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ehbowen said:
Yes, MoPac dropped service to Galveston sometime between 1954 and 1955. The old GH&H has a decent alignment, but as you correctly note there are a plethora of grade crossings. Plus, the ABS was pulled out sometime in the late 1990s.

The GH&H line actually hosted a passenger service, called the Texas Limited, in the first half of the 1990s. Five (or so) restored lightweight cars and an F7, with T&E crew supplied by Amtrak (who was also operating a Houston section of the Texas Eagle during that time frame). It had some modest success in its first few years of operation, but Union Pacific refused to consider maintaining the tracks to any standard above Class 2. A two-and-a-half hour trip to Galveston didn't have a whole lot of appeal when you can drive that distance on the Gulf Freeway in little over an hour, even in weekend rush traffic. In addition, Amtrak wanted so much rent to sublease part of that pitiful small-town bus depot known as the Houston Amtrak Station that you would have thought it appropriate for a major tenant at Grand Central Terminal. About 1993 or so the Texas Limited operators moved their Houston terminal to a former Katy freight depot in The Heights a few miles northwest of downtown...but that made the trip times even longer.

I still wonder what might have happened had this operation shifted to the Santa Fe alignment through Alvin, but to the best of my understanding this was never seriously considered as the major investors in this service were from League City and wanted an en route stop there. Unfortunately, there's not a great deal of pent-up demand for 25 mph passenger train service between The Heights and League City....
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My wife and I rode the Texas Limited twice round trip. They actually had two F7's. Both were stored at the Galveston Rail Museum when the last big storm hit. They were sold for scrap.
 
From the latest I heard, the latest version of plans for commuter rail won't actually feauture a downtown station, but the trains will end at Fannin South from where passengers will catch the Metro to go downtown.

Maybe the number of people transferring between Amtrak and commuter rail will be fairly low, so I can see the logic in not sharing a station, but Fannin South is so far out that it defeats the point of commuter rail..

I hope they re-think this before actually spending money on it.
 
FWIW, UP did put quite a bit of work into the GH&H over the last 18 months, particularly ballast and ties. Did this increase the track class?
 
cirdan said:
From the latest I heard, the latest version of plans for commuter rail won't actually feauture a downtown station, but the trains will end at Fannin South from where passengers will catch the Metro to go downtown.

Maybe the number of people transferring between Amtrak and commuter rail will be fairly low, so I can see the logic in not sharing a station, but Fannin South is so far out that it defeats the point of commuter rail..

I hope they re-think this before actually spending money on it.
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Wasn't that just for the southwest commuter rail line (don't recall off-hand what it's actually been referred to)? And I believe it was related to the particular configuration/layout of the rail network, such that a commuter rail line coming from the southwest would have a rather roundabout routing in order to reach the once-planned intermodal station (commuter rail, light rail, Amtrak) just north of downtown. I didn't think all of the various commuter rail lines (if/when any are actually begun) were to terminate at Fannin South.
 
cirdan said:
From the latest I heard, the latest version of plans for commuter rail won't actually feauture a downtown station, but the trains will end at Fannin South from where passengers will catch the Metro to go downtown.

Maybe the number of people transferring between Amtrak and commuter rail will be fairly low, so I can see the logic in not sharing a station, but Fannin South is so far out that it defeats the point of commuter rail..

I hope they re-think this before actually spending money on it.
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These people have no idea what they are doing. They also proposed commuter rail out highway 290 which would stop at the 610 loop and transfer passengers to buses or light rail. They are just idiots. The problem is no one will commit to building an inter-modal station in downtown Houston. Metro had one on the drawing boards to be located just off North Main with a light rail station included in it. It would have included Amtrak, commuter rail, buses and light rail. But now it's no longer being considered. The last thing I heard someone talk about was converting the downtown post office building into an intermodal terminal. The Post Office is moving out. That building stands exactly where the old SP depot used to be. Dallas builds and builds and Houston procrastinates.
 
henryj said:
cirdan said:
From the latest I heard, the latest version of plans for commuter rail won't actually feauture a downtown station, but the trains will end at Fannin South from where passengers will catch the Metro to go downtown.

Maybe the number of people transferring between Amtrak and commuter rail will be fairly low, so I can see the logic in not sharing a station, but Fannin South is so far out that it defeats the point of commuter rail..

I hope they re-think this before actually spending money on it.
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These people have no idea what they are doing. They also proposed commuter rail out highway 290 which would stop at the 610 loop and transfer passengers to buses or light rail. They are just idiots. The problem is no one will commit to building an inter-modal station in downtown Houston. Metro had one on the drawing boards to be located just off North Main with a light rail station included in it. It would have included Amtrak, commuter rail, buses and light rail. But now it's no longer being considered. The last thing I heard someone talk about was converting the downtown post office building into an intermodal terminal. The Post Office is moving out. That building stands exactly where the old SP depot used to be. Dallas builds and builds and Houston procrastinates.
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True, waht's happening in Dallas is quite amazing.

However, there too, the same sort of flawed logic seems to have slipped in when it comes to the Denton A-train. This connects to DART. I wonder whether it would be possible to actually run to downtown Dallas on DART tracks. The A-train units are already light rail-ish, so surely it would have been possible to make them compatible to DART infrastructure. Maybe the same could be done in Houston?
 
Eric S said:
cirdan said:
From the latest I heard, the latest version of plans for commuter rail won't actually feauture a downtown station, but the trains will end at Fannin South from where passengers will catch the Metro to go downtown.

Maybe the number of people transferring between Amtrak and commuter rail will be fairly low, so I can see the logic in not sharing a station, but Fannin South is so far out that it defeats the point of commuter rail..

I hope they re-think this before actually spending money on it.
Click to expand...
Wasn't that just for the southwest commuter rail line (don't recall off-hand what it's actually been referred to)? And I believe it was related to the particular configuration/layout of the rail network, such that a commuter rail line coming from the southwest would have a rather roundabout routing in order to reach the once-planned intermodal station (commuter rail, light rail, Amtrak) just north of downtown. I didn't think all of the various commuter rail lines (if/when any are actually begun) were to terminate at Fannin South.
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Once you get out of Galveston, there is a split. One follows Hwy 3 almost directly to the North end of Downtown. The other follows Hwy 6 to Alvin then cuts up (and passes right past Hobby along the way). Both of these look like great routes until you get to US 59 which crosses over a pulled up section of the rail that would tie it nicely into the Amtrak station area. Unless they rebuild that 1 mile of track over the Heights bike trail, there is no good approach into the existing Amtrak station.

The approach into South Fannin would be so far out the way, and I've been to South Fannin - it's way the heck out in the middle of freakin' nowhere.

The current Amtrak station isn't beautiful by any stretch of the imagination. But there is a lot of space there. It could make for a nice intermodal station right there on the North side of the city.

Hmmm.. Now that I look at it, keep the light rail where it's at, put the Amtrak station where it goes under U of H Downtown, rebuild the Heights Bike Trail back to Rail and drop in a commuter line to Galveston.

Problem solved. $100 Million and 14 months should do the trick.
 
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cirdan said:
From the latest I heard, the latest version of plans for commuter rail won't actually feauture a downtown station, but the trains will end at Fannin South from where passengers will catch the Metro to go downtown.

Maybe the number of people transferring between Amtrak and commuter rail will be fairly low, so I can see the logic in not sharing a station, but Fannin South is so far out that it defeats the point of commuter rail..

I hope they re-think this before actually spending money on it.
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This is messed up. This looks like an old interurba n when it's actually commuter rail. It'll probably fail unless they solve the promlem.
 
VentureForth said:
Unless they rebuild that 1 mile of track over the Heights bike trail, there is no good approach into the existing Amtrak station.
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Sure there is, you just go up to the jct at tower 26 back through the wye and head to the Amtrak depot. The Heights trail track was just junk. No one maintained it or used it so they tore it up.
 
VentureForth said:
The current Amtrak station isn't beautiful by any stretch of the imagination. But there is a lot of space there. It could make for a nice intermodal station right there on the North side of the city.

Hmmm.. Now that I look at it, keep the light rail where it's at, put the Amtrak station where it goes under U of H Downtown, rebuild the Heights Bike Trail back to Rail and drop in a commuter line to Galveston.

Problem solved. $100 Million and 14 months should do the trick.
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My understanding is that there was once a plan for an intermodal station right next to UH-Downtown. Amtrak and commuter rail would have been on the lower level, Metro on the upper level and there would also have been a bus station. The whole thing would have been under a stunning roof with escalators between the levels. But then the plans got buried and Houston actually sold that land, making it more difficult to ever revive those plans.
 
There were once 3 steam road lines and one electric interurban line from Houston to Galveston. Katy exited from the GH&H line in the 40s. I&GN (MP) exited the GH&H line in the early fifties as did SP on their own line. Santa Fe continued service on its line until 1967 with a short shuttle train transferring passengers across the platform to the TEXAS CHIEF in Houston.

By the way, the Galveston RR Museum is offering a special excursion train on the BNSF route (ex-Santa Fe) to Galveston on November 10th. Check out their website!
 
Twin Star Rocket said:
There were once 3 steam road lines and one electric interurban line from Houston to Galveston. Katy exited from the GH&H line in the 40s. I&GN (MP) exited the GH&H line in the early fifties as did SP on their own line. Santa Fe continued service on its line until 1967 with a short shuttle train transferring passengers across the platform to the TEXAS CHIEF in Houston.

By the way, the Galveston RR Museum is offering a special excursion train on the BNSF route (ex-Santa Fe) to Galveston on November 10th. Check out their website!
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What was that interurban called?
 
henryj said:
You can ride Houston to Galveston from the Houston Amtrak depot on Saturday November 10th for the Grand Reopening of the Galveston RR Museum. Here is the link. http://www.galvestonrrmuseum.com/grrm_docs/great_grand_reopening.pdf
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Henry:Thanks for Posting! :hi: Will the consist be old Santa Fe Equipment pulled by Engines in War Bonnet Paint as the Picture shows> It mentions Coach Seat along with access to a "Lounge" with Available Refreshments and Snacks??? Im interested, IYO is this trip worth $100 from Houston-Galveston-Houston? PM me if you have any info! Jim
 
Swadian Hardcore said:
cirdan said:
Swadian Hardcore said:
What was that interurban called?
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Galveston-Houston Electric Railway

Some nice pictures here:

http://members.iglou.../interurban.htm
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Now THIS is what Houston-Galveston needs! Modern version, of course, unless you want it to use replica old streetcars. :)
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Unfortunately, most of the right of way (at least that within the city limits of Houston in the 1950s; roughly to Howard Dr./Bellfort Ave.) is now underneath the Gulf Freeway.
 
Swadian Hardcore said:
cirdan said:
Swadian Hardcore said:
What was that interurban called?
Click to expand...
Galveston-Houston Electric Railway

Some nice pictures here:

http://members.iglou.../interurban.htm
Click to expand...
Now THIS is what Houston-Galveston needs! Modern version, of course, unless you want it to use replica old streetcars. :)
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Use DOODLEBUGS!

jimhudson said:
henryj said:
You can ride Houston to Galveston from the Houston Amtrak depot on Saturday November 10th for the Grand Reopening of the Galveston RR Museum. Here is the link. http://www.galvestonrrmuseum.com/grrm_docs/great_grand_reopening.pdf
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Henry:Thanks for Posting! :hi: Will the consist be old Santa Fe Equipment pulled by Engines in War Bonnet Paint as the Picture shows> It mentions Coach Seat along with access to a "Lounge" with Available Refreshments and Snacks??? Im interested, IYO is this trip worth $100 from Houston-Galveston-Houston? PM me if you have any info! Jim
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2 1/2 hour travel time for 50 miles is pretty brutal. Not much scenery except the last 3 miles... But a train ride is a train ride!!
 
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jimhudson said:
henryj said:
You can ride Houston to Galveston from the Houston Amtrak depot on Saturday November 10th for the Grand Reopening of the Galveston RR Museum. Here is the link. http://www.galvestonrrmuseum.com/grrm_docs/great_grand_reopening.pdf
Click to expand...
Henry:Thanks for Posting! :hi: Will the consist be old Santa Fe Equipment pulled by Engines in War Bonnet Paint as the Picture shows> It mentions Coach Seat along with access to a "Lounge" with Available Refreshments and Snacks??? Im interested, IYO is this trip worth $100 from Houston-Galveston-Houston? PM me if you have any info! Jim
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Jim, I don't know any more about it or even which route they will take. If interested, I would call the museum.

John
 
Janice Bunday said:
Need one way ticket from Dallas to Galveston Texas
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Right Now due to Track Work you will have to Ride an AMBus from Dallas to Longview,then Catch the AM BUs to Houston and Galveston (Part of your Train Reservation!) When the Trackwork in East Texas is Completed in November, you could Ride the Eagle #22 from Dallas to Longview, then Transfer the Ambus to Galveston!(There is a Nice Rail Museum in Galveston!)

Your Alternative is to ride the Eagle321/#421 from Dallas to San Antonio, catch #2 the Sunset Ltd. (only runs 3 days a Week)to Houston and take a Greyhound to Galveston IF this Rout still Exists??? :help:
 
According to Greyhound, they no longer offer service to Galveston. I am trying to get from Dallas to Galveston. The nearest stop to Galveston is Angleton.
 
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