tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post901929216777466629..comments2024-02-01T04:37:41.878-05:00Comments on Cap'n Transit Rides Again: What if Amtrak cared about its Hartford riders?Cap'n Transithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17057887736728828646noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-38894575091619155962015-08-25T08:35:37.028-04:002015-08-25T08:35:37.028-04:00Checking Amtrak's reservation site, trains lea...Checking Amtrak's reservation site, trains leaving from Springfield and Hartford get delayed by 30 minutes as well. Why the discrepancy? Oddly, the 4:05 Springfield train is listed as still there while the 7:40 pm one is bustituted. From Hartford, the service wasn't that slow though agree Springfield's service was bad.Neilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10540154975441685525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-14141485477760631182015-08-22T20:45:00.485-04:002015-08-22T20:45:00.485-04:00I will add that the plans are raising & loweri...I will add that the plans are raising & lowering bridges and clearing width for electrification. They're not actually planting the poles or putting up the wiring, but the designs all specify that space is to be left for future electrification.neroden@gmailhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07475686367097445497noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-43590335931659230632015-08-22T20:41:53.192-04:002015-08-22T20:41:53.192-04:00This is a pretty monumental project. I'm not ...This is a pretty monumental project. I'm not quite understanding why the costs are so high for the project, but the estimates were high to start with and keep going up. <br /><br />I suspect there may be a lot of small bridges to retrofit.<br /><br />http://www.nhhsrail.com/<br /><br />It's not just the double-tracking, they're also redoing the signalling at the same time, which probably causes a lot of trouble. And they're redoing the right-of-way in general; the existing single track is actually in bad shape. They're easing curves, raising speed limits, etc.<br /><br />I can see why they want large, uninterrupted work windows.neroden@gmailhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07475686367097445497noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-81059840577602859592015-08-11T19:40:40.681-04:002015-08-11T19:40:40.681-04:00I'll add to Adirondacker's comment above: ...I'll add to Adirondacker's comment above: it's not just that it's slow, it's that the service plan doesn't serve the corridor well. This line should see frequent, all-day service at a level that even the current NHHS plan doesn't quite provide. It should be double-tracked and electrified. But with Amtrak as the steward, there was never any shot of that happening. Amtrak doesn't have the funding, and moreover doesn't see providing frequent intrastate service as being in its mission. As far as Amtrak is concerned, the Springfield line is useful for its intercity connectivity, linking up Hartford and Springfield with the NEC, and little else. The current service plan, which I wrote about here (https://itineranturbanist.wordpress.com/2015/05/04/notes-on-boston-springfield-service/), while imperfect, clearly separates intercity and intrastate trains, and splits responsibility for them. It's about time.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-62527122170070053882015-08-06T19:20:32.639-04:002015-08-06T19:20:32.639-04:00They are being bustituted because the Springfield ...They are being bustituted because the Springfield line is embarrassingly slow. Not as embarrassingly slow as Albany-Boston but slow. <br /><br />Keep in mind, that to people from outside of metro New York, "congested" means "so heavy we had to slow down to 50" not "the pedestrians by the side of the road were walking faster" Many times it means "the third lane had cars in it! We had to stay in the center lane to go 70"<br /><br /><i>According to Amtrak's monthly report (PDF), between October 2013 and September 2014 there were 370,896 riders on the Hartford-Springfield line, all week long. This does not include the Vermonter,</i><br /><br />The Vermonter isn't being bustituted so the passengers in Connecticut who use the Vermonter will still be able to get on and off the Vermonter. As will the people who use the unbustituted trains. <br /><br />You want to see how many people get on and off trains at a particular station you probably want to look at <br /><br />http://www.amtrak.com/pdf/factsheets/CONNECTICUT14.pdf<br /><br />In round numbers Springfield is as far from New York ( and Philadelphia, Baltimore and DC. ) as Albany is from New York. With twice the population in greater Springfield-Hartford. And gets one third the ridership. It's people who don't want to take the faster options. Like driving on congested I-91 and parking in New Haven where there is decent service. <br /> <br />The Sprinfield trains are realllly realllllly slow. This <br /><br />http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?c=AM_Alert_C&pagename=am/AM_Alert_C/Alerts_Popup&cid=1251628714167<br /><br />says that the bus schedule will be the same as the train schedule except at Berlin, Meridan and Wallingford, which will "leave 20 minutes earlier than the respective train schedules" <br /><br />Berlin had 23,363 passengers boarding and alighting in FY 2014. Meridan had 30,466 and Wallingford 14,331. So it's going to affect some southbound passengers at some stations. The rest of them will either be on a train or the bus will be just as fast.Adirondacker12800https://www.blogger.com/profile/17108712932656586797noreply@blogger.com