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Re: Say "Good Bye" To The Pacific Surfliners?
Author: mook
Date: 10-02-2011 - 14:05
Let's inform the speculation just a bit.
Perhaps 1 or 2 of the Surfliner schedules were once "San Diegans" that came to Amtrak in 1971. The rest are state-funded. I have no idea which current runs (if any) the olde ones were.
1 of the San Joaquins was Amtrak at the changeover. The rest are state-funded.
None of the Capitol Corridor trains were Amtrak at the time of changeover. All are state-funded.
I'm not sure how much Amtrak (Federal) money comes to CA for the state-funded and "original" Amtrak regional trains, but whatever it is comes nowhere near covering the cost. And Your Friends In Congress have now decided to eliminate that. So for practical purposes Amtrak is the contracted operator for the State (BART/JPA in the Capitol Corridor) and provides marketing/ticketing/system integration/maintenance support. There is a Rail Division at Caltrans that runs the behind the scenes stuff - additional marketing, funding, equipment purchase, etc.
Moving to a regional agency (JPA) to run the Surfliners was proposed some years ago but AFAIK never really got off the ground. It would have been something like the Capitol Corridor group. Maybe now it looks like it might happen? If it does, that would leave the San Joaquins as the only actually state-run service.
Moving to a JPA for the Surfliner corridor wouldn't necessarily kill the Surfliners. Most of the double-deck equipment and F59PHI's aren't Amtrak's anyway (state-owned). I could easily see them continue as a premium, "express" service much as they operate now, though possibly with higher fares, except that the JPA would run the show (instead of Caltrans) much as the Cap Corridor people do. One potential benefit is better integration with Metrolink & Coaster schedules, and some kind of unified fare arrangement similar to the one existing now between Burbank Airport & Downtown LA.
No opinion to express regarding labor issues related to Coaster/Metrolink, and I haven't been on the Rotem cars so can't express an opinion but the older cars are quite a bit more comfortable than "average" commute equipment (which is probably a good idea considering the length of some of the runs in the LA area). Compare sometime to Caltrain or, worse, LIRR and others Back East (umm...facing bench seats so close together that passengers have to entwine legs to fit?).
Perhaps 1 or 2 of the Surfliner schedules were once "San Diegans" that came to Amtrak in 1971. The rest are state-funded. I have no idea which current runs (if any) the olde ones were.
1 of the San Joaquins was Amtrak at the changeover. The rest are state-funded.
None of the Capitol Corridor trains were Amtrak at the time of changeover. All are state-funded.
I'm not sure how much Amtrak (Federal) money comes to CA for the state-funded and "original" Amtrak regional trains, but whatever it is comes nowhere near covering the cost. And Your Friends In Congress have now decided to eliminate that. So for practical purposes Amtrak is the contracted operator for the State (BART/JPA in the Capitol Corridor) and provides marketing/ticketing/system integration/maintenance support. There is a Rail Division at Caltrans that runs the behind the scenes stuff - additional marketing, funding, equipment purchase, etc.
Moving to a regional agency (JPA) to run the Surfliners was proposed some years ago but AFAIK never really got off the ground. It would have been something like the Capitol Corridor group. Maybe now it looks like it might happen? If it does, that would leave the San Joaquins as the only actually state-run service.
Moving to a JPA for the Surfliner corridor wouldn't necessarily kill the Surfliners. Most of the double-deck equipment and F59PHI's aren't Amtrak's anyway (state-owned). I could easily see them continue as a premium, "express" service much as they operate now, though possibly with higher fares, except that the JPA would run the show (instead of Caltrans) much as the Cap Corridor people do. One potential benefit is better integration with Metrolink & Coaster schedules, and some kind of unified fare arrangement similar to the one existing now between Burbank Airport & Downtown LA.
No opinion to express regarding labor issues related to Coaster/Metrolink, and I haven't been on the Rotem cars so can't express an opinion but the older cars are quite a bit more comfortable than "average" commute equipment (which is probably a good idea considering the length of some of the runs in the LA area). Compare sometime to Caltrain or, worse, LIRR and others Back East (umm...facing bench seats so close together that passengers have to entwine legs to fit?).
| Subject | Written By | Date/Time (PST) |
|---|---|---|
 Say "Good Bye" To The Pacific Surfliners?
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Eugene Salinsky | 10-01-2011 - 15:48 |
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OERM Otaku | 10-02-2011 - 17:08 |
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Re: Say "Good Bye" To The Pacific Surfliners? |
mook | 10-02-2011 - 14:05 |
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Re: Say "Good Bye" To The Pacific Surfliners?
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OERM Otaku | 10-03-2011 - 20:46 |
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Re: Say "Good Bye" To The Pacific Surfliners?
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Re: Say "Good Bye" To The Pacific Surfliners?
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