Quote:
Originally Posted by Nova08
I agree with the need for transit infrastructure investment, but there are a number of things at play here.
1.) Septa currently faces a crew shortage. You can improve the infrastructure and increase frequency, but Septa needs quite a bit more man power to staff those trains
2.) Partly because of said crew shortage, many of the Regional Rail lines operate with ~60 minute non-peak headways between trains. Before any 15-20 minute frequency test is undertaken, some of these routes simply need ~30 minute headways
3.) I am not sure what Septa will learn from an experiment on the Cynwyd line, the shortest and likely least traveled line.
3a.) I'd argue the Malvern line is a good line to test something like this. First, Amtrak and Septa need to improve dispatching on Amtrak territory. Fortunately they recognize the ongoing issues. They should move the Bryn Mawr interlocking to Villanova (already proposed) and run 20 minute headways from Villanova into center city. Trains operating west of Villanova should express between Villanova and center city, save for 3-5 stops. The 4 track main makes a test like this far more achievable than other lines that are only 2 tracks or even 1 in some areas.
3b.) The next line I'd recommend is Norristown. It runs through heavily walkable populated areas in Conshy, Spring Mill, Manyunk, and East Falls with college students and young professionals that likely want frequency to center city or Temple. Septa started a pseudo Byrn Mawr type operation on the Norristown line with locals originating from Miquon. They should expand this service so that there are 20 minute headways from Ivy Ridge, 30 minutes from Conshy/Spring Mill and more expresses mixed in. But, the 2 track main on speed restricted territory along the river likely makes this a complicated achievement.
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To address your points:
#'s 1 and 2.) SEPTA does indeed face a crew shortage, which it is currently trying to rectify. Once appropriate staffing levels are achieved, however, it should look to negotiate with the BLEW regarding the automation of certain trainsets. The only way that RER-style service will be achieved is through automating a small portion of the fleet.
#3.) My reasoning behind the Cynwyd Line is due to the fact that it has the most components of a rapid transit line compared to any of the other Regional Rail lines. The Cynwyd Line terminates at Platform 7 in Suburban, has only five stations (three of which have high-level platforms), it is no longer speed-restricted since SEPTA decommissioned the bridge over the main line, it serves a relatively population and job-dense area, and it stops near major arterial roads. Bala Station could be the focal point of the project, as it passes under City Avenue. Not only are St. Joe's and a number of office buildings a short walk away, but a number of bus lines traverse it. Passengers on the 1, 44, 52 (extended from 54th-City to Bala), and 65 could transfer seamlessly to the new Cynwyd rapid transit service for a fast connection to Center City.
One thing I forgot to mention in my previous post is fare integration. The Cynwyd Line would have the same fare as any transit route under my plan. Fare integration, along with the accessibility and efficiency of boarding that high-level platforms bring (it would be easier to build them at Bala and Cynwyd than to retrofit a longer line), are two other reasons that I'd prefer to start with the Cynwyd Line.
#3a.) After evaluating the success of a line that isn't through-routed via the Commuter Tunnel, the first pair of lines I'd recommend would be the Fox Chase and Chestnut Hill West (R8 pair). Like the Cynwyd Line, both are short lines that terminate within the city or just outside of it. Unlike the Cynwyd Line, however, it would run through the Tunnel and test the capacity of SEPTA's Main Line. Additionally, it would test the strength of SEPTA/Amtrak communication with more trains running over NORTH PHILADELPHIA interlocking. The next recommendation would test the strength of running RER-style service north of NEWTOWN interlocking.
#3b.) The next pair would be the R5 pair: the Paoli/Thorndale and Lansdale/Doylestown. Since this pair has multiple destinations, I'd recommend running Thorndale*-Doylestown, Malvern-Link Belt, and Bryn Mawr**-Lansdale routes. After preliminary testing is completed, this would be the line to really get ridership going.
*I believe that the Paoli/Thorndale Line should be extended to Parkesburg via Coatesville. There's also the question of a new line heading from Lansdale to at least Shelly or Quakerstown.
**With the potential for a new interlocking at Villanova, that station may take the place of Bryn Mawr