RAIL CORRIDOR ANALYSIS:
Rail services in several mid-size Anerican cities show how passenger trains that are tailored to a local market can operate successfully. SMART plans to serve 14 stations in a 70 mile corridor reaching from Larkspur to Cloverdale, initially focusing on commuter services. The Tri-Rail line northwest of Miami, Florida serves 18 stations in a 72 mile corridor; the Trinity Railway Express between Ft. Worth and Dallas serves ten stations in a 34 mile corridor; the River LINE between Trenton and Camden, New Jersey, serves 20 stations in its 34 mile corridor. All three rail systems were based on single track freight lines with passing tracks, and grew to serve over a million riders per year within their first ten years. All three lines have made successful use of self-powered railcars. Although Miami, Dallas and the Delaware River areas are more populous than the North Bay, densities near the stations along these corridors are relatively low, permitting reasonable comparisons to be made between these systems and SMART. (Details of these operations are set forth below.)
California rail services have also been very successful in many diverse corridors. The 48 mile Coaster between Oceanside and San Diego carries nearly 1.5 million riders per year. The 86 mile Altamont Commuter Express takes over 750 thousand riders yearly from the Stockton Area toward San Jose in the morning, then home in the evening, with mid-day service, but no reverse-commute. The Capitol Corridor serves a nearly equal number of riders, and Caltrain is the successor to the long-established service on the San Francisco Peninsula, carrying riders all day in both directions. The coastal Metrolink corridors in Southern California share tracks with the Amtrak California Pacific Surfliner, one of the most heavily-used passenger rail services in the country.
Details about each corridor are summarized below, with links to official web-sites and source information.
Tri-Rail Florida: Magnolia Park-Miami Airport http://www.tri-rail.com/
Ridership: 11,100 av. weekday (APTA 9-06), end-to-end fare $5.50, travel time 2 hr.
72 miles Commuter Rail 18 stations, opened 1995 (S.FL Regional Trans. Auth.)
20 trains each direction on weekdays; 8 trains each direction Sat.; 7 on Sun.
12 Locomotives 26 bi-level coaches; 2 bicycle racks per car—permits required.
Connects: Metrorail (Miami-Dade Transit), AMTRAK, local bus, airport shuttles
Parking: park and ride lots are at many stations
Details & History: The right-of-way parallels Interstate 95 and is shared with Amtrak passenger and CSX freight services. Farebox revenue in 2003 was $6.3 million; costs $23.8 million; ratio 26%. Between Ft.Lauderdale and Pompano Beach, double-tracking and rehabilitation of the signal system now allow more frequent service. Started as a temporary measure during a 5-year project to widen I-95, trains are operated by the state Tri-County Commuter Rail Authority based in Fort Lauderdale.
More: http://web.presby.edu/~jtbell/transit/Miami/TriRail/
http://www.getcruising.com/rails/_trirail.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tri-Rail#Fleet
Trinity Railway Express Texas: Ft.Worth-Dallas http://www.trinityrailwayexpress.org/
Ridership 8,500 av. week day (APTA 9-06), end-to-end fare $4.50, travel time 1 hr. 5 min.
34 miles Commuter Rail 10 stations, opened 1996 (Herzog)
24 trains each direction on weekdays; 11 each direction on Sat.
Connects: Dallas light rail; Ft. Worth bus; airport shuttles
Parking: available at no charge, except medical center and Union Station; bicycle lockers available at most stations
Details & History: Track maintenance is provided under contract by BNSF Railway, which has rights to operate freight trains on the line, as does Union Pacific (about 25 freight movements per weekday). Right of way jointly purchased by the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth in 1983 from Rock Island bankruptcy. Original fleet was 13 refurbished Budd Rail Diesel Cars.
More: http://www.winwaed.com/rail/TRE/tre.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_Railway_Express
River LINE, NJ Camden-Trenton http://www.riverline.com/
Ridership: 6,900 weekdays, end-to-end fare: $1.25, travel time: 1 hr. 20 min.
34 miles Light Rail 20 stations, opened 2005
20 Stadler diesel multiple 72 seat units; bicycles welcome—hanging rack system
Connects with AMTRAK, SEPTA, NCL at Trenton; PATCO Speedline at Camden; local buses.
Parking at most stations for no charge; no parking at Trenton, Camden, Burlington.
Details & History: Billed as an effort to revitalize a declining corridor, the line was established by a “design, build, operate and maintain” agreement between New Jersey Transit and a Bechtel-Bombardier consortium at a cost of about $600 million. Right of way was purchased from CSX, which retains the right to use the line for freight service at night.
More: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_LINE
http://www.njtransit.com/an_cp_project006.shtml
Altamont Commuter Express: Stockton-San Jose http://www.acerail.com/default.htm
Ridership 3,000 per weekday, end-to-end fare $11, travel time 2 hr 20 min.
86 miles Commuter Rail 10 stations, opened 1998 (Herzog operated)
4 trains each direction on weekdays; rush hour & mid-day service; no weekend service
Push-pull 20 bi-level coaches; 17 or 34 on-board bicycle racks & lockers at stations
Connections: VTA (San Jose) CalTrain, AMTRAK, AC & Stockton bus services.
Parking: mostly free (gated in Stockton); $1.50 per day at Santa Clara & San Jose (CalTrain)
Details & History: Initially established in 1988 to serve long-distance hi-tech commuters living in Tracy and working in San Jose, the train now has a more diverse ridership traveling to and from Livermore Valley destinations. Farebox revenue in 2003 was $3.8 million; expenses were $12.9 million; cost recovery ratio: 29%. Operations are funded jointly by San Joaquin, Alameda, and Santa Clara counties. Purchase of rolling stock and start-up costs were mostly financed through a small portion of the half-cent transportation sales tax approved by San Joaquin County voters in 1990 (and recently renewed), with some state and federal funding. Service is governed by the San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission, with representatives from Alameda, and Santa Clara counties. Union Pacific owns the tracks and dispatches trains from Omaha.
More: http://www.trains.com/trn/default.aspx?c=a&id=400
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altamont_Commuter_Express
Caltrain: Gilroy-San Jose-San Francisco http://www.caltrain.com/
Ridership: 34,200 per weekday (APTA 9-06), end-to-end fare $9.75, travel time 2 hr 20 min.
77 miles Passenger Rail 32 stations, SF Palo Alto began in 1863 (Amtrak operated)
48 trains each direction on weekdays; 16 Saturday & 14 Sunday trains.
Push-pull 110 bi-level coaches 29 locomotives; 16 or 32 on-board bicycle racks per train
Connections: VTA, BART, ACE, SF Muni, San Mateo Transit; numerous shuttles Parking: ($1.50) available at most stations.
Details & History: Between San Francisco and San Jose, service is about every 30 minutes on weekdays, more frequent in commute hours with a mix of local, limited, and express “Baby Bullet” weekday trains. Four trains extend to Gilroy during commute hours. Farebox revenue in 2003 was $19.4 million ; costs $56.8 million; ratio 34%. Southern Pacific Railroad owned and operated this service for most of its existence, The State of California assumed financial responsibility for the passenger service in 1980, and continued for some time to rely on Southern Pacific to operate. Since 1987, service has been governed by the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board, which acquired the right-of-way in 1992. Southern Pacific continues to handle freight service on the line.
More: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caltrain
http://www.ggrm.org/about_the_museum/history/peninsula.htm
Capitol Corridor: Auburn-San Jose http://www.capitolcorridor.org/
Ridership: 3,400 per day; end-to-end fare $30, travel time 4 hr. 25 min.
172 miles Passenger Rail 17 stations, opened 1991 (BART operated)
16 trains each direction on weekdays; 9 trains on weekends
Push-pull bi-level California Coaches; bicycles welcome, racks on lower level
Connections: Sacramento RT, Amtrak rail & bus, BART, GGB bus, VTA, ACE, CalTrain
Parking: available at most stations at competitive rates or at no charge
Details & History: This Amtrak/California Service is fully funded by the State through Caltrans. Locomotives and rolling stock are shared with San Joaquin Corridor trains to Bakersfield, and recently joint ticketing arrangements have been made with the Altamont Commuter Express between San Jose and Stockton. In 1998 a 16 member Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Board (CCJPB) was formed to govern operations. Union Pacific Railroad owns the tracks.
More: http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/rail/amcalroutes/rtes.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitol_Corridor
Coaster: Oceanside-San Diego http://www.gonctd.com/coaster/coaster.html
Ridership: 6,100 per work day (APTA 9-06), end-to-end fare $5.50, travel time 1 hr.
48 miles Commuter Rail 8 stations, opened 1995 (Herzog operated)
11 trains each direction on weekdays (mostly rush hour); 4 trains each direction on Saturdays;
7 locomotives, 28 bi-level passenger cars; bicycles---
Connections: San Diego Trolley; AMTRAK; FAST & BREEZE shuttles; airport flyer; city bus
Parking: at stations other than City of San Diego at no charge.
Details & History: This service shares track and several stations with AMTRAK California's Surfliner intercity rail service (10 trains per day to Los Angeles, 4 to Santa Barbara and one to San Luis Obispo). Farebox revenue is $4.7 million; costs $12.4 million; ratio 38%. Approximately 40% of weekday commuters detrain at Sorrento Valley, with another 50% detraining in downtown San Diego. Operation is governed by San Diego’s North County Transit District and funded by a half-cent county-wide transportation tax, recently renewed. Tracks are owned by BNSF.
More: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Diego_Coaster
http://www.sdcommute.com/Rider_Information/coaster/
Metrolink San Bernardino-Oceanside http://www.metrolinktrains.com/lines/schedules/#
Ridership: 4,200 weekdays (’05), end-to-end fare $1.25, travel time 2 hr. 30 min.
85 miles Commuter Rail 14 stations, opened 1996 (Connex operated)
16 trains (5 run nearly end-to-end) each direction on weekdays; 6 each direction weekends
Push-pull Bombardier bi-level commuter cars
Connections: AMTRAK, Coaster, San Bernardino and Riverside Metrolink, bus & shuttles
Parking: available at most stations at no charge
Detail &History: This line shares six of its 14 stations with the Orange County Metrolink line that runs from Oceanside to Santa Ana and LA (6,200 riders), four with the I-95 Metrolink line that runs from Riverside to Santa Ana and LA (1,800 riders), and four with the AMTRAK Pacific Surfliner. It’s the only Metrolink line that does not terminate at Union Station in Downtown Los Angeles. It is also the first crosstown commuter rail line in the US going from suburb to suburb.
More: http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/discoveroc/gettingthere/article_1225257.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrolink_Inland_Empire-Orange_County_Line
Metrolink Montalvo (Ventura)-LA http://www.metrolinktrains.com/lines/schedules/#
Ridership: 4,000 weekdays, end-to-end fare $1.25, travel time 1 hr. 45 min. end-to-end
70 miles Commuter Rail 12 stations, opened 1992 (Connex operated)
10 trains each direction on weekdays plus one AMTRAK train
Push-pull Bombardier bi-level commuter cars
Connects with AMTRAK, Metro light rail, other Metrolink, various bus & shuttles
Parking: available at most stations other than Los Angeles Union Station at no charge.
Details & History: Governed by the Southern California Regional Rail Authority, established in 1991. Operated by AMTRAK from 1992-2005. Tracks are owned by Union Pacific.
More: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrolink_Ventura_County_Line
Pacific Surfliner San Luis Obispo-San Diego http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/rail/
Ridership: 6,900 daily (’05), end-to-end fare $43, travel time 8 hr. 30 min.
371 miles Passenger Rail 27 stations, opened 2000 (AMTRAK)
12 trains each direction from San Diego to LA; 5 to Santa Barbara & 2 to San Luis Obispo
Push-pull bi-level California cars; bicycles allowed on lower floor
Connections: Coaster, Metrolink, bus
Parking: available at most stations at competitive rates or at no charge
Details & History: This line shares many of its stations with Metrolink services and has arrangments that permit riders to use tickets on either system. Formerly known as the “Sandiegan” the route is primairly funded and governed by the State through CalTrans.
More: http://www.trainweb.com/amtrak_press_releases/news/pr/atk_nov18.html
http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Amtrak/am2Route/Vertical_Route_Page&c=am2Route&cid=1081256322013&ssid=132
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrolink_Inland_Empire-Orange_County_Line
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