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Railroad Newsline for Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Compiled by Larry W. Grant

In Memory of Rob Carlson, 1952 – 2006

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RAIL NEWS

FATAL DECISION: MOTORIST LOSES RACE TO RAILROAD CROSSING TO A TRAIN

Photo here:http://www.waxahachiedailylight.com/content/articles/2007/01/02/dailylight/news/01-01-02-train.jpg

WAXAHACHIE, TX -- Traffic through downtown Waxahachie was diverted Monday morning after a Union Pacific train collided with a two-door passenger car on North Elm Street.

The car was traveling northbound on Elm Street at about 11:25 when a train traveling eastbound struck the vehicle. The car was flipped twice before landing on its roof.

The train came to a full stop several blocks away, with the engine less than 50 yards from the Kaufman Street crossing.

East Texas EMS and Waxahachie fire and police responded to the call.

The driver of the vehicle, Raul Martinez, 49, of Waxahachie, was taken by ambulance to Baylor Medical Center at Waxahachie and was then transported by air ambulance to Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas.

According to the Dallas County medical examiner’s office, Martinez was pronounced dead at 20:43 at the hospital.

According to witnesses, the lights at the crossing were flashing before the accident and the driver of the car appeared to slow down before attempting to cross the track.

“I was three cars behind him and I saw the lights flashing from the intersection of Main Street and Elm,” T.J. Ball of Waxahachie said. “I thought he slowed down and then the next thing I know, the car was on the track and the engine hit him.”

The North Elm Street crossing has crossbucks and flashing lights installed at the intersection but no crossing bars. According to previous statements by the Texas Department of Transportation and Union Pacific, the crossing is too wide to install standard crossbars to block traffic.

Traffic continued to be diverted until 14:30, while Waxahachie police waited for an investigator from Union Pacific to clear the scene.

The accident is the second collision between a Union Pacific train and a vehicle in Waxahachie within the last year.

Fredrick Crayton, 32, of Waxahachie was killed after a train collided with his car Jan. 5, 2006, at the Munchus Street crossing.

Crayton’s car was pushed down the tracks about 1,200 feet, with the car stopping shortly after the crossing at Peters Street/Parks School House Road and the train coming to a full stop just past the Burleson Honey building.

The accident last January prompted the city to begin a citywide quiet zone study to increase safety at city rail crossings.

The city staff recently received a draft copy of the study and is reviewing it before consultants give a presentation to the council in late January or early February.

“We’re reviewing the plan and we’ve met with the consultants to discuss their draft,” City Manager Paul Stevens said Monday. “Once we finish reviewing the plan we’ll begin talks with TxDOT to talk about making improvements to the Elm Street crossing as well as other crossings around the city. The crossing will need to be re-configured to make future improvements.” - Jonathan Blundell, The Waxhachie Daily Light

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YUCCA DUMP DOOMED?

WASHINGTON, DC -- While supporters vow to plow forward with plans for a nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, critics hope Democrats will be able to kill the project - which would take highly radioactive material transported through the Southland - when they take control of Congress next month.

Led by incoming Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., who already has declared the federal nuclear waste repository "dead," congressional Democrats are expected to severely decrease funding for the dump.

That, opponents say, is good news for Ventura, Los Angeles, San Bernardino and other communities through which approximately 70,000 tons of radioactive waste would likely be shipped on its way to the site 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

"All of us in the Inland Empire will be safer if shipments of nuclear waste are not traveling through our communities on local highways or railroad tracks," said Democrat Rep. Joe Baca, whose San Bernardino district lies smack in the middle of the proposed shipment route.

"An accident could have deadly consequences," Baca said. "We are fortunate that Harry Reid will be the Senate majority leader and in a better position to block the Yucca Mountain project."

First proposed in 1982, the Yucca Mountain depository has been strongly supported by President George W. Bush and the nuclear energy industry. Proponents say it is a secure alternative to storing waste at nuclear plants and hundreds of other sites around the country.

Originally targeted to open in 1998, Yucca Mountain has been repeatedly set back by lawsuits, money shortfalls and scientific controversies. The Department of Energy’s best-case opening date is now 2017.

Southern Californians are concerned about proposals to ship spent nuclear fuel to Yucca Mountain from the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant in San Luis Obispo County - a trek that could take it by train through Ventura County and the San Fernando Valley.

There have also been discussions about a rail line through the Antelope Valley and across the High Desert; multiple rail links through the San Gabriel, Pomona and San Bernardino valleys; and a truck route from the San Onofre nuclear power plant along the Santa Ana, San Gabriel and San Bernardino freeway corridors.

The DOE is poised to submit a license application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in mid-2008 that will allow it to proceed. But activists on both sides of the issue acknowledge that the DOE is quietly preparing for the likelihood of reduced funding and political support for Yucca.

"I’m getting the sense there may be some reluctance to submit a sizeable, needed budget if Mr. Reid is just going to have it reduced," said Brian O’Connell, director of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’ nuclear waste program.

He and other supporters of the repository have accused Reid of overstepping his power by refusing to allow Yucca legislation to come for a vote, and they argue that safety concerns have been blown out of proportion and politicized.

"The typical representation of nuclear waste is a 50-ton cannister with green goo hanging out the sides," O’Connell said. "It is well-protected. And the reality is that it has been shipped safely for over 30 years."

Annual federal funding for Yucca Mountain has ranged from $450 million to $550 million in recent years. O’Connell predicted that Reid and other lawmakers will "drastically reduce" that amount.

Michelle Boyd, legislative director at Public Citizen, agreed, saying Yucca officials "are hobbling along, and they’re going to be hobbling even more when they have less money. It’s certainly on its last legs."

She and others also noted that the newly empowered anti-Yucca coalition in Congress has vowed to block bills like the one introduced last year by Sen. Pete Dominic, R-N.M., and Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, to guarantee funding for the repository.

"No legislation will occur as long as Reid is there," said Bob Loux, executive director of Nevada’s Agency for Nuclear Projects. "We believe this project has been on life support anyway for the last several years. This may be the final nail."

O’Connell disagreed that the death of Yucca is near.

"I don’t think so," he said. "(Reid) will do everything he can to impede it, but he can’t kill it outright."

Argun Makhijani, president of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research agreed.

Though an opponent of Yucca Mountain who calls it a "badly botched project," Makhijani said he expects plans for the repository to move ahead with shrunken resources.

"I don’t think the project can be stopped altogether without setting in motion some larger scheme for the management of spent fuel," he said. - Lisa Freeman, The Daily News, The San Luis Obispo Tribune

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UP TRAIN DERAILED AT BECKWOURTH, CALIFORNIA

PLUMAS COUNTY, CA -- High winds blew through Sierra Valley all day Tuesday, Dec. 26, and are being blamed for the derailment of 22 Union Pacific train cars near Beckwourth.

"A cyclonic wind event," said one UP worker while waiting for relief vehicles. Another railroad employee said that workers would need seven truckloads of equipment brought in before they could begin to clear the tracks.

The derailment happened mid-afternoon Tuesday just off of County Road A23 and Highway 70 during gusting winds and rain.

Greg McCaffrey of Beckwourth Volunteer Fire Department was the first emergency responder to the scene. He checked for hazardous materials and human injury and found neither. A buried high-voltage power line was cut, however, creating a hazard for relief workers.

The train was composed of two layers of stack cars that were predominantly empty and presented a high and broad face to the wind.

Approximately 200 yards of track was reduced to sticks and iron rubble.

Twisted and crunched railcars were piled two and three deep.

Beckwourth Fire Chief Martin Schafer estimated that at least 600 feet of track would need to be replaced, in addition to cleaning up the cars and debris.

"It'll take them a few days to clean up this mess," he predicted. - Diana Jorgenson, The Plumas County News

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DAMAGE TO BNSF RAILROAD BRIDGE STOPS TRAFFIC ON U.S. 54

EL DORADO, KS -- Traffic on Highway 54 east of El Dorado was halted Friday afternoon when a contractor carrying a Caterpillar track hoe clipped the Walnut River railroad bridge.

The driver, who was transported to Susan B. Allen Memorial Hospital, was heading eastbound on 54 when the excavator smacked the west track rail underneath the track support of the bridge, according to Public Works Superintendent Brad Meyer.

Meyer said the accident caused a hydraulic fluid spill on the bridge, but no oil or contamination leaked into the Walnut River.

However, major damage was suffered to the bridge, along with the concrete pile on which the bridge sits.

The BNSF Railway Company has suspended track service on the west side of the tracks, while trains are allowed to pass on the east side at 30 miles per hour.

Traffic was detoured at Vine and Central until workers could clear the debris off the bridge. - The El Dorado Times

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THANKS TO WINTER STORM A BNSF EMPLOYEE'S FAMILY GETS A 'UNIQUE' CHRISTMAS TREE

Suzi Falck couldn't stop laughing when she saw how her husband, Matt, a BNSF Railway Company conductor, arranged the Christmas lights this year.

Suzi asked Matt to remove a 30-foot-tall tree that winter windstorms blew onto their roof in early December. It didn't cause any damage, but it was quite an eyesore.

After driving home one day, Suzi expected the tree to be gone, but instead saw a huge surprise.
“Oh, my God,” were the only words she could utter. Matt had turned the lifeless juniper into a Christmas arrangement that would catch Martha Stewart's eye.

With help from his brother, he wrapped the leaning tree with five strands of multicolored lights. He placed grapefruit-sized blue bulbs on its branches. Even though it was sprawled on its side, he affixed a Christmas star to the top.

"It was my husband's way of putting a smile on my face," said Suzi.

Matt didn't originally intend to convert the leaning piece of lumber into the talk of the neighborhood. But before he could put the chain saw to its trunk, he had an idea that made him chuckle.

"You know, it would be funnier than heck to decorate this thing," he remembered telling his brother. "This is just going to be hilarious."

So the Falcks ended up with Christmas trees both inside and outside the house.

Their home has become an attraction for passersby. Three neighbors have knocked on their door and praised their holiday décor. The couple has lost count of how many drivers have slowed down to make sure their eyes weren't playing any tricks.

"They're all like, 'Is that a tree? It is a tree!' " Suzi said.

Matt plans to remove it after the New Year. He doesn't consider himself a bona fide prankster, just a guy who can make light of stressful situations.

"This is the first time I've done something like this," he said. "I just said, 'The heck with the storm. Let's make this fun.' " - BNSF Today

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A PLACE FOR DEPOT IN PHOENIX'S FUTURE; SOME SAY TIME IS RIGHT TO BRING UNION STATION BACK TO LIFE

PHOENIX, AZ -- The oak benches, the ones on which passengers once awaited the Sunset Limited, bound for Los Angeles or New Orleans, still stand. The terra cotta-tiled floors remain, so do all the finer details, such as the zigzag motif on the brass doorknobs and the ornate light fixtures.

Trains still ride the rails here, but they're freighters. There are no passengers, only a migratory snowbird who hitched a ride on a boxcar. The last Amtrak train pulled out of here in the mid-1990s. There's so much about Phoenix's Union Station that evokes nostalgia. If only there weren't the glaring white microwave dishes outside its arches and the telecommunications equipment inside.

Still, imagine the prolonged whistle rolling by.

In recent years, the station at Harrison Street and Fourth Avenue has been inaccessible to the public. There's a security fence ringing the building because Sprint, the telecommunications giant, owns the building and stores equipment there. It has been thoughtful enough not to pick at the station's original bones too much, and years ago, it renovated the depot. If only the historic station would be filled with people again.

A new era

Tucked away on the southwestern edge of the downtown warehouse district, it's easy to idealize what the historic train depot could become.

That's been the story for at least two decades, when the city saw the potential of Union Station. With all its space and Mission Revival architecture, the 1923 building could be a city centerpiece filled with shops, restaurants and artists, the city proposed. That vision never came to fruition.

But lately, with the renaissance of downtown Phoenix, Sprint came knocking on the doors of downtown planners and the city's historic preservation office to talk about what is the best use for the building. "Downtown is at a crossroads, and Sprint is at a crossroads. That's always good," said Barbara Stocklin, the city's historic preservation officer. "If Sprint's interested in doing something else, it's good timing."

From the beginning, Union Station was designed to be a high-profile building in the city's core. Railroads fed the boom of Phoenix in the 1920s, hauling cattle, cotton, copper and citrus to the east; passenger cars brought tourists. Over the past several years, along with Chase Field and US Airways Center, the warehouse district has slowly reinvented itself with a handful of galleries, restaurants, lofts and condominiums. Sprint started the conversations, said spokeswoman Debra Havins, because decisions about upgrading the equipment need to be made.

"Which leads to, 'Do we need to stay in the building?' " she said. "Looking at what our options are sparked some interest and speculation."

For now, the building is not for sale. With tens of thousands of square feet, the station has the potential to become a destination place, said Brian Kearney, of the Downtown Phoenix Partnership, and could easily be a center for restaurants, a museum, galleries and retail.

It could be restored for its original use, too, possibly as a commuter rail station and a transportation hub with buses and taxis. Or both.

What's old is new again

"Union Station" was created as a common name when the Southern Pacific and Santa Fe railroads consolidated passenger depots into one "union" station. Many "union stations" have been demolished, but cities have also found ways to renovate and reuse them.

Kansas City's Union Station is a science museum and Amtrak terminal and has restaurants and shops. St. Louis has a light-rail stop and shopping mall, and Los Angeles Union Passenger Terminal still services Amtrak, as well as heavy commuter rail, and has restaurants and shopping. In Tucson, the rail station is now an Amtrak stop, museum and retail area. Flagstaff's is an Amtrak stop, too, a regional tourist bureau and car-rental station.

Many of those conversions, Stocklin said, were accomplished with federal transportation enhancement funds, a required set-aside program from federal highway dollars since 1991. Those dollars are still available and could potentially be used for a conversion of Phoenix's Union Station as well. The station is on the National Register of Historic Places and the city's historic register. "It may be its time, if Sprint's willing to consider options," said Don Keuth, of Phoenix Community Alliance. The station needs to be re-engaged into the community, he said. "This is kind of like an early Christmas present - a neat little place to play with again." - Angela Cara Pancrazio, The Arizona Republic , courtesy Marc Pearsall

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KCS ANNOUNCES APPOINTMENTS OF TWO FINANCIAL OFFICERS

KANSAS CITY, MO -- Kansas City Southern (KCS) (NYSE: KSU) announced Tuesday the appointment of Edward E. Scott as assistant vice president capital investment accounting and Nathan L. Poundstone as assistant vice president financial reporting. Both officers will report to Michael K. Borrows, KCS vice president and chief accounting officer.

"The addition of Ed and Nate brings to KCS another layer of experienced leaders with proven leadership, process management and technical accounting expertise," said Mr. Borrows. "I am excited about what the accounting team has accomplished this year, and am confident that these two professionals will enhance our prospective initiatives."

Mr. Scott has eight years of general and capital investment accounting experience with BNSF Railway. Prior to that, he was an auditor for Deloitte & Touche for six years and for a Deloitte & Touche client for three years. Mr. Scott is a certified public accountant and earned an executive master of business administration from Texas Christian University and a bachelor of science in accounting from Point Park University.

Mr. Poundstone joins KCS from the public accounting firm, KPMG LLP, where he served as senior manager. He is a certified public accountant and earned a bachelor of arts in accounting from the University of Northern Iowa. - Doniele Kane, KCS News Release

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DIGGING UP THE PAST: TURN OF 20TH CENTURY MILOKAI SUGAR PLANTATION RAILROAD UNEARTHED

Photo here: [www.molokaitimes.com]

KAUNAKAKAI, HI -- A railroad bridge foundation was recently un-earthed by Ideal Construction near the sewage treatment plant in Kaunakakai. The bridge abutment is over a hundred years old.

Ideal Construction is replacing the Kaunakakai Force Main sewer line between the sewage treatment plant and the injection site across the street from Rawlins Chevron.

They were continuing the trench west out of the stream, just south of the highway, when they ran into a very large rock about 3 feet below the surface.

When the "rock" was lifted out of the way it was recognized as a rock wall by the archaeologist monitoring the project.

What's unusual about this rock wall is that the stones it's built with are "dressed." That is ' the stones were cut into very square blocks rather than being used in their natural shape.

The basalt stones were undoubtedly quarried on Molokai, but exactly where they came from and how they were cut isn't known.

Photo here: [www.molokaitimes.com]

By studying old maps and comparing the unique construction of this rock wall with others on Molokai it was determined to be a railroad bridge foundation built by the American Sugar Company between 1898 and 1900.

In 1897 Bishop Estate sold the Molokai Ranch lands to a group of businessmen for $150,000. In the following year (1898), Molokai Ranch was incorporated and changed its name to the American Sugar Company (ASCo.).

The new owners had big plans for a sugar plantation in central Molokai. Charles M. Kurtz built a six-mile railroad from Kaunakakai to Pala'au, and a Cuban style mill was purchased with the equipment being landed at Kaunakakai.

ASCo. also drilled wells and installed huge water pumps (two 5-million-gallon Worthington Steam pumps) to irrigate the 500 acres of cane that they planted on the Ho'olehua flats above Pala'au.

So much water was pumped to the fields that by the time the cane was 3 feet tall the wells had turned brackish.

Sugar cane can't tolerate salt and the young plants all died.

It's written that "'when the manager, in charge of the plantation, learned what had happened to him, he boarded the first available boat and took himself to Honolulu, post-haste. There, and before any word had leaked out concerning the failure of the plantation, he sold all of the plantation stock in his possession."

The mill that was never erected was sold to the McBride Plantation on Kauai. Most of the 50 cane cars, 15 flat cars and railroad track went to the Kihei Plantation on Maui. The locomotive "Uncle Sam" went to the Honolulu Sugar Company in 1901 and was renamed "Aiea."

Finally, in 1939 the American Sugar Company changed its name back to Molokai Ranch.

According to a 1938 Maui News article, "old time Hawaiians claim that the failure of this plantation was due to the disturbance of the old heiau from which rocks were obtained to construct the mole leading to Kaunakakai wharf."

That's the story of the American Sugar Company plantation and most of the evidence of its operation on Molokai is long gone.

Some of the railroad track was used by the Molokai Ranch in cattle-guards, a few of the bridges are still to be seen in Pala'au, and coal that was imported for the mill is sometimes found near the wharf in Kaunakakai.

The old railroad bridge foundation next to "Third River" (Kaunakakai Stream) was covered by dirt through the years and completely forgotten. Forgotten, that is, until it was accidentally rediscovered this month. Now that chapter of Molokai history can again be told. - Steve Eminger, Archeologist, The Molokai Island Times

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CHANGE OF PLANS; LAWMAKERS LOOK TO SELL RAIL LINE

PINE BLUFF, AR -- Southeast Arkansas lawmakers are hoping the federal government will waive a $600,000-plus grant reimbursement making it easier to obtain, for economic development purposes, 31 miles of rail line at Snow Lake in Desha County.

The federal government awarded the state Parks and Tourism Department the grant to purchase the rail for the Delta Heritage Trail State Park, a 73-mile “rail trail” in eastern Arkansas, but the department plans to remove and sell 31 miles of rail line to the highest bidder.

State Rep. Gregg Reep, D-Warren, and other members of the southeast delegation believe the rail should be used for economic development purposes.

Reep said the federal grant must be repaid if the funds cease to be used for public recreation, its intended purpose, but he and other members of the regional delegation are hoping the federal government will waive the requirement since the rail would continue to be used for a public purpose.

Union Pacific donated the 73-mile railroad right-of-way and the state Parks and Tourism Department received an ISTEA grant to purchase the rail.

Preliminary plans called for an excursion train on that 31-mile part of the trail, but the state failed to find anyone interested in owning, operating and maintaining an excursion train.

“We decided to sell the rail and put the money back into the trail,” Richard Davies, director of the state Parks and Tourism Department, said in an interview last year.

Once the rail is removed, the state will develop a hiking and biking trail.

Reep said Southeast Arkansas lawmakers are trying to work out some sort of arrangement where the rail can be removed and relocated to the Southeast Arkansas Regional Intermodal Park, the Port of Yellow Bend or used to repair the rail line between Warren and Cypress Bend, near McGehee.

“I think it’s a wonderful idea, but the problem is it’s not legal,” Davies said.

State law requires it to be put out for bid.

Reep, however, hopes to get the law amended.

“The law has a good purpose. It’s to make sure individuals and businesses don’t improperly benefit from the state through insider deals, but that’s not what we’re talking about here,” Reep said. “We’re talking about a public purpose: economic development.”

He said Southeast Arkansas lawmakers want the state Parks and Tourism Department to wait until after the 2007 legislative session to make a decision on how it will dispose of the rail.

Davies said the rail is worth $1 million to $3 million.

Reep said Southeast Arkansas doesn’t have the funds to buy the rail. “We can bid on it, but we don’t have the money to buy it and we certainly can’t compete with a private company,” he said. “China, for example, is buying a lot of steel in the United States.”

Davies said the dilemma is twofold: “How am I going to get the value back into the trail and are the feds going to agree to this? The feds have the last word, it’s their money and none of us are in the position to pay it back.”

If the federal government agrees to waive the reimbursement requirement, the Southeast Arkansas lawmakers will work with the state Parks and Tourism Department “to get them whatever they need to develop the property for the trail,” Reep said. - Patty Wooten, The Pine Bluff Commercial

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END OF THE LINE: 109 YEARS OF SERVICE ON THE WABASH

ST. THOMAS, ON -- After 109 years of continuous service in St. Thomas, Ontario, the Wabash Railroad quietly rolled out of the city for the final time Saturday.

Apart from a few bystanders leaning over the Barwick Street bridge to catch a glimpse of Norfolk Southern train 328, the end of a colourful chapter in St. Thomas railway history passed beneath the wooden structure without ceremony.

In fact, the departing train consisted of nothing more than two NS engines shuffling back to Buffalo so their Virginia-based owner could close the books on its southwestern Ontario operation dating back to 1897 and the Wabash. - Ian McCallum, The St. Thomas Times-Journal

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HOBBYISTS RIDE THEIR TRAINS AT SECRET SITE

WILL COUNTY, IL -- Off a busy suburban road, a locked gate hides seven hallowed acres where men ride Lilliputian trains.

Here, somewhere in Chicago’s southern suburbs, a group of men have built the Chicago area’s last haven for a breed of train enthusiast captivated by models just big enough for an adult to ride.

“ You’d never know it was there driving by,” said Lockport resident Bill Molony, president of a regional railroad buff society, who has been invited behind the gates.

Illinois Live Steamers got its start almost 40 years ago when four dozen model train enthusiasts paid about $30,000 for an orchard in Will County, founding fathers say.

Today, the group has about 100 members, and that apple and pear orchard has become an exclusive and expansive model train layout where the secretive hobbyists can practice machinists’ skills, run their trains, and share a love of the rails.

The guest list is invitation-only.

But after months of calls, ILS agreed to allow some Daily Southtown staffers inside the compound on one condition: The club’s location could not be revealed.

“ It’s private; it’s not open to the public,” explained ILS president Rick Tracy, who said he once turned down a request from Playboy magazine to do a photo shoot there. “It’s not an amusement park. This is a high-tech hobby.”

Tracy and others say stealth is needed to keep outsiders from discovering and vandalizing their clubhouse and expensive property.
“ Everybody seems to know where we’re at out here,” said Russ Decho, 80, a Westchester resident and founding member. People have turned up at the gates and asked to ride the trains, but they are turned away, he said, adding, “It is private property.”

Neighbors are certainly aware.

“ Oh, the train guys!” says Eileen Batasich, who lives down the street, when asked about the club. “I used to take my boys over there to take rides.”

The small trains chug with a realistic clackity-clack over the tracks, rolling under trees, over bridges, and through a tunnel.

They travel past working water towers set up for the steam-powered engines (with signs warning not to drink from the hose), small model houses and a life-size depot with a flashing electric crossing sign.

“ It’s not just a toy train running around a Christmas tree,” says member Jack Bath.

Nearby, Ralph Tucker, 65, a retiree from Elk Grove Village, stood next to his train and drank from a bottle of Gatorade after a morning’s labor.

ILS members are expected to do plenty of work to keep the place running.

Members like Ray Pieper, 83, who retired as Orland Park village attorney about 16 years ago, enjoy the work and say it keeps them fit.

“ If I didn’t have classical music and the live steam hobby, I probably would have gone berserk years ago,” said Pieper, who runs a 40-year-old Mogul steam train. “It was a great relief from the tensions of everyday life.”

Operating a miniature steam train isn’t easy.

“ You’ve got to watch the track, your fire, your water - you have to make sure you’re lubricating the cylinders right,” Pieper said. “It’s more fun than pulling a toggle switch and the thing takes off.”

Today, most of the trains used at the club are battery-powered and modeled to look like modern diesel trains - a trend lamented by some steam purists.

Hobbyists say some of the trains derail on occasion, but they move so slowly there’s not much of a chance anyone will be hurt. - The Associated Press, The Daily Southtown, The Chief Engineer (Published by the Chief Engineers Association of Chicagoland)

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‘SNOWSHOE' THOMPSON: LAKE TAHOE'S WHITE GOLD

TRUCKEE, CA -- Of all the skiers who have carved the slopes around Lake Tahoe, the most famous is undoubtedly John “Snowshoe” Thompson, the legendary skiing mailman of the Sierra Nevada. When it came to traveling in the wintry mountains, he was the precursor of the pack train, the stagecoach and the locomotive. It required years before any other form of transportation succeeded him.

Born Jon Tostensen in the Telemark district of Norway on April 30, 1827, “John” was 10 years old when his father died and the family immigrated to the American Midwest in 1837. In 1851, the 24-year-old was bit by gold fever and ran off to California. He worked as a miner in the Sierra foothills and then later moved to Putah Creek, near Placerville, about 30 miles east of Sacramento. Tostensen took up farming in summer and cutting commercial firewood in the winter.
About this time, he Americanized his name to John Albert Thompson after the family name of his stepfather Arthur Thompson.

Neither rain, nor sleet nor ... death?

After the Gold Rush, the increasing demand for communication between California and the eastern United States resulted in the establishment of an overland mail route between San Francisco and Salt Lake City. The lucrative, but dangerous, mail contract was worth $14,000 a year when George Chorpenning and Absolom Woodward took on the job in 1851. It took the men 16 days to pack the mail by mule 910 miles to the Great Salt Lake. It was exhausting work and became deadly when Indians killed Woodward in November 1851.

Newspapers published accounts of the dangerous difficulties and failed attempts to carry the mail over the mountains during the winter, but it seemed there was nothing anyone could do. In 1855, Thompson saw an ad published in the Sacramento Union: “People Lost to the World: Uncle Sam Needs Carrier.” The Placerville postmaster needed someone to carry the overland mail 90 miles east, up and over the Sierra range to the Carson Valley, in the dead of winter. There weren’t any takers until Thompson, whose father had made him “snow-shoes” to ski to school as a child in Norway, decided to answer the call to duty.

Snowshoe and skis

Thompson remembered that as a young boy in Norway he and his friends had used skis to travel quickly over the snow-covered landscape and his Viking spirit was aroused to the challenge. He stood six feet tall and weighed a solid 180 pounds. With his blonde hair and beard, fair skin and piercing blue eyes, he looked every bit the fierce Norseman of his ancestry.

On his first attempt to ski from Placerville to the Carson Valley via the Markleeville route south of Lake Tahoe, his rucksack was packed with letters and packages. The hefty load weighed between 60 and 80 pounds. Initially Thompson’s friends and neighbors feared he would never survive the trek, but the skiing mailman conquered the hazardous journey east in just three days. The return trip up and over the Sierra’s eastern escarpment took only 48 hours.

Thompson’s pack eventually exceeded 100 pounds when newspapers, medicine, and ore samples were stuffed into it. At least twice a month for 20 years, Snowshoe Thompson hauled his heavy rucksack through the mountains. Fair skies or storm, rain or snow, Snowshoe Thompson always delivered.

Snowshoe Thompson died May 15, 1876, at age 49, from appendicitis. He is buried in the historic Genoa cemetery. Three months before his death, Territorial Enterprise journalist Dan De Quille interviewed the popular Norwegian. De Quille asked Thompson whether he had ever lost his way in the mountains. “No,” Snowshoe quietly replied, “I was never lost. There is no danger of getting lost in a narrow range of mountains like the Sierra, if a man has his wits about him.”

Winter wonderland

Snowshoe Thompson was the first skier at Lake Tahoe, but he certainly wasn’t the last. Today, the Tahoe region enjoys an enviable reputation among America’s premier winter resorts for its sublime beauty, frequent sunshine and abundant snow. This well-deserved reputation got its start around 1928, when the 223-room Tahoe Tavern, a European-style luxury hotel near Tahoe City, began to stay open during the winter months. Transportation to the lake was provided by Southern Pacific Railroad’s “Snowball Specials,” which brought in tourists from the main line in Truckee.
Initially, the main attractions were ice skating and tobogganing near today’s Tahoe City Golf Course, but soon winter activities moved to a more protected location (current location of Granlibakken resort) just west of town. A double toboggan slide was built, and then shortly after a large ski jump was installed, designed by none other than Lars Haugen, a seven-time national ski jumping champion.

The National Ski Tournament

The ski jumping contests and toboggan runs were very popular and the area soon became known as “Olympic Hill.” During the winter of 1928, residents in Tahoe City formed a winter sports club. The club’s members were so confident of their perfect location and climate that they petitioned to host the 1932 Winter Olympics. Although the ‘32 Winter Games were awarded to Lake Placid, New York, Lake Tahoe scored a victory by being chosen to host the prestigious National Ski Tournament at Olympic Hill, the first one ever held west of the Rockies. Despite problems with financing and housing (a generous donation of several thousand dollars by Mrs. Laura Knight, owner of Vikingsholm at Emerald Bay, saved the tournament), the beautiful scenery, mild weather, and incredibly deep snow impressed the competitors, journalists and spectators that attended the nationally publicized contest.

By the time the ski competitors arrived in February 1932, nearly 300 inches of snow had buried Tahoe City in drifts approaching 25 feet high. The winning combination of heavy snowfall and heavenly mountains convinced a skeptical media that California really did offer world-class skiing and scenery. A March 3, 1932, article published in the Auburn Journal described the excitement: “The 28th National Ski Tournament goes down as one of the best exhibitions of good sportsmanship, one of the most thrilling meets, one of the most spectacular events ever held in the United States under the auspices of the National Ski Association.”

At the tournament, one young Reno competitor, Wayne Poulsen, placed third in the ski jumping event. His excellent performance launched Poulsen, the future founder and owner of Squaw Valley, into a lifetime involvement in skiing. As a direct result of the 1932 National Ski Tournament at Lake Tahoe, the popularity and economics of winter sports throughout the Sierra boomed. - Mark McLaughlin, The Truckee Sierra Sun

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TRANSIT NEWS

IN ON-TIME PERFORMANCES, THE SOUTHLAND HAS METRA'S BEST AND WORST

CHICAGO, IL -- Metra's Heritage Corridor Line has one heritage its riders can do without.

The commuter route that links Joliet with Chicago via stops in Lockport, Lemont, Willow Springs and Summit runs on schedule 93.6 percent of the time -- the worst rate among Metra's 11 lines during the first half of 2006.

Metra's latest on-time performance scores also show the Rock Island District and SouthWest Service lines checked in at 96.7 percent and 95.1 percent, respectively.

Standing out among Metra's Southland lines was the Electric Line, which was the railroad's top performer. The Electric Line, which runs from Chicago to University Park through the south suburbs and the South Side, arrived on time 98.6 percent of the time during the January-June period.

Metra deems a train late if it arrives six minutes past its scheduled time. Systemwide, the on-time average for the first six months of 2006 was 96.9 percent. The benchmark Metra sets is 95 percent, and the Heritage Corridor Line was one of two lines to fail to meet that during the six-month period.

For veteran commuters of the line, the on-time figure is no surprise. Since it debuted in 1984, the Heritage Corridor Line has been easily forgettable.

The line carries an average of about 3,000 riders a day -- the fewest, by far, of any Metra line. By comparison, the busiest line, the BNSF Railway Company’s line to the western suburbs, hauls about 50,000 daily.

The Heritage Corridor also offers the least service. Three inbound trains leave in the morning, and three trains return at night. There are no trains on weekends.

Robert Klazura Jr., of Lemont, a data analyst for a banking firm in the Loop, said Heritage Corridor trains are usually four or five minutes behind schedule -- a minute or two under the threshold that Metra considers late but annoying nonetheless.

"There does seem to be a lot of interference at the crossings," Klazura said. "It's not horrible, but it is late with regularity."

The reason is not entirely Metra's fault. The tracks that HC trains use are owned by the CN Railroad, which maintains the tracks and coordinates train movements, Metra spokesman Patrick Waldron said.

"They own and control the tracks," Waldron said. "We never want a train to be late, but there are other factors that can have an influence."

The line also runs through some of the country's heaviest rail traffic each day. To reach Union Station in downtown Chicago, HC trains pass five intersecting freight lines.

Winston Rogers, of Crest Hill, said his ride typically is tied up near the Corn Products plant in Bedford Park. Passing freight trains blocking the HC Line for several minutes are common, Rogers said.

"Most of the people who take this train know there is a lot of freight," he said. "It is just congested. You take it in stride."

Lockport's Kyle Walker understands that Metra is living in a freight world.

"There are problems. Nine times out of 10, it is freight interference," Walker said. "More than anything, it is the industrial path that's taken."

Metra is proud of the overall performance results for the first half of 2006. Waldron pointed out that of the 50,000 trips Metra took through that period, only 1,499 were late.

"That's 3 percent," Waldron said. "You have to put this into perspective."

The HC for years was known as the worst-performing Metra line. In the 1990s, it was on time less than 90 percent. An outcry from riders forced Metra to spend $16 million on infrastructure improvements, along with adding two trains to the daily schedule.

Waldron said there are no immediate plans to improve the line's operation or to add more trains. Federal help, in the form of a $1.3 billion plan to streamline rail operations in the Chicago area, remains stuck in Congress.

Before 2006, Metra's North Central Service Line to Antioch had the poorest on-time performance. A $218 million overhaul completed in January corrected many of the problems. - Guy Tridgell, The Daily Southtown

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HEAVY HITTERS BOLSTER LIGHT RAIL: IN A SWITCH, KANSAS CITY VIPs BACK CHASTAIN'S CONCEPT, IF NOT THE VOTER APPROVED DETAILS

“People have a view of momentum going on inside the city and … may be optimistic about Kansas City in a sense they weren’t five years ago.” - MARK ERNST, CHAIRMAN OF THE CIVIC COUNCIL OF GREATER KANSAS CITY

KANSAS CITY, MO -- Influential business and civic leaders are lining up behind Kansas City’s light rail initiative in what is being described as a “sea change” in attitude inspired by voters.

“The people have spoken, and we shouldn’t take that lightly,” said Mark Ernst, chairman of the Civic Council of Greater Kansas City.
“We are looking to be supportive of whatever process emerges and waiting for the city to resolve how it will proceed.”

Ernst, chief executive of H&R Block, was one of several officials from the Civic Council, Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce and the Downtown Council who met with city representatives this month to discuss the light rail plan approved by voters Nov. 7.

Besides Ernst, others at the meeting included the chamber’s president, Pete Levi; the chamber’s new chairman, John Bluford, chief executive of Truman Medical Centers; Jewel Scott, executive director of the Civic Council; and Tom McDonnell, chief executive of DST Systems.

Particularly noteworthy was the participation of Levi and Bluford.

The chamber has been a foe of light rail in the past. It opposed a 2001 proposal that was overwhelmingly rejected by voters and the ballot initiative submitted by Clay Chastain that ultimately gained voter approval.

“The interest of the chamber is to explore an economically feasible plan,” Levi said. “If you look at the history of the chamber, we never opposed light rail per se. We were opposed to projects that weren’t economically feasible or didn’t fit into an overall metropolitan plan.”

None of the leaders interviewed endorsed the entire light rail initiative as crafted by Chastain and approved in November.

All agreed, however, that for the first time voters have approved a funding mechanism, a 25-year extension of the 3/8 -cent sales tax, that could pay for a basic light rail system in Kansas City.

“The comments I’ve heard are: The voters have said we want light rail, and now we have to find a way to do it,” said Warren Erdman, chairman of the Kansas City Economic Development Corp. and a vice president with Kansas City Southern.

“A lot of obstacles need to be overcome, but the focus is not on the obstacles, but how to overcome them. I think this is a sea change in the way people are looking at this.”

Chastain welcomed the newfound support of civic leaders, but he was frustrated by the continuing criticism regarding the details of the plan approved by voters.

“I’m overjoyed, and I think this is absolutely the kind of cooperation and spirit the people expect from their leaders,” Chastain said. “Let them be more specific about what aspects of this are impractical or illegal so we can discuss them.

“It is important that everybody understand that 72,000 opinions were registered in favor of this plan. The only way it can be changed is if there’s some aspect that is proven to be illegal or impossible to implement.”

The chamber and the Civic Council, an organization of top executives from major regional companies, are working on a joint vision statement for next year that will ask newly elected city officials, including the next mayor, to come up with a feasible plan for implementing light rail in the context of a regional transportation system.

“People have a view of momentum going on inside the city, and to make all these attractions accessible demands a transit system we don’t have,” Ernst said. “People may be optimistic about Kansas City in a sense they weren’t five years ago.”

One of the more outspoken light rail advocates has been Tom Hoenig, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.
As head of the Kansas City Fed, Hoenig makes frequent trips to Denver, the largest city in the district, and has observed the success of light rail there.

Denver built its initial 5.3-mile light rail line in 1994, and it has been steadily adding track and routes since. Last month, the city opened a 19-mile stretch along Interstate 25, bringing the total to 34 miles.

“I’ve been impressed with how well light rail has done in Denver,” Hoenig said. “They started small, and now it’s exceeded all expectations.”

Hoenig has lived here for 33 years and thinks Kansas City is capable of building the kind of light rail system being operated in comparable cities.

“The voters have given us a mandate,” he said. “If everyone is on the same page, there’s a good case to be made — as good as Denver and Portland and St. Louis.”

While the cost of building and operating light rail remains relatively high by today’s transportation standards, Hoenig predicted that it will appear more affordable over time.

“Over the long term, energy costs are going to continue to go up, and light rail will be increasingly economical,” he said. “We ought to think about the future, 10 to 20 years out, and good rail and bus access is to the long-term advantage of citizens.”

Hoenig also pointed out that building additional highway miles around the metro for cars and trucks isn’t cheap, noting that the recent Grandview Triangle reconstruction project cost about $220 million, and $165 million is being spent currently to widen Interstate 435 in Overland Park.

“People say light rail is a subsidy. But I watched the Grandview Triangle, and the amount of money spent redesigning it gives you a sense of the cost of maintaining a highway system as well,” he said. “Light rail would relieve some of that and also provide cleaner air.”
Erdman said other forms of commuter rail should be included in implementing a light rail plan.

The Smart Moves plan prepared by the Mid-America Regional Council envisioned using heavy rail lines along Interstates 35 and 70 and U.S. 71 to bring commuters to downtown and Union Station. A light rail spine running from downtown to the Country Club Plaza via Union Station would distribute passengers to their final destinations.

City Manager Wayne Cauthen welcomed the support of civic leaders.

“I think it’s a benefit,” he said. “The combination of citizens voting and civic leaders saying, ‘Let’s get behind it,’ adds to the momentum of getting it done.” - Kevin Collison, The Kansas City Star

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