MileTrak

[Anthony]

Your brave to go by Amtrak's mileage. It amazes me how the Northeast Corridor is a few miles longer going north than south.

LOL, yeah, you're right. I figure that a few miles here and there is not a big deal... thus we enter the mileage verbatim, whether NYP-WAS is 224 or 225 or 226 :lol:

Consistency is the main concern - may as well go by Amtrak's mileage, for lack of a better consolidated source.

 

[battalion51]

It is a government (subsidized) operation after all. :lol:

 

[Anthony]

We're one step closer... the new mileage is in the new system and works great

Now to go back to getting the rest of the actual application ready... :angry:

 

[AMTRAK-P42]

Sounds good, keep up the great work.

Thanks!

 

[Anthony]

Summer = vacation and I will admit I haven't been putting as much time into this as I would like. I did overcome one big challenge the other night, but a few other things remain.

I'm shooting for before the October schedule change. LOL! (Hopefully long before)

(Honestly, there has been a big project at work the past three or four weeks that has been taking a lot of my development energy. That is coming to a close in the next few days, thankfully.)

 

[Anthony]

progressing really nicely

 

[gobytrains]

Hi, I'm curious about if you're still going to do the viarail mileage chart. Thanks.

 

[Anthony]

Hi, I'm curious about if you're still going to do the viarail mileage chart. Thanks.

Yep, but not likely before the software release.

 

[Anthony]

I figured I may as well let everyone know....

The current MileTrak data that y'all use is incorrect on the Silver Palm (Palmetto) and the San Joaquin routes. This has all been fixed in the new stuff, but in case someone is relying on data from those two specific routes...

The San Joaquin has differing mileage (and a differing travel path, actually) depending on whether the route originates from Sacramento or from Oakland. I have split the route into two routes, one denoted as "SAC-BFD" and one as "OKJ-BFD".

And, as many of you have noted, the Palmetto (previously Silver Palm) has different mileage as it takes a slightly deviating path in Florida. I have researched this route in detail over many years of Amtrak timetables, and data has been re-entered correctly.

You will note these changes upon release of the new software. A re-calculation facility will be available for users to verify all of their recorded Amtrak mileage is in sync with current route data.

Thank you for your patience.

 

[Superliner Diner]

I figured I may as well let everyone know....
The current MileTrak data that y'all use is incorrect on the Silver Palm (Palmetto) and the San Joaquin routes. This has all been fixed in the new stuff, but in case someone is relying on data from those two specific routes...

The San Joaquin has differing mileage (and a differing travel path, actually) depending on whether the route originates from Sacramento or from Oakland. I have split the route into two routes, one denoted as "SAC-BFD" and one as "OKJ-BFD".

And, as many of you have noted, the Palmetto (previously Silver Palm) has different mileage as it takes a slightly deviating path in Florida. I have researched this route in detail over many years of Amtrak timetables, and data has been re-entered correctly.

You will note these changes upon release of the new software. A re-calculation facility will be available for users to verify all of their recorded Amtrak mileage is in sync with current route data.

Thank you for your patience.

Anthony,

I figured out some time ago that the Palmetto's route is 70 miles longer than that taken by the Silver Meteor and Silver Star and Sunset Limited. Consequently, for Silver Palm trips, you would have to add 70 to the mileage in the timetable for trips between points Winter Haven & south and points Jacksonville and north.

There's also a slight difference between the Silver Star and the other two trains in the Carolinas, as the Silver Star's route is longer than the route used by the Silver Meteor and Palmetto.

 

[battalion51]

O.K. Gentlemen we're going to put this issue to death for once and for all. I did the math using the CSX Transportation Southern Division Jacksonville Division Timetable No. 3, effective April 1, 2003 at 0001 Hours CSX Standard (in other words it's the official document put out by CSX). From Jacksonville Passenger Station to Winter Haven Passenger Station via Orlando the trip is 207.4 miles long, the trip from Jacksonville to Winter Haven via Tampa is 273.4 miles long. So the difference between the A-Line and the S-Line is 66 miles. Let's never have to do this again. :lol:

 

[AlanB]

O.K. Gentlemen we're going to put this issue to death for once and for all. I did the math using the CSX Transportation Southern Division Jacksonville Division Timetable No. 3, effective April 1, 2003 at 0001 Hours CSX Standard (in other words it's the official document put out by CSX). From Jacksonville Passenger Station to Winter Haven Passenger Station via Orlando the trip is 207.4 miles long, the trip from Jacksonville to Winter Haven via Tampa is 273.4 miles long. So the difference between the A-Line and the S-Line is 66 miles. Let's never have to do this again. :lol:

One question though and one problem.

First the question, does the CSX timetable list the actual distance into the station? Or does it just list the mileage to Tampa, since freight trains don't bother to stop at the passenger station which isn't on the mainline? That could add a mile or two to the total distance.

Next, regardless of the answer to the above question, you still have to double the mileage into and out of the train station from the mainline. The station as you know is actually off the mainline and is connected to the mainline by a wye. So the train pulls by the lead tracks and then performs a backup move into the station. That passing adds some distance that a passenger travels.

Then of course the train still has to pull back out to the mainline, in effect doubling the distance that a passenger travels, since they are covering the same track twice.

 

[battalion51]

OK, first TUS is at MP A882 (the milepost is right at the south end of the station). Second, at the Winter Haven Station there is a box at the Winter Haven Station for the switch to the Florida Midland, with milepost 826.26 (I rounded up). Second the distance travelled on the wye is probably negligble, half mile at most. I mean for the Sunset's trip you could say they travel further than those on Silver Service between Orlando and JAX (the train backs into JAX, and therefore has to back through Grand Jct wye), but that difference isn't enough to add a whole mile to the overall distance. So all in all, the distance is 67 at most if you want to get really technical.

 

[Anthony]

OK OK

First of all, thanks Superliner Diner for the clarification, I had also gotten a similar figure from someone else a while back. It isn't precisely 70 miles according to Amtrak's timetables, but it's within a couple miles of that count.

I am using Amtrak's mileage _only_ for "consistency" - yes, I do realize that Amtrak often isn't consistent themselves, but this will ensure that all of the data is coming from one place.

The Palmetto debacle was solved using Amtrak's own mileage counts from different routes over different years. I was then able to extrapolate outward to achieve a full count for the route.

(The Silver Star mileage difference is noted in the timetable, so no problems there)

Thanks for your efforts everyone

 

[AlanB]

First just to make sure that I'm being clear here, I'm not refering to the wye at Midland near Winter Haven. I'm refering to the wye move that allows the Palmetto to back into TUS.

Now from what I recall from my several trips back when it was still the Palm, along with using both Expedia maps and US Railroad map, that backup move through Ybor City is some where between 2.5 miles and 3 miles in length. That extra 3 miles when the train pulls back out, takes your total mileage number to 69 miles.

Then add in even a 1/2 mile move through the top of the wye and you've got 70 miles like Superliner Diner stated.

I'm also using some rather crude measuring tools, so it is possible that my measurements above might be slightly higher.

Does your timetable show the mileage between TUS and a place listed only as TN on my map. If it does, that's the total mileage one way for the backup move. If you can't find TN, then we could still back into the number if you can find the total mileage between Winter Haven and Gary. Gary is almost due south of TN.

 

[battalion51]

OK Alan here's how I broke down the data. Using the timetable I did the milage on a straight path from SE Mango MP A873.7 (beginning of the Sub) into TUS (switch is at MP A881.7, but by the time you back down it's MP A882.0). Now, using my sources (i.e. this evenings Engineer on P090) I determined that the train will pull into the Neve Wye (also called G Wye and Gary Wye) at MP A879.6, coming back out at MP A880.08 in the reverse move. The wye accoding to the Engineers account "isn't large enough to create a large difference milage count." Because we are working with a rather large stick here, the difference is negligible. If we were working with a unit like yards, hundredths of miles, or even tenths of miles, it would make a difference, but not a whole mile.