Quote:
Originally Posted by sakyle04
i know that threads digress from time to time and it is sometimes beneficial to the overall theme...but is there a way that we can get back to discussing light rail in san antonio here? the commuter rail math is making my head hurt.
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Sure, we can. But, is what San Antonio is suggesting light rail, or is it really streetcars and/or trams?
If you want fast mass transit, you have to get the trains off the streets as much as possible. Either following an existing not very busy rail line, a transmission line corridor, or some other existing corridor. Take for example Dart's Blue Line. From Rowlett to Mockingbird Station, it follows a mostly abandoned rail line, although daily freight service is available to industries in Garland by the third parallel freight DNGO track. From Mockingbird Station to Pearl St. Station, the Blue Line is in the tunnel under North Central Expressway. From Pearl St. Station to the West End Station the Blue Line runs on city streets, but all other vehicle traffic removed except crossing traffic. From Union Station to 8th St Station, again in a rail line corridor on exclusive Dart tracks. From 8th St Station to Illinois St Station, the Blue Line follows under a transmission line corridor. From Illinios St Station to Ledbetter Station, the Blue Line travels down the center median of Lancaster Rd.
Of the total 29 miles of the Blue Line, less than 4 miles travel down city streets. In the tunnel under North Central and on the bridge over the Trinity River, the trains reach the top speed of 65 mph, which they could never do on city streets. That makes them fast.
If you're going to build your transit line entirely in city streets, San Antonio would do much better buying streetcars, like the Skoda, with a top speed of just 45 mph. As that is as fast as they will need to go.
It's easy to sit in the lounge chair and be second string quarterbacks, but it's been my experience that the transit planners check which bus routes that have the greatest ridership, and those are the routes that are chosen for streetcars. So, I usually completely agree with them on where the streetcars should go. It's only when politicians start messing with the transit planners when I start to worry.
Streetcars should basically replace buses on very busy routes, where the more efficent and less polluting streetcars reduce traffic congestion cause by so many buses on the route. If the bus route isn't very busy, it's better to continue using buses. If your buses on the route are bunching up, two arriving within minutes, and the next one half an hour later, it's time to use a streetcar to get the operating schedule fixed.
Example, a Skoda streetcar.
Fast mass transit should be used near busy intercity developments, connecting a downtown district to an airport, between dense developments in the suburbs and cities together. Examples, Light rail, DMUs, and EMU non-compliant FRA trains
Commuter rail or Regional rail should be used to connect residential suburbs to downtown, or between two adjacent cities. For example, between Dallas and Ft. Worth, Austin and San Antonio, Houston and Galveston. Example, TRE, UTA Frontrunner, NM's Railrunner, and ASA proposed routes.
Large multiple deck cars are best with less frequent service with high ridership, small single deck cars with less ridership, or more frequent service, like the CapMetro DMU.