From: Martin Engel <martinengel_at_(domain_name_was_removed)>
Date: Tue Mar 11 2008 - 10:54:26 PST

Honorable Mayor and members of the Menlo Park City Council:

Ms. Lempert, whose column is reprinted below stood in front of our Menlo Park City Council not so long ago and proclaimed that those who oppose the expansion of her railroad empire (in this particular instance, the Dumbarton rail) should be obliged to make personal sacrifices for the sake of the greater common good. She may well have also been thinking of the Broadway and Atherton station closings.

In the column she wrote yesterday, she advocates electrification and chastises Atherton for not supporting it. This is an excellent example of saying a great deal by not saying it.

So, since she brings it up, let's talk electrification. Caltrain's vision, to which she refers but does not spell out, involves the replacement of all existing rolling stock with EMUs, electric multiple units. Independently powered passenger cars, EMUs are usually lighter and don't meet the heavy-rail criteria for trains that share their tracks with freight. (You can do quite a bit of useful homework in Wikipedia.)

For Caltrain to use them will require a variance from the Federal Railroad Administration. That's problematic since Caltrain shares tracks with freight. EMUs are indeed faster and far more flexible in their use. They can operate independently or be connected in series.

And, by the way, there are also DMUs or Diesel multiple units. The newest ones use hybrid technology.
These don't play into Caltrain thinking. That's another discussion.

If Caltrain electrifies, but without EMU change-over; that is, if the FRA doesn't allow it, they will simply replace their existing Diesel-electric locomotives with electric locomotives and the performance gains will be negligible.

Lempert avoids the real issue and that is the high speed train municipal bond on the November ballot. If it passes, it will put the high speed train down the Caltrain corridor, with electrification, of course. But, it will also pay for it, along with additional tracks, corridor widening, grade separations and track elevation. Those changes (and use of EMUs) can indeed speed up Caltrain to the hoped for 110 mph. And, with fewer stops, those speeds can be attained more frequently, thus reducing travel time. If the bond issue fails, none of this will happen. Electrification costs alone will be in the neighborhood of $1billion.

Furthermore, Caltrain's strategic plan is to become a regional, not local, carrier. That means fewer stops locally wherever possible. Speed, or reduced travel times, is basically what Caltrain is "selling." Whether the locomotives in the present heavy-rail system are electrified or not is not paramount. Re-opening Broadway and Atherton stations is more of a speed/time and economic (# of passengers) decision.

Reducing the number of mid-Peninsula stops seems to be part of the Caltrain growth strategy and electricity may have little to do with it.

Respectfully,
Martin

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Published Monday, March 10, 2008, by the San Mateo Daily Journal

Column

By Sue Lempert

Caltrain electrification will allow the reopening of stations at Broadway and Atherton because trains will be able to run faster, spend less time at train stations and allow more local stops without adding time to the total trip. Good news for commuters in Burlingame and Atherton but some community leaders in Atherton still do not want electrification.

Sue Lempert is the former mayor of San Mateo. Her column runs every Monday. She can be reached at sue@...

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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 Tue Mar 11 10:02:26 2008