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 #1262607  by electricron
 
dowlingm wrote:that timeline looks a bit weird. They are only making the prototypes now and then shipping to Illinois? That may be okay for SMART but unless it's been decided Metrolinx will accept DMUs direct from Japan it's hard to see how Union-Pearson Express timelines will be met. According to previous advisories posted here shouldn't there should have been test vehicles in Pueblo in February?
It appears there has been a six month slippage in the schedule for SMART, but that doesn't mean the schedule for UP has slipped as well.

Per the UP web site:
The Operations team has reaffirmed with our partners and key contributors the delivery work plans, schedules, and deliverables to ensure we are ready for testing and commissioning of the vehicles to commence in Summer 2014.

Apparently, pilot vehicles will be available for both UP and SMART this summer. I will add summer 2014 ends in September. Presently, UP is set to start operation in spring 2015 which ends in June. The PanAm games is schedule to start July 10, 2015.
Last edited by electricron on Tue Apr 08, 2014 4:47 pm, edited 2 times in total.
 #1262629  by dowlingm
 
Not saying it's time to push the panic button but if the manufacturer is going to gobble all the contingency it doesn't leave much time for overruns post-delivery.
 #1263405  by kaitoku
 
Larkspur extension closer to reality.
It was green lights this week for the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit's effort to get $40 million to pay for train service to Larkspur, where passengers could hop on ferries into San Francisco.

On Friday, a committee of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission — the agency that controls much of the transportation spending in the Bay Area — endorsed the San Rafael to Larkspur extension for $20 million in federal Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery funds.

Without that endorsement, SMART would have virtually no chance of getting the money. Now it has a fighting chance.
http://www.marinij.com/marinnews/ci_255 ... s-from-key" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 #1263408  by electricron
 
kaitoku wrote:Larkspur extension closer to reality.
It was green lights this week for the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit's effort to get $40 million to pay for train service to Larkspur, where passengers could hop on ferries into San Francisco.

On Friday, a committee of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission — the agency that controls much of the transportation spending in the Bay Area — endorsed the San Rafael to Larkspur extension for $20 million in federal Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery funds.

Without that endorsement, SMART would have virtually no chance of getting the money. Now it has a fighting chance.
A chance to get the money is good, but SMART has failed to get Federal funds many times in the past.
Let's stop counting chickens until the eggs hatch and the federal funds have been allocated.
 #1264381  by NH2060
 
At last some photos of the new trains. Must say they look very sharp!
http://roadwarrior.blogs.pressdemocrat. ... -shipping/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Interesting bit here. Brief quote:
The $56 million contract with Sumitomo Corp. gives SMART the option to buy up to 80 train units, well more than the agency needs, Mansourian said.

SMART has added revenue by selling 12 train car options to a rail authority in Canada. On Wednesday, the agency sold another option to the TriMet Transportation District of Portland, Ore., for $100,000.
$100K for one car? That has to be a typo :-P
 #1264393  by electricron
 
NH2060 wrote:At last some photos of the new trains. Must say they look very sharp!
http://roadwarrior.blogs.pressdemocrat. ... -shipping/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Interesting bit here. Brief quote:
$100K for one car? That has to be a typo :-P
$100K for the option to tack onto SMART's purchasing contract with Nippon Sharyo. The actual price TriMet will pay will be more similar to what SMART paid, depending upon the numbers they order.

By the way, GO Transit in Toronto has ordered 18 DMUs in total, not the 12 mentioned in the article, for their UP train service.
 #1264523  by dowlingm
 
The initial order was for 12 which is maybe what's causing confusion but Metrolinx added middle cars for each consist. In theory should the service need the capacity a 4th car per set might be ordered but that's the max the airport platform can accommodate.
 #1264750  by Mr.T
 
electricron wrote:
NH2060 wrote:At last some photos of the new trains. Must say they look very sharp!
http://roadwarrior.blogs.pressdemocrat. ... -shipping/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Interesting bit here. Brief quote:
$100K for one car? That has to be a typo :-P
$100K for the option to tack onto SMART's purchasing contract with Nippon Sharyo. The actual price TriMet will pay will be more similar to what SMART paid, depending upon the numbers they order.

By the way, GO Transit in Toronto has ordered 18 DMUs in total, not the 12 mentioned in the article, for their UP train service.
Sounds like Tri-Met is looking to supplement(or replace) their fleet of Colorado RailCar DMUs.
Tri-Met basically designed the WES service to use custom cars(single-level, high platform, FRA-compliant DMUs) only made by one(now defunct) supplier, and(from what I've heard) the stations aren't long enough for locomotive-hauled consists.
Since CRC didn't seem to mind small custom orders, Tri-Met probably thought they could order a few more cars whenever they wanted, and were left in a bind when CRC went out of business. Major builders tend to treat small orders as a nuisance, either not bidding at all or asking an exorbitant price. The Nippon Sharyo cars seem to match exactly what Tri-Met needs, so this may be Tri-Met's only chance to get more cars at a relatively reasonable price.
 #1264758  by dowlingm
 
Trimet are buying 2 DMUs to supplement WES fleet to meet capacity demands expected by 2016
trimet.org/pdfs/meetings/board/2014-3-26/Res_14-03-19.pdf
 #1266008  by kaitoku
 
Details about the engines to be used for the DMUs:
NIPPON Sharyo's new DMU for North America is to be powered by Cummins QSK 19-R engines which are certified to meet Tier 4 Final ultra-low emissions standards which come into effect on January 1 2015.
Cummins says the QSK 19-R is the first DMU engine under production in North America which will meet the new emissions standards set by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The 19-litre engine is integrated with Cummins' selective catalytic reduction after-treatment to reduce exhaust emissions to very low levels.
http://www.railjournal.com/index.php/ro ... hannel=542" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 #1269439  by kaitoku
 
Some news about track work:
Lengthy pieces of rail designed to provide a smoother and quieter ride were hauled into Novato on Wednesday as work continues in Marin on the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit commuter train project.

With horn sounding, a track vehicle pulling four, 1,600-foot sections of track from Petaluma cruised into Novato just after noon, halting movement briefly at Rush Creek Place, Golden Gate Place and at the Grant, Olive and Franklin avenue crossings.

Rail lines of yesteryear were generally built on tracks that were 48 feet long, creating the iconic "clickity-clack" sound as train wheels hit joints. The SMART trains, however, will run on the longer stretches of continuous welded rail — manufactured in Pueblo, Colo. — resulting in less noise.
http://www.marinij.com/novato/ci_257183 ... mart-train" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 #1270167  by mtuandrew
 
NH2060 wrote:At last some photos of the new trains. Must say they look very sharp!
http://roadwarrior.blogs.pressdemocrat. ... -shipping/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Heck of a handsome car. I could see it at home on several systems - DART TRE, Metro Transit Commuter Rail (I still believe their Bombardier bilevels are overkill), NJT RiverLine, CDOT NHHS... Hope it works well for SMART, TriMet, and Metrolinx UP.
 #1287816  by dowlingm
 
http://www.railwayage.com/index.php/fre ... channel=94" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Schellville, Calif.-based short line Northwestern Pacific Railroad Co. (NWP) has expressed displeasure with recent actions undertaken by Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) actions that the freight railroad says is disrupting its service capabilities.

In a letter dated July 4, 2014, sent to federal, California state and local officials, and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, the San Francisco Bay Area's metropolitan planning organization (MPO), NWP Vice President Jacob Park cites "past and proposed actions taken by the Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) that are hurting local businesses, obstructing NWP's rightful use of the railroad, and are in direct conflict with the Metropolitan Transportation Commission's (MTC) goal of promoting efficient and shared use of rail lines for commuter and freight services."
Edit: found this after. Seems like it was a storm in a teacup
http://www.railwayage.com/index.php/fre ... oject.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
But in a July 15 letter to MTC Executive Director Steve Heminger, NWP General Counsel Douglas H. Bosco downplayed any friction between NWP and SMART, stating, "These issues, though important, are ones that could be expected between the building of a state-of-the-art passenger system that will share the same track with freight services. Procedures for the resolution of all issues between SMART and [North Coast Railroad Authority and NWP] are carefully laid out in the Operating Agreement, entered into between the parties in June 2011."

Bosco notes, "Since agreed-upon procedures are in place, I have informed Mr. Park that raising these issues with the MTC was not appropriate or authorized."
 #1292151  by NH2060
 
San Rafael rejects SMART station designs:
Fair use quote>
San Rafael City Council members voted unanimously Tuesday night to send a letter to SMART stating their displeasure with the platform or station designs, which are 65 percent complete. The scant designs by Oakland-based businesses AECOM Technical Services and FMG Architects feature a canopy, bench, ticket machine, trash can and street light.
http://www.marinij.com/marinnews/ci_264 ... ous-by-san" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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