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| Re: American Railcar gone (1005698) | |||
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Re: American Railcar gone |
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Posted by AEM-7AC #901 on Sun Nov 21 22:46:17 2010, in response to Re: American Railcar gone, posted by Jersey Mike on Sun Nov 21 21:55:20 2010. The S-Bahn is basically an American style light rail system such as DART.Given that FRA regs (and union rules and conservative transit planning) make it nearly impossible to run a fast and frequent railway network on the mainline, we're left with "light rail" systems at 15 minute off-peak headways. To a certain extent, it's also why BART is a half-assed American S-Bahn, and why WMATA reeks of being a Berlin S-Bahn clone. Both systems could have been done with mainline trackage and new tunnels being built for the connective links, but instead we ended up re-inventing the wheel to get OPTO & high acceleration. European rail transport has operated over the decades as a giant make work project funded by excessive fuel taxes. Some have could argue that most American systems aren't that different, except that the workers make far more than their European counterparts... Their model is one to avoid, not emulate. Judging from my experience, I'd rather copy their strategies as they have a functionable and usable network compared to the crap that passes off as "mass transit" in North America. I want a functional secondary network that applies rapid transit techniques to mainline railroading so I don't have stand like an idiot waiting an hour off-peak for the damned M-7 to show up. I want a network where the opportunity costs of traveling to Manhattan are minimized especially in the inner suburbs, and we can refocus economic growth on the core while also increases ridership. In other words, I want a usable network for both peak and off-peak riders. If we built lines with stations like one sees on SEPTA or the 47 Library we could restore service on more routes for the same money. SEPTA's urban operations is basically a streetcar network with a tunnel at the end point. It's suitable for replacing heavily used bus routes, but it's really not ideal for being the back haul for a public transit network unless one upgrades the networks like the Germans did their their Stadtbahn networks. I remember your reference to Pittsburgh's network, and while small stops are appropriate in the context of a streetcar regime on a street, for a real network, I'd prefer stations that don't look like rapist's ideal fantasy and would attract *choice* riders. At minimum, a heated canopy, some CCTV, and a sign telling me when my next train will arrive will suffice. |
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