New Beaumont station

[Devil's Advocate]

I see. I guess time will tell. If Beaumont get a police station out there and Amtrak expands or otherwise improves service then maybe things will turn out very differently than I have described. Let's hope they prove me wrong. I still say at least one of us should show up for the ribbon-cutting ceremony and snap a few photos in case we need to do some before-and-after comparisons down the road. Wait, do non-staffed stations even have ribbon cutting ceremonies? You'd think a million dollars would include enough extra for a ribbon and a cake.

 

[henryj]

I just don't understand all the negativity. Beaumont is finally getting a new station. That is reason enough for celebration, restrooms or no. When I traveled about Europe I saw many many unmanned stations without restrooms. Only the major stops had real stations. There are restrooms on the train when it arrives. When the Sunset goes daily, hopefully this Fall, it should be timed through Beaumont around 3pm in both directions so there won't be any more problems with middle of the night service. It seems every time something comes up about an improvement on the Sunset route all we hear on this site is negative vibes.

 

[Guest]

Henry: I think it's more the cost versus the amenities involved. Also the location sucks,anyone thats been there @ the infamous slab knows what it's like! The best thing is to build the station but in a more convient location and one where it wont be trashed by the bums that do this sort of thing!

 

[jphjaxfl]

I just don't understand all the negativity. Beaumont is finally getting a new station. That is reason enough for celebration, restrooms or no. When I traveled about Europe I saw many many unmanned stations without restrooms. Only the major stops had real stations. There are restrooms on the train when it arrives. When the Sunset goes daily, hopefully this Fall, it should be timed through Beaumont around 3pm in both directions so there won't be any more problems with middle of the night service. It seems every time something comes up about an improvement on the Sunset route all we hear on this site is negative vibes.

I agree with you. The proposed new station looks nice and certainly an improvement over current. That and the proposed daily service are a plus for Beaumont and all of Texas. The publicity of the new station and daily service should help get some potential passengers interested in traveling.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

When I traveled about Europe I saw many many unmanned stations without restrooms.

Stations that are actually inside town and connect to other services at regular intervals, including during daytime hours. Not sequestered away in some isolated industrial wasteland in the middle of the night. We all saw the pictures of the old station. Maybe this time will be different but the pessimism is not entirely unwarranted.

It seems every time something comes up about an improvement on the Sunset route all we hear on this site is negative vibes.

If you look on the Beaumont Enterprise site you'll see very similar vibes to what the detractors are saying on here. If the very folks this station is supposed to appeal to aren't for it then who exactly is benefiting from any of this? People who never stop there I guess.

 

[Gratt]

Maybe I misunderstood but it seemed as though there was a possibility that if the Texas Eagle goes daily to LA it could mean the end of service east of SAS. I understand that Amtrak has talked about making SAS <> NOL daily as a stub or something, but considering how poorly the Sunset Limited's financials have been and how easily Amtrak can simply lop-off and ignore half the route after Katrina I consider the this line to be one of the most at risk of long-term discontinuation.

ng it looked pretty isolated. Maybe that would have been a better term.

Granted, I am new to this board, but this makes me wonder, instead of this "stub train" could we simply extend the crescent from NOL to SAS? Granted it would mean viewliners but I personally would love it if it means one direct train from my place of residence in NYC to my family in HOU.

 

[Guest]

So if it is being turned over to the city why don't they just call it a park instead of a station. You put up a nice picnic shelter for a couple of grand and be done with it. It would just happen to be next to a slab of concrete that the train stops at. Would that get by all the ADA bs? It just seems like you could separate the shelter from the platform and call them two different things.

 

[MikefromCrete]

So if it is being turned over to the city why don't they just call it a park instead of a station. You put up a nice picnic shelter for a couple of grand and be done with it. It would just happen to be next to a slab of concrete that the train stops at. Would that get by all the ADA bs? It just seems like you could separate the shelter from the platform and call them two different things.

Gee, I don't think that's something you could slip by the feds. The ADA is a pretty powerful law and there are groups that would track any violation.

 

[Guest]

Maybe I misunderstood but it seemed as though there was a possibility that if the Texas Eagle goes daily to LA it could mean the end of service east of SAS. I understand that Amtrak has talked about making SAS <> NOL daily as a stub or something, but considering how poorly the Sunset Limited's financials have been and how easily Amtrak can simply lop-off and ignore half the route after Katrina I consider the this line to be one of the most at risk of long-term discontinuation.

ng it looked pretty isolated. Maybe that would have been a better term.

Granted, I am new to this board, but this makes me wonder, instead of this "stub train" could we simply extend the crescent from NOL to SAS? Granted it would mean viewliners but I personally would love it if it means one direct train from my place of residence in NYC to my family in HOU.

This would not be a bad idea IF Amtrak had any extra Viewliner sleepers/equipment! As it is the Crescent arrives about dark, leaves the next morning heading North about 7:00AM which means a 18 hour roundtrip to HOS isnt possible!Perhaps when the new Viewliners (if ever?)finally arrive this would be a great idea but youll probably be in assisted living by then! :lol:

 

[henryj]

When I traveled about Europe I saw many many unmanned stations without restrooms.

Stations that are actually inside town and connect to other services at regular intervals, including during daytime hours. Not sequestered away in some isolated industrial wasteland in the middle of the night. We all saw the pictures of the old station. Maybe this time will be different but the pessimism is not entirely unwarranted.

It seems every time something comes up about an improvement on the Sunset route all we hear on this site is negative vibes.

If you look on the Beaumont Enterprise site you'll see very similar vibes to what the detractors are saying on here. If the very folks this station is supposed to appeal to aren't for it then who exactly is benefiting from any of this? People who never stop there I guess.

I don't know why you seem to prefer the existing slab, but I assure you that anyone boarding the train in Beaumont would prefer the new proposed station to standing out in the rain in the dark on a busted up concrete slab any day. The stations in Europe are not located in isolated industrial wastelands nor is the Beaumont station. I don't know what you are talking about.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

I don't know why you seem to prefer the existing slab, but I assure you that anyone boarding the train in Beaumont would prefer the new proposed station to standing out in the rain in the dark on a busted up concrete slab any day.

I don't prefer the slab, I just don't want taxpayers nationwide to pay a million-plus for poor little old Beaumont. That money should be spent in major cities where it would be noticed. Let Beaumont put up their own station if they really want it bad enough. If it was their own money they might be a bit more aggressive toward KCS in the process.

 

[Guest]

When you divide 1.2 million by 20 years and then divide that by the passengers served at Beaumont in 2009: 1,769; the amount spent per passenger is $33.91. That is a lot of money per passenger, every passenger over the course of 20 years.

Now if we assume that there will be an increase of an average of 25% over the course of those 20 years because of the station (maybe 50% in the beginning and later returning to original numbers as the condition degrades) then the cost per passenger is $27.t all13; still a lot per passenger if you ask me.

If they must have 1.2 mil they shouldn't do it all. This is just too much per passenger just to have a glorified amshack.

 

[henryj]

It is amazing that so many on here don't want any money to go to the Beaumont station yet they would I am sure be happy to spend it at some other remote location, just not in Texas. The Beaumont/Port Arthur area is about 400,000 people. It is also just 90 miles from Houston. So I am sure once the facilities are in the boardings will improve dramaticly and even more so with daily service. I certainly hope the service doesn't deteriorate later as suggested above as Texas only has three trains in the whole state with a population of 25 million and the largest in area in the contiguous United States. I have traveled quite a bit so I am familiar with the animosity toward the State, mostly jealously I guess, but down here we really don't care what others think. The fact that Texas is a so called red state is a plus and we are proud of that fact. We are not going to bow down to the present administration so if it means fewer or no trains then so be it.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

It is amazing that so many on here don't want any money to go to the Beaumont station yet they would I am sure be happy to spend it at some other remote location, just not in Texas.

A simple desire for hypocrisy does not make it so.

So I am sure once the facilities are in the boardings will improve dramaticly...

What kinds of numbers would you consider to be "dramatic?"

I certainly hope the service doesn't deteriorate later as suggested above as Texas only has three trains in the whole state with a population of 25 million and the largest in area in the contiguous United States.

Gee, you think it has anything to do with our continued coddling of three huge airlines? Our near total apathy toward public transportation? Our idiotic governor who can't wait to throw a fit over the next federal lifeline for the unemployed. You know, the same governor who has repeatedly threatened to secede from the union? I can't wait for him to shut up and do it already.

I have traveled quite a bit so I am familiar with the animosity toward the State, mostly jealously I guess, but down here we really don't care what others think.

"Don't care what others think." Or what they know. Or what they can teach us. The true Texan way of life.

The fact that Texas is a so called red state is a plus and we are proud of that fact.

Hell, we're STILL proud of electing Curious George! That should tell you all you need to know about Texas. Really.

 

[Donctor]

It is amazing that so many on here don't want any money to go to the Beaumont station yet they would I am sure be happy to spend it at some other remote location, just not in Texas. The Beaumont/Port Arthur area is about 400,000 people. It is also just 90 miles from Houston. So I am sure once the facilities are in the boardings will improve dramaticly and even more so with daily service. I certainly hope the service doesn't deteriorate later as suggested above as Texas only has three trains in the whole state with a population of 25 million and the largest in area in the contiguous United States. I have traveled quite a bit so I am familiar with the animosity toward the State, mostly jealously I guess, but down here we really don't care what others think. The fact that Texas is a so called red state is a plus and we are proud of that fact. We are not going to bow down to the present administration so if it means fewer or no trains then so be it.

I don't give a •••• about your politics. This discussion is about service at a station in Texas, NOT ABOUT ••••ING POLITICS!!!

 

[AlanB]

It is amazing that so many on here don't want any money to go to the Beaumont station yet they would I am sure be happy to spend it at some other remote location, just not in Texas.

So many? I think you may be overreacting a bit. I counted 3 negative opinions in a few dozens posts. And one of those negatives was really more about the location, than the project. One other negative opinion comes from a fellow Texan. The final, was a guest.

 

[AlanB]

Maybe I misunderstood but it seemed as though there was a possibility that if the Texas Eagle goes daily to LA it could mean the end of service east of SAS. I understand that Amtrak has talked about making SAS <> NOL daily as a stub or something, but considering how poorly the Sunset Limited's financials have been and how easily Amtrak can simply lop-off and ignore half the route after Katrina I consider the this line to be one of the most at risk of long-term discontinuation.

ng it looked pretty isolated. Maybe that would have been a better term.

That is a perspective of a few people on this board, most notably AlanB, hold. I personally disagree with it, and I suspect most of the rest of the people on here who spend a lot of their time working with rail in the political arena also disagree with this faction. The political fallout of Amtrak doing that again would be so large it would probably land Boardman on the unemployment list.

I think people confuse Liar George and the subsequent Republican administration with the newer, much more pro-rail group heading Amtrak under Joe Boardman- who seems hell-bent on expansion in ALL directions.

That is something that I suggested might happen; although I don't really expect it to happen. However, the simple fact remains that it is one possibility if the ridership that Amtrak predicts doesn't materialize. And it wouldn't be very hard politically to kill it at all. First step, Amtrak says "The fiscal performance of this train is too bad for us to continue it. Texas & Louisiana, if you want to keep this train, you have to help."

If they fail to help, then Amtrak cuts the train and simply points to the states and says, "We asked you for help and you said no." Amtrak already did this to Pennsylvania, and that state is far more friendly to Amtrak. And it wasn’t under George’s watch either. Granted since there is still service along the route, just less of it now, that also made it easier to kill the train.

As for Mr. Boardman, you are correct, he's hell bent on new trains. New State sponsored trains.

 

[henryj]

And one of those negatives was really more about the location, than the project.

The location thing comes up frequently. However, Beaumont is a small town stop so the station has to be along the tracks somewhere. Railroad tracks traditionally go through back streets and industrial areas. There is not much you can do about that unless you want to install a passenger only track and a separate station downtown. I looked at the site on Google Earth and there is a high school ball field next door and some other friendly sites. I think once the site is developed as planned and the city locates the police sub-station next to it it will be fine. And Beaumont is not the most scenic and desireable stop on the route anyway. It is a port and an oil center. But it is a metro area of around 400,000 so a new station is well deserved.

http://www.rtands.com/newsflash/beaumont-texas-getting-new-amtrak-station.html

Tom Warner, public works director, said, "Helping with the Amtrak station, putting in a police substation, putting in the parking and lighting - all of that would have been on Union Pacific property and we would have had to do a lease agreement with them, which they may or may not have agreed to, which is why we decided to acquire the property and then we'll lease the station property to Amtrak."

Kyle Hayes, Beaumont city manager, said that the city is currently planning on building a substation to maintain a police presence in the area, but there are other options that the city is looking into that may make up for some shortfalls of the Amtrak station.

The facility will be built at the same Cedar Street location, which currently contains the concrete slab that has been used by Amtrak riders. According to Warner, years ago there was a train station that existed at that location.

"It originally was a manned station, and then it was unmanned," said Warner. "While it was unmanned it was vandalized, allowed to deteriorate and eventually had to be torn down."

Hayes said that once the city has a presence in the area on a regular basis, there will be less of an issue with illegal activity around the train station.

 

[AlanB]

Henry,

I fully agree that the station has to go some where along the tracks. I wasn't commenting on the location, just pointing out what had been said.

I do agree that it would have been better if they could have managed to get it closer to downtown, but I certainly don't think that this is a waste. I'm quite pleased to see that something actually is being done for Beaumont. And seeing as how Amtrak is spending similar amounts on other stations around the country, I have no problem with Beaumont being one of the lucky places to get something. Especially since Beaumont has long been considered one of the worst stations around, which is unfortunate for a city of its size.

 

[Guest]

Small town?? Beaumont, when lumped together with Port Arthur and Orange (a so-called "golden triangle") comes up somewhat in excess of a quarter million people. Small city, perhaps, when compared with Dallas or Houston, but a bustling metropolis compared with places like Las Vegas, NM, Sanderson, TX, or Galesburg, IL. It's population is deserving of a decent station facility! And I say this as a Californian who has never been in BMT for more than a few minutes. And when looking at the cost of this facility, people keep ignoring the fact that it's tied together with a police substation, to be built right next door on the same property!

 

[alanh]

So if it is being turned over to the city why don't they just call it a park instead of a station. You put up a nice picnic shelter for a couple of grand and be done with it. It would just happen to be next to a slab of concrete that the train stops at. Would that get by all the ADA bs? It just seems like you could separate the shelter from the platform and call them two different things.

I guess I don't see how that "gets by all the ADA bs". The platform is the biggest ticket item. The rest of the shelter isn't a big issue to make ADA compliant beyond the basic construction. And it's not "BS" if you're the person in the wheelchair.

 

[Green Maned Lion]

I dunno about other people with disabilities, but my own have shown me that, in reality, a lot of the ADA is a load of BS. Some of what it does is very important, and realistic access that accepts that disabled Americans require a reasonable degree of mobility, is not only a reasonable goal, but should be implemented a lot faster than it is being.

However, I have long had it with the nonsensical BS that the ADA often puts forth requiring disabled Americans to have full access to places they are not likely to go. Clearly, for instance, a 4 mile beach front promenade that requires considerable movement to get from the closest parking lot to the nearest view of the water requires 4 ADA spots in the lot of 20 spots. If you are going to such a place, why... does the parking being a bit closer matter?

It really saves the person a good 400 feet on their four mile walk, ya know?

 

[had8ley]

PLEASE, PLEASE, anything, including an ADA compliant Pot 'O Gold would be 1,000 times better than what we DON'T have now...

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Looks like the new Beaumont station is coming along nicely...

Oh, wait, that's the next door property. My bad.

Here's what Beaumont's million dollar federal tax fraud scheme currently looks like...

 

[mfastx]

Nice to see them so hard at work!