markhb wrote:Tony Donovan's rail advocacy site is the Maine Rail Transit Coalition; I suggest looking there and on the linked Facebook and Blogspot for more of his (or mainly his) writings. This grant from the NAR is apparently going to be used to study the same basic proposal MRTC has on its website, commuter rail Auburn-Portland via the SLR (note the comments about how the track is owned by the state from Auburn to Portland), and unless he now wants to end the line in the old East Deering yard (which is currently not even served by a bus route), he's going to have to come up with a figure for replacing the Back Cove trestle to get to India Street. Good luck getting that beyond the paper stage.
I attended a meeting tonight hosted by the MRTC and Sierra Club at the Danville Junction grange hall. They went over the plans and an update of where this project stands. They don't have a full cost estimate yet for how much this will all cost but plan to have another meeting in Jan so I think they will have them by then. What costs they did have were 67 million to restore the track from MP 0 in Portland (India St I believe) to Auburn (MP 29 as I recall). That includes the back cove trestle, which they had received two estimates of 8.8 and 10 million to restore it. I was surprised to see that a whole study had been done on that bridge, back in 2005 I believe. It was very detailed. Apparently the bottom of the pilings had been reinforced with concrete at some point so the bridge will not be falling apart anytime soon. On a bridge note, some engineers have told him that the former GT bridge between Auburn/Lewiston is still in good shape and can hold tracks again.
He said trains (DMU's) would be running to Auburn in 36 months (as of Jan 1st). Person asked how confident he was and he said very. He thinks there will be. An environmental assessment had been done on the whole line in 2005 but needs to be updated. Also, at this point, they are focused on Portland to Auburn.
A $100 week pass was mentioned in regards to possible ticket prices.
Not one person said they did not want the train service or that they were against it. A freight came thru halfway thru and that caused an anti PAR convo with the locals. Guy says the 40 horns a day are annoying and that some of the RR workers have a vendetta against some of the locals because they blast the horns for too long at times. Had to bite my tongue not to laugh.
I can get pdf copies of the any of the studies if I want. Just have to email them. I may ask for the bridge study as that looked interested when I was flipping thru it.
One of the studies I flipped through with maps of routes showed a wye drawn at the back cove trestle to connect with the Union Branch and onto PTC (two legs over the water, one the existing trestle). It was quite interesting to see that link because this service was not to connect with the Downeaster unless that connect would be used if trains ever came from Montreal.
Oh and the person who did the power point is a volunteer for the MRTC. He in the real estate business and said he represents the owner of Thompson's Point.