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Railroad Newsline for Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Compiled by Larry W. Grant

In Memory of Rob Carlson, 1952 – 2006

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RAIL NEWS

WORKIN' ON THE RAILROAD

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the third in a multi-part series examining the Texas State Railroad and its uncertain future.

A cloud of uncertainty has plagued the dedicated employees of the Texas State Railroad for more than a year as the fate of the railroad has hung in the balance. Employees who have worked at the railroad for decades say they love their jobs and would like a final resolution.
Early on a rainy, spring morning at the Texas State Railroad shop in Rusk, the crew is busy preparing the steam train for its day’s run to Palestine and back.

Around 07:00 hours, or earlier, the work begins.

A long list of tasks must be completed before the train even pulls into the depot. Oiling the engine, oiling the air compressor and testing the brakes are just a few.

Sitting in his designated spot in the engine cab, Fireman Robert Gore’s workspace looks and sounds pretty intimidating to the casual observer. As he twists red and black valves and examines pressure gauges, a fire blazes inside the “fire box” and the sound of hissing steam can, at times, be deafening.

Among Gore’s chief jobs as fireman are maintaining the fire in the engine cab and checking to make sure enough water stays in the boiler to make steam.

“You must maintain water in the boiler. If you don’t have water in the boiler, and you have a fire in it, then you create a situation,” he says calmly.

On a full run, the engine -- made in 1917 -- will use 600 to 850 gallons of fuel a day and 6,500 to 7,000 gallons of water a day, Gore explains.

Once preparations are complete, the train leaves the shop and chugs a short distance down the track to the depot in Rusk, where a crowd waiting at the gate eagerly waves to crew members as if they are rock stars arriving at a concert.

Gore, like several of the 60 employees of the Texas State Railroad, enjoys his job -- one where the customers always seem happy to be there.

“I enjoy talking to people who come and board ... making children smile and laugh,” Gore said.
While employee after employee talks about their love for the job, the uncertainty of the future of the Texas State Railroad has left them anxious about whether they will have jobs come September, when the train is slated to become a static display.

Efforts are ongoing to keep the train moving and from becoming a museum -- either through continued state operation with additional funding for Texas Parks and Wildlife or through legislation that is currently pending in the Legislature, coupled with funding, that could pave the way for a private operator to run the train.

If the railroad becomes a static display, there will only be a need for nine employees.

Gore, an employee of the railroad for eight years, said the idea that the train could stop running is “terrible.”

“It would be a great loss if the railroad was to go away,” he said. “They’d be losing a piece of Texas history, but they’d also be losing a piece of American history. I mean this is how this country was made. It was done by steam locomotives hauling freight and passengers from one place to another. It’d be real sad to lose it.

“I hope someone in Austin finally wakes up and sees the error of their ways.”

CLOUD OF UNCERTAINTY

Riders ask “constantly” about the fate of the Texas State Railroad, employees said.

Janet Roach, the store manager at the railroad, said some riders tell her how their grandchild emptied out his money into a donation box, how they have signed petitions and called their state representatives.

“...And is there anything else I can do?” she said they ask. “No one wants to see this close.”

Hearing the concerns from riders is difficult -- but what’s really tough is seeing coworkers who “you have grown up with” have to leave to find more secure jobs, she said.

“What’s heartbreaking is to see people you’ve worked with who came here to work at the railroad when they were 16 years old and started sweeping up the floor out of high school and then they were promoted up the ranks ... and then he married and he had a wife and a new baby, and then another baby. And then he had to leave to go get employment because he had to support his family.
“They’re coworkers -- but they’re family too.”

Engineer Roger Graham, an employee of the railroad for 32 years, was laid off in December when the recent financial troubles of the railroad began and caused the Palestine train runs to be cut. Having the option to retire, he did so, and was later hired back when the Palestine runs were reinstated.

“I think something’s going to be done -- but I don’t know what,” Graham said. “They’ve been trying to shut us down for years. You’ve got this cloud hanging over you all the time. You don’t know if you’re going to have a job tomorrow. I wish they would make up their mind and do what they are going to do and get it over with so we know what we’re doing.”

The Texas State Railroad narrowly missed a shutdown at the end of last year, when it was originally set to be turned into a static display. Funding was identified to keep it open through Aug. 31, allowing time for the state Legislature to possibly make a decision.

“Last fall, we were worried about Dec. 31,” said Curtis Merchant, an employee of nearly 28 years. “And now, we’re waiting on the Legislature to tell us what’s going to happen by August.”
Merchant said several employees had to leave -- some who had 20 to 25 years service put into the railroad -- to go work for another state agency.

“They couldn’t wait around for someone to make a decision,” he said. “Now the ones that are left of us, we’re just kind of waiting until the Legislature decides, then those folks will have to move on. There’s a lot of us that’s left that are just going to have to go to another state agency or find something else to do.”

They still love their jobs but have to be concerned for their families, he said.

“For our families, we need to decide what we are going to do because if we don’t, we could end up here in two or three months, and not have a job, no insurance,” he said.

The key to working for the state, he said, are the benefits, particularly in retirement.

“Every day that it gets closer, you think, ‘wow, I need to do something,’” Merchant said. “It is very stressful right now for a lot of the guys. You can tell it by just sitting and talkin’ to them. They don’ know whether to go or whether to stay.”

A NEW OPERATOR?

There are concerns from those who oppose a private operator taking over the train about what would happen to the employees.

But Steve Presley, president of the Texas State Railroad Operating Agency, which has pursued the alternative method of saving the railroad through finding a private operator, has said the current employees of the railroad would all be offered jobs at the railroad if a private operator takes over.

However, those employees would not get to keep their state benefits. They would have to take another job within Parks and Wildlife or go to work for another state entity to retain those.

Several employees interviewed said they would like to see the train remain with Parks and Wildlife as a fully operational state park and have the state fund it for another two years.

“They way I look at it is, if it’s continuing to be funded for another two years, then we have another shot again,” Merchant said.

They also worry about losing state benefits if the park leaves Parks and Wildlife’s control and expect those who want to keep those benefits to leave.

But they said they would rather see it running than become a static display.

“We think we have done a very good job of running this operation all of these years,” Merchant said.

All those involved in the effort to save the railroad -- regardless of the method -- have nothing but high praise for the employees of the railroad.

“Parks and Wildlife, make no mistake, they have done an excellent job within the framework they were given to operate, and we are very pleased with them and very proud of that,” Presley has said. “And had they not done such a good job up until this point, we probably would not have had anyone interested in bidding on it.”

Funding for continued state operation of the train appears to be increasingly less likely, some connected to the Legislature have said.

And Presley sees his group’s plan for saving the railroad as a “once-and-for-all” resolution to the uncertainty employees have faced for years.

“We feel like, based on what the politicians have told us, it’s the only long-term option that can keep the railroad running,” he has said.

A JOB YOU CAN LOVE

As an engineer at the railroad, Graham has met famous actors while they were filming movies on the train. Children ask for his autograph. He’s even been able to see children he pulled on the train years ago bring their own children to ride the train.

It’s a job he loves.

And his co-workers say they still enjoy their jobs too — even after decades spent working there.
They say they enjoy the people -- both their fellow employees, many of whom have worked together for about 25 or more years, and the guests.

“There are not a lot of jobs you get to be around a lot of happy people almost all the time,” said Bill Langford, superintendent over the camping parks at Rusk and Palestine. “Ninety percent of the people are just happy. It’s a great work environment.”

Ms. Roach, who has worked at the Texas State Railroad in various roles for almost 29 years, said it’s been a “really wonderful place to work.”

She still gets goose bumps when she hears the whistle on the train blow.

“I have grandchildren who love it as much as I do,” she said.

Merchant, who works in the maintenance of way department, said, “You get to see so many different people -- and the kids love this stuff. They just love riding the trains.”

His 3-year-old grandson is even hooked.

“He rode here a while back and every time I see him now, ‘Papa, when are we ridin’ that train again?’” Merchant said.

A ride on the train “is an experience that you don’t find very often,” Ms. Roach said. “A child, age 3, and an adult 103 can ride the train together and experience something ageless, really.
Several generations can ride the train together. Where can you go where several generations ... can do the same thing?”

Ms. Roach said riding a train is something usually the grandparent has experienced.

“And then the younger generation is experiencing something grandfather has done -- or maybe grandmother rode the train when she was a young girl. And it brings tears to their eyes, it really does.”

And so far the children are still happy, Ms. Roach said.

“They don’t know the turmoil we as adults feel,” she said. “I have yet to have to tell a child that the train is no longer running. When we have to do that, that’s when it’s really going to hit home.”

Whatever the method of saving the railroad, the employees want some resolution. The worry on people’s faces is visible, they said.

“I think everyone now wants a decision to be made -- one way or the other, tell us,” Merchant said.

In spite of the uncertainty and anxiety about the future swirling around them, these employees keep working and don’t let it affect how they do their jobs, they said.

They want people to continue to ride the train and enjoy it.

“We still have to keep moving -- because we still have a chance,” Merchant said. “We have a job to do, and we can’t stop.” - Megan Middleton, The Tyler Morning Telegraph

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SUPERINTENDENT LEADS STAFF THROUGH HARD TIMES AT RAILROAD

He began his job at Texas State Railroad sweeping the floors at the Palestine depot -- but more than 25 years later Robert Crossman is the general superintendent of the state park at a time when its fate hangs in the balance.

Employees say he's the right man to lead the operation at this particular time, calling Crossman dedicated, knowledgeable and someone who thinks through problems.

"He's just what we needed to go through something like this right now," said Janet Roach, a longtime employee. "I am so thankful we have Robert Crossman as our superintendent right now. I don't know what we'd do if we didn't have his leadership.

"He's been very dedicated and sincere in keeping us all abreast of what's going on."

Even as the debate about how to save the railroad unfolds in Austin and the uncertainty of their jobs swirls around he and his staff, Crossman remains "relatively hopeful."

"I'm hard headed enough to think there's a path through this maze," he said during an interview in early April.

Crossman first worked at the Texas State Railroad for about 10 years from 1979 through 1989 - during which time he met and married his wife, who was working at the reservation desk there.

Crossman went on to work at other railroads, including the Grand Canyon Railway, the Fort Worth and Western and the Austin Steam Train. Then he returned to the Texas State Railroad.

"I thought I could come back and take the Texas State Railroad up a notch," he said, adding that his family returned for family reasons as well.

The previous superintendent of the railroad and the regional director, when they hired Crossman, told him it would be a "wild ride" for a few years.

"I have vowed that the next time I bump into one of them, I'm going to tell them that I'm glad to know there was truth in advertising," he said.

Despite the increase in ridership at the railroad, in December 2005 budget constraints on a state level forced the railroad, which is operated by Texas Parks and Wildlife, to reduce staff and services, including the train runs that originated out of Palestine.

While those runs were later restored, Parks and Wildlife made it clear that unless the state could ante up more money for the expensive tourist train - or a private operator could take it over - the railroad would have to become a static display.

For Crossman, the situation has, at times, been hard, especially when some empl-oyees lost their jobs.

"It's hard from a personal standpoint because I didn't come here to close the place down or privatize it," he said.

Crossman credits the railroad employees with staying focused, in spite of the uncertainty and the worry about their futures.

One of the reasons there is a chance for the railroad to be privatized is because the staff has done a good job of taking care of things, he said, and continued providing the passengers with "a good quality experience."

He said he spends time talking to the employees trying to answer questions about what is happening in regard to the future of the train, but he admits he doesn't always have an answer for them.

Part of his job, he said, is to keep people focused on the fact that "we are continuing to run trains."

What helps the morale is to have the trains running, he said, "and having lots of happy people" at the train stations.

A lot has changed about his job, he said.

He spends a lot of time talking to people who want to know the status of the railroad, and he spends time encouraging the staff to "hold the standard up and improve where we can."

The regular work he had before the recent problems is still taken care of, though sometimes in the middle of the night, he said.

"The good news is I have a great staff," he said. "Without them, this would be really difficult."

When asked what makes his job worthwhile, he said he enjoys seeing the trains run and likes the historical side of the operation.

"I like working at a place that does something not everybody does," he said. "I think it would be a big loss to the community if the railroad wasn't hauling passengers."

What he does not like right now, he said, is the "suspense over what's going to happen."

When asked how he wants to see this end up, he said he wants to see the trains keep running.

"Because I'm going to have a terrible time trying to explain to my 6-year-old why they're not," he said. "He periodically asks me if we have rescued the Texas State Railroad. I keep having to tell him, 'not yet.'"

But he tells him, "we're working on it - a whole bunch of people are working on it." - Megan Middleton, The Tyler Morning Telegraph

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TEXAS STATE RAILROAD: FUNDING FOR PRIVATE OPERATOR, PARKS AND WILDLIFE STILL UNCLEAR

Possible funding for the transfer of the Texas State Railroad out of Texas Parks and Wildlife control, or possible funding for continued state operation of the train, would be authorized in a budget conference process, which is ongoing for the rest of the legislative session, which ends at the close of the month.

Michael Banks of Save Texas Parks believes there are funding opportunities available to keep the railroad in state hands, but those who support the private operator route of saving the train say Parks and Wildlife has the railroad at the bottom of its priority list for funding.

Banks points to possible sporting goods tax funding — and a rider that state Rep. Chuck Hopson, D-Jacksonville, placed on the proposed House budget that asks for $7.6 million to operate the train for the next two years with minimal repairs to the train.

Banks told legislators during a Senate committee hearing in April that “Texas Parks and Wildlife has asked for you to fund and make appropriations to keep the Texas State Railroad as part of the state. I think that's what should be done.”

But Steve Presley of the Texas State Railroad Operating Agency said that “whatever gets sent to the Texas State Railroad in this legislative session is the last money that will ever go to the Texas State Railroad.”

“If we don’t settle it once and for all now, if we put it off two years, if it stays in Parks and Wildlife’s hands for two more years, the repairs still will not have been done — they will have been started but not done — and at that point there will be no more funding for them and it will close then,” Presley said.

“This is the fourth legislative session that our local groups have fought to keep funding in place for the Texas State Railroad. We were told this time that this is the last — it won’t happen again.”

There are riders in the House and in the Senate for $12 million for the transfer of the train out of Parks and Wildlife and to the operating authority requested by state Rep. Byron Cook, R-Corsicana, and state Sen. Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville.

Alicia Phillips, a spokesperson for Nichols said, “funding for state operations (with Parks and Wildlife) is increasingly less likely every day.

“We’re definitely optimistic that we can get some money for the transfer, but there may not be the political will to keep it running by the state.”

And it appeared Friday that Hopson agreed with the way things are headed.

While Hopson said he believes East Texas would be better off with the train left in the hands of Parks and Wildlife with proper funding, he said, “It’s starting to look like to me that that’s not going to happen.”

“It’s becoming very disappointing to me… this is not what I really wanted to happen,” Hopson said.

He will keep working on continued state operation through the rest of the session, but will support the bill for the transfer of the railroad out of Parks and Wildlife that is pending before the House as a “backup.”

Some changes have been made recently to that bill, he said, including some provisions that the property can go back to Parks and Wildlife if the company violates the stipulations of the bill.

“My No. 1 priority is to keep that railroad running,” Hopson said. “We want to see that railroad running down those tracks.”

Walt Dabney, state parks director for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, said the department has always said it wants to continue running the Texas State Railroad.

The train is in Parks and Wildlife’s Legislative Appropriations Request (LAR) for the 2008-09 biennium. In that LAR, Parks and Wildlife asks for additional funding for state parks in the form of more than $85 million of general revenue each year, but the railroad and the Battleship Texas are set aside as “big ticket items,” Dabney said.

“The money that’s needed for the two of them is as much as for the whole rest of the system,” he said. “They need to be separate legislative decisions. If we’re going to do those two things, it’s going to take a lot of money to do them.”

While the LAR requests $11.8 million for the biennium for the railroad, Dabney said the train could operate on the $7.6 million that Hopson has requested.

Whatever the outcome of what the Legislature decides to fund, Parks and Wildlife wants to see the railroad operating, Dabney said, “whether it’s us operating it or someone else, if they can do it successfully.”

“The last thing we want to see is for the railroad to be shut down,” Dabney said. “We’ve got a great staff there. We know it’s important to East Texas. It’s a neat piece of Texas history.” - Megan Middleton, The Tyler Morning Telegraph

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RAIN 'A LITTLE BIT ABOVE YOUR NORMAL SPRING STORM'

Photo here:

[cjonline.com]

Rain saturated northeast Kansas this weekend, causing floods, road closures and a train derailment -- and the pounding of precipitation will continue today.

"This is a little bit above your normal spring storm," said Paul Frantz, national weather service meteorologist.

He said the high amount of the low-level moisture in the area, boosted by the rain, coupled with the slow-moving system from the south have kept the storms hanging around the area longer than normal, spawning one storm after another.

Today's forecast includes an 80 percent chance of rain and thunderstorms.

The National Weather Service measured 3.72 inches of rain at Philip Billard Municipal Airport and 4.68 inches of accumulation at Forbes Field on Sunday evening. Manhattan Regional Airport reported 3.45 inches.

"We got a lot of water in a short amount of time," said city spokesman David Bevins, who helped coordinate with city officials and public works crews on Sunday to unplug water drainages and close city streets that were impassable.

Bevins said the heavy rains caused 42 temporary road closures Sunday, with most occurring in south and southwest Topeka.

Topeka Fire Chief Howard Giles set up a command center to expedite and streamline Sunday's activities and prepare crews in the event of more rain.

Heavy rain and soggy fields forced the Governor's Cup Invitational Soccer Tournament to stop play after two rounds, canceling Sunday's championship games.

The area outside Shawnee County also was assaulted by the spring storms.

Ogden, in Riley County, was inaccessible Sunday morning except through Fort Riley. Pat Collins, Riley County Emergency Management, said a Westar Energy substation in the town was underwater and structures throughout town sustained damage. Electricity was later restored but part of the town had to be evacuated because of flood problems. A shelter was set up at the Ogden Community Center to house the displaced. The town was accessible later Sunday afternoon.

In nearby Geary County, an empty Union Pacific coal train derailed at 05:40 hours after a trestle bridge over a drainage ditch near the Smoky Hill River gave way after weakening because of high water, Union Pacific spokeswoman Kathryn Blackwell said Sunday. Two locomotives and an empty coal car slid off the tracks as they tried to slow down before crossing the bridge.

Blackwell said the crew was taken to a local hospital with minor injuries.

Flooding also posed a problem in Osage County, where entrance into Burlingame was limited to the southern part of the town from US-56 highway for a portion of Sunday as high water disrupted the town. Burlingame resident Darren Lee said the water receded later Sunday afternoon, and roads were re-opened. - Fred Davis, The Topeka Capital-Journal

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BNSF 2007 COAL TONNAGE UP THROUGH APRIL

Systemwide, the BNSF Railway Company has loaded a total of 92.9 million tons of coal year-to-date through April 2007, approximately 3 percent above the 2006 year-to-date total of 90.6 million tons.

In the Powder River Basin (PRB), including Wyoming and Montana mines, BNSF has loaded a total daily average of 48.8 trains through April 2007, up almost 2 percent from the 48.0 trains loaded through the same period in 2006.

Average BNSF daily PRB train loadings for the month of April 2007 totaled 49.0 trains per day, compared with an average of 49.3 trains per day for April 2006. Mine issues, including planned maintenance outages and unplanned outages as well as weather issues, resulted in an average of 6.2 missed loading opportunities per day during April 2007. Tonnage loaded at some mines was as low as 70-75 percent of planned tonnage for the month.

Construction Projects Update

Most track-laying has been completed, and crews are hand-laying the final 1,000 feet of track, on the second seven-mile segment of a total of 14 miles of new second main track between Angora and Northport, Nebraska. The first seven-mile segment went into service earlier this year, and the second segment is scheduled to go into service in July.

Track laying crews have begun work on 10 miles of new second main track between Mason and Berwyn, Nebraska. This additional double track, scheduled to go into service in the second quarter of this year, will help improve the flow of loaded and empty coal trains south and east of the Powder River Basin.

Track laying will continue in May for 15 miles of new third main track on BNSF from Donkey Creek, Wyoming, south to the north end of the Joint Line at Caballo. The additional third main track will be complemented by 24 miles of additional new third main track on the Joint Line from Caballo south to Reno Junction. Completion of that trackage later this year will provide three main tracks for the entire length of the Joint Line and north to Donkey Creek Yard near Gillette. - BNSF Today

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RAILWAY BUFFS CAN STEAM ALONG IN STYLE BY PUGET SOUND

As travelers filled the Laramie Railroad Depot platforms recently, a sharp whistle sounded the arrival of a historic steam train that over the next few weeks is traveling from Wyoming to Tacoma, Washington.

Along its route, railway enthusiasts can ride for a few hours or take a special Puget Sound Steam Special excursion on May 19 from Tacoma to Everett.

Known as the Union Pacific's "living legend," the No. 844 was the last steam locomotive built for the Union Pacific Railroad. It was delivered in 1944. Saved from the scrap yard for special appearances, the steam engine has run hundreds of thousands of miles as Union Pacific's ambassador of good will. It has made appearances at Expo '74 in Spokane, the 1981 opening of the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, and the 50th Anniversary Celebration of Los Angeles Union Station in 1989.

For the Puget Sound Steam Special on May 19, another historic steam locomotive (the Southern Pacific #4449) will join the train, making it a "double-header." The engines also will be on display in Fife, Pierce County. - The Associated Press, The Seattle Times

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WHISTLE STOP WILDERNESS: RAILROAD AND FOREST SERVICE COOPERATE TO ALLOW ACCESS INTO CHUGACH

Photo gallery here:

[www.adn.com]

ANCHORAGE, AK -- For nearly 100 years, the Chugach National Forest has remained a dramatic backdrop in Southcentral Alaska -- the stepping-off point for boating Prince William Sound or hiking the Kenai Peninsula. In the winter, telemark skiers and snowmobilers explore its backcountry. In summer, anglers seek its lakes and rivers.

And while recreation is a big reason people come to this 5.5 million-acre forest, getting to the best areas can be a challenge. Other than flying in to remote areas or trekking by map and compass, access is limited, keeping most visitors just along the forest's edges.

That's why National Forest rangers are so excited about their latest development, a new recreation opportunity called the Whistle Stop. Timed to the 100-year anniversary of the creation of the nation's second-largest national forest, the Chugach Whistle Stop will allow visitors to travel by train to predetermined stops along the Alaska Railroad corridor, giving them easier access to some of the forest's most beautiful areas.

When travelers get off the train, they will be met by trails, cabins, campsites and other rustic recreation opportunities.

"This is a partnership with the (Alaska) railroad where the idea was to open up access to the Chugach National Forest from the Placer River Valley south of Portage," said Adam McClory, Whistle Stop project manager for the Forest Service. "There will be a total of five backcountry stops that we've already identified, and there will be trails connecting (four of) them."

The first will be Spencer Whistle Stop, which currently serves passengers taking part in the railroad's Spencer Glacier and float tour, run by a local outfitter, which has proved to be highly popular. Crews have already built 1.5 miles of trail, a passenger deboarding area and a beautiful stacked-rock viewing area. Work at Spencer will continue all summer.

"The railroad was really interested in doing the defined stops for safety reasons, so people wouldn't be congregating right by the tracks," he said.

Spencer Whistle Stop will be the most developed of the five deboarding areas. The trail is accessible for those with disabilities, and up to four cabins are planned as well as group and individual campsites, interpretive displays and signs.

"We expect to have the biggest concentration of users and day-use users at this site," explained Glacier District ranger Jim Fincher.

"This is the area where we might take our parents or our children," McClory added.

SOFT ADVENTURE

Other stops, including the Luebner stop to the north and Trail Creek to the south, will be less developed, offering a simple drop-off point and trail leading away from the tracks. These stops might appeal to more independent hikers wanting to explore off trail.

One thing is certain: All five stops are much needed. Forest Service focus groups and feasibility studies have shown that many of today's independent travelers want soft adventures that can take them into the heart of a wilderness.

"We really want to increase the backcountry use for people with all kinds of abilities, and each of the stops has different opportunities," McClory said.

For now, only the Spencer Whistle Stop is poised to open this season, but that won't happen until later this summer, probably in August. The railroad needs time to add an additional rail car to its train to accommodate the extra travelers and the Forest Service needs time to complete trail work in the area.

Visitors will pay a backcountry permit fee, which will help pay for the project. Permits will be available when passengers book cabins and rail cars. Fincher said the price is still being worked out but it will likely be in the $10 to $20 range.

Steve Silverstein, vice president of markets, sales and service for the Alaska Railroad, has worked with the Forest Service on launching the Whistle Stop project. He said this plan is not to be confused with the service the railroad offers north of Anchorage, called the Flag Stop program. That service allows passengers to essentially flag a train down to board or deboard at areas deemed safe by railroad engineers.

South of Anchorage, however, the idea of flag stops isn't feasible, Silverstein said.

"The territory up north is flat and we can see people and trail heads," Silverstein explained. "In the south end (south of Portage), the terrain is ... graded and has steep dropoffs. There is no safe way for us to stop. So we agreed to do this Whistle Stop Project with the Forest Service with a specific schedule and specific stops that we can rely on."

$18 MILLION PROJECT COST

It's a great business opportunity for the railroad, Silverstein acknowledged, and for Alaska tourism.

"For the kind of traveler we see more and more, the adventure traveler who wants to be in the middle of it but not necessarily in danger, this fits in perfectly," Silverstein said. "When we started this whole thing it was all about adding a product for Southcentral Alaska that would be attractive for locals and tourists."

The project cost is an estimated $18 million for all five stops, cabin construction, and a special self-propelled railcar that the Forest Service and Alaska Railroad jointly purchased. That car, which cost $4.7 million and is more fuel efficient than a locomotive, was the key to the project.

McClory said the new rail car will hold approximately 120 passengers and their gear. It runs on diesel fuel and is one, self-contained unit that will follow its own schedule around the regular freight and passenger schedules of other Alaska Railroad trains. Passengers can be let off at one point and picked up later in the day or later in the week at the same spot -- or another point.

"Part of the problem here was when we started discussions with the Forest Service on this idea, we didn't have extra capacity -- our trains were filling up all the time," Silverstein said. "When the car comes along, it will justify its own service."

"This kind of vehicle fits into the kind of experience that we envision for folks," Fincher said. "Because it is more fuel efficient, it has lower operational costs. The fact that it's environmentally friendly is a bonus and something we really want to promote."

BIKES AND BOATS AND TRAINS

He expects backpackers won't be the only ones using it. At least 18 miles of main trail, as well as several spurs, are planned. It should add up to about 32 miles.

Many of those trails will appeal to mountain bikers, although heavy-use areas around the Spencer stop may be closed to mountain biking.

Packrafters may also want to deboard and seek out rafting-hiking combination trips.

"You could even do some sort of trek over to Prince William Sound and get picked up by water taxi," McClory said.

For now, those eager to check out the Whistle Stop project will have to see it while seated in an Alaska Railroad car or by taking the railroad's Spencer Glacier and float tour. The first tickets to the Spencer Whistle Stop are expected to be available in early August, and both the railroad and the Forest Service hope the program shows promise. To continue construction of the four remaining stops, Spencer must prove itself a viable operation.

"It's hard to project when the next stop will be built because we don't know how the funding will come," Fincher said. "We will build it as use demands. We're not going to build it and they will come." - Melissa DeVaughn, The Anchorage Daily News

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GILBERT WEIGHING COSTS OF RAIL 'QUIET ZONE'

GILBERT, AZ -- The Gilbert Town Council will debate Tuesday whether to make the town a railroad “horn quiet” zone, silencing the trains that travel down tracks that cut diagonally through town.

The proposal would ease concerns from residents who periodically complain about train horn noise, especially late at night. But it could cost the town $2.4 million.

Town Manager George Pettit said the town is restricted by its spending limit, but could rearrange priorities and put off, for instance, renovations of the Gilbert Civic Center, if the council wishes to move forward.

Rail-Tech Consultants conducted an initial survey for the town free of charge, since it was conducting similar studies for other area cities.

According to that survey, upgrading the 16 crossings in Gilbert would take two years. If the Town Council wishes to move forward, the consultant recommends an initial budget of $1.1 million, or about $90,000 per crossing.

Improvements would include raised medians at all crossings, overhead cantilevers and flashers, warning signs, pavement markers, safety gates, bells and flashers.

Those devices would be used to alert drivers and pedestrians at crossings that a train is approaching, without sounding its horn.

A recent ruling by the Federal Railroad Administration allows municipalities to create “horn free” zones if they follow safety guidelines which must be approved by the agency as well as the Arizona Corporation Commission, the Arizona Department of Transportation and Union Pacific Railroad.

Vice Mayor Dave Crozier said he was unsure if the quiet zone was worth the price, and expressed concern whether the town would be liable for crashes resulting from the lack of train horns.

“A lot of people tell me they like the sound when they blow their whistle,” Crozier said. “They find it soothing when they hear it blowing late at night -- a lot of people grew up with it.” - Beth Lucas, The East Valley Tribune

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LACK OF IDAHO MONEY FAILS TO SHAKE FAITH IN HUB PLAN

BOISE, ID -- Backers of a plan to create an “Inland Pacific Hub” in northern Idaho and Eastern Washington remain optimistic even though Idaho lawmakers failed to come through with their share of the money to get it going.

“Idaho is right now looking like the poor stepsister,” said Sen. John Goedde, R-Coeur d’Alene. “We’re still working on what we need to do.”

Washington lawmakers have set aside $250,000, the same amount backers of the plan wanted Idaho to contribute. Goedde said it appears likely that $500,000 in federal money will become available.

Backers of the regional hub say the area has natural advantages that would help it become a center for global commerce.

Those advantages include a 24-hour border crossing with Canada at Eastport that includes the only place where Canadian Pacific and Union Pacific railroad tracks meet, much-lower landing fees at the Spokane International Airport than at airports in larger coastal cities, an inland seaport at Lewiston, and many rail and fiber-optic lines.

Another advantage to the area as a regional hub is that it is within a 16-hour drive of Seattle; Portland; San Francisco; Vancouver, B.C.; Edmonton, Alberta; and all major trade centers.

Supporters say the hub could get products to Russia and China with an 18-hour flight, and to Europe with a 12-hour flight. They note that the airport in Spokane is closer to Tokyo than San Francisco or Los Angeles. It’s also nearer New York than Seattle and nearer to London than cities on the West Coast.

But transforming the area into a regional hub would require building roads and bringing together businesses and government officials from two states.

“The Inland Pacific Hub is a private-sector initiative at this point,” Goedde said. “There’s a group of business people in Spokane and Kootenai County that have organized this effort.”

Idaho lawmakers say they aren’t against the idea of spending money to help create a regional hub.
“It just got lost in the budget priorities,” said Sen. Shawn Keough, R-Sandpoint. “In the press of the session and with all the other things going on, we weren’t able to move it forward.” - The Associated Press, The Tacoma News Tribune

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SAFER CROSSING COMING TO SAN MIGUEL

SAN MIGUEL, CA -- San Miguel residents will get a new railroad crossing after years of talks between the county and Union Pacific Railroad.

The railroad tracks divide the small town north of Paso Robles, separating the west side, where the K-8 Lillian Larsen School is, and the east side, where new homes continue to be built.

Children from the east side often illegally cross the tracks through a dirt path near 16th Street, residents say.

Map here:

[media.sanluisobispo.com]

The county will build a new, gated pedestrian crossing where the path is part of a project that will cost about $575,000. A gate will prevent pedestrians from crossing the tracks when trains pass.

To prevent illegal crossings elsewhere, the county will build a fence along part of the tracks and funnel pedestrians to the official crossing.
The county also must pay to close another crossing somewhere else in the county, as part of Union Pacific’s effort to reduce crossings nationwide.

The crossing and part of the fencing will be installed as soon as the county locates funding.

Frank Honeycutt, transportation project manager with the county Public Works Department, said the county is trying to find grants to pay for the project.

Residents and school officials have raised concerns about the illegal crossing since 2003 and lobbied for a new crossing. The concerns initiated the discussions between the county and Union Pacific.

As the town grows, the calls for a crossing became louder.

“The development on the east side of the tracks has intensified the issue over the last few years,” Honeycutt said.

Ten freight trains and two Amtrak trains ran on the tracks daily, as of February 2006. Union Pacific officials could not be reached Friday for comment and new information for this story.

County officials estimate pedestrians cross the track 70 to 80 times a day.

Traditionally, getting a railroad crossing built takes years. In this case, the county took time to explore the possibility of a railroad-favored pedestrian bridge, which was too expensive at a cost of about $3 million.

As well, Union Pacific has said it is under federal mandate to reduce the number of crossings nationwide, as collisions at such crossings are one of the leading causes of death in the railroad industry.

San Miguel resident and school board member Meg Brooks would have rather seen a pedestrian bridge than the at-grade crossing that’s planned.

“At grade to me still seems very dangerous for the kids,” she said, adding that she sees not only children crossing illegally but also adults -- including mothers pushing strollers.

Brooks also doesn’t like the idea of closing another crossing, which other people might need.
But Honeycutt said the county hopes to close a crossing that “won’t be missed.”

Should the county close a railroad crossing to create a new one in San Miguel? - P. Kim Bui, The San Luis Obispo Tribune

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REPLICA TRAINS HEAT TO THIS IS THE PLACE HERITAGE PARK

ST. GEORGE, UT -- Replicas of two famous trains are on their way to Utah's This Is the Place Heritage Park to re-enact a defining moment in the nation's history.

The small-scale, rubber-tired trains are authentic, realistic reproductions of the Central Pacific Jupiter and the Union Pacific 119, two powerful locomotives that raced toward Utah on the country's first transcontinental railroad.

Ellis Ivory, chairman of the park's board, said one of the replica trains is on a "whistle-stop tour" of Utah's back roads and towns. On Saturday, residents of the St. George area were invited to hop on board two of the train's passenger cars for a leisurely ride around a parking lot in Bloomington.

"This is so cool!" Maren Egbert, 8, said enthusiastically as she waited for a train ride during a cool and blustery Saturday morning. "I wanna go on a ride! It's so fun!"

The original transcontinental trains met on May 10, 1869, at Promontory, uniting the nation's east/west rail lines and ushering in a new era of transportation.

This Is the Place Heritage Park officials will re-enact that moment Thursday at the park with the help of Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., who plans to wear period clothing to help set the mood. Even early LDS Church leader Brigham Young will be at the ceremony, said Jeff Stevens, a BYU Young Ambassador who strapped on a fake beard and wore period clothing to portray Young at Saturday's event in Dixie.

"I missed the first one and I sure as shootin' aren't going to miss this one!" said Stevens, who sang several railroad tunes with Nicole Walton, another music and dance graduate of BYU who said her performance name was "Miss Ivory."

Six-year-old Preslee Harris was thrilled to ride in the passenger cars three times with her dad, Wayne Harris, who said he was looking forward to riding the trains at the park.

"It will be a lot better than walking around up there," he said. "It'll be really nice."

That's the sort of reaction Ivory is hoping for and the reason why the park commissioned the handmade trains from Jerry Shipman in Phoenix.

"We really studied this problem of getting people from the parking lot and around the park's 430 acres," said Ivory. "We borrowed a train engine and car from Brigham City for the Fourth of July and 24th of July last year, and it was a huge success. Kids and families just lined up to get on, it was incredibly successful."

After much research, Ivory said the park found Shipman, a retired airline pilot who also happens to build small-scale passenger trains.

"Jerry and his crew are, frankly, train nuts," said Ivory. "They study trains, love trains, live trains."

Visitors to This Is the Place Heritage Park could also turn into "train nuts" once they catch a ride on the park's newest attraction, he added.

"These trains are realistic, from the sound track you hear while riding the train to the boiler making smoke and the ringing of a brass bell," Ivory said.

"We have been working feverishly on improving the park, and we're really excited about using these trains to shuttle visitors from the parking areas to Heritage Village and around the park."

Among the improvements, which were paid for with a $2 million executive appropriation from the state, are the trains and newly laid asphalt routes and a significant boost to the park's "Living History" presentations.

Entertainment, activities and an expanded children's area add to the park's allure, said Matt Dahl, executive director of the park, in a news release. - Nancy Perkins, The Deseret Morning News

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RAILROAD BRIDGES NEED HUGE OVERHAUL

TUSCALOOSA, AL -- Without a doubt, the bridge over the railway line that crosses 25th Avenue East needs to be replaced, and soon. Heavier trucks and school buses can’t use it, but even driving over it in a small car is nerve-racking.

That doesn’t mean an agreement hammered out between Kansas City Southern Railway Co. and city staff is a good deal. We have some concerns.

Basically, the agreement lets taxpayers pick up the majority of the cost of fixing railway bridge problems in the city. It also gives the railroad company power to block the most important project on the table -- widening the Black Warrior Bridge underpass on Jack Warner Parkway.

The agreement is waiting on City Council approval.

Previously, the Council passed an ordinance requiring the railroad company to replace the old wooden bridge on 25th Avenue. The company challenged it in court, and the case has been languishing in Tuscaloosa Circuit Court ever since.

The proposed agreement requires the Council to rescind its earlier ordinance and pick up half the cost of rebuilding the 25th Avenue bridge. More broadly, and troubling, it states that all bridges for roads that cross the railway tracks are the city’s sole responsibility from now on.

The impact on west Tuscaloosa is most severe. The city would agree to remove the bridge on Sixth Street. This leaves the Jack Warner Parkway underpass, Seventh Street and Stillman Boulevard as the only open roads that connect downtown to west Tuscaloosa north of 15th Street. The bridge at Eighth Street was destroyed by fire in 1999.

Realistically, the Sixth Street bridge isn’t much of a traffic artery. It is narrow and unsafe for heavy traffic.

West Tuscaloosa needs better traffic access if revitalization efforts are to succeed. The old wooden trestle that crosses Jack Warner Parkway is a big impediment. The underpass is narrow and divided by wooden pillars that show the marks of vehicles that scraped by. While the agreement with the railroad company addresses widening the underpass, all it requires of the company is that it considers such plans.

The company would have power to reject any plans and the city would pay all costs of the project.

It looks like the city is acknowledging that it didn’t have much legal standing when it passed the ordinance that landed us in court. The railroad company is throwing the city a bone in agreeing to pay half the cost of a $500,000 bridge on 25th Avenue East, which it can balance against ongoing court costs and absolving itself of any responsibility for bridges over its tracks in Tuscaloosa.

Council members should ask if this is really the best possible resolution of this issue. If so, then they need to be ready to pull out their checkbooks to fix all these railroad bridge problems. - Editorial Opinion, The Tuscaloosa News

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TRANSIT NEWS

DOUBT CLOUDS HOUSTON'S COMMUTER RAIL PLAN

HOUSTON, TX -- A Union Pacific Railroad official says the Metropolitan Transit Authority's plans to run commuter trains between the suburbs and a large intermodal terminal planned for the Near Northside probably won't work.

"We feel it is not feasible to operate commuter rail at this location," Joe Adams told the regional Transportation Policy Council last week. "We have made this clear in discussions with Metro."

Adams, who represents UP board chairman Jim Young in the Houston area, spoke after Metro executive vice president John Sedlak had completed a presentation about the project, which also would receive light-rail trains and buses.

The TPC is a committee of the Houston-Galveston Area Council that coordinates transportation planning and funding in the eight-county region.

The planned terminal, at an estimated cost of $270 million, according to Metro spokeswoman Sandra Salazar, would be on North Main near the former Hardy rail yards on a site that includes land Metro is negotiating to buy from UP.

Adams said the location is at the intersection of two major east-west lines that run from New Orleans to Los Angeles and a north-south line that carries traffic from the chemical area of Houston to Brownsville and up to the North.

Sedlak told the council that Metro's commuter rail plans are being studied for feasibility, and until the results are in, he said, "We'll have to agree to disagree."

"This is a situation where there are a number of studies under way -- freight studies, relocation studies, freight examinations, line volumes, looks at various movements across the region," Sedlak said.

"All that is essential. At the same time, you must examine the plans, and if you never put a plan together, you'll never accomplish any long-term objectives. This is an approach to carry forward a long-term vision, and we believe it is feasible."

Boom times

Metro officials declined to speak on the subject, citing ongoing negotiations, but UP's Adams said there are obstacles.

East-west tracks, which pass through the proposed terminal site between Burnett and Naylor, and the north-south tracks, which run east of the site on Hardy and Elysian, each carry 25-30 trains a day, Adams said.

There also are a number of industries and warehouses in the vicinity and its approaches, he said.

UP spokesman Joe Arbona said higher fuel prices and congested roads have brought a boom to the freight rail industry, so the railroad may need unused space on its current right of way for future track.

Adams said UP has no problem with Metro running light rail on Main at the terminal, and said at least one proposed commuter route may be doable.

"We would be happy to work with Metro" on a future line in the Hempstead Highway/U.S. 290 corridor, Adams said. "It doesn't present the degree of challenges that operating around the Hardy Yards presents."

However, Adams said bringing such a line past the West Loop and into downtown would conflict with freight operations. As an alternative, he said, Metro could switch commuters onto its light rail system at the Northwest Transit Center, off the West Loop near U.S. 290, and take a less direct route to downtown.

From the transit center, Metro's planned Uptown line would connect to the planned University line on Westpark south of the Galleria. From there riders could reach the Main Street line at Wheeler station and continue downtown or to the Texas Medical Center.

Eminent domain in play?

Although Metro's Web site describes a commuter rail line along U.S. 290 "connecting to Northern Intermodal Facility," the transit referendum voters approved in November 2003 calls for Harris County to study a line along U.S. 290 to the West Loop, connecting to Uptown and downtown "via MetroRail."

Although Metro has the power of eminent domain, Adams said he does not know if the agency can use it to acquire right of way from UP, which is under federal jurisdiction because of its interstate commerce role. "Our view would be 'no,' in view of the national interest in having a viable freight rail system," he said.

However, Adams said an engineering solution may be possible. "If you have a very significant amount of money to devote, you can probably solve any problem," he said. - Rad Sallee, The Houston Chronicle

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TAKE THE TRAIN, TRY THE LIBRARY

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL, MN -- The journey is the destination.

That holds especially true if you're a kid and the means of transportation is a train.

I had been meaning to take my children on the light-rail train ever since the Hiawatha Line opened 2-1/2 years ago. We finally got on board last week for a trip to downtown Minneapolis to visit another new piece of public infrastructure we hadn't gotten around to exploring -- Minneapolis Central Library. It was a perfect combo for an afternoon excursion.

We boarded the train at the Lake Street/Midtown station, which is perched on a bridge above Lake Street at Hiawatha Avenue. (We had ridden the bus from our house and asked for special rail transfers.)

"I see it! There it is," yelled my 4-year-old, pointing south on the track where the black-and-yellow-nosed train pulled into view.

It wasn't crowded, and my son headed straight to a window seat behind the enclosed driver's cab. As the train zipped along the elevated rails, we had a bird's-eye view of the traffic and a Coca-Cola truck we soon left in the dust.

"We're going really fast," my son said. "But it doesn't feel like it."

We passed road construction and a junkyard and paused at the Franklin Avenue and Cedar Riverside stations. We swooshed past a southbound train and then swung east around the Metrodome into downtown. Ten minutes after we boarded, we disembarked onto Nicollet Mall.

From there, we looked up the street 1-1/2 blocks and saw the giant wing that cantilevers out from the Minneapolis Central Library.

Photo here:

[origin.twincities.com]

BOOK TOUR

I admit it. The destination was an afterthought. But as afterthoughts go, the library was a winner. My son loved the bright atrium, where glass walls not only allow you to see into the floors of the library but also reveal the inner workings of the elevator and escalator.

We hung a right into the ground-floor Children's Library, which, according to the library Web site, houses the largest public collection of children's books in the Upper Midwest.

Just as impressive as the books is the huge, bright space filled with whimsical and interactive details. Several wood dragonflies hang from the ceiling amid abstract wood trees. My son made a beeline for a wall of cranks that make various objects move or light up. We opened and closed the wings of a butterfly and spent several minutes playing a marble maze.

The picture-book section is tucked in a corner with floor-to-ceiling windows. Board books are housed in wood bins made to look like big boats. Padded curved benches form a corral where parents can sit with coffee and toddlers can play with soft blocks.

Lots of tables and comfy sofas make appealing spots to do homework or curl up and read. The computers, which are reserved for kids 14 and younger, sport mice shaped like red cars. (Teens have their own space in a loftlike area overlooking Hennepin Avenue.)

A separate room with a puppet theater serves as a space for programming. Twice a month, the library hosts Discover Saturday, with presenters ranging from flamenco dancers to the American Chemical Society.

We were pleased to discover our St. Paul library card allowed us to check out books. All I had to do was open an account by entering my name, address and contact information into a computer.

On the way out, we stopped at a Dunn Brothers Coffee located in the library. We enjoyed our fruit juice and a Rice Krispies bar at a table outside in the sunshine. We caught the start of rush hour on our light-rail ride home, which made for better people watching.

TRAIN TRIPS

We know a number of families who take light rail for fun. My husband has ridden it downtown with our oldest son to catch a Twins game. You could pack a picnic and ride to Minnehaha Park or Fort Snelling State Park.

Bob Doffing, a real estate agent in St. Paul, treats his granddaughter Lily Hannahan to lunch every Friday. Once a year, they take the Hiawatha Line to downtown Minneapolis.

"It's become a ritual," Doffing said. "We have to get off at the same stop downtown. We have to go to the same restaurant, and she orders the same thing." (That would be clam chowder at Eddington's.)

This year, she showed a bit of independence on the train and went to stand by the bike rack by herself, then scooted back to her grandpa.

"When I first rode, she sat on my lap and I had to point out things to her," Doffing said. "Now, she points things out to me! It's old hat traveling on the train."

Our family is already planning our next trip. We want to head south this time, through the tunnel by the airport all the way to the Mall of America. Who knows what we'll do there. After all, getting there is more than half the fun. - Maja Beckstrom, The St. Paul Pioneer Press

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NYC TRANSPORTATION CHAIR TO RESIGN

NEW YORK, NY -- Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman Peter Kalikow announced Monday that he will resign as soon as Gov. Eliot Spitzer appoints a successor.

"I think the time has come for me to leave. I am a firm believer in setting aggressive goals, accomplishing those goals and then giving others the opportunity to both expand upon those initiatives and create new ones with fresh vision and new energy," said Kalikow, a real estate developer who was appointed to the MTA chairman's post by Gov. George Pataki in 2001.

Kalikow had earlier announced his desire to resign, abiding by the wishes of Spitzer for a new leadership structure with MTA Executive Director and CEO Elliot Sander running the agency day to day.

"I know I am leaving this place in good hands," said Kalikow, who was joined by Sander at a news conference.

He said the advice he has given Sander both privately and publicly is "raise fares only as a last resort, but do not keep the fares artificially low."

Asked if there were plans to raise subway, bus and commuter rail fares in the next year, Sander said, "It is still a real possibility."

During his tenure at the MTA, Kalikow helped obtain increased federal funding for subway cars and station rehabilitation and easier access for Long Islanders to Manhattan's East Side. He also saw ground broken on a new Second Avenue subway line last month.

But a three-day transit strike that halted service on city buses and subways occurred on his watch in 2005.

"Make no mistake about it, this was a tough job," Kalikow said. "I could actually take my jacket off and show you the bruises to prove it."

Kalikow said that he was proud to have achieved consolidation of private bus companies but that there should ultimately be one bus system for the entire New York region.

A merger of the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad was another unmet goal.

Kalikow served previously as commissioner of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and is a former owner and publisher of the New York Post. He is president of his family's real estate company, H.J. Kalikow & Co., LLC.

He announced his resignation at 101 Park Avenue, a midtown building his company developed.

Sander said Spitzer would name a new MTA chairman in the next several weeks. - Karen Matthews, The Associated Press, Forbes

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THE END