January 30th marked the 10th anniversary of the passing of Byron Nordberg. Called the “heart and soul of RailPAC”, our “founding President” was known for his tireless efforts at promoting passenger rail. Read Noel Braymer’s photo report at http://www.unitedrail.org/2007/01/30/byron-nordberg-remembered/
Editorial Growth is Amtrak’s only option By Noel T. Braymer Last month we republished excerpts from an article from the NEW YORK TIMES with the headline Surprising Forecast for Amtrak: Growth. This is a sad commentary on the current state of Amtrak that the media would consider a marketing plan for Amtrak surprising. But in…
SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY RAIL COMMITTEE Meeting Report January 11, 2007, Bakersfield Reported by Bruce Jenkins, RailPAC Director The meeting had to be accelerated due to the hour and a half delay just south of Modesto of San Joaquin train #702 (southbound) which carried numerous committee members from the north. Cause of the delay was the…
There’s a new twist in the quest to electrify Caltrain, as ANG Newspapers (which includes the San Mateo County Times and Oakland Tribune) reports. With Caltrain eying non-FRA-compliant Electric Multiple Units to increase capacity and reduce trip times — and Positive Train Control as added safety, there is new pressure on the Federal Railroad Administration…
15 years of clean comfortable trips leave most passengers satisfied as commuter line marks anniversary. — San Francisco Chronicle, 13 December 2006. Fifteen years ago, Amtrak and Caltrans began a new passenger train service connecting the Bay Area and Sacramento with three round-trip trains a day. The Capitol Corridor trains quickly drew standing-room crowds on…
from the Sacramento Bee, 8 December 2006. For two decades, Sacramento’s light-rail system has been running on its own loop, unconnected to the greater train-travel world. Until today.
We are pleased to announce that our new web page will be more up-to-date than ever, and more useful as well. You will find all the previous content here, with the exception of the older meeting reports; those are all still at the archived 2006 site. We hope to move those remaining articles here within…
Here are this month’s four California Rail Pictures of the Month. Note: Previous California Rail Pictures of the Month have been reactivated and are temporarily archived at our Gallery. December was a busy month at the Sacramento Valley Rail Station. In addition to the daily comings and goings of passengers, the Sacramento RT dedicated its…
Editorial by Noel Braymer To get a good idea what improvements we in California can expect in the near future, the best place to look is at is the current CALIFORNIA STATE RAIL PLAN prepared by Caltrans Division of Rail. You can study the entire document on line at the Caltrans web page at www.dot.ca.gov/rail/go/dor/division-of-railreports…
The Sacramento train station hosted two big events in December… A Photo Report by Russ Jackson, RailPAC Secretary. Inside the dedication tent on December 8, Sacramento area officials gathered to enthusiastically support the half-mile extension of the RT light rail line from the K Street “Downtown” Mall into the Amtrak station. In this picture are…