Albuquerque New Mexico Rail Runner Railrunner

[AmtrakPhill629]

what do you think of New Mexico's new rail system starting in December of 2005?

http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/050614/145873.html?.v=1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Athearn has plans on releasing the models in Ho scale
Diesel
http://www.athearn.com/Product/Default" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. ... D=ATH26291

Passenger Cars
http://www.athearn.com/Product/Default" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. ... D=ATH25902

[westernrrtx]

I have not been in that area for a while but I thought it would be a good idea 20 years ago.

[Joe]

Railrunner is only getting 5 MP36s, and Athearn is making a Railrunner F59PHI? Who wants an innaccurate train? I say make an MP36, then they can sell it in Metra and Caltrain too.

[JamesT4]

I have to agree, why is they making these engines as a F59phi, but the company might not had known they were using MP36's, or really they might didnt do it for several reasons that I dont want to say here.

Athearn should make it with the engines that they are using, not a engine that is not for that system.

[AmtrakPhill629]

do you think this railroad will be succesful?

[JamesT4]

We will have to see when it starts operating.

[Otto Vondrak]

Official information:

http://www.mrcog-nm.gov/commuter_rail.htm

-otto-

[railfanofewu]

With gas prices getting to be high all over the country, RailRunner might just be successful. I hope it works out good.

[Phil Hom]

I have to agree, why is they making these engines as a F59phi, but the company might not had known they were using MP36's, or really they might didnt do it for several reasons that I dont want to say here.

Athearn should make it with the engines that they are using, not a engine that is not for that system.

That's the reason why UP ask if you use it's trademark, pay the company a small fee and the UP assist you with the product.

If RailRunner was like the UP, It would say you can't paint your F59PHI and pass it off as a MP36.

That goodness UP won't allow a PRR K4 to be lettered Union Pacific.

[protrain]

Update on the RailRunner in New Mexico...they have a new and very well-designed and informative web site:
http://www.nmrailrunner.com

I attended a conference presentation about the project in January and was very impressed. They are going from an idea to an operational commuter railroad in about 2 years, which is just unheard of. The person presenting offered the following reasons for the speed of the project:

* funding was in place and was state, not federal, which means no lengthy processes like EIS
* the track chosen was good and they were able to motivate BNSF to move quickly
* strong political backing from the state and project managed by regional group (the albuquerque council of governments)

This exciting project should be up and running soon in the first phase. The web site says that they are going to offer free fares for the first three months and then a flat $2 fare until the end of 2006. For the second phase, connecting to the state capital and second-largest city in the state, Santa Fe, they are looking at constructing a new alignment, as the existing BNSF alignment is curvy and the travel time would be too long.

[railfanofewu]

I hope they get the planning and funding for that second phase soon, and that phase one is a success. Gasoline Prices are about to go up to $3 per gallon, and having as many alternatives in place as possible in as many areas as possible sounds like a great idea.

[Xponder]

Having lived here for the past 32 years and in the valley wherein one of the stops is being built there seemed to be little consideration for the Albuquerque Metro infrastructure.

No new bridges. No loop around the city. No expansion of the freeway system. Instead the leadship decides to implement a minimal rail system that will serve some 420 passengers per trip when the major commute population is in the 40,000 arena. Very little has been accomplished here for the commuters and the traffic in and around the Albuquerque area.

The mayor of Albuquerque had to fight beauracracy just to get a simple two lane bridge expanded to the four lanes for which it was constructed. A lousy rich tree hugger had filed lawsuit after lawsuit to prevent construction that dragged out for years! One major stumbling block was the damn silvery minnow. A minnow! Of all things, a major bridge blocked by a tiny stinking minnow!

I would have to say that the commuter train is going to be a flop simply because it is going to be innefficient and serve an extremly minor segment of the population. The trains will run as long as federal funding exists. The trains themselves are very pretty. They will look good in a museum!

And, by the way, we had to spend several million dollars so we could have Pandas at the zoo! No new bridges, just new Pandas.

[railfanofewu]

There were those that said our SOUNDER would be a flop. That was 6 years ago, and at first, it was. Sound Transit officials stuck by it, and it has grown. Departure times continued to creep up to prime commuting times, more stations opened(they only had two mid-line stations running, and only one of those two was finished), extra trips have been added, and they now carry several thousand riders a day. Every time I take a ride to observe it, I keep getting disaponted. I expect an empty train, and what do I get instead? If it is Sounder 1501(King St. Station to Tacoma), which leaves at 4:20PM, it is often Standing Room Only. After I was excused from Jury Duty in Kent back in late May, I caught this very train, to take a ride to Tacoma, and there was over a hundred people getting off. The Kent Station is also Metro's bus hub for Kent.

The Everett Line suffered from many of the same problems the Tacoma Line had at start-up. $3 per gallon gas and a second trip caused a small jump in ridership, and improvements to allow the planned 4 round-trips are about to begin construction. BNSF took forever to get the agreement for SOUNDER to use it's track.

SOUNDER has it's problems, but they are working through it. Once the Everett Track and Signal Upgrades are finished, the last major extension of ST Phase I for SOUNDER will be to Lakewood, and a tough grade is in the way, but they are working on it. Thier is a popular bus route, that once had to be suspended because Pierce Transit had a lack of extra buses and drivers to sustain the service in the early 1990s. One Sounder Train, of 6 cars with 140 passengers per car, can carry more than several buses.

Their are those that expect immediate results with rail transit, but sometimes it is gradual.

[Gilbert B Norman]

It appears that Railrunner is "up and running" as of July 14:

Brief passage:

• ALBUQUERQUE -- It had been talked about for years, and now commuters between downtown Albuquerque and Bernalillo can kick their feet up and enjoy the ride.
  About 850 passengers rode the New Mexico Rail Runner Express on its first three roundtrips this morning, according to the New Mexico Department of Transportation. By noon, when the midday roundtrip to Bernalillo became standing-room-only, Rail Runner managers decided to add one or two more 140-seat coaches for the afternoon and evening trains

http://www.krqe.com/expanded.asp?ID=16246

[byte]

Their are those that expect immediate results with rail transit, but sometimes it is gradual.

I think we're at a point now where we can't "fail" when it comes to mass transit. The age of the automobile is clearly on the downfall, and people are becoming fed up with traffic and less hesitant to take a train. The real challenge comes with maximizing the effectiveness of the routings through careful planning. Cities like LA, Chicago, and NYC have had commuter service for years and already have massive rail infrastructures that the city has literally grown up around, and thus are in the "right place." Many of these inland, non-coastal cities have never had had commuter service (although they may have had interurban lines) and thus there's no "Union Station" to designate as a the downtown terminal and no previous routings to go by. This can be good because planners can start fresh, but they also have to be careful because passenger railroads are no longer built with corporate clout, and everything they do will be much harder to re-do should it prove to be necessary.