see Colorado Department of Transportation, highlighted the the problem as a shortfall of highway funds. Those growth in Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) that is creating concerned about the environment can identify limits to new stresses on old plans. Even with the economic simple trend line growth. And there are those who think slowdown, past growth has not been accommodated in there must be alternatives to the status quo of the past the intercity highways and alternative transportation century modes that are available. “Opportunities and Challenges for Colorado” was the Is Maglev ready to leave the station? Should I-70 Mountain theme of the Intercity Passenger Rail conference held on corridor needs determine how Front Range urban areas September 16th at the University of Denver’s Cable develop? Should existing rail lines be freight only? Inside this Center. Speakers and panelists explored the potential issue, learn more about ideas expressed in the conference. (or not) of the rail modes in taking the edge off of Vehicle Miles highway demands. ColoRail members Traveled… and participated in the traveled… and traveled... event, working with the National C e n t e r f o r I n t e r m o d a l Transportation staff in helping to organize it, attending it, and participating. ColoRail Vice- President Jim S o u b y coordinated with D r . P a t r i c k Sherry, NCI T Director and his staff to assemble t h e e v e n t . ColoRail President Ira Schreiber chaired one of the expert panels. Attendees were C-DOT graph “A Voice for Colorado’s Rail Passengers” Page 2 St. Paul building intermodal Union Depot Arrivals and departures Recent aerial photos of RTD Fas- into the headhouse. RTD public hearings on service re- Tracks projects are available on line In September, Ramsay County ductions and other changes wind up at: in the week of October 10th. A re- officials announced the selection vised package will go to the RTD http://www.360media.cc/fastracks/ of the contractor for renovation of Board on October 26th for its vote. The photos include West Line and the St. Paul Union Depot. Trains Construction continues on the Denver Union Station angles. have not been scheduled into the “temporary” Amtrak station at 21st & depot since April 30, 1971 when Rick Harnish of the Midwest High Wewatta Streets. The relocations of Speed Rail Association reports good Amtrak was set up. The “new” Amtrak and Light Rail are both due news for travelers: Illinois Gov. SPUD will be intermodal, with not in 2011. Quinn held a press conference on only Amtrak’s Empire Builder, but October 4th at Chicago Union Sta- also Greyhound and Jefferson ColoRail Board and tion to announce that Amtrak will be Lines intercity buses, and the renovating Chicago Union Station. Colorado NARP Council Minneapolis light rail connection Members: The work will include: now under construction. (with telephone numbers) and <e-mail addresses> +Air conditioning the headhouse and Is urban transit bleeding to death main waiting room from a thousand cuts? Tom Downs, Ira Schreiber, President, +Moving the first class waiting room former president of Amtrak and now Aurora (303-750-4507). into the headhouse Chairman of the North American <[email protected]> +Expanding the restrooms Board of Veolia, writes about funding +Expanding the coach passenger deadlocks and effects of the eco- Bob Brewster, Board Member, Boulder. waiting room nomic crisis at: <[email protected] > +Renovating the office space so that http://citiwire.net/post/2193/ Amtrak's offices can be relocated Edie Bryan, Board Member, Lakewood. <[email protected]> Helen Bushnell, Board Member, Boulder. Amtrak to slow down Southwest Chief in Colorado and <[email protected]> Kansas -- is re-route or slow-speed rail next? Elia Fisher, Secretary, Denver. Effective October 18th -- in advance of the System Timetable to be <[email protected]> dated November 8th -- speed restrictions on the former Santa Fe main Hugh Fowler, Board Member, Denver. line through Western Kansas and Eastern Colorado will lower passen- <[email protected]> ger limits to 60 mph. The line was formerly noted for 90 mph or faster operation. Train 3 will depart Chicago half an hour earlier and Train 4 Jay Jones, Treasurer, Denver. will depart Los Angeles half an hour earlier to offset the slower <[email protected]> speeds, so Colorado times will change slightly. This will also affect Jay Jones, NARP Council Member, the Denver-Raton Thruway bus connection operated by Greyhound. Denver. <[email protected]> Construction of improvements on the alternate lower-gradient line through the northern Texas pampas grasslands has resulted in a drop in priority for Eric Miller, NARP Council Member, the Santa Fe main line’s owner BNSF. Amtrak will now face the choice of a Highlands Ranch. <[email protected]> reliable, but slower operation on a line without freight interference, or a smoother and potentially slightly faster trip on a double-track main line. James Souby, Vice-President, Denver. <[email protected]> The re-route would trade smaller cities such as Goodland and Dodge City, KS, Lamar, La Junta and Trinidad, CO, for similar sized cities on the grass- ————————————–-- lands line. Major cities affected could include Wichita, Amarillo gaining ser- Robert Rynerson, Newsletter Editor, vice, with Albuquerque and Santa Fe/Lamy losing service. Front Range Denver. (720-570-0647) cities would lose their Thruway access at Raton, NM. <[email protected]> ————————————–-- ColoRail, the Colorado Rail Passenger Friends of ColoRail members are to the airport from DUS, with com- Association, is in correspondence and still asking when the “light rail” line pletion of the 27-mile line set for coordinates with NARP, the National will get to DIA. RTD has hosted the 2016. It was an electrifying event, Association of Railroad Passengers. Membership in both organizations is groundbreaking for commuter rail according to participants. encouraged. Page 3 Intercity Passenger Rail Conference brings Alternatives ideas to the table-- some agree to disagree reviewed A Colorado Perspective preferred alignment for a HSR line The September 16th program was or lines, nor has it chosen a pre- introduced by Dr. Patrick Sherry, The Rocky Mountain Rail Authority’s Director of the National Center High Speed Rail Feasibility Study ferred technology, nor has it estab- for Intermodal Transportation. has developed a number of state- lished preferred station locations, The center emphasizes the inter- wide options for intercity passenger nor has it evaluated specific environ- modal in its name. Along with rail in Colorado, based on rail tech- mental impacts. Those would all be their partners at the University of nologies in revenue service through- the subjects of future environmental Mississippi, the Center at DU out the world. In his keynote pres- studies under the National Environ- works to bring modes of transpor- mental Protection Act. tation together for greater bene- entation to the NCIT Intercity Pas- fits than might be gained in sepa- senger Rail conference, Harry Dale, In spite of that caveat, it became rate traditions. chairman of the authority, said that clear from his presentation that sig- A welcoming message from DU they have also evaluated the opera- nificant alternatives, such as using Chancellor Robert D. Coombe tional and economic feasibility of alternate mountain passes instead emphasized the ways in which these options. He emphasized that of bundling lines into the I-70 corri- transport improvements have this work was based on Federal dor, or using some rail formats are benefited programs of the univer- Railroad Administration criteria. seen as unlikely due to environ- sity. The RMRA has not established a (Continued on page 4) Graphic from Harry Dale’s presentation. Note that these general figures may not apply to specific systems. Page 4 (Continued from page 3) tations, they cannot be included The last point was of particular inter- mental difficulties. The assumption here, but each of the conference est, along with points about pro- that highway traffic will continue to PowerPoint presentations is avail- jected low maintenance, because move at 75 mph also immediately able on the NCIT website: the speed advantage once claimed makes some alternatives unattrac- for maglev over other grade- tive. separated alternatives has been nar- Maglev Transport: But assuming the 75 mph driving, rowed or eliminated. Coates pointed the chart from RMRA above shows a When high-speed rail studies -- and out the amount of maintenance re- variety of technologies applied to even some urban transit studies -- quired on high-speed lines, noting familiar Front Range routes. For are conducted, magnetic levitation that planners should look at life-cycle those unfamiliar with the terms, the alternatives are included. Rail advo- costs, rather than simply initial capi- “Joint Line” refers to the jointly oper- cates find themselves asking tal costs. ated existing BNSF-UP line between whether it is a credible alternative, or Denver and Pueblo. “Greenfield” whether it is just a ploy used like Practical Constraints: refers to the idea of locating the line monorails were used in studies in areas east of the metropolitan through the 1960’s and 70’s, to pre- If audience members had any re- centers where cheap land and devel- vent implementation of anything maining thoughts of trying to buy the opment opportunities would intersect except more highways.
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