Ohio news, AAO Options

[KevinKorell]

From All Aboard Ohio (AAO), newsletter for October 2009:

Elected officials in both Ohio and Pennsylvania are working on plans to bring high speed rail to a route between Cleveland and Pittsburgh. They have asked that the 140 miles be designated a high speed rail corridor. It would be a natural extension to Ohio's future 3-C Corridor and Pennsylvania's Keystone Corridor, both of which already have the designation.

Parsons-Brinckerhoff (PB) is the consultant selected to study the West Shore Corridor (Cleveland-Lorain). PB conducted a simlar alternatives analysis in 2000 and found commuter rail to be "marginally feasible".

[KevinKorell]

From All Aboard Ohio (AAO), newsletter for fall/winter 2009:

The "3-C Quick Start" project, which would involve a corridor of trains operating several times a day between Cleveland and Cincinnati via Columbus and Dayton at maximum 79 mph, could be in operation by 2011. If the grant application is approved by the FRA, 100% federal share would go towards rebuilding the mainline, new passing tracks, improving grade crossing safety devices, stations, train equipment, and train servicing facilities.

AAO highly regards the chosen route for 3-C Quick Start, as it will serve major cities and is the most direct routing between them. At one point a routing via Akron was considered, but that would have added well over an hour to the trip time and thus cost the line some passengers. They are not pleased with Amtrak's proposed schedule, which calls for only two through round trips between Cleveland and Cincinnati, plus some short turns early and late in the day that turn in Columbus. As it is now, the last through departures of the day are scheduled for around 11:30 AM southbound, 12:15 PM northbound. AAO proposes a tighter turnaround at the endpoints that would allow for another through trip leaving each city in the 4 PM hour, or better yet, ater 5 PM to better accommodate business travel.

AAO agrees with Amtrak's choices for stations so far. Cincinnati's 3-C station would not be Union Terminal where the Cardinal stops, but then the latter comes through town during hours that would make a transfer between the trains unmarketable. Stations would be near the downtown convention centers in Dayton and Columbus, and in Cleveland at both the Amtrak station and adjacent to the Puritas-150th Street station on the Red Line, not far from Cleveland Hopkins Airport. The plan is to start with just 6 stations, and then add more as in-fill stations as funding is found and facilities are built. Other proposed station locations are in the Middletown-Hamilton area, Springfield, North Columbus, and in either Gallion or Shelby.

AAO is recommending that Amtrak run some long or medium distance trains on the 3-C Corridor. Having through service to points outside the corridor would boost revenues, while reducing 3-C's operating costs. They suggest the following possible extensions:

• A Wolverine train from Detroit via Toledo
• An Empire Service train from Buffalo via Erie
• The Pennsylvanian beyond Pittsburgh via Youngstown

A maintenance facility is also recommended for Cleveland, in order to not only meet maintenance and equipment needs of the 3-C Corridor, but also to support future trains through the Ohio Hub.
Neighboring Indiana also submitted a request for ARRA funds, but their was for high speed rail service between Chicago and Cleveland via Fort Wayne and Toledo.

AAO is urging voters in Cincinnati to vote "Nein on Nine", striking down Issue 9 in the upcoming General Election. The amendment to the city's charter, if passed, would require all expenditures for construction or improvement of rail passenger service to be subject to public vote.

[KevinKorell]

AAO is urging voters in Cincinnati to vote "Nein on Nine", striking down Issue 9 in the upcoming General Election. The amendment to the city's charter, if passed, would require all expenditures for construction or improvement of rail passenger service to be subject to public vote.

Update

Great news! The voters of Cincinnati have defeated Issue 9, the proposed anti-passenger rail city charter amendment. Issue 9, had it passed, would have required a public vote on every City of Cincinnati expenditure for improving passenger rail, including streetcars, existing Amtrak services in Cincinnati Union Terminal, 3C "Quick Start" passenger rail, high-speed rail and possibly even the train ride at the city zoo!

Instead, 56 percent of voters defeated this punitive measure.