SMART - Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit

Public test rides began last month:

More than 100 people took their first ride on the North Bay’s new passenger rail line Saturday as a packed SMART train passed alongside Sonoma County vineyards, dairy farms and tidal wetlands before turning around south of the new Petaluma River bridge.

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/59347 ... artslide=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

RFP issued for on-board food service:

In preparation for the start of rail service, the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District has released a Request for Proposals, or RFP, for an experienced vendor to provide and serve quality food and beverages, including coffee, tea, pastries, beer, wine and other food items for passengers on board its new trains.

http://patch.com/california/novato/smar ... ard-trains" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

a shame that North American railroading requires all that racket at crossings... bells AND horns. Hardly something which wins hearts and minds from communities (especially ones which aren't getting a stop)

What kind of signaling does SMART use?

dowlingm wrote:a shame that North American railroading requires all that racket at crossings... bells AND horns. Hardly something which wins hearts and minds from communities (especially ones which aren't getting a stop)

There are ways to install "quiet crossings," at least in the U.S, involving placing barricades in the road to discourage the "running of gates." Also four quadrant gates, roadside "horns" that are directed towards streets, not the whole neighborhood, etc.

Without horns and bells there would be even more pedestrian and vehicle accidents at crossings than there are now.

CHTT1 wrote:Without horns and bells there would be even more pedestrian and vehicle accidents at crossings than there are now.

I think that's an assertion which trial lawyers might make, but I wonder if it's evidence based given that horns alone seem to suffice in other jurisdictions. In the SMART video, the train had to continue blasting its horns and clanging its bells when it was already passing through the crossing.

In any event, all responsibility for safety at road-rail interfaces is imposed on the train operator, and yet motorists (in particular) continue to smash gates and otherwise attempt to evade/ignore the various aural and visual warnings.

Technical challenges before run-up to revenue operations:

Sonoma Marin-Area Rail Transit may be able to open its doors with commuter-train service between Santa Rosa and San Rafael in the fourth quarter of 2016, but it’s going to be a race. Engineers on the $500 million project are working to solve a slate of engineering puzzles that come with coordinating the new rail, vehicles and signals.

“With a brand new rail vehicle, we have a brand-new state-of-the-art signaling system,” said Bill Gamlen, SMART’s chief engineer. “And we have brand-new grade crossings. We have been focused on each of these components. Now we’re bringing them all together and testing. Various things come up as part of that. ... You have electronics, new vehicles, new wheels. Everything has to wear together and be integrated.”

http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/ ... artslide=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

CHTT1 wrote:

dowlingm wrote:a shame that North American railroading requires all that racket at crossings... bells AND horns. Hardly something which wins hearts and minds from communities (especially ones which aren't getting a stop)

There are ways to install "quiet crossings," at least in the U.S, involving placing barricades in the road to discourage the "running of gates." Also four quadrant gates, roadside "horns" that are directed towards streets, not the whole neighborhood, etc.

In fact, if a crossing has four quadrant gates, the community can apply for a waiver for the sounding of the horns. a number of communities adjacent to NJT's commuter lines in fact have such waivers in place.

the problem is that in these kinds of situations, it's on the community to come up with the money for the four-quadrant crossings and somehow they rarely put their money where their mouth is.

Without horns and bells there would be even more pedestrian and vehicle accidents at crossings than there are now.

indeed…we have an insane number of fatalities even *with* these measures because people decide that ignoring them is a good idea. removing these measures will make things even worse.

Start of revenue service pushed back to spring 2017 due to problems with Cummins engines, other issues:

The Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit District is having to replace the engines on all 14 of its brand-new rail cars because of crankshaft problems, contributing to a delay in the start of passenger service, which is now pegged to late spring next year, according to documents released Friday.

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/61936 ... ronto-rail" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Official announcement:
http://main.sonomamarintrain.org/wp-con ... ervice.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Don't think Metrolinx have talked about this. We find out so much about UPX because Sonoma Marin is obliged to be more transparent!

Larkspur extension news: Marin Independent Journal

SMART Larkspur extension moves forward amid some discontent

An approach to building a commuter rail extension to Larkspur has received approval, as concerns continue over the impact of trains rolling through downtown San Rafael.

The Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit board approved a design-build contract for the $40 million project last week. The design-build model uses one contractor to design and then build the work rather than have separate firms to design and then construct a project, making the work happen more rapidly. Work on the Larkspur extension could start in summer 2017 and be completed in a year.
...
Work has already been done on a key stretch to get service to Larkspur from San Rafael. In December 2010 the revamped Cal Park Hill Tunnel, an 1,100-foot tube, was opened at a cost of $28 million. Now work is being planned to get operating rails from the San Rafael Transit Center across Andersen Drive and to and then through the tunnel. It will leave riders about one-third of a mile from the ferries.

The commuter rail project is being phased, and the $438 million San Rafael-to-Santa Rosa line is being tested. It is set to open next spring.

so glad to see at least one system in the country moving ahead at full speed with expansion and launch

SMART Train schedule released: SFGATE

The North Bay’s long-awaited and often-postponed passenger train system will make 34 trips every weekday between Santa Rosa and San Rafael starting before dawn and ending after dark, but no firm date other than “late spring” has been set for the start of service.
Releasing their first schedule, officials at Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit, or SMART, said the full 43-mile trip — including stops at 10 stations — will take 67 minutes. The trains, which will take Clipper cards, have been timed to connect with bus services in Marin and Sonoma counties.

Full schedule available here: http://main.sonomamarintrain.org/wp-con ... 7-2017.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/71403 ... artslide=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

What better way to generate buzz about a new transit service than to offer free rides? That’s exactly what Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit will be doing starting Thursday.

Offering the public an early look at the North Bay’s newest transportation system, SMART has scheduled three days of free rides June 29 and July 1 and 4, with more free ride schedules expected to be announced later this week.

”We’re really excited to be able to finally let people on the trains to experience them,” said Debora Fudge, chairwoman of SMART’s board of directors.

Fudge, the mayor of Windsor, said SMART has been granted permission by the federal government to allow limited passenger use while federal officials do their final review of SMART’s positive train control, or PTC, an advanced safety system that automatically shuts down a train in the event of an emergency such as derailments caused by excessive speed.

*hopefully the ptc will shut down the train *before* an overspeed-induced derailment

SMART debuted in full service this week:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfAqKDojzTk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsN9O8YRaHE" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/N ... 962654.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/73392 ... artslide=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit - Wikipedia was updated for the opening. It states that 85% of the line is single-track with passing sidings.

Stations | Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit lists all the stations and their statuses -- a planned one's name is in ()'s.

(Larkspur), San Rafael, Marin Civic Center, Novato Hamilton, (Novato Downtown), Novato San Marin, Petaluma Downtown, (Petaluma North), Cotati, Rohnert Park, Santa Rosa Downtown, Santa Rosa North, Sonoma County Airport, (Windsor), (Healdsburg), (Cloverdale)

Of the planned ones, Larkspur is the most important one, I think, because it will be near Larkspur Ferry Terminal. Before it opens, one will be able to take this shuttle bus between the ferry terminal and San Rafael: Bus Route 31

SMART to Begin Larkspur Extension Construction | Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit

The $36.3 million contract includes construction of the 2.2 mile extension, the center platform station, two new bridges, rebuilding a trestle, and interim improvements to the Bettini Transit Center in downtown San Rafael. Construction on the extension will begin later this summer and is expected to be completed in early 2019.

Novato Downtown station is also to be built: Downtown SMART Station | City of Novato, CA

The others will be built when funding can be acquired for building them. This means that Petaluma North will be a cheap one, while the others will be more expensive -- they will need rebuilt track, signaling, and stations.