Intercity Passenger Rail Scheduling Update and ... · Intercity Passenger Rail Scheduling Update...
Transcript of Intercity Passenger Rail Scheduling Update and ... · Intercity Passenger Rail Scheduling Update...
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Intercity Passenger Rail Scheduling Update
and Coordination Opportunities
KIRK FREDRICKSON, Cascades Passenger Services Manager
Rail, Freight, and Ports Division
September 27, 2017
Puget Sound Regional Council
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WSDOT and Intercity Passenger Rail
History and Role
• Washington State Legislature created WSDOT’s Intercity Passenger Rail Program in 1993
• WSDOT owns trainsets, locomotives, some train stations
• WSDOT supports planning activities, environmental documentation efforts, project design,
construction, operations oversight, service delivery coordination, contract management, performance
reporting, train scheduling, and many other activities
• Requires close coordination with many stakeholders, including the privately-owned and operated
railroads
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Amtrak Cascades Corridor
467-mile corridor
• 300 miles in Washington
• 134 miles in Oregon
• 33 miles in British Columbia
18 stations from Vancouver, B.C. to Eugene, Oregon
Current daily roundtrips
• Four between Seattle and Portland
• Two between Seattle and Vancouver, B.C.
• Two between Portland and Eugene, Oregon
Starting on December 18, 2017
• Two additional roundtrips between Seattle and Portland
• Additional morning and evening trains in each direction
• Improved on-time reliability
• Shorter travel times
A service of the states of Washington and Oregon
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• Offering intercity passenger rail service is a public policy decision
• Public sector needs to fund the creation of sufficient rail line capacity
to allow passenger and freight trains to operate without conflicts and
delays
• Capacity projects identified through statistical analysis, traffic
modelling, constructability assessments, cost
• Projects put under a construction agreement and then built by the
railroad using public funds
• When the project or suite of projects are finished, operations can
commence
• WSDOT has been taking this incremental approach to rail line
capacity upgrades and operations since the mid-1990s
Operating a Public Transportation Service on a
Private Railroad: Guiding Principles
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New Shared Facility at TacomaAmtrak Cascades, Amtrak Coast Starlight ,and Sounder
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Key Outcomes of the December 2017 Schedules
• Increase daily transportation options
for intercity travelers
• Consistently high on-time
performance
• Make Amtrak Cascades more
attractive to business travelers
• Maximize the public utility of the
service
• Reduce operating subsidy through
operational efficiencies and
increased revenue
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2017 Schedule Development: Baseline Schedule
Requirements
• Operate daily service over a 467-mile corridor with seven trainsets –
no spare equipment
• Continue to offer 2 daily round trips between Seattle and Vancouver,
B.C.
• Continue to offer 2 daily round trips between Portland and Eugene
• Offer 6 daily round trips between Seattle and Portland with an even
distribution across the service day
• Continue to meet maintenance contract servicing requirements in
Seattle – locomotives and trainsets
• Travel time between Seattle and Portland no more than 3 hours 20
minutes
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Schedule Development Details
• Baseline schedules developed for 2009 High-Speed Rail
grant application
• Rail traffic simulations performed by WSDOT and BNSF in
2011
• WSDOT performed additional schedule modelling with Sound
Transit over past two years – iterative process
• Passenger train schedule modelling inputs included new track
structures and maintenance standards, turnout speeds,
grades, curves, equipment rates of acceleration, axle
resistance, Talgo capabilities, signal locations, double track
and single track segments, and other factors
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Rail Traffic Control, On-Time Performance, and the
90-day trial period
• BNSF dispatches trains from Fort Worth, Texas –
Portland to Fraser River
• Union Pacific dispatches trains from Omaha,
Nebraska – Portland to Eugene
• Requires experience and skill to manage rail traffic
(express freight trains, port traffic, unit and general
merchandise trains, commuter trains)
• Good on-time performance generates additional
revenue for the railroads
• BNSF is requiring ride study on their territory within
the first 90 days of the start of the new schedules
to determine if any adjustments will be needed
BNSF Operations Center, Fort Worth Texas
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Amtrak Cascades Schedules – Starting December 18, 2017
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Amtrak Cascades Schedules – Starting December 18, 2017
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Tukwila
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Go To Meeting Invite – Early October 2017
• WSDOT will be sending email invitations to all
Washington transit agencies along the Amtrak
Cascades corridor to discuss the new
schedules, answer questions, and discuss
better communication protocols and service
integration opportunities
• WSDOT would like to institute a new service
change communications plan similar to the
one developed by Sound Transit; we will be
seeking your assistance on how best to do
this.
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Questions?
For more information, please contact:
Kirk Fredrickson
Cascades Passenger Services Manager
WSDOT Rail, Freight, and Ports Division
360-705-7939