From: Martin Engel <martinengel_at_(domain_name_was_removed)>
Date: Sun Dec 09 2007 - 12:09:11 PST

Being someone whose glass is half empty, I regret not being able to share the enthusiasm felt by various Council representatives on the Peninsula for Caltrain's addition of one train north and south to their schedule.

Perhaps I need to restate the basis for my concerns. Caltrain is pursuing a strategic agenda; it is to stop being a provider of local transit service, and becoming instead a regional rail carrier. Their interest is to reduce the number of stops, especially among closely spaced stations, and thereby increase average speeds as they focus their effort to linking the two metropolitan areas, San Jose and San Francisco. Adding two train legs to their 96 train schedule is an underwhelming tweaking and contributes very little to the much larger problem of what constitutes a comprehensive urban mass transit system.

Caltrain, running from the ever-looming shadows of what it calls bankruptcy, apparently has no time or interest in anything but it's own enhancement. (Even the MTC has an inexplicable, tunnel vision, rail fixation.) It is puzzling that Caltrain is proudly breaking passenger records yearly, yet struggles with an annual structural deficit. Do they believe that there is some tipping point of passenger increase with increased service that will off-set the deficit and put them in the black? Are they hopelessly chasing their own tail? They persist in seeing themselves as a rail business operator rather than a central part of a transit service. The saying that has been applied to the declining railroad business in the US is, "They thought they were in the railroad business when they should have understood that they are in the transportation business."

The Coalition to Expand Train Sevice, CETS, is also working to increase shuttle connectivity as well as promoting greater bus ease-of-use with Samtrans and VTA. Those efforts are commendable and promise the improvement of the multi-modal character of a effective transit network.

As I have said many times, it's the multi-modal transit network, not adding bells and whistles to the trains.

Someone recently proposed a very graphic metaphor of what we have been promoting. It's not the trunk of the tree (read Caltrain) that is critical to our purposes, but the "bushy" ends of the branches, because, in this image, it's the branches, twigs and leaves, so to speak, where we live and work. Buses, shuttles, light rail, subways, and even cars are critical elements of such a comprehensive, successful system.

Caltrain dangles the sugar plum of electrification in 2014 in front of our eyes, with promises of faster, better, lighter, cheaper, and more. Without HSR bond largesse and without FRA approval, don't hold your breath.

Martin

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Printed from THE DAILY JOURNAL, dtd. 12/07/2007

Caltrain adds more service to schedule
By Dana Yates

A group of Peninsula councilmembers concerned about diminished train service in their cities called yesterday's Caltrain decision to add two trains to its evening schedule a small step in the right direction. The Caltrain Board of Directors unanimously approved the addition of two evening trains to the railroad's weekday schedule, one northbound and one southbound.

The expansion brings the number of Caltrain's weekday trains to 98, a historically high number for the 145-year-old Peninsula rail service.

The decision brings Caltrain a step closer to restoring full service at Burlingame's Broadway, Belmont, Atherton and Menlo Park stations. Weekday service at the stations was cut in 2005 when Caltrain drastically changed its schedule to accommodate 96 trains per day. The change implemented more baby bullet express trains while decreasing frequency at lightly used stations.

The Coalition to Expand Transit Service, a group of 11 councilmembers from San Mateo County seeking to restore service at smaller stations, publicly clashed with Caltrain officials over the change. The group spent more than a year meeting with Caltrain representatives to advocate for expanded service. The group called the addition to the schedule "an incremental positive step toward improving area-wide transit" in a statement issued yesterday.

However, it doesn't completely satisfy the group.

"It is a very small step, we need more stops in more cities," said
Menlo Park Councilwoman Kelly Fergusson. "We're adding hundreds of jobs in Menlo Park that are in walkable distance of the train station."

Cities such as Menlo Park and Broadway have property close to its stations that are ripe for redevelopment. The discontinuation of rail service is decreasing the likelihood that developers will explore transit-oriented development in those areas. Without a train stop, such development as was once talked about at Burlingame's Broadway becomes less attractive.

Caltrain officials credit the 2005 change for saving the agency from bankruptcy. Caltrain officials have always maintained that the agency - which serves San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties - must address transit issues at a regional level.

"We're only able to do it because the maintenance center recently
came online," Weinberg said.

The maintenance center opened in San Francisco and allows Caltrain to switch out trains without adding additional employees to the work shift, Weinberg said.

The expanded service will begin on Monday, March 3, and affect trains departing after 7 p.m. The additional service will fill a gap in evening service in both directions. Trains will depart San Jose and San Francisco every hour on the half-hour from 7:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., however, the final southbound train will still depart from San Francisco at 12:01 a.m., according to Caltrain.

Yesterday's decision to add more changes is the first in several steps it will take to improve service, Caltrain spokesman Jonah Weinberg said.

This is the first of several steps the agency will make to improve local service. It is currently improve platforms at the downtown Burlingame's and Palo Alto station. The improvements will allow trains to pass through stations faster and will eventually shave time from the schedule, possibly allowing for additional stops or trains, Weinberg said.

The ultimate resolution will come in 2014 when Caltrain expects to electrify the entire line. Electrification will allow faster trains. As part of its push toward electrification, Caltrain is pursing a waiver from the Federal Railroad Agency allowing it to use lighter equipment that will decrease start and stop times, resulting in the most efficient schedule.

Caltrain hopes it could be used as a national pilot for the equipment that is currently used in Europe. It expects a decision about the waiver within a year, Weinberg said.

Dana Yates can be reached by e-mail: dana@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 106.

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Friday Dec 7
Caltrain adding weekday trains
Critics say rail service has a long way to go By Will Oremus / Daily News Staff Writer Caltrain soon will be running more trains each weekday than ever before, but some San Mateo County officials say its local service still needs improvement.

The rail service's board Thursday unanimously approved adding one northbound and one southbound train on weekday evenings. The new schedule means trains will stop at most stations once every hour between 7:30 and 10:30 p.m.

Caltrain officials presented the changes as a response to calls for more local service. Public feedback gathered by Caltrain the past few weeks was generally positive, but critics say the rail service still has a long way to go.

In a prepared statement Thursday, a group of current and former elected officials calling themselves the Coalition to Expand Transit Service said the schedule expansion is "an incremental positive step."

"I'm happy to see that some of our suggestions have been
implemented," said Burlingame Council Member Terry Nagel, who founded the coalition in 2005. "This makes the schedule much more predictable" for evening commuters.

Nagel said the coalition hopes more improvements are on the way, especially in San Mateo County, which lost train stops in 2004 when the rail service created the "Baby Bullet" express train.

"We still believe that some minor additional changes in the schedule
can accommodate far more riders overall than the current schedule," Nagel said. "This is at least a beginning for trying to serve the needs of commuters."

Malcolm Dudley, a former Atherton council member instrumental in Caltrain's creation, was more critical. He is steamed that Atherton's station is among two on the Peninsula that get no weekday service, something that won't change with the tweaked schedule.

"This action by Caltrain of adding one train hardly addresses the
major issue, which is restoration of lost service," Dudley said.

Caltrain leaders say they're providing the best service they can, given ongoing financial constraints. Spokesman Jonah Weinberg said the added weekday routes were made possible by a new maintenance facility in San Jose.

"We're all hoping for more," said board member and San Mateo County
Supervisor Jerry Hill, who has served as Caltrain's liaison to the coalition. "Wherever there's an opportunity, we're going to increase service."

Without additional funding, however, Hill doesn't foresee big changes anytime soon. He points to the rail service's plan to go electric in 2015 as a potential long-term solution.

E-mail Will Oremus at woremus@dailynewsgroup.com.

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Martin Engel
1621 Stone Pine Lane
Menlo Park, CA 94025
650:323-1670
martinengel@earthlink.net
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Received on Sun Dec 9 13:48:22 2007