"MetroRail trains to skip stops,run more slowly"

[Bob Dylan]

Todays fish wrap(aka The Austin Real Estatesman)had a front page story on the still not in service light rail(aka "The Red Line")!According to a spokesperson(arent pr flaks great!)"..we will be testing and finalizing plans to begin operations AS SOON AS SAFELY POSSIBLE !An update will be issued

in mid September,a year and a half after the original date for service to begin.Due to technical problems,and unforseen financial matters arising,we are revising our plans to include fewer stops,slower runs for the rush hour trains(AM and PM)and skipping some stations on the route from Cedar Park to

downtown Austin due to higher than anticipated ridership from the outlying stations.Also,as previously announced,fares will increase due to rising costs in all catagories(single ride/monthly and annual passes and senior and disabled discounts included).We will also only be utilizing four of the five train sets we purchased due to the unanticpated delay in TRAINING OPERATING STAFF :lol: and unforeseen safety issues!For those that may be inconvienced we remind

all of you that our busses still run and the park and ride lots are still available at no charge."

The article goes on to discuss all the usual bs that CapMetro issues on a regular basis about studies and consultants and anticipated and planned yada!yada!yada! etc.etc.etc. Meanwhile the traffic congestion continues to grow worse daily(Bad Driver Capital of the USA!)and no trains and millions and millions disappear towho knows where?

 

[stntylr]

Don't you enjoy seeing your tax dollars paying for a train nobody can ride?

I plan on riding the train oneday if they ever start service.

 

[Bob Dylan]

Don't you enjoy seeing your tax dollars paying for a train nobody can ride?I plan on riding the train oneday if they ever start service.

Perhaps by the time they get it running you will be retired and can ride trains full time! :lol: IMO they MAY have it running on a limited basis by next Spring unless some other "unplanned and unforseen" thing comes up and they nahve to cut down to one train a day with two stops, the start and the end! :lol: :lol: :lol: BTW,Ill wave in your direction when I ride the Eagle to DFW on the 25th!I know youre ready for the LRK loop!

 

[MikefromCrete]

Don't you enjoy seeing your tax dollars paying for a train nobody can ride?I plan on riding the train oneday if they ever start service.

Perhaps by the time they get it running you will be retired and can ride trains full time! :lol: IMO they MAY have it running on a limited basis by next Spring unless some other "unplanned and unforseen" thing comes up and they nahve to cut down to one train a day with two stops, the start and the end! :lol: :lol: :lol: BTW,Ill wave in your direction when I ride the Eagle to DFW on the 25th!I know youre ready for the LRK loop!

This whole fiasco is certainly embarrassing to rail supporters. How hard can it be to get this operation going? Running trains shouldn't be this difficult!

 

[sechs]

Maybe they're aiming to beat Houston's per capita rail accident record.

 

[stntylr]

CapMetro's list of FRA safety violations has been quite impressive but apparently they did pass their last inspection with no violations.

 

[Bob Dylan]

CapMetro's list of FRA safety violations has been quite impressive but apparently they did pass their last inspection with no violations.

Thats true Stan but also part of the story I didnt quote mentioned that some of the crossing signals still werent working right all the time so hence the plan to run slower,skip some stops and not have so many trains running @ once!They are letting employees ride on the tests,and members of the media have been on some too,guess they are expendable! :lol:

 

[MikefromCrete]

I find the incompetence of this operation to be amazing. New Jersey's RiverLINE and San Diego's Sprinter run with DMU's and they can get crossing gates to work. Maybe the Austin guys should bring some New Jersey or California people on board to get these trains running.

 

[George Harris]

I find the incompetence of this operation to be amazing. New Jersey's RiverLINE and San Diego's Sprinter run with DMU's and they can get crossing gates to work. Maybe the Austin guys should bring some New Jersey or California people on board to get these trains running.

Maybe these guys are the rejects from the WMATA signal design group.

 

[stntylr]

Guess what!

Capmetro just failed another safety test. The project has been put on an indefinite delay. They thought they were doing good since they had gone a whole month and a half without a safety failure.

Also FRA inspectors want a study done which should have been done several years ago.

Here's the details.

 

[DET63]

Guess what!Capmetro just failed another safety test. The project has been put on an indefinite delay. They thought they were doing good since they had gone a whole month and a half without a safety failure.

Also FRA inspectors want a study done which should have been done several years ago.

Here's the details.

From the link above:

In addition, the Federal Railroad Administration officials in town for the test “strongly urged” Capital Metro to compile a “systems integration” document having to do with the agency running both freight and passenger trains on the same 32-mile slice of track from Leander to downtown Austin. Capital Metro, because it plans to operate the freight trains at night and the passenger trains during the day, had not previously put together the report, according to board member Mike Martinez.

Is the "integration" document really needed if the freight and passenger trains will be running at different times? Or is this a case of some federal bureaucrat(s) throwing his/her (or their) weight around?