Amtrak plan for high-speed rail could bypass Providence
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| Amtrak's "analyzed" high speed route bypasses Providence. |
Amtrak announced their vision for next generation high-speed rail in the Northeast Corridor yesterday, aiming for an 84-minute travel time between Boston and NY that would make it competitive with airlines, but there's a potential catch for Rhode Island: the preliminary route studied doesn't go through Providence. Download PDF from Amtrak.com
While it is certainly too early to be up in arms — this is just, after all, a preliminary "analyzed alignment" — having seen how powerful early assumptions can be in project planning, I think it's important that our state representatives and Congressional delegation hear very clearly: Woonsocket is not an option for a high-speed rail terminal.
Seriously, Woonsocket?
Rhode Island doesn't make the list of "Hub city" stations on page 12 of the report. We're not even in the second tier of "Major city stations." We're in the "Other stations" category.
I believe absolutely in high-speed rail, and I think it's a critical component of our transportation system. Our current "high speed" option, Acela, never offered the right value proposition; it was too slow, too expensive, and plagued by the same on-time performance problems as the rest of the system. So while I salute Amtrak's vision, they need to hear, clearly and loudly, that they will not be meeting our needs in Rhode Island. As an Aquidneck Islander, if I have to get to Woonsocket to catch an overpriced express, I'm going to skip it and drive to New Haven and take Metro-North.
Comments
jasonpbecker
Wed, 09/29/2010 - 8:29am
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What's baffling is the lack
What's baffling is the lack of any of the routes connecting Hartford and Providence. The excuse I read about not going to Providence had to do with turn radius-- but looking at the sharp path taken to even hit Hartford suggests this is somewhat bogus.
To tell you the truth, we should probably let this one go by Providence. We already have pretty decent service to Boston, which, when running well, can get you there in 35 mins by Amtrak. Why not connect Hartford to TF Green's Intermodal Station (which will surely have connected to points south and north at that point), and then continue the high speed rail to Fall River before turning upwards to Boston.
If Connecticut is going to benefit from new connectivity to points North where previously NYC was the only option, why shouldn't we do the same?
John McDaid
Wed, 09/29/2010 - 9:23am
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Agree, north is good too
Hi, Jason...
I've long lamented the fact that 100 years ago, I could have gotten a train from Portsmouth to Boston, but that the car killed off this perfectly functioning regional rail system. So yes, I agree absolutely that connecting through the TF Green intermodal makes a ton of sense. We need lots of options to replace cars.
Another out-of-box idea would be a connector from PVD to Woonsocket. After all, in Japan, the shinkansen doesn't stop everywhere, but you have good regional rail connections at the stations. And you're right, maybe Providence doesn't deserve a stop on the "super express" flavor of the high-speed rail; we can make do with "shoreline express," which will probably be current Acela cars with a new paint job.
On the one hand, cities are a wasted paradigm. Technology allows us to be decentered, to telecommute, videoconference, and share space in suburban office parks. On the other hand, being within easy travel distance of Washington, DC is still one of the sources of leverage we have in the Northeast, and once air travel completely collapses — peak oil and all — I would hate to see us relegated to an increasingly underfunded siding.
Cheers.
-j
jasonpbecker
Wed, 09/29/2010 - 5:36pm
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Closed down rail through Providence...
It's wild to me that as recently as the 80s there was rail running from downtown Providence, under College Hill, and out to East Providence, Fall River, and New Bedford.
Rather than eliminate this kind of rail, we should have converted it to passenger rail.
There's still freight rail that goes through Pawtucket, into Central Falls, and then follows the Blackstone River Valley to Woonsocket. Seems obvious to me-- rail to points east from Providence converted back to passenger rail, rail from Providence through the BV to Woonsocket, and continue to expand south with the MBTA plans. Combine this with an effective street car + bus system throughout Providence and you reconnect the whole area by building along existing, functional rail.