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Forwarded to PlanPHX Leadership Committee and appropriate city department

We need Amtrak service to return to Phoenix's lovely and historic Union Station (after it's restored to its original grandeur.) We have Amtrak advocate and our VP Joe Biden in office - perhaps he can help make this happen. We also need commuter rail using the existing freight lines - we'd have an amazing transit network in the metro area if we had this to complement bus, bike, light rail, loaner cars, and pedestrians.

9 Comments
  • Michael P21

    by Michael P21 Passenger service is second rate since the Amtrak will put passenger service on sidings while they let freight go first. 90% of the passenger service is always late. I rode a private car attached to an Amtrak from L.A. to Boston and the trains was always held up so freight could go first. Amtrak will do nothing to promote Passenger service.

    Sep 27, 2012 at 5:01 PM  
  • Michael P21

    by Michael P21 Has the city of Phoenix paid BNSF for the money it owed them from 1980 when the rail road ran commuter service during the 100 year flood? I may be wrong but I understand that until that is paid there will be not commuter service on their tracks. We do need rail service here. The ICE would be great but the road bed and tracks need to be up graded to handel high speed trains. Europe has Concrete ties and welded tracks which we need inorder to have the Bullet train.

    Sep 27, 2012 at 12:12 PM  
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    by Derek H1 The most expensive part of building high speed rail is acquiring land through cities, building the grade crossings, and building through mountain ranges. Once that's done, the rest is easy. Since most of the land between Phoenix, Tucson, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas is flat and empty, it would be cheap to build HSR to those cities.

    Sep 27, 2012 at 5:19 PM  
  • comment icon

    by Derek H1 All bullet trains around the world make an operating profit, but few regular speed trains do, and none of those are in the USA. So I think we should concentrate on bringing bullet train service to Phoenix. The terrain is flat, so it will be cheap to build. Plus, if we line the tracks with solar panels, it wouldn't need fuel or an external source of electricity, except at night. Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Tucson are obvious destinations.

    Sep 27, 2012 at 12:22 AM  
  • David B45

    by David B45 Strongly seconded. Rail service to a dusty station in the hinterlands of Maricopa just isn't the same as having Amtrak pull into Downtown Phoenix.

    Sep 26, 2012 at 6:57 PM  
  • Will Novak

    by Will Novak Ardyce, do you mean like as a temporary thing until commuter service is restored?

    I suppose that would be possible. At the very least I'd like to see Union Station fixed up and turned into a sort of museum and event space. Its a beautiful building and Im sure would make for a popular place to hold banquets, weddings, etc. if it were properly maintained.

    Sep 27, 2012 at 4:46 PM  
  • comment icon

    by Ardyce E Thanks, Will. I haven't been down there in at least 20 years, so I don't know what's around there today. Do you think a small area could be used for train watchers?

    Sep 26, 2012 at 11:59 PM  
  • Will Novak

    by Will Novak VVV Ardyce, you're thinking of the Santa Fe station. Not Union Station. They're near each other ,but different.

    I may be wrong on this, but I believe the Santa Fe Station was always used for freight, Union was for passengers. Here's pictures of each to clarify:

    Union:
    http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4123/4781887834_da329ab868.jpg

    Santa Fe:
    http://www.azrymuseum.org/ADOT/2_Metro_Phoenix/ADOT%20March%202007%20-%20Phoenix%20Union%20Station-17th%20Ave/Pic/37.%20Phoenix%20Santa%20Fe%20Ry%20Freight%20Depot%205th%20Ave.jpg

    Union Station is full of Sprint Telephone equipment currently, its basically a warehouse.

    Sep 26, 2012 at 10:12 PM  
  • comment icon

    by Ardyce E I thunk the county now owns the station and they're rehabbing it for office space. Maybe the railroad could buy it back?

    Sep 26, 2012 at 8:51 PM  

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