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Re: More PCC, W&I, EWG news--Grant application, abandonment hearing, trail expanding.
Author: sp_redelectric
Date: 09-06-2009 - 20:21
[www.wheatlandexpress.com]
Let's see, private operator which pays taxes into the local economy (since its vehicles are privately owned/operated), or spending $50 million to start up a publicly funded, money losing commuter rail operation.
Lived in Moscow in a previous life and while it's "growing", and yes SH 8/SR 270 was "busy" and is now a four-lane highway (thank God!) that still doesn't mean it's time to run commuter trains.
As for the SR 270 project, here's the project website:
[www.wsdot.wa.gov]
$31.2 million total project cost, $28.5 million of it came strictly from state gas tax funding, $2 million from WSDOT internal funding, and less than $600,000 from "other agencies" (i.e. the city of Pullman) - for a road that serves 10,000 ADT/day (which is actually not that great of a number - a two lane road is maxed out at around 24,000 ADT). Assuming that rail would get 1% of the traffic (a pretty typical figure), that would give the rail share 100 passengers - or basically you could run an RDC one round trip a day, and each passenger would have plenty of room to spread out.
Let's see, private operator which pays taxes into the local economy (since its vehicles are privately owned/operated), or spending $50 million to start up a publicly funded, money losing commuter rail operation.
Lived in Moscow in a previous life and while it's "growing", and yes SH 8/SR 270 was "busy" and is now a four-lane highway (thank God!) that still doesn't mean it's time to run commuter trains.
As for the SR 270 project, here's the project website:
[www.wsdot.wa.gov]
$31.2 million total project cost, $28.5 million of it came strictly from state gas tax funding, $2 million from WSDOT internal funding, and less than $600,000 from "other agencies" (i.e. the city of Pullman) - for a road that serves 10,000 ADT/day (which is actually not that great of a number - a two lane road is maxed out at around 24,000 ADT). Assuming that rail would get 1% of the traffic (a pretty typical figure), that would give the rail share 100 passengers - or basically you could run an RDC one round trip a day, and each passenger would have plenty of room to spread out.
