Dallas l DART Light Rail Expansion Updates

[electricron]

Originally Posted by Dale

Seems like Transport Politic savages every line that Dallas builds.

Transport Politic editors/publishers/commentators apparently believe every new rail line in the country should be urban rail, entirely grade separated with third rail power. Like what the Bay Area's Bart, Atlanta's Marta, and D.C.'s Metro built. Doesn't matter that type of heavy rail costs at least 4 times more than the light rail DART built, they dislike everything DART has done on principle anyways.

But, they aren't the ones paying for it.

Also wondering what they think about Honolulu's new elevated light rail metro? It has everything they like except subway sections. A 20 mile fully elevated and grade separated system projected to cost $5.3 Billion to build, around $265 Million per mile? By comparison, DART's Green line at 28 miles and costing $1.8 Billion, came in at $64 Million per mile, 4 times less.....

[Dale]

And twenty years ago they would have been savaging Dallas for not having rail.

[arkhitektor]

Originally Posted by photoLith

I was just driving through kingwood in suburban Houston not even on a highway and 2 light rail cars on flatbed trucks drove by. I was like wtf, and they were White and I briefly caught Denton on both of them. Do they manufacture dart cars in Houston? Or maybe they shipped them in from the Houston Ship Channel and didn't want to take any highways up to Dallas. Either way it was strange as hell seeing dart rail cars in kingwood lol. Probably will never see that again.

Oh I just read that they do ship them in, glad I got to see them. Posted this while driving so didn't have time to read all the posts. I just saw the trains like 5 min ago.

I wish I'd taken a picture of it at the time, because I cant find one anywhere on the internet, but DART loaned some vehicles to UTA to increase capacity for the Salt Lake olympics in 2002. I remember riding one from downtown to the Olympic Stadium at the University of Utah.

[tayser]

Originally Posted by Nexis4Jersey

Some A train videos....

• Video Link

• Video Link

love that guys accent.
just a random comment: how many times does the driver want to blow the horn? even holds on to it all the way through the crossing - great way to piss the locals off hah.

[electricron]

Originally Posted by tayser

love that guys accent.
just a random comment: how many times does the driver want to blow the horn? even holds on to it all the way through the crossing - great way to piss the locals off hah.

They've implemented quiet zones on most of the DCTA corridor since these videos were taken. Presently, the largest complaints over noise is in downtown Lewisville where they installed wayside horns so the trains wouldn't have to use theirs. The neighborhood surprisingly favors the train's horns because they move along the tracks, not stationary aimed right at them. So, they're looking at doing something different now in downtown Lewisville.

Which goes to show you can't please everyone all the time.

[dfwcr8tive]

Originally Posted by arkhitektor

I wish I'd taken a picture of it at the time, because I cant find one anywhere on the internet, but DART loaned some vehicles to UTA to increase capacity for the Salt Lake olympics in 2002. I remember riding one from downtown to the Olympic Stadium at the University of Utah.

[jtk1519]

After months of construction, the McKinney Avenue Transit Authority (MATA) is pleased to announce the completion and unveiling of the McKinney Avenue Trolley Turntable at sunset on Thursday, December 15.

The turntable isn't the only thing being unveiled on Thursday. Built above the turntable is an LED display superstructure that has translucent panels on the columns with lights that will be programmed to change accordingly to commemorate holidays, seasons or events.

According to Neal Sleeper, president of Cityplace Co., which managed the turntable project, each time the trolley turns on the turntable and passes a column, the column will light up.

As for the turntable itself, the $668,000 completed project will hopefully usher in a larger and faster fleet of trolleys in the future. This, in turn, will make the trolley a more attractive option for commuters. Currently trolleys can be driven in either direction, the new cars can only be driven one way, which is where the turntable comes into the play.

With the turntable completed, MATA will now turn its attention to the southern end of its route. There is an expansion in the works that will include a loop through the northern part of downtown Dallas.

http://uptown.bubblelife.com/communi...3/key/35145892


http://www.dallasnews.com/news/commu...#ssStory401430

[jtk1519]

Some pics of the Orange line's Las Colinas Urban Center station from CTroyMathis...





















http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/sh...l=1#post474007

[llamaorama]

Is that elevated addition to the Las Colinas urban center station part of the APM?

That thing may actually be useful for something after 30 years with a connection to the light rail...

[hammersklavier]

Originally Posted by Nexis4Jersey

Some A train videos....

• Video Link

• Video Link

Hard to believe those RDCs are in their 50s, with some of the oldest pushing 60, isn't it?

Originally Posted by jtk1519

Pics of the A-Train cars under construction in Switzerland (I believe)...




http://translate.google.com/translat...-be-48-113.htm

I believe these will arrive in the Metroplex and be in service within a month or so.

Are those DMUs FRA-compliant? I've heard some rumors they are. Of course, that makes them overly heavy, but if they are and they work out well (and they should--Stadler is probably the best equipment builder in the world right now) we would FINALLY have an inexpensive DMU, which would facilitate our public transit getting back to where it was back in the '70s...

[electricron]

Originally Posted by hammersklavier

Hard to believe those RDCs are in their 50s, with some of the oldest pushing 60, isn't it?

Are those DMUs FRA-compliant? I've heard some rumors they are. Of course, that makes them overly heavy, but if they are and they work out well (and they should--Stadler is probably the best equipment builder in the world right now) we would FINALLY have an inexpensive DMU, which would facilitate our public transit getting back to where it was back in the '70s...

The Stadler GTWs are not FRA compliant. DCTA plans to use time separation wavier, like other agencies using non FRA compliant trains, from FRA complaint trains to operate them. But DCTA has also submitted a wavier to use them at the same time as the RDCs are in use, arguing their crash energy management systems makes them equivalent. They haven't heard an official reply from the FRA yet. While this last wavier would allow running compliant and non compliant trains at the same time, the GTWs still wouldn't be FRA compliant.

As for the DMU price tags, SMART's new FRA complaint DMU trains from Nippon Sharyo are cheaper. Which should make them the favorite choices in the USA on rail lines with active freight. I can see the GTWs meeting a small market on lines without active freight services where transit agencies might prefer the lighter and smaller trains.

[hammersklavier]

Stadler has a sterling reputation for quality. They've got a better reputation in Europe than even Siemens or Alstom or Talgo.

This makes me think that the difference is really going to boil down to whether one's cheap or one's willing to invest in the best equipment available.

BTW--crash energy systems are eons ahead of dead weight regulations.

[jtk1519]

From the Dallas Morning News...

Amtrak may extend rail service to Shreveport, add new stop at TRE’s CentrePort/DFW station

MARSHALL — Amtrak and Texas transportation officials are studying starting passenger rail service from Dallas-Fort Worth to Shreveport-Bossier City, La.

In a joint statement, Amtrak and the Texas Department of Transportation said they've agreed on the scope of a feasibility study of adding the service.

Amtrak already runs its San Antonio-to-Chicago Texas Eagle service on the Union Pacific route from Fort Worth to Marshall with stops in Longview, Mineola and Dallas. The proposal would add Amtrak stops at the CentrePort/DFW Airport station of the Trinity Railway Express, as well as stops in Mesquite, Forney, Terrell and Wills Point.

Amtrak says that if the study shows state-funded Amtrak service should be considered, the final decisions would rest with the Texas and Louisiana legislatures.

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/trans...fw-station.ece

From the Dallas Observer...

If Amtrak and TxDOT Can Swing It, You'll Be Able to Take Train From Dallas to Shreveport
By Robert Wilonsky Fri., Mar. 2 2012 at 9:39 AM

Saw that AP piece this morning about how Amtrak and the Texas Department of Transportation are looking at connecting Dallas-Fort Worth to Shreveport-Bossier City, which would involve inserting a stop at the Trinity Railway Express's CentrePort/DFW Airport station. But the piece isn't clear: Should this study prove such a line feasible, will you also be able to take the train from downtown Dallas's Union Station to Louisiana (and its many fine casinos)?

Reason I ask: The actual press release announcing the look-see -- to be funded with around $750,000 in federal funds -- contains the map you see above. And as you can see, the new route very much includes Union Station among the stops along the proposed route -- which is more or less an extension of the existing Texas Eagle route that connects San Antonio to Chicago through Dallas. The only difference is: The train would no longer head north once it hits Marshall. And: There could be new stops added in Mesquite, Forney, Terrell and Wills Point.

Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari tells Unfair Park this morning this shouldn't be too hard to make happen: "The tracks work," he says. "There's not a need for some elaborate connection. Two weeks when the Union Pacific had a temp track closure we went on the TRE for a couple of days. We use the TRE as an alternative route already. Right now our train makes both those stops -- at Union Station and the Fort Worth Intermodal Transportation Center. What we're looking at is moving them to the TRE, which means they make the same stops but also pass through CentrePort, which makes it attractive."

The report's due by year's end.

http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/unfa...shreveport.php

[electricron]

Originally Posted by jtk1519

From the Dallas Morning News...


http://www.dallasnews.com/news/trans...fw-station.ece

From the Dallas Observer...


http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/unfa...shreveport.php

Amtrak and DART are two entirely different railroad organizations. Why post about one on a thread dedicated for the other? Hijacking a thread isn't cool!

Amtrak and TXDOT are starting a feasibility study, the very first step needed for potential startup of services. Amtrak and TXDOT are also studying services between Fort Worth and San Antonio, and between Fort Worth and Houston. There's no commitment from TXDOT to actually subside any more Amtrak ran trains. Think of these studies as an exercise of possibilities, for TXDOT to give Texas Legislators how much it will cost to build and operate trains against adding additional lanes to Interstate highways.

[jtk1519]

Originally Posted by electricron

Amtrak and DART are two entirely different railroad organizations. Why post about one on a thread dedicated for the other? Hijacking a thread isn't cool!

Despite the thread's title (I was always of the opinion it should be called "Dallas/Fort Worth: Transit & Transportation news" similar to the San Francisco thread), this thread has always served as a catch all for all rail transit news for the Metroplex. The DCTA and FWTA's rail plans have been discussed at length here as well.

[jg6544]

As someone who remembers when Dallas had "streetcars" and how it was thought of as a sign of progress when they were replaced with trolley buses, I find these updates about DART expansion quite encouraging.

[Lyly]

I just got back from a DCTA public input meeting. This was the first meeting where DCTA announced the results of a survey that was conducted between November 2011 and January 2012.

I'm sure the data will be released by the DCTA on their website, but I'm going to summarize the key points.

DCTA carried 2.4 million bus passengers in 2011, representing a 3% growth over 2010's ridership. Over 220,000 have ridden the A-Train. Curiously, 50% of the A-Train's ridership originates at the Trinity Mills Station. In other words, 50% of the A-Train's riders are Carrollton (or nearby) residents traveling into Denton. Also interesting: 15% of DCTA's passengers begin or end their trip on bicycle.

Data from the survey and from ridership information has led the DCTA Board to reconsider having Friday night A-Train service, since that seems to be the most underperforming period.

The BEST performing periods, in terms of growth of ridership, are the late morning runs and early afternoon runs. Survey data also says that the number one priority for DCTA riders is mid-day A-Train service. So that's looking very likely.

Short-term, the DCTA's five year priorities are:
- Expand service on the A-Train and bus routes.
- Implement a real-time transit tracking system to enable riders to use a smart phone app or a computer to see where a bus or train is in real time.
- Implement Positive Train Control on the new Stadler A-Train cars, at a cost of $17 million, with much of that potentially coming through bonds, grants, or loans.
- Begin construction of a planned Operations & Maintenance facility in Denton for the bus system at a cost of $9.2 million.
- Fully replace DCTA's bus fleet with the new buses added last year ($1.9 million).

Of most interest may be the A-Train's potential schedule, which will be implemented no sooner than August, 2012.
The hope is to add mid-day service from Monday to Friday, likely scaling back Friday night service to a special events only route, and expanding Saturday service, but with less frequency. Currently, it only runs from about 11:00AM to 4:00PM.

There was also expressed a hope to extend the DCTA's fare boundary from the Denton County line south to include the Trinity Mills station. This would allow DCTA to sell DCTA Local passes, where currently you'd have to buy a DART Regional pass to get on the DCTA from Trinity Mills. With 50% of the A-Train's passengers originating at that station, and many more using regional passes to get around the Metroplex, DCTA is losing a lot of money to DART because of the lack of DCTA fare boxes.

Long-term DCTA plans are pretty exciting:
- Extension of the A-Train south to the Downtown Carrollton DART station and north to Loop 288 in Denton.
- Establishing a commuter option between Fort Worth in Denton, either by commuter bus or rail. If it were by rail, FWTA and DCTA would be expected to meet near Alliance Airport (which is approximately the same distance south into Tarrant County as the Trinity Mills Station is into Dallas County).
- A rail corridor between Carrollton and Frisco.
- Bus service between Lewisville and Flower Mound and bus service between Frisco and Hebron and Carrollton via FM 423.

Alright, that was a lot of stuff, but I hope it's all pretty interesting. I've got more notes and info from the meeting, but I think I gleaned out the interesting stuff.

[jtk1519]

Fort Worth's The T gets preliminary go-ahead from feds on commuter line to airport, Grapevine
By Michael Lindenberger/Reporter
mlindenberger@dallasnews.com | Bio
10:03 AM on Tue., Mar. 27, 2012 | Permalink

Federal transit officials have given a preliminary go-ahead to plans by the Fort Worth Transportation Authority to build a commuter rail line from downtown Fort Worth to Grapevine, with a stop at the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.

The approval by the Federal Transit Administration, announced Monday by the The T's board of directors, allows the agency to enter into preliminary engineering -- a crucial step that signals the FTA believes the project is worthwhile and has sufficient support from local funding sources.

The $758 million project would be funded 50-50 by local sponsors, including Tarrant County, Grapevine, the regional council of governments, and by the FTA.

The go-ahead for engineering, however, is not a final approval by the FTA or an iron-clad guarantee that it will provide the balance of the funding.

In a letter to area members of Congress, the agency stated that "FTA has received sufficient project justification and local financial commitment information from The T to determine that the project meets the eligibility requirement and all other New Starts requirements to advance into (preliminary engineering)."

New Starts is the federal program in which Washington selects a handful of major transit projects each year to supply significant funding, usually 50 percent of the total costs.

DART's Green Line was built using an $800 million New Starts grant.

http://transportationblog.dallasnews...s-prelimi.html

[SnyderBock]

Originally Posted by electricron

The Stadler GTWs are not FRA compliant. DCTA plans to use time separation wavier, like other agencies using non FRA compliant trains, from FRA complaint trains to operate them. But DCTA has also submitted a wavier to use them at the same time as the RDCs are in use, arguing their crash energy management systems makes them equivalent. They haven't heard an official reply from the FRA yet. While this last wavier would allow running compliant and non compliant trains at the same time, the GTWs still wouldn't be FRA compliant.

Are you sure that will work? Because I know in Denver's case, Union Pacific wouldn't allow non-FRA compliant EMU's to be used on separate tracks from freight, running parallel to their freight tracks. I mean, 90% of the line isn't even in Union Pacific's freight ROW and the small 10% that is, doesn't share tracks with their freight trains, but will have all new tracks built just for the EMU's. And BNSF wouldn't allow non-FRA compliant DMU's to run on their freight tracks even with full time separation between freight and passenger traffic, full double tracking and construction of concrete barrier walls between the two tracks, the entire 41-mile length. And Colorado has a law they passed, which provides these freight companies with immunity, if ever an accident between freight and passenger trains were to happen. That's something most other states can't offer freight rail companies. So you'd think if they'd grant approval of non-FRA compliant EMU and DMU's anywhere, it would be Colorado, but they refused to do so.

[electricron]

Originally Posted by SnyderBock

Are you sure that will work? Because I know in Denver's case, Union Pacific wouldn't allow non-FRA compliant EMU's to be used on separate tracks from freight, running parallel to their freight tracks. I mean, 90% of the line isn't even in Union Pacific's freight ROW and the small 10% that is, doesn't share tracks with their freight trains, but will have all new tracks built just for the EMU's. And BNSF wouldn't allow non-FRA compliant DMU's to run on their freight tracks even with full time separation between freight and passenger traffic, full double tracking and construction of concrete barrier walls between the two tracks, the entire 41-mile length. And Colorado has a law they passed, which provides these freight companies with immunity, if ever an accident between freight and passenger trains were to happen. That's something most other states can't offer freight rail companies. So you'd think if they'd grant approval of non-FRA compliant EMU and DMU's anywhere, it would be Colorado, but they refused to do so.

I believe the FRA is going to look at each case individually. The Stadler GTWs have a crash energy management system that's far more sturdier than light rail trains. The DCTA rail corridor is owned by DART, not by a freight railroad company. The freight trains must meet all of DART requirements to operate, not the other way around. The EMUs RTD is buying are FRA compliant, it's not the Feds requiring separate tracks and concrete dividers, it's the freight company demanding them, they own these rail corridors in Denver, not RTD.