Florida and Colorado Railcar

IS THE DMU DEAD?

Dallas - Fort Worth uses the rebuilt RDC's.

I wasn't impressed by either the looks or the feel of the Colorado Railcar. Some may recall that I took a "test drive" at 80 mph and the thing sounded like it was leaving parts scattered along the tracks as we flew past. Doors rattled and banged, plastic everywhere not unlike an airliner but with obvious beat-up look and these were new. Perhaps the bugs just haven't been worked out yet. The original Budd RDC car, had some bugs when they were first delivered along with "trailer" cars. While not as powerful as the DMU, the Budd car operators quickly found that in pulling the trailer (basically a ultra-light but other wise standard railroad passenger coach) the RDC's transmission fell apart. But the Budd RDC has stood the test of time and those 1950's era stainless steel beauties are still clicking off the miles in commuter services throughout the country and beyond. Several firms are offering a rebuilt RDC at a fraction of the cost of the DMU, with the added benefit of getting almost double the diesel fuel mileage. Florida needs to use caution when it makes the purchases of these DMU vehicles, I tend to like the well tested path of the old faithful RDC.

Here's Why:

Another ugly possibility is that Colorado Railcar is on shaky ground. The lead Rader family member running the company got the ax not too long ago. Seems like this "sign" has happened three or four times already? The DMU is not getting any orders, and especially after TriMet's Portland, Oregon order is now three-four months overdue. The Vermont deal collapsed and Florida is sitting on Orlando - Jacksonville - Tampa commuter rail projects paralyzed by legislative inaction, so no orders are coming from here either. I wonder how many more transit agencies will cut a deal with them?

Railway Age magazine had this to say:

Less than a decade ago, when all but the last few passenger services operated with aging Budd Rail Diesel Car (RDC) equipment were phased out, the day of the diesel multiple-unit, or DMU, appeared to be about over on North American railroads. But hardly had the diesel railcar been declared dead when it came back to life in a flurry of proposals for new passenger rail starts with DMU equipment, together with supplier proposals for a variety of new designs for the North American market. Lying behind this new interest were the same potential cost advantages and operational flexibility over conventional locomotive-hauled equipment-particularly in applications for which the required passenger capacity is relatively low-that had made such a success of the RDC almost a half century earlier.

This was manifested first in a modest revival of rehabilitated RDCs in new-starts at Syracuse, N.Y., and Cape May, N.J., during 1994 and 1996. A far more significant example came on line at the beginning of 1997, when Trinity Railway Express began operating regional passenger service over a 10-mile route between Dallas Union Station and South Irving with a fleet of 13 Alstom Canada-remanufactured RDCs. Well satisfied with their operating performance, flexibility, and reliability, and anticipating a growing role for RDCs as full Dallas-Fort Worth operation grows and other planned services develop, TRE is now looking for another six RDCs for eventual rehabilitation.

The revival of interest in the DMU, however, is owed in large part to a variety of new designs, most of them based upon successful recent European equipment. Siemens Transportation, for example, is marketing three options, all based upon successful German designs. For short-haul "diesel light rail" services, Siemens is marketing the Regio Sprinter, an articulated diesel-hydraulic design, while the larger VT-642 diesel-electric railcar is being offered for commuter and short intercity markets. Neither of these vehicles complies with FRA Tier 1 crash worthiness standards, and can be used only in services separated from other railroad operations. The third Siemens option, however, is an FRA-compliant version of the VT-605, a diesel-electric vehicle available in tilting or non-tilting versions and capable of 125 mph maximum speed for extended commuter or intercity services.
Adtranz is offering an FRA-compliant version of the Flexliner DMU for both commuter and intercity services, and a diesel LRT design based upon the firm's GTW vehicle developed in Switzerland. Bombardier and Alstom are jointly marketing a modified version of Alstom's 125-mph XTER diesel-hydraulic trains built for the French National Railways. Bombardier is also marketing the Talent, a European articulated diesel light rail vehicle design

Progressive Railroading has announced:

Colorado Railcar Manufacturing L.L.C. recently named Larry Salci president and chief executive officer. He succeeds company founder Tom Rader, who will remain the company’s sole shareholder, but focus on other business interests, such as his role as GrandLuxe Rail Journey’s president.Salci has 37 years’ experience in the transportation industry, including stints as president of The Budd Transit Group, Bombardier Corp., and Morrison Knudsen Transit Group and its successor company American Passenger Rail Car Co. He most recently was president and CEO of St. Louis Metro. Salci previously served as general manager and CEO of the Southeastern Michigan Transportation Authority.

The final piece of the puzzle in our state might be the Bio-Diesel fuel. Miami has converted the Tri-Rail locomotives to Bio-Diesel, a mix of homegrown cooking and other oils. But they just announced the DMU's can't be converted or their warranties will expire.

We can only hope the former Budd Executive will spin the company around and get it back on track. The competition is tough, the new Flexliner is a thing of beauty and the Siemens vehicle is no slouch either. We're hoping the American Made - Colorado Company will survive, but as we say in Florida; "when your up to your neck in alligators, it's difficult to remember the original objective was to drain the swamp."

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RSS FEED IS FIXED

JACKSONVILLE TRANSIT RSS FEED IS FIXED!

For those who have been trying to subscribe to the RSS feeds for this blog, we have finally found the problem. So go for it and come along for the ride.

Bob

Jacksonville Traction Company

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MONORAIL SUBWAY COMING SOON

Las Vegas is pointing the way for Jacksonville. The downtown monorail is going to the airport, which in the case of Vegas, is "where the people are". Jacksonville is much larger and many miles more scattered, but could they be onto a novel idea? In Jacksonville, "the people" are in San Marco, 5-Points/Riverside Ave, Shands, (the "new" courthouse) or the Stadium district. Who in Jacksonville would have thought of taking our Skyway, "where the people are?" Note that this Vegas job might end up being the most expensive monorail ever built. Not because the technology is THAT expensive, but because they are going to build a monorail SUBWAY! Now please don't jump to the conclusion that I would EVER support such an idea in Jacksonville, we simply don't need it. But we do need to make the Skyway viable, so we look on jealously and "wish" we had leaders that were not idea challenged invertebrates. So my beloved City, read it and weep:

Edward Lawrence, Reporter

Monorail Looks to Expand to McCarran Airport

Imagine getting off a plane and onto a train to get to your hotel on the Las Vegas Strip. The Las Vegas Monorail announced plans to do just that by expanding to the airport.
The monorail runs behind the casinos on the east side of Las Vegas Boulevard in a four mile stretch.
Las Vegas Convention and Visitor Authority board members say this will be the only way to save the project. The monorail opened four years ago to fewer than expected passengers. To increase the riders, they want to go where the people are.
The monorail impressed visitor Jim Norbury, "I think the monorail is brilliant, absolutely brilliant."
Take a look at the Las Vegas Monorail's proposal
He and his wife Lee are visiting from England. They say the monorail looks new and clean.
To survive, monorail executives told the LVCVA it needs to go to the airport. Monorail President and CEO Curtis Myles says it's a necessary next step to generate the needed riders and revenue.
"Certainly that is where the people are in this town. 70-percent of the people who visit Las Vegas through the airport are going to the resort corridor where our system is," he said.
Myles put together a team to identify creative financing for the project, "There is a lot of money out there today that is chasing infrastructure projects and this is an infrastructure project. Oddly enough, the best time to do a project is in a down economy. It puts a lot of people to work. It invests in the community."
He refused to say how much it will cost. Myles made his presentation for a blessing from the elected leaders on the convention board, which he got, with strings.
"They have given us reassurance that our taxpayers will not be on the hook. We are going to take them up on that," said Clark County Commission Chairman Rory Reid.
Commissioner Tom Collins put it best, "County will not be on the bite for this thing."
Once the money is settled and expansion is finished, the Norbury's look forward to using it for a cool trip to their hotel, "We had a 10 hour flight, we were pretty tired. Then to stand in the heat. We arrived at 1 o'clock. It was maybe five minutes, but it seemed a long time when you have done a 10 hour flight."
Curtis Myles says he doesn't expect any resistance from cab drivers for the monorail expansion.
If all goes according to schedule the first train will run to the airport in 2012. It will go from MGM Grand, east on Tropicana, then turn south on Swenson into the airport.
There will be two more stations, one at terminal one and another that will be inside the airport expansion for a terminal three.
Part of the trip for the monorail will also be underground to give the monorail space and avoid moving roads. The final design work is being finished now.

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