All Aboard!

Heading to Union Station in Los Angeles for National Train Day.  I may post some photos as the day goes on.

One of the trains on display will be Santa Fe Steam Locomotive 3751.  I've videotaped that engine in action several times, the last time in 2010:

National Train Day

Looking for something fun to do on Saturday?  This weekend is National Train Day with events being held all over the country.  You can click on the link to find events in your area.

Los Angeles will have a big celebration at Union Station and thanks to Metrolink's $10 weekend pass it's pretty cheap to get up there.

 We're going to board the 9:16 am out of Laguna Niguel and that will get us to Union Station by 10:40.  That train stops in Oceanside, San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano before we get on, and Irvine, Tustin, Santa Ana, Orange, Anaheim, Fullerton, Buena Park, and Norwalk before arriving in Los Angeles.  I imagine a lot of other folks will have the same idea and the train will be packed.  We'll ride the 4:40 home.

The displays at Union Station are free, but I'm sure there will be some significant lines for some of the stuff.  If things are too crowded we may take advantage of the free transfers to the subway system and head off somewhere else for awhile.  There are a lot of options.

If nothing else, riding the train past the I-5 freeway traffic will be worth the trip.  And it seems like something interesting always happens when we're on the Metrolink.  Somebody gets arrested, cited for an improper tickets, there are dead guys along the track...always something.  We'll see what happens tomorrow.

Metrolink Hits a Pedestrian in San Clemente

This from the Metrolink Twitter feed:

IEOC Service Disruption Metrolink Train 851 struck a person by the San Clemente station. Calling buses to get passengers from incident...

I was just down there the other day and shot some video in that same area.

The OC Register is starting to cover the story here.

A Metrolink train fatally struck a person Monday afternoon between the San Juan Capistrano and San Clemente stations, Metrolink officials said.

The fatal crash occurred at about 12:15 p.m. in the 35000 block of Beach Road, authorities said.

The crash involved train No. 851 on the Inland Empire-Orange County line, which was headed southbound from Riverside to Oceanside, said Metrolink spokeswoman Sherita Coffelt.

Being that the area in question is single-tracked, until they move the Metrolink train nothing else will get through there, so Amtrak service will be disrupted too.

This Is Why They Call It "The Surfliner"

We headed back to the San Clemente Beach Trail this afternoon, the site of my recent crash and burn, and I just happened to be in a good spot to video the southbound Amtrak Pacific Surfliner as it passed along San Clemente Beach.

It'll Be a Little Quieter in San Clemente

Having walked the beach trail in San Clemente many times I know how noisy it can get down there when the frequent Amtrak, Metrolink, and BNSF freight trains pass through town.  The authorities are trying to make things a little less noisy for the neighbors in the very expensive ocean-side homes:

San Clemente and the Orange County Transportation Authority have scheduled a ceremony for 9:30 a.m. Dec. 21 to herald the launch of a railroad Quiet Zone at two train crossings in North Beach.

The public is invited.

Safety improvements installed by OCTA and the city led to the designation of a Quiet Zone, meaning trains no longer will be required to blast their horns four times when approaching each crossing. The driver of the train still will sound the horn upon seeing danger ahead.

At the Dec. 21 ceremony, announced by the city Tuesday, dignitaries will unveil signs designating the Quiet Zone at the entrance to Capistrano Shores Mobile Home Park and at the pedestrian entrance to North Beach.

Both railroad crossings have been upgraded with more-effective gates and an escape door for pedestrians who find themselves caught between the gates and the tracks after the gates come down. Fencing has been added along the tracks to prevent pedestrians from using them as a shortcut to the beach.

This will work until some surfer climbs the fence and gets wiped out by an approaching train. Trains are surprisingly quiet until they get right to you. I've been walking that trail and had a train suddenly appear right next to me that I didn't hear until the last moment.

Train Versus Pedestrian Near the Fullerton Amtrak Station

I'm hearing Fullerton Fire being dispatched on an Amtrak versus pedestrian accident in or near the Fullerton Amtrak station.  Police and fire are looking for the victim.

UPDATE:  Sounds like the incident actually occurred near the Buena Park Metrolink station which is just past the Fullerton airport.  OCFA is handling.

UPDATE 2:  From the OC Register:

One person was killed after being struck by a train in Buena Park on Wednesday night, authorities said.

Crews just before 9 p.m. responded to reports of someone being struck by a Metrolink train on the tracks near Lakeknoll Drive and Dale Street, Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Marc Stone said.

One person was pronounced dead at the scene, Stone said. Authorities haven't determined the victim's gender.

Suicide Threat Messing Up Rail Commuters in South County

If you thought you were going to take a train south of Laguna Niguel tonight, think again:

Authorities have stopped roadway and train traffic near the northbound 73 Toll Road as they try to talk down a man threatening to jump from an overpass at Camino Capistrano, Sheriff’s Department officials said.

Deputies about 4:10 p.m. responded to reports of a man on the overpass, Orange County Sheriff’s Lt. Stu Greenberg said.

Nearby train tracks and streets have been blocked as the Sheriff Department’s crisis negotiation team attempts to talk to the man, Greenberg said.

The northbound 5 transition to the northbound 73 has been closed, according to California Highway Patrol logs.

From the Laguna Niguel Patch:

A 45-year-old man threatening to jump from the 73 tollway overpass at Camino Capistrano in Laguna Niguel was sitting at the edge of a support beam rocking back and forth on his knees with a bottle of Jack Daniels in his hands.

High spaces and Jack Daniels, not a good combo.

UPDATE:

Trains and traffic were moving again Thursday morning after an apparently suicidal man came down from a freeway overpass after a 12-hour standoff with sheriff’s deputies.


The 45-year-old man was taken to Mission Hospital in Laguna Beach for a mental-health evaluation....


The man surrendered to authorities shortly after 4 a.m., Orange County Sheriff’s Lt. Jim England said. He did not have details about what prompted the man to come down, and did not know whether he would face any charges.


Lanes on the 73 were re-opened this morning, the California Highway Patrol reported. O.C. Line trains to Los Angeles were departing as scheduled from Laguna Niguel, according to Metrolink, but buses were still shuttling passengers between Oceanside and Laguna Niguel.

Sunset at Fullerton Station

We decided to go up to Fullerton Station to hang out for a bit and picked one of the few nights of the year when sunset coincides with the arrival of Amtrak's train #4, The Southwest Chief.  Here are some photos:

Weather Problems Wreaking Havoc on Amtrak

We know how summer storms can really mess up the airline schedule, but all that water falling out of the sky can also cause problems for ground transportation such as Amtrak:

Disruption caused by Midwest flooding has inundated Amtrak with delays and extra expense this summer while dampening the spirits of passengers traveling popular routes, forcing them in some cases to hop off the train and onto chartered buses.

Amtrak's Empire Builder, its most popular cross-country route, normally takes travelers from Chicago through the Rocky Mountains before heading to the Northwest. But for several weeks, westbound riders have gone no further than St. Paul, Minn.

Riders on the California Zephyr fare better, but eastbound riders stopping at Omaha on the San Francisco-to-Chicago line must hop off in Lincoln and ride a bus for an hour.

"These are the worst weeks of disruption I've seen in my 10 years at Amtrak," said Marc Magliari, a Chicago-based regional spokesman. "It's the longest I can recall routes ever having this kind of service interruption. I've seen flooding, but never for this long."

Some good news arrived Thursday: The full eastbound Empire Builder route will re-open Sunday, after more than a month of service suspensions. Westbound trains will leave Chicago for Portland and Washington starting Monday.

But passenger losses have still eaten into an otherwise strong year.

June ridership on the Empire Builder was down to 23,721 passengers, a 53 percent drop compared to ridership in June 2010, Amtrak statistics show. California Zephyr ridership from Chicago to San Francisco fell more than 19 percent last month, to 30,450. Overall ridership on Amtrak's long-distance lines grew more than 4 percent in the same period.

Having followed the terrible flooding problems in Minot, ND a few weeks ago it was obvious Amtrak was not going to be able to go through that part of the state. Looks like they've finally got the roadbeds dried out enough to start up again.

One of these days I want to ride both those routes. They pass through some of the most scenic parts of the U.S. The California Zephyr passes through both the Sierras and the Rockies, while the Empire Builder goes through Glacier National Park and the northern Rockies. They time the trains to make sure you're in the most scenic areas during daylight hours, so for rail fans it's a must-ride.

New Details Make AMTRAK Crash Look More Like an Accident Than an Attack

I had serious questions about this AMTRAK crash from Friday night.  It looked like it could have been an attempted terror attack, but new details make it more likely to be just a terrible accident:

Two truck drivers and a train engineer watched helplessly as a semitrailer skidded the length of a football field before it smashed through crossing gates and into two double-decker cars of an Amtrak train at a highway crossing, killing at least six people.

The drivers were part of a three-truck convoy that saw the gates come down and the warning lights go off as the California Zephyr approached, National Transportation Safety Board member Earl Weener said Saturday.

They stopped, but the driver of the big rig in the lead did not, he said....

At the time of the collision, Weener said visibility was excellent and the crossing gates and warning lights were working.

The train's engineer saw the truck approaching the crossing about 70 miles east of Reno and realized the collision was inevitable, he said.

The engineer slammed on the emergency brakes, but the train, which was going about 78 mph in an 80-mph zone, traveled a half mile more before it finally stopped, he said. The engineer watched the truck smash into two of the train's 10 cars through the rearview mirror.

"He recalled the event clearly. He saw the truck approaching the train," Weener said. "At some point, he knew the impact was imminent. He, in fact, watched the collision in a rearview mirror. He was hoping the train was not going to derail."

There are still some unanswered questions. None of the accounts I've read have given us the name of the truck driver. All we've been told is he's a Nevada resident in his mid-40's. It might be nice to get some clarity on that.

Chances are it's a case of driver inattention or perhaps a driver who thought at first he could beat the train to the crossing and then realized too late he couldn't. We may never know for sure.

Amtrak Crash - Accident or Attack?

I've got some questions about this:

A tractor-trailer rig hauling gravel east of Reno slammed with explosive force into an Amtrak train bound for Emeryville on Friday, killing at least two people and sending scores to hospitals with injuries.

The fiery collision happened on a lonely, windswept section of Highway 95 about 70 miles from Reno at 11:20 a.m. Smoke from at least two burning cars on the 10-car train could be seen for miles around.

Confirmed dead were the truck driver and a train conductor. At least 100 people were taken by bus, ambulance and helicopter to hospitals in Fallon and Reno, said Nevada Highway Patrol Trooper Dan Lopez. Identifications were not available.

"We're all wondering how in the world this could happen," said Kurt Althof, spokesman for Careflight helicopter ambulance, which flew two women with serious injuries to Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno. "There is absolutely nothing on that highway. It's just desert. How a truck could go into a train like that out there is just bizarre."

The train was the California Zephyr, and it had originated in Chicago. It was due to arrive in Emeryville at 4:10 p.m. There were 204 passengers and 14 crew members on board.

I'd like to know a lot more about the truck driver before I decide this was just an unfortunate accident. The whole thing seems rather unlikely as just an accident.

Chuckie Schumer: We Need a "No-Ride List" for Amtrak. America: We're Already Not Riding

Sen. Chuckie Schumer is trying to get in front of the parade once again:

A senator on Sunday called for a “no-ride list” for Amtrak trains after intelligence gleaned from the raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound pointed to potential attacks on the nation’s train system.

Sen. Charles Schumer said he would push as well for added funding for rail security and commuter and passenger train track inspections and more monitoring of stations nationwide.

“Circumstances demand we make adjustments by increasing funding to enhance rail safety and monitoring on commuter rail transit and screening who gets on Amtrak passenger trains, so that we can provide a greater level of security to the public,” the New York Democrat said at a news conference.

U.S. officials last week said evidence found after the raid on bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan indicated the al Qaeda leader or his associates had engaged in discussions or planning for a possible attack on a train inside the United States on September 11, 2011.

Of course most Americans are already avoiding Amtrak - not because they're afraid of terrorism but because they don't like train travel. For trips of more than a couple hundred miles it's simply not practical.

Just as an example - You can go one-way from Los Angeles to Chicago on Amtrak for $188. The trip will take 43 hours and that doesn't include food or a bed for the overnight portions.

You can fly from LA to Chicago on Southwest Airlines for as low as $104 if you're willing to make an addtional stop in a trip that will take 6 1/2 hours, or non-stop for $271 in a trip that will take 4 hours.  There's little or no economic advantage to taking the train.

The train does serve many rural parts of America that aren't served by major airlines, but again you can probably fly to the nearest major city and drive to your destination in far less time than it would take on the train.  As much as I enjoy train travel, it's not practical for most people.

The only thing that would make it worse is to impose TSA-like security procedures for train travel.  One of the few joys of train travel is the ability to get on without someone groping you.  If we lose that a lot of leisure travelers will just go back to flying.

Amtrak Hits Forty

Amtrak is starting its 40th anniversary celebration, about the time the mid-life crises start to hit, but Amtrak has been in a crisis pretty much since it started.  It loses money like crazy and if it wasn't for federal subsidies, the people that are riding it now wouldn't be able to afford the tickets.

The Blaze has a less than complimentary look at Amtrak which you can read here, but since Amtrak went to the trouble to make a promo video, and since I like trains, here it is:

Bin Laden Had His Sights Set on Amtrak

Interesting:

Holed up in a compound in Pakistan, Osama bin Laden was scheming how to hit the United States hard again, according to newly uncovered documents that show al-Qaida plans for derailing an American train on the upcoming 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

Details of the plan emerged Thursday as some of the first intelligence was gleaned from the trove of information found in bin Laden's residence when Navy SEALs killed the al-Qaida leader and four of his associates. They took his body and scooped up computers, DVDs and documents from the compound where U.S. officials think he had been living for as long as six years.

The confiscated materials reveal the rail attack planning as of February 2010. One idea outlined in handwritten notes was to tamper with an unspecified U.S. rail track so that a train would fall off the track at a valley or a bridge. Counterterrorism officials said they believe the plot was only in the initial planning stages, and there is no recent intelligence about any active plan for such an attack. The FBI and Homeland Security issued an intelligence bulletin with details of the plan to law enforcement around the country. The bulletin, marked "for official use only," was obtained by The Associated Press.

What's particularly interesting about this is they haven't found (at least so far) plans to go after an airliner again. That door has been pretty effectively closed, and after 9/11 I was pretty sure that airliners would be off the terrorist menu. Although the TSA would like the credit for that, I think the thing that ensures that airliners are not going to be a preferred target was the action of the passengers on Flight 93 on 9/11.  They stopped that hijacking and I can't image another group of passengers allowing a successful hijacking.  Won't happen.

The attack on railroads apparently did not involve suicide bombing, but simply sabotage of railroad equipment that might cause a destructive crash.  Spectacular if successful, but nothing like what the terrorist network pulled off on 9/11.  It sounds like we've pretty much gutted their organization and crippled their ability to be very effective.

While I wouldn't advocate a complete stand down of airport security, couldn't we at least stop treating everybody like terrorists?

Another Train Fatality in Mission Viejo

This explains all the noise last night.  We were awakened in the early morning hours by trains blasting their horns as they moved slowly along the track that runs in the ravine by our house.

A 23-year-old man was killed when he was hit by an Amtrak train Thursday night, authorities said.

Sheriff's officials received reports that the man ran in front of the train as it was traveling south between Alicia Parkway and La Paz Road, said Lt. Stu Geenberg of the Orange County Sheriff's Department.

Deputies are still investigating the incident, but they received reports the man ran toward the train before being hit, officials said. The incident is being investigated as a possible suicide.

The train was headed toward the Laguna Niguel stop and carrying 85 passengers, according to Amtrak officials.

The person has been identified as Sean Barrientes of Laguna Niguel.  This is close to the area where two people decided to sleep on the tracks last September.

We have trains that pass in the middle of the night (usually freights) but we don't normally notice them because they stay off the horn in this area since there are no grade crossings. Last night we had train horns blasting for the better part of an hour and we could hear them moving very slowly as they passed. I'm sure they had to slow down for the investigators who were literally out picking up the pieces.

Trains Versus Pedestrians Becoming an Epidemic in Southern California

There has been a rash of train versus pedestrian accidents in Southern California lately.  Most of them appear to be suicides.  There were two within a couple of weeks at almost the same spot in Tustin last month, and there have been two more in the last two days.  Yesterday a young male was hit near the Lancaster station by a Metrolink train, and today there's a body lying on the tracks that border the L.A. River just east of Union Station.  It's believed that victim was hit by an Amtrak train.

These accidents used to be fairly rare.  Now they're almost a daily occurrence.

Riding Along the Coast

Since you weren't able to join us for the trip to Solana Beach on the Amtrak, here's some quick cellphone video I shot during the trip back north.  Not the greatest quality picture (thanks largely to the dirty train windows), but it will give you an idea of what it looks like as you travel from South San Clemente to Doheny Beach.  The music is from Claude Debussy, Le Mer.

Solana Beach

Our ride at the Solana Beach Station.

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San Clemente Pier

Spectacular day in San Clemente.  We're passing the pier as we head along the coast.

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All Aboard!

Heading south.

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