Beacon Line Maintenance / Current Status / Background

Here we go again. From today's MidHudsonNews.com http://www.midhudsonnews.com/News/2015/ ... Aug15.html

BEACON – The portion of the Harlem Valley Line of Metro-North that is currently not in use could be used for a rail trail, Beacon Mayor Randy Casale said.

My only question is where is Metro North's Harlem Valley Line?

Typical media.

I liked the comment about running trains from Fishkill to Beacon. Maybe they can drum up a few SPV2000's for the service.

Wasn't it always the plan to do rail-with-trail here? The trail segments that are laid down are exactly that, and that's how they were talking long ago about continuing it because the line was never abandoned and whether it's OOS or not nobody has any plans to abandon it. Not MNRR and not Housatonic who still has active paper rights all the way to Dutchess Jct. whether they're ever used again or not.

Sounds like status quo to me with the longstanding trail plans. Must be a slow news day.

no, the rail to trail was from Poughkeepsie to Brewster on Maybrook right of way, were vacated space from second track could be used.
The Hopewell Jct to Beacon part was always single track, and will not be cleared for rails to trails as tracks are still used for MofW training out of Hopewell Jct.

as for service the connection in Beacon faces wrong way, and numbers just are not there for train service.

DutchRailnut wrote:as for service the connection in Beacon faces wrong way, and numbers just are not there for train service.

It sounds like what he was envisioning was a Fishkill / Beacon shuttle vs another line into the city. The tracks would be situated perfectly for that.

the numbers are just not there despite the majors fantasy.

There's already a bus that goes from Beacon, through Fishkill to Hopewell that is more effective (cost, scheduling) than a train will ever be.

and I betya its not even half full even in busiest hours.

DutchRailnut wrote:and I betya its not even half full even in busiest hours.

It's one of those chicken-egg situations. There is little if any parking along the route so if you need to get into your car to get to the bus you might as well continue on to Beacon or New Hamburg and park there. When I ride in the morning I am surrounded by people from Fishkill and Hopewell Junction. If the buses met every train they'd be full (or full-er). But the county is going to subsidize a fleet of empty buses.

It would be nice to get all of those cars off the roads but unless you triple or quadruple the density of southern Dutchess the numbers (passengers and revenue) aren't there to justify doing anything meaningful with the Beacon line between Hopewell and Beacon. I hate to admit it but DutchRailnut is right.

add to it that busses can head other way since roads are bi-directional a shuttle train would occupy entire block and be only train.
now add that beacon line is 25 mph max and would need a signal system (PTC) for passenger use and possibility of second train.

the D before the T - reverse TOD > RTOD









BEACON LINE POPULATION SERVED
the population data is from the US 2010 census


city of Beacon:
15,541 (also served by the Hudson line)

population totals excluding Beacon - combined towns of Fishkill,village of Fishkill and town of East Fishkill:
53,307

metro City of Beacon with above (excluding the towns of Beekman and Pawling):
68,805 > vs. Mt. Vernon (Westchester county) 67,292

town of Beekman:
14,621

town of Pawling:
8,463 (also served by the Harlem line)


grand total southern Dutchess/Beacon metro including the towns of Beekman and Pawling:
91,932

NOTE: since this census there has been population growth in Fishkill and Beacon and there is ongoing commercial development in Fishkill

in the above illustrations which one looks most like southern Dutchess of 2015?