NW Ohio Passenger Rail Assoc FALL FORUM

Northwest Ohio Passenger Rail Association
Fall Forum
Monday, November 15, 2010
11:30 a.m. – 1:15 p.m.
  The Toledo Club
Fourth Floor
235 14th Street, Toledo OH
 
Government, business, and economic development leaders are urged to attend:

Keynote speaker: Illinois State Representative Elaine Nekritz
"Successful Strategies for Passenger Rail"

Remarks: Don Yerks, Chairman, NOPRA                   
Moderator: Tina Skeldon Wozniak, Commissioner, Lucas County

Registration:  $20
Luncheon buffet  included
 
Name ______________________________________  Title _________________

Organization _______________________________________________________

Address __________________________________________________________

City __________________________________ State _______  ZIP ___________

E-mail ___________________________________ Phone __________________
 
____ Will attend ____ Cannot attend, but  wish to receive more information

____ I would like to join NOPRA or renew my annual membership:

   Corporate/Organization  $100   Individual  $25

____ Check enclosed (payable to NOPRA)  _____ Will pay at the door (check or cash, please)

Late cancellations, less than 2 business days in advance, may be invoiced
 

RETURN BY TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 9 to:
Northwest Ohio Passenger Rail Association  
PO Box 839, Toledo OH 43697      
419.241.9155 ext.  117
Fax 419.241.9116
NWOhioPassengerRail@gmail.com

DONT FORGET TO ATTEND

REMINDER! ODOT is holding the first in a series of interactive public workshops across the state to give residents a chance to speak out about policy issues that impact transportation investment in Ohio.

The workshops are part of the department's first-of-its-kind 'GO Ohio' Transportation Futures Plan that will look at state investments in all modes of travel and shipping - highway, air, rail, transit, water, pedestrian and bicycle - and align those transportation choices more comprehensively with job creation, economic development and quality of life.

You can RSVP with an email to Go.Ohio@dot.state.oh.us to help the state better plan for the workshops, although an RSVP is not required to attend. More information can be found at www.go.ohio.gov.

 

Wednesday, November 3
Cleveland
Crowne Plaza Cleveland City Centre,
777 St. Clair Ave., Cleveland, 44114

 

Thursday, November 4
Youngstown
Youngstown State University - Williamson Hall Auditorium

101 West Rayan Ave., Youngstown, 44555

 

Tuesday, November 9
Cambridge
Pritchard Laughlin Civic Center,
7033 Glenn Highway, Cambridge, 43725

 

Wednesday, November 10
Athens
Ohio University - Nelson Commons,
1 North McKinley Ave., Athens, 45701

 

Ken Prendergast
Executive Director
All Aboard Ohio
12029 Clifton Blvd., Suite 505
Cleveland, OH 44107
(216) 288-4883
kenprendergast@allaboardohio.org
www.allaboardohio.org

Ohio is surrounded by 1000s of new rail jobs

Ohio is surrounded!!! These are new passenger rail manufacturing and research facilities creating thoustands of jobs -- in surrounding states -- because those states have made and/or are making investments in rail. Private investment follows public capital. Always has. Always will. KJP

___________________

 

 

ILLINOIS

Illinois provides $12 million for new Nippon Sharyo rail-car plant

Yesterday, Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn announced a $12 million state business investment package for Nippon Sharyo U.S.A. Inc. to help support the company's $35 million investment to establish a rail-car manufacturing facility in Rochelle, Ill.

The rail-car builder plans to construct a 4,000-square-foot manufacturing plant and relocate its U.S. headquarters to Rochelle from Arlington Heights, Ill. The new facility will enable Nippon Sharyo to meet the Federal Railroad Administration's Buy America requirements and compete for contracts to assemble high-speed rail cars.

Full story at: http://www.progressiverailroading.com/prdailynews/news.asp?id=24825

 

 

 

INDIANA

 

Hundreds of jobs coming to Muncie
Progress Rail Services announced Friday that it will create 650 jobs in the former ABB plant on Muncie's southwest side.

By KEITH ROYSDON
kroysdon@muncie.gannett.com

MUNCIE -- Come next year, hundreds of Delaware County residents could be working on the railroad.

State and local officials gathered Friday to announce that an Alabama-based company and subsidiary of Caterpillar will manufacture railroad locomotive engines on the city's southwest side -- with a workforce of 650 by 2012.

In the shadow of the landmark former Westinghouse/ABB facility on Cowan Road, Gov. Mitch Daniels and other local officials announced that Progress Rail Services will occupy the huge former power transformer plant.

Full story at: http://www.thestarpress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=201010300332

 

 

 

NEW YORK

 

Amtrak buying 130 new passenger rail cars

To support long-distance train service
$298.1 million contract creates 575 jobs in Elmira, N.Y.

            WASHINGTON –    Amtrak is implementing the first step in a long-term, comprehensive fleet renewal plan with the purchase of 130 new single-level rail cars to support its long-distance train services.  The five-year, $298.1 million contract is being awarded to CAF USA which is creating 575 jobs to perform manufacturing and final assembly work at its plant in Elmira, N.Y.  The first car is scheduled to roll off the assembly line in October 2012.

            "This major equipment purchase demonstrates our strong belief in the future of intercity passenger rail in America and Amtrak's leading role in meeting this critical national transportation need," said President and CEO Joseph Boardman.

            The first year of the five-year contract will be paid for with $29.8 million from Amtrak's current revenues which are running above budget estimates due, in part, to ridership that is on a record-breaking pace.  Amtrak will seek to fund subsequent years of the contract with other sources such as loans or direct Congressional appropriations.

 

READ MORE AT:

http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer/Page/1237608337144/1237608345018?passedYear=2010

 

 

 

PENNSYLVANIA

 

Bombardier partners with Carnegie Mellon

Carnegie Mellon University and Bombardier Corp. are founding partners in a plan to open a $2.2 million research center this fall known as the Pennsylvania Smart Infrastructure Incubator (PSII), to study critical technology areas in a search "more efficient and sustainable civil infrastructure and transit operations."

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a providing a "significant" economic development grant for the project.

READ MORE AT:
http://www.railwayage.com/breaking-news/bombardier-carnegie-mellon-team-up-on-research-center.html

 

 

 

WISCONSIN

      

Spanish train maker picks Milwaukee for plant site
By Dinesh Ramde

MILWAUKEE (AP) -- A Spanish train company that agreed to build an assembly plant in Wisconsin said Tuesday it has chosen a site in Milwaukee, creating about 125 new jobs in the city.

Talgo Inc. chose Milwaukee over other options in Appleton, Janesville and Racine because of the city's access to a harbor and local rail station, the availability of skilled workers and the reasonable cost of living, said Antonio Perez, the company's chief executive.

The new facility will be on the site of a former Tower Automotive plant. Perez said it has enough room to accommodate train sets of 14 rail cars and also allows room for expansion as more orders roll in.

READ MORE AT:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/W/WI_TALGO_TRAINS?SITE=AZTUS&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

 

 

 

 

 

Ken Prendergast
Executive Director
All Aboard Ohio
12029 Clifton Blvd., Suite 505
Cleveland, OH 44107
(216) 288-4883
kenprendergast@allaboardohio.org
www.allaboardohio.org

All Aboard Ohio Local Meetings

All Aboard Ohio Local Meetings
 
November 2010

(NOTE: date for Dayton/Riverside local meeting listed in the newsletter is incorrect. Please send any other corrections to me and I will redistribute them!)
 
Nov. 2nd/Tuesday -- 6 p.m.; DAYTON/RIVERSIDE -- Comfort Inn, 5220 Harshman Ave., Riverside, across Springfield Street from the Air Force Museum. Contact: Jim Wellman at 937-416-1819.

Nov. 9th/Tuesday -- 6:30 p.m.; CINCINNATI -- Location TBA, Contact: Beau Tuke at beautuke@yahoo.com

Nov. 13th/Saturday -- 10 a.m.; COLUMBUS -- Grandview Public Library, 1685 W. First Ave., Contact Larry Robertson at 614-459-0359.

Nov. 13th/Saturday -- 10 a.m.; CLEVELAND -- Franklin Circle Church basement mtg room, 1688 Fulton Road, Ohio City. Contact Ken Prendergast at 216-288-4883.

Nov. 13th/Saturday -- 10 a.m.; TOLEDO -- Amtrak station, MLK Plaza, 415 Emerald Ave., Contact Bill Gill 419-536-1924.

Nov. 18th/Thursday -- 12 Noon; YOUNGSTOWN -- Brown-bag lunch mtg, Regional Chamber 17th Floor, 11 Central Square, Downtown, RSVP to Shari Budge at 330-744-2131 Ext. 31.

 

Ken Prendergast
Executive Director
All Aboard Ohio
12029 Clifton Blvd., Suite 505
Cleveland, OH 44107
(216) 288-4883
kenprendergast@allaboardohio.org
www.allaboardohio.org

High-speed rail timing is puzzling

Media ignorance continues, this time by the Warren Tribune Chronicle staff -- a letter/op-ed was sent by me. The analysis that went into the 3C's average speed is amazing (think about what it takes to create a moving computer simulation of 200+ daily scheduled freight trains over a complex web of tracks 250 miles long). And rarely are track-owning freight railroads engaged at such an early stage as this. What they also don't recognize is that 3C is the Midwest's busiest travel corridor between metro areas and that planning for the CYP Corridor will also start with a conventional-speed service because there's never enough money or cultural/political support early on for a strange new expensive project like high-speed rail. The initial speed for CYP will also have a low estimated baseline average speed and the Trib will also recoil in horror at that until the engineering starts and harder numbers are developed. Round and round we go....

High-speed rail timing is puzzling
November 2, 2010

When Ohio accepted $400 million from the federal government to begin developing high-speed rail, its political leaders created the so-called Tri-C corridor, a Cleveland-Columbus-Cincinnati route on existing rail lines.

Critics, however, pointed out many flaws, the biggest of which was that the rail line would not be high-speed. At an average speed of 39 mph, critics were able to poke serious holes, such as how unlikely it would be that people would ride longer on a train than in a car to get to the same destination.

Suddenly, in the midst of the 2010 General Election, which concludes today, the Ohio Department of Transportation announced a revised average speed of 50 mph for the proposed rail. No new analysis was conducted to arrive at this new speed. No new information was obtained from the freight railroads that own the lines to arrive at this new speed. In fact, nothing really changed except the speed.

READ MORE AT:
http://www.tribtoday.com/page/content.detail/id/549083/High-speed-rail-timing-is-puzzling.html?nav=5007

 

 

Ken Prendergast
Executive Director
All Aboard Ohio
12029 Clifton Blvd., Suite 505
Cleveland, OH 44107
(216) 288-4883
kenprendergast@allaboardohio.org
www.allaboardohio.org

Meeting Highlights 11-1-2010

COLUMBUS CITY COUNCIL MEETING HIGHLIGHTS   For Immediate Release: November 1, 2010   For More Information: John Ivanic, (614) 645-6798 Web – Facebook – Twitter

 

Rome-Hilliard Road Renovations CONTINUE: Improvements to one of the most heavily traveled roadways in west Columbus are continuing.  Public Service and Transportation Committee Chair Hearcel  F. Craig is sponsoring ordinance 1391-2010 to authorize the Public Service Department to enter into an agreement with the Ohio Department of Transportation for the Hilliard-Rome Road widening and reconstruction project.  The targeted area will consist of 1.19 miles from Westchester Wood Boulevard to south of Roberts Road.  The project will include the addition of three (3) new traffic lanes, tree lawns, utility relocation and over a mile of 5 foot wide sidewalk with Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant curb ramps and 10 foot wide bike lanes on the east and west sides of  Hilliard Rome Road.  The estimated cost of the project is $9,122,410.00 and is funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, MORPC ARRA and MORPC.  The estimated completion date is June, 2012.

 

ASSISTING REDEVELOPMENT IN THE NORTHLAND AREA: The Columbus City Council continues to support the redevelopment of the former Northland Mall site.  Finance & Economic Development Committee chair Andrew J. Ginther is sponsoring ordinance 1551-2010, to authorize the sale of 19.8 acres of city owned land at the former Northland Mall site with Northland Village Developers, LLC.  The land will be sold for a purchase price of $2,853,000 less credits for infrastructure improvements, utility relocations, survey costs and a prior real property tax adjustment.  Construction is currently underway at the former Northland Mall site on a Menard’s Home Improvement Store, the Franklin County Animal Shelter, and redevelopment of the former JC Penney Department Store.   

 

UTILITIES COMMITTEE Public Hearing: Councilmember Eileen Y. Paley, chair of the Utilities Committee, will convene a public hearing on Thursday, November 4, 2010 at 5:00 p.m. in City Council Chambers to discuss the proposed 2011 Utilities Rate Adjustments.  Those wishing to address City Council are welcome to submit a speaker slip at City Hall on the day of the meeting.

 

MAINTAINING CITY COMMUNICATIONS:  Councilmember A. Troy Miller, chair of the Administration Committee, is sponsoring ordinance 1492-2010 to authorize the expenditure of $105,832.00 from the Department of Technology’s information services fund for Echo24 to provide fiber optic repair services associated with the city’s Metronet fiber optic backbone.  The Metronet is a critical component of the computing infrastructure citywide and allows city agencies and departments to communicate.  Repairs of the fiber optic cabling are needed to connect Columbus Public Health at Bryden Alley and at Fifth Avenue and Olentangy River Road which services the Ohio State University area, the Police Crime Lab, and the Franklin County Morgue. The repairs are necessary to ensure data connectivity at city facilities and prevent lengthy outages due to damaged fiber optic cabling.      

 

PROVIDING NEIGHBORHOOD STABILIZATION DOLLARS TO CAMPUS PARTNERS:  The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has awarded Columbus $23.2 million in the Neighborhood Stabilization Program 2 (NSP2).  The funds, included in the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009, will provide for the acquisition, rehabilitation, redevelopment, or demolition of foreclosed, abandoned and vacant properties.   Housing Committee Chair Charleta B. Tavares is sponsoring ordinance 1499-2010 to modify and increase the NSP2 Consortium Agreement with Campus Partners for Community Urban Redevelopment in the amount of $1,500,000.00 from the General Grant Fund.  The funding will be used for approved programs to help revitalize the University area.  The city of Columbus is the Lead Applicant of the NSP2 Consortium which in addition to Campus Partners also includes Franklin County, the Affordable Housing Trust of Columbus and Franklin County, Columbus Housing Partnership, Community Development Collaborative of Greater Columbus, and Habitat for Humanity of Greater Columbus.

 

SUPPORTING BIKEWAY DEVELOPMENT:  The City of Columbus is committed to providing residents with alternative means of transportation through cycling and walking.  Priscilla R. Tyson, Chair of the Recreation and Parks committee, is sponsoring ordinance 1495-2010 which will authorize the expenditure of $41,000 from the Recreation and Parks Voted Bond Fund for the purchase of real estate for the Bikeway Land Acquisitions Project.  The city currently has 87 miles of bike routes and trails.

 

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Ridership increases at Elyria Amtrak

A good article. Also has updates on progress to make short-term ADA repairs to the existing "Amshack" station and, for the long-term, to relocate Amtrak permanently to the Lorain County Transportation Center (former New York Central depot).......

 

Ridership increases at Elyria Amtrak
Published: Saturday, October 30, 2010
By KELLY METZ
kmetz@MorningJournal.com

ELYRIA — Amtrak ridership in Elyria is growing and with a boost of federal stimulus dollars, riders could soon be catching the train from the county's new transportation center.

The ridership has grown in Elyria from 3,719 in 2009 to 4,862 in 2010, with the fiscal year being from October to September, according to an Ohio Department of Transportation. Ridership in Sandusky has also grown from 6,513 to 7,826. The stations are serviced by the Capitol Limited, between Washington, D.C., and Chicago; and the Lake Shore Limited between New York City and Chicago.

Marc Magliari, Amtrak's Chicago-based spokesman, said he believes the increase in ridership has to do with "some economic recovery in parts of the country."

READ MORE AT:
http://www.morningjournal.com/articles/2010/10/30/news/mj3572488.txt?viewmode=fullstory

 

 

Ken Prendergast
Executive Director
All Aboard Ohio
12029 Clifton Blvd., Suite 505
Cleveland, OH 44107
(216) 288-4883
kenprendergast@allaboardohio.org
www.allaboardohio.org