Lea
Simpson related that the San Joaquin Corridor, which she
manages, goes up California's San Joaquin Valley to Stockton, where it
"y"s to Sacramento and San Francisco. It is a single track
railroad, "not good enough for a premier railroad." It is
experiencing freight traffic growth. Projects underway are siding
extensions in Fresno and Hanford; relocating Madera station;
double-tracking in some areas.
Richard Tolmach suggested,
through a power point presentation, an Hourly Network system similar to
the Dutch Railways in 1950 and Edmonton, Alberta, Canada in 1966, which
was adopted in Germany in 1976 and Bern region in 1992. This
Hourly Network would be augmented with busses filling in the gaps.
Hon. Hannah-Beth Jackson,
formerly of the California State Assembly, brought Santa Barbara Area
notes. She remarked that they have a Jobs/Housing imbalance;
Populated areas are moving toward Los Angeles.; Political Polarization
of Rail vs. Pavements. Ventura is 30 miles from Santa Barbara and
used to be a 30 minute drive. Now, however, it takes one to one
and a half hours. Some drivers can watch the dolphins from their
traffic jam. Because the average home price in Santa Barbara is
$1 million, many Santa Barbara workers do not live in Santa
Barbara.. "A Land and A Train" (a lane added to Hwy. 101 and a
train added) will require an extension, in 2007, of Measure D tax
and will include busses. They must show that driving and freeways
costs more than rail passenger travel. Infrastructure and
education are the basis of economic viability in any state.
Infrastructure means railroads. Massachusetts, with the highest
taxes, has a good economy. Therefore, taxes are not a deterrent
to economic growth.
David Solow talked about his
Metrolink five-county operation. Sales tax is an issue for
revenue in all counties. Orange County in 2006 may be the hardest
to pass. Multiple use of train seats is important, that is,
moving from city to city with the same train and reusing vacated seats
along the route. Rail Integration is the Key to the
Program. Rail-to-Rail has been very successful. There is a
built in connection, for 50 cents, in each ticket. MTA Easy Pass
uses rail, trolley, and bus on one pass. Stationing Service in
Orange County..recording the untimate station destination. The
Key Word in Southern California is "Goods Movement." We must have
that solved for good passenger movement to work. Therefore, the
Los Angeles/Long Beach port growth is important to rail and passenger
movement. Metrolink must be in bed with freight haulers.
Quad gates and median barriers are the best crash avoidance techniques.
