-
Why Does it Take So Long to Get More and Faster Trains?
By Noel T. Braymer The short answer is money: or rather the lack of money. Things looked much brighter back in 2000. In 2000 the State of California had a budget surplus of 12.3 billion dollars! The Federal Government also had a budget surplus and the Federal Debt was shrinking. Unemployment was low and economic…
-
What’s the Future of California High Speed Rail?
Opinion by Noel T. Braymer The impact of the recent court decision on the use of voter approved bonds for High Speed Rail is unknown. This ruling doesn’t stop current construction which for now is being paid with Federal Funds. What the judge ruled is that the California High Speed Rail Authority CHSRA) according to…
-
Rail Service We Need Before High Speed Rail in California
Opinion by Noel T. Braymer The most optimistic deadline for the start up of High Speed Rail in California is 2022 between Burbank and Merced. This includes connecting feeder trains to most of Southern California and from the San Joaquin Valley to the Bay Area and Sacramento. There are many improvements needed for conventional rail…
-
What’s Up with the Coaster?
By Noel T. Braymer …
-
Like it or Not, Here Comes California High Speed Rail
By Noel T. Braymer Despite numerous predictions of the imminent death of the California High Speed Rail Project it is still chugging along and even picking up speed now. Not that it hasn’t had a few near death experiences along the way since the voters approved nearly 10 billion dollars in Bonds for it in…
-
Our Biggest Problem is The Weather
By Noel T. Braymer It is now just over a year since Hurricane Sandy caused record breaking damage along the East Coast. There was wind and flood damage which disrupted electrical power, fuel supplies, destroyed homes while damaging roads, railroads and rail transit. For the first time 100 plus year old river tunnels to Manhattan…
-
Is It Time to Franchise the Long Distance Passenger Trains?
By Noel T. Braymer What’s the answer for America’s Long Distance Passenger Trains? Since W. Graham Claytor retired as Amtrak President in 1993 the Long Distance Trains have been slowly decaying. New and more equipment is needed now just for current demand. The equipment is now not being properly maintained which often causes problem on…
-
How To Build a New Railroad Without Federal Money
By Noel T. Braymer The most critical segment for decent passenger rail service in California is a new alignment between Los Angeles and Bakersfield. The current route built mostly by hand with mules and black powder would still take around 4 hours even if millions for track improvements were spent to get between Los Angeles…
-
Passenger Trains and Buses Should Connect With Each Other
By Noel T. Braymer For years in the past the Greyhound Bus Company complained about how unfair it was that as a private business it had to “compete” with Amtrak which received a government subsidy. An example of this is a California State Law, Senate Bill 804 (Perata) for the year 1999 which Greyhound sponsored.…
-
How to Operate Passenger Trains at a Profit
By Noel T. Braymer It is no secret that the key to being profitable is to bring in more money than you spend. To run a profitable passenger railroad the keys are maximizing productivity and increasing revenue with increased ridership. Here are basic steps that other successful transportation services use to do more than just…