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In addition, to see when the new trainsets will be in use, just bookmark this link. It appears that in the short

term, Oregon's new trains won't actually spend much time in Oregon.
 
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For the past couple of days, @Amtrak_Cascades on Twitter has been posting statuses like:

Amtrak Cascades train 513 continuing delay in Seattle while technicians resolve technical fault

Amtrak Cascades train 513 - Buses will operate in lieu of the train between Vancouver, BC & Seattle due to technical problem with the train
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Now a railroad friend posts to Facebook:

the new Talgo limped South and North today... Lots of mech issues...
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No details, but that doesn't sound good. It's definitely colder than normal -- well below freezing -- in the Northwest, so maybe there is a connection.
 
I can understand when freezing temperatures shutdown services in a heat focused city like San Antonio, to be perfectly frank we don't know much about cold weather down here, but I'm kind of surprised that cold temperatures are all it takes to screw things up in the Northwest. Are cold temperatures normally disruptive to public transportation up there?
 
Devil's Advocate said:
Are cold temperatures normally disruptive to public transportation up there?
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It doesn't take too much snow or ice to wreak havoc on the west side of the Cascade mountains, where we very seldom get temps below freezing. So far, Seattle has had only cold and clear weather; as I write this, it's 18 degrees, which is pretty darn cold by Seattle standards. Thurston County (Olympia) got snow a couple of days ago. It was pretty cool to watch our trolley buses traveling under what looked like sparklers -- I assume caused by ice buildup on the wires.
 
The revised schedule is getting some press. Unfortunately, the reporter seems to misunderstand that ODOT is not adding trains, but

merely changing the times that the existing trains run. To read the article, you'd think there will be increased service when in fact the

total number of departures is not changing. ODOT is canceling two existing runs in order to create the new departures.
 
The following release was distributed by ODOT this evening:

http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/COMM/Pages/nr14010301.aspx

See also:

http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/RAIL/Pages/index.aspx

Note: The service changes now appear in the Amtrak web booking facility.

ODOT points out, "Features of the schedule going into effect include replacing several bus routes with trains, adding new stops on bus routes and adding new bus service. For example, Portland riders heading south will have an early morning train option for the first time, and Eugene riders heading north will have a late afternoon train option for the first time. A new bus stop is now available at Wilsonville".
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HOLY macaroni
A BUS stop IN MY town ! I cant tell you how happy I am ! ,

DO you know how silly it is to take a 1.5 H bus ride to PDx to get a 2H train to eugene .

this has got to be the best news I have had in Years !
 
Oregon is also a step closer to faster trains. The alternatives narrowed down

to the current UP route OR one alternative for each of several sections

between Portland and Eugene. It's slow going but seems to be steady.

"January 3, 2014

Oregon Passenger Rail Leadership Council recommends alternatives for further study

SALEM – At its December 17 meeting, the Oregon Passenger Rail Leadership Council made a recommendation to the Federal Railroad Administration on which rail route alternatives should receive more detailed study in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

The study area . . . is part of the federally-designated Pacific Northwest Rail Corridor. Under the direction of the Leadership Council, the Oregon Department of Transportation is leading an environmental review process that will conclude with the selection of a preferred passenger rail route, identification of general station locations, and on-time performance goals.

. . .

Among the Leadership Council’s recommendations are two primary routes: The first is the existing alignment (blue) on the Union Pacific Railroad line which assumes major infrastructure investment. The second is a new alignment consisting of the Interstate 5 (formerly red, now orange) from Eugene-Springfield to Keizer, the Oregon Electric rail line (formerly purple, now orange) from Keizer to Wilsonville, and Interstate 5 and 205 (formerly red, now orange) between Wilsonville and Oregon City where it would merge with the existing alignment (blue). The two options provide an opportunity to mix and match and the ability to examine design options.

View the new alignment map at www.OregonPassengerRail.org or contact Jill Pearson, ODOT Stakeholder Engagement Strategist, (503) 986-3313, [email protected]. "
 
And this one:

DowntownJanuary32014016.jpg
 
Peter KG6LSE said:
HOLY macaroni

A BUS stop IN MY town ! I cant tell you how happy I am ! ,

DO you know how silly it is to take a 1.5 H bus ride to PDx to get a 2H train to eugene .

this has got to be the best news I have had in Years !
Click to expand...
Hate to burst your bubble, but the new bus stop is actually in Woodburn, not Wilsonville. The original ODOT press release

was in error. And the new Woodburn Thruway stop will see very limited service.

You can read the new schedule here:

http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/RAIL/docs/2014_Cascades_Corridor_Schedule_010614.pdf
 
Nice photos of the Talgos. The cab is still ugly. But it's a nice photo none-the-less. If they could only acquire the Wisconsin sets... I mean, if they aren't gonna use em...
 
fairviewroad said:
Peter KG6LSE said:
HOLY macaroni

A BUS stop IN MY town ! I cant tell you how happy I am ! ,

DO you know how silly it is to take a 1.5 H bus ride to PDx to get a 2H train to eugene .

this has got to be the best news I have had in Years !
Click to expand...
Hate to burst your bubble, but the new bus stop is actually in Woodburn, not Wilsonville. The original ODOT press release

was in error. And the new Woodburn Thruway stop will see very limited service.

You can read the new schedule here:

http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/RAIL/docs/2014_Cascades_Corridor_Schedule_010614.pdf
Click to expand...
Welll barbra Streisand!

It is a DOT after all .. you cant expect much from them .
 
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CHamilton said:
BTW, the Amtrak Cascades website is finally showing the new schedules. http://amtrakcascades.com/Schedules.htm
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I noticed that. It's a little clunky, but it's better than having out of date information.

Interestingly, over at the regular amtrak.com timetable page, there is currently no schedule listed at all for the Cascades,

not even the old one. Again, probably better than listing the out-of-date timetable, but it just looks sloppy to me.
 
Great to see the Talgo's in the real world and it is cool to know that there are new Amtrak locomotives testing as we speak. But is there a rule that new locomotives have to be as ugly as the day is long?

I understand that efficient is better than beautiful, but the ACS-64 looks like a simplified cartoon of a modern locomotive and the Talgos look like a cheap copy of that very cartoon. Appearance isn't everything, but did they have to go out of their way to make the locomotives ugly? The Genesis/P32Ac may not have been a great locomotive but it was impressive, and the P42DC was just a solid design plus it looked kind of rakish.

I didn't buy my last car simply because it was the most logical design out there, I bought it because it was well built and beautiful, to boot.

Is it impossible for Amtrak to at least bow in the direction of attractive when they choose a locomotive? Siemens makes the ICx, which is a beautiful train, and yes, it is built to do at least 230 kph, but the Talgos are rated up to 200 kph so they aren't in a different class.

All I have to say is, no more toasters. I am tired of boring loco's.

Big Green Chauvanist said:
And this one:

DowntownJanuary32014016.jpg
Click to expand...
 
Living in WI, and having the new sets built/ "assembled" in WI, I wish you Oregonians the best of luck with the new Talgo equipment. When the equipment was sent from Milwaukee to Colorado for testing, it was sent through Madison via the WSOR. I was able to watch the equipment as it made its' way through my hometown. I was so disappointed to lose the funding for the Madison passenger service extension, but I digress.

Enjoy the new equipment, guys!
 
fairviewroad said:
ODOT has posted a list of the expected runs of the new Talgo equipment:

http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/RAIL/pages/Passenger_Rail.aspx#Oregon_Trainset_Scheduled_Operation
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This page has been updated at least three times this week, but it's now looking like they're going to put "Mt. Jefferson" on a continuing SEA-VAC 510/517 cycle, while "Mt. Bachelor" will be on a 5-day cycle that serves the whole corridor between EUG and VAC. I'm still hoping to do a points run this weekend, so maybe I'll see you!
 
CHamilton said:
fairviewroad said:
ODOT has posted a list of the expected runs of the new Talgo equipment:

http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/RAIL/pages/Passenger_Rail.aspx#Oregon_Trainset_Scheduled_Operation
Click to expand...
This page has been updated at least three times this week, but it's now looking like they're going to put "Mt. Jefferson" on a continuing SEA-VAC 510/517 cycle, while "Mt. Bachelor" will be on a 5-day cycle that serves the whole corridor between EUG and VAC. I'm still hoping to do a points run this weekend, so maybe I'll see you!
Click to expand...
So one of Oregon's new train sets won't actually visit the state of Oregon until at least February. Nice.
 
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