Metrolink Crash - 10 Days Later

Some time has passed in which I’ve been able to reflect a bit on the collision between a Metrolink train and a freight train in Chatsworth on September 12th.  It was a pretty horrific incident.  I was especially shaken up that a Latin teacher Quinn and I know was in the train.  The video of his story is intense:

Despite his own injuries, priest gave last rites to crash victims

There has been some valuable discussion about transportation investment priorities in the Los Angeles area in the wake of the disaster.  CityWatch discusses the relatively unsafe record of public transportation in Southern California and the systemic reasons for this.  In the LA Times, Steve Hymon writes about the management and budget of Metrolink.  He raises some salient points, including Metrolink’s unusually high farebox recovery rate, and how concerns about “homeland security” have harmed rail safety.

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Read Full Post | September 22 2008 | Transportation |

Passenger Rail in Southern California

Decades ago, Los Angeles had one of the most extensive passenger rail networks in the country.  Streetcar lines were the lifeblood of personal transportation.  Now, passenger rail transport in the Southland (on Metrolink commuter rail or Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner) is unreliable, subject to lengthy delays, and unsafe compared to other commuter rail systems across the country.

Such poor service can generally be explained by one reason: passenger trains in California run along freight railroads.  Unlike in Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor, passenger trains in California must share tracks and yield to frieght trains.  This makes service subject to significant unforeseen delays and safety concerns.  Last week’s horrific Metrolink crash is an extreme example.

As rail traffic in California increases over the coming years, it is imperative that the state invest in grade-separated tracks dedicated to passenger service.  California High Speed Rail would do just that.  Passing the Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act, on the ballot in November as Proposition 1A, is an important step in free ingpassenger rail from the constraints and dangers of sharing tracks with freight and creating environmentally friendly, rapid, and punctual service.

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Read Full Post | September 16 2008 | Transportation |