There's a big difference between gradually bumping a line up from 59 or 79 or 90 to 110mph - a line where people already know and expect fast-moving passenger trains - than there is reactivating a disused line where trains are not expected. Especially considering the bump-ups are usually tied in with grade-separating the most used cross streets.
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North Carolina NCDOT-Amtrak Piedmont Service
- Discussion related to Amtrak also known as the National Railroad Passenger Corp.
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I know that from a practical perspective it makes little difference and the incremental speed and capacity improvements along the slower secrions are more meaningful, but is a bump in max speed from 79 mph to 90 still in the cards? From a railfan point of view, it'd be kind of neat, and I think it would be the first >79 mph running south of the Mason-Dixon line in the Amtrak era.
Matt Johnson wrote: is a bump in max speed from 79 mph to 90 still in the cards?The ARRA grant to NC was predicated on max speeds from Charlotte to Greensboro reaching 90mph. I have not heard about any changes to that portion of the plans -- but that is not the kind of thing that would be widely announced.
Four-quadrant gates and divided approaches are good at preventing accidents. Grade separation is better.
The plus side is that there probably won't be many slow-speed trains on the S-Line (unless CSX and/or NS plan to use the line as overflow), so the gates can be properly timed to just one speed range.
The plus side is that there probably won't be many slow-speed trains on the S-Line (unless CSX and/or NS plan to use the line as overflow), so the gates can be properly timed to just one speed range.
mtuandrew wrote:Four-quadrant gates and divided approaches are good at preventing accidents. Grade separation is better.FYI:
The plus side is that there probably won't be many slow-speed trains on the S-Line (unless CSX and/or NS plan to use the line as overflow), so the gates can be properly timed to just one speed range.
Gates are no longer timed by fixed length track circuits. Crossing Predictors measure the rate of change of track circuit impedance to gauge train speed and drop the gates at a predetermined time regardless of train speed. Works pretty well except when trains are decelerating. Then it goes in to a "I don't know speed " mode and drops gates early.
http://www.citizen-times.com/story/news ... /21403247/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
It will be interesting to see if this proposed Salisbury-Asheville Thru Way bus service comes to pass.
It will be interesting to see if this proposed Salisbury-Asheville Thru Way bus service comes to pass.
From what we have been told at NCDOT a train host meetings, Asheville is the #1 destination that Amtrak reservations gets calls asking about that is not served.
A llittle history on the upgrade of the line to Asheville, several years ago NS quoted a price of $157M for the needed upgrades from Salsbury to Asheville. The NCDOT was agreeable but wanted the payments stretched out over 5 years, since NS could not do the improvements in less then 5 years. NS said no, all cash had to be paid up- front. DOT cash flow would not allow such lump sum payment without effecting the rest of the program.
Now we have a General Assembly that has stripped NCDOT of much of its rail funding, so there is no cash for this project and with our new transportation funding system, there never will be. It was clearly written to fund highways, and highways only.
A llittle history on the upgrade of the line to Asheville, several years ago NS quoted a price of $157M for the needed upgrades from Salsbury to Asheville. The NCDOT was agreeable but wanted the payments stretched out over 5 years, since NS could not do the improvements in less then 5 years. NS said no, all cash had to be paid up- front. DOT cash flow would not allow such lump sum payment without effecting the rest of the program.
Now we have a General Assembly that has stripped NCDOT of much of its rail funding, so there is no cash for this project and with our new transportation funding system, there never will be. It was clearly written to fund highways, and highways only.
In all fairness, the Asheville corridor simply does not have the kind of ridership potential needed
to justify the expense of upgrading the line. Rail needs a relatively high population density
to make it worthwhile, and only the string of cities from Raleigh to Atlanta can make it
worth the expense.
to justify the expense of upgrading the line. Rail needs a relatively high population density
to make it worthwhile, and only the string of cities from Raleigh to Atlanta can make it
worth the expense.
I'll add that the Old Fort loops going up the Blue Ridge will doom rail to always be significantly slower than driving on the route.
Having saud that, I am typing this on the 79 running an hour behind in Salisbury and I would be a regular rider of the Asheville route no matter how slow it was.
Having saud that, I am typing this on the 79 running an hour behind in Salisbury and I would be a regular rider of the Asheville route no matter how slow it was.
Looks like an interesting area up in the hills. I wish I had known this when I did my 2012 trip, I probably would have taken an extra days car hire, and driven along the ridge towards the new river gorge.
Next time I guess.
I'm surprised there is not more Thruway bus services in North Carolina really. Especially the east , I would have thought those cities would have thruway services to the Piedmont services.
Next time I guess.
I'm surprised there is not more Thruway bus services in North Carolina really. Especially the east , I would have thought those cities would have thruway services to the Piedmont services.
Moderator worldwide railfan , Rail travel & trip reports
The only train trips I regret are the ones I didn't take.
The only train trips I regret are the ones I didn't take.
A bit of track improvement that will benefit the Carolinian, Palmetto and Silvers:
The following release is from NCDOT:
This month, CSX, in partnership with NCDOT, will begin construction on a series of projects to build universal crossovers on the CSX A-line in three eastern North Carolina locations: South Weldon, Enfield, and Rocky Mount. Construction at the three project locations will include grading, drainage improvements, track, and signal construction.
**********
The crossovers will enable trains to cross over from one track to another regardless of direction, allowing passenger and freight trains to operate more fluidly. Three Amtrak passenger trains operate on this section of railroad, which runs north to Richmond and south through Fayetteville to Florida.
*********
This is another ARRA stimlus funded project. Proud to say that NC did well in obtaining theses funds for projects such as double tracking, Raleigh station, sidings on the H line, and now cross overs on the A line. Thanks Florida and Wisconsin.
matthewsaggie wrote:This is another ARRA stimlus funded project. Proud to say that NC did well in obtaining theses funds for projects such as double tracking, Raleigh station, sidings on the H line, and now cross overs on the A line. Thanks Florida and Wisconsin.Don't really need to thank FL and WI for the ARRA funds for NC. Checking my files, the crossover projects on the A-Line was part of the original grant awards in 2010. NC received most of its funding in the original 2010 stimulus round as well. Think NC DOT got some additional funds from the OH, WI, FL grant re-allocations but it was not much.
So the funds for the crossovers that CSX will install over the next year was awarded close to 5 years ago. Good to see the construction work get started, but good grief it has taken a long time for what should be a simple project.
afiggatt wrote:While great for Amtrak and Piedmont trains, how long it took to start shows that many of the rail projects were not construction ready. Emergency funds for stimulating the economy during a recession to get people back to work wasn't spent until long after the recession was over. Poor timing.matthewsaggie wrote:This is another ARRA stimlus funded project. Proud to say that NC did well in obtaining theses funds for projects such as double tracking, Raleigh station, sidings on the H line, and now cross overs on the A line. Thanks Florida and Wisconsin.Don't really need to thank FL and WI for the ARRA funds for NC. Checking my files, the crossover projects on the A-Line was part of the original grant awards in 2010. NC received most of its funding in the original 2010 stimulus round as well. Think NC DOT got some additional funds from the OH, WI, FL grant re-allocations but it was not much.
So the funds for the crossovers that CSX will install over the next year was awarded close to 5 years ago. Good to see the construction work get started, but good grief it has taken a long time for what should be a simple project.
Station Aficionado wrote:A bit of track improvement that will benefit the Carolinian, Palmetto and Silvers:Well that explains why CSX replaced every SCL intermediate signal between Rocky Mount and Petersburg EXCEPT for MP 102 and MP 114 at Enfield and Rockey Mount. Why use your own $ for upgrades when you can get the state to pay.
The following release is from NCDOT:
This month, CSX, in partnership with NCDOT, will begin construction on a series of projects to build universal crossovers on the CSX A-line in three eastern North Carolina locations: South Weldon, Enfield, and Rocky Mount. Construction at the three project locations will include grading, drainage improvements, track, and signal construction.
**********
The crossovers will enable trains to cross over from one track to another regardless of direction, allowing passenger and freight trains to operate more fluidly. Three Amtrak passenger trains operate on this section of railroad, which runs north to Richmond and south through Fayetteville to Florida.
*********
The Enfield and Rocky Mount locations will split 4-mile and 6-mile sections of double track in half, creating two sidings where there was one. I ride this route twice a year and that is where Trains 92 and 79 pass. The new Enfield crossover will mean the dispatcher won't have to reserve the entire siding for T79 or T92 to pass. The Rocky Mount crossover will provide greater flexibility for T92 and 79 to pass and not have to have T79 platform across track #1 at Rockey Mount. Twice I have had T79 do a "pull in" pass at BATTLE interlocking and two more times I have had T79 platform on the small duckboard across track one.
The South Weldon crossover is a bit of a puzzler. The interlocking already exists, but the crossover is facing point only. It splits a 4 mile siding in half and I am not seeing how an extra crossover will increase capacity much.