 |
Re: SMART And Its Devious Diesel and Must be Stopped
Author: synonymouse
Date: 12-10-2012 - 11:37
I guess I really did ask for the vitriol with the "Bugatti" dig. But If feel if you are going to demand subsidized freight compatibility you should go with the SOP of passenger on freight rail lines, namely loco-hauled passenger cars. Cheaper, easier to get and get rid of.
The Northbay is still reasonably tighly-knitted, unlike, say, the demoralized, ghetto mean streets of Oakland or San Jose. They are not going to respond passively when there is a SMART grade-crossing with fatalities, especially when a lot of them feel the whole train operation is obsolete and should be outta here. Besides 55mph, typical of urban light rail, is appropriate, not 80mph.
The City of Petaluma is planning to pack housing blocks(some are of them are probably ABAG mandated)right up against Dairymens Feed. The yuppies and trendies are already up in arms about DUTRA asphalt operations so believe it the next time the grain elevator catches fire and stinks up the town there will be calls to get rid of it. And I don't see any rush to re-connect to the NCRA-NWP. You can walk down Lakeville and see the long-disconnected stub of the siding to the big Shamrock concrete operation.
What is really needed in SMART is electric light rail and ditching the freight for good. That era is done. They should have bought the San Diego Siemens cars that went to Argentina and spent most all of the funds on infrastructure, mostly in Marin for starters.
It will really get ugly when the passenger counts come in low and the operating costs high and SMART tries to grab bus money. My guess is that some arrangement will come with GGT, probably takeover.
The Northbay is still reasonably tighly-knitted, unlike, say, the demoralized, ghetto mean streets of Oakland or San Jose. They are not going to respond passively when there is a SMART grade-crossing with fatalities, especially when a lot of them feel the whole train operation is obsolete and should be outta here. Besides 55mph, typical of urban light rail, is appropriate, not 80mph.
The City of Petaluma is planning to pack housing blocks(some are of them are probably ABAG mandated)right up against Dairymens Feed. The yuppies and trendies are already up in arms about DUTRA asphalt operations so believe it the next time the grain elevator catches fire and stinks up the town there will be calls to get rid of it. And I don't see any rush to re-connect to the NCRA-NWP. You can walk down Lakeville and see the long-disconnected stub of the siding to the big Shamrock concrete operation.
What is really needed in SMART is electric light rail and ditching the freight for good. That era is done. They should have bought the San Diego Siemens cars that went to Argentina and spent most all of the funds on infrastructure, mostly in Marin for starters.
It will really get ugly when the passenger counts come in low and the operating costs high and SMART tries to grab bus money. My guess is that some arrangement will come with GGT, probably takeover.
