Passenger Rail Set To Connect OKC, Tulsa

[carltonplace]

OTA is a different entity than ODOT.  Aside from that, I don't think Dewey knows anything about anything.  Well other than there's great stuff over there on the other side of the train tracks.

You would think that a stint at OTA would at least have taught him that infrastructure is a core responsibility of Government.

Lemmegetthisstraight. The city governments in both OKC and Tulsa all agree that this train is a good thing. I'll go out on a limb and say that the city governments of the towns along the way are also giving a thumbs up. Each trip has been successful enough to show that it's feasable and we have a company that wants to provide the service.

But to our mayor its still a toss up and no one in Tulsa wants it.

I wonder if we would have an airport if he had been mayor when it was pitched.

[rdj]

Was Dewey on the city council when Great Plains was proposed and approved?

[Conan71]

I don't think so, he was on the council from '90 to '94.  That pre-dates Great Plains by six or seven years, I think.

[Hoss]

I don't think so, he was on the council from '90 to '94.  That pre-dates Great Plains by six or seven years, I think.

GP started in 2001 I think and didn't take long to shudder after that debacle got off the ground (2004).

[heironymouspasparagus]

Dewey Bartlett used to sit on the board of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority. Maybe he knows something we don't.

He is still one of the "enlightened", privileged few who gets the thrill of owning turnpike bonds.

[brettakins]

http://www.newson6.com/story/24927838/state-lawmakers-fight-odot-on-sale-of-public-railroads

TULSA, Oklahoma -

Oklahoma lawmakers are urging the Oklahoma Department of Transportation not to sell a piece of railroad which connects Northeastern Oklahoma to the rest of the state.

Lawmakers are fearful if ODOT sells the piece of track connecting the two cities, commuting between them by rail wouldn't become a reality.

"We need to make sure Tulsa and Northeast Oklahoma are represented, and if we can have passenger rail service and if it's something that the people in Northeast Oklahoma want to use we want to make it available to them," State Sen. Brian Crain, (R-Tulsa) said.

The railroad connecting Tulsa and Oklahoma City is up for sale.

Lawmakers have several proposals on the table they say would help secure passenger rail service between Tulsa and Oklahoma City.

In February, the Eastern Flyer passenger train sold out on several round trips to Oklahoma City.

Supporters for passenger rail service on that line say if ODOT sells the railroad, people wanting passenger rail service would be at the mercy of private owners and their busy freight schedules.

This demand has lawmakers like Crian urging ODOT to stop the sale of the track known as the Sooner Sub.

"Right now,we're fighting to make sure there's a rail system that's available for us to use once we've figured out 'How do we reestablish what for years which is essential to the Tulsa area, which is passenger rail service,'"

Crain is authoring a bill that would require lawmakers and the governor to approve any future railroad sales.

"You can take the existing track starting with the Eastern Flyer and do a whole lot with it," passenger rail supporter Bob Rounsavell said.

Supporters say private rail operators are proposing daily express trips between Tulsa and OKC.

Rounsavell says the Sooner Sub would help Tulsans reach the Heartland Flyer in Oklahoma City.

"If we keep control of this property, then we control our own destiny and we create a new industry for the 21st Century," he said.

Lawmakers are also proposing the creation of an Oklahoma Railways Commission, which would control the operation of the state-owned railways.

Supporters are hopeful Iowa Pacific will be running the Eastern Flyer passenger rail service would begin as early as October.

[dioscorides]

Use of Public Transit in U.S. Reaches Highest Level Since 1956, Advocates Report [New York Times]
By JON HURDLEMARCH 10, 2014

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/10/us/use-of-public-transit-in-us-reaches-highest-level-since-1956-advocates-report.html?_r=0

PHILADELPHIA — More Americans used buses, trains and subways in 2013 than in any year since 1956 as service improved, local economies grew and travelers increasingly sought alternatives to the automobile for trips within metropolitan areas, the American Public Transportation Association said in a report released on Monday.

The trade group said in its annual report that 10.65 billion passenger trips were taken on transit systems during the year, surpassing the post-1950s peak of 10.59 million in 2008, when gas prices rose to $4 to $5 a gallon.

The ridership in 2013, when gas prices were lower than in 2008, undermines the conventional wisdom that transit use rises when those prices exceed a certain threshold, and suggests that other forces are bolstering enthusiasm for public transportation, said Michael Melaniphy, the president of the association.

"Now gas is averaging well under $4 a gallon, the economy is coming back and people are riding transit in record numbers," Mr. Melaniphy said in an interview. "We're seeing a fundamental shift in how people are moving about their communities."

From 1995 to 2013, transit ridership rose 37 percent, well ahead of a 20 percent growth in population and a 23 percent increase in vehicle miles traveled, according to the association's data.

Stronger economic growth is playing an important role in the increased use of public transit, as more people are using the systems to get to an increasing number of jobs, the association reported, and transit agencies are nurturing growth by expanding their systems or improving services.

"We're seeing that where cities have invested in transit, their unemployment rates have dropped, and employment is going up because people can get there," Mr. Melaniphy said.

Overall public transit ridership increased by 1.1 percent from 2012, with the biggest gains in rail service and in bus service for smaller cities.

In New York, where use of all modes of transit in the Metropolitan Transportation Authority increased 3.6 percent last year, according to the data, ridership has been bolstered by falling unemployment and improved service, said Kevin Ortiz, a spokesman for the authority.

The system is also being increasingly used during off-peak times, especially by younger people, who are encouraged by promotions like free transfers between subways and buses and by a decline in crime in the city, Mr. Ortiz said.

In Denver, the Regional Transit District topped 101 million passenger trips last year, its most ever, helped by an improving economy and an increasing acceptance that public transit is an attractive alternative to the automobile, said Scott Reed, a spokesman for the district.

One of the challenges is simply getting people to try public transportation, Mr. Reed said, but when they do, "they find it is so much easier than they had feared."

The 14-mile light-rail W Line connecting Denver, Lakewood and Golden, Colo., opened in April, and by the end of the year, it was carrying about 15,000 passengers a day, as planned. The line is part of a FasTracks expansion program, which will consist of 122 additional miles of light and commuter rail, 18 miles of a bus rapid transit system and a doubling of park-and-ride facilities, all scheduled for completion in 2016.

The estimated $7 billion cost is being paid for in part with a 0.4 percent sales tax, which voters approved in 2004. Nationally, taxpayers are increasingly willing to finance public transportation improvements, Mr. Melaniphy said.

In the last two years, more than 70 percent of transit tax initiatives have succeeded, he said.

Todd Litman, an analyst at the Victoria Transport Policy Institute in Victoria, British Columbia, said the new data were the latest indication of changing consumer preferences as a result of increasing urbanization, an aging population, and environmental and health concerns.

"A lot of people would prefer to drive less and rely more on walking, cycling and public transit, provided that those are high-quality options," Mr. Litman said.

[Townsend]

Opposition to Selling Rail Line Gains Momentum

http://kwgs.com/post/opposition-selling-rail-line-gains-momentum

As a decision nears the end of the line, the move to block the sale of state owned rail tracks between Tulsa and Oklahoma City rolls along. The latest to join those opposing the sale is Cherokee Chief Bill John Baker. He joins a growing chorus of voices asking the state to retain ownership. Evan Stair with Passenger Rail Oklahoma says a bid by Burlington Northern Santa Fe would not be good for those wanting excursion and commuter trains.

It's expected the Department of Transportation and the Governor will get a recommendation sometime next month.

[dioscorides]

I saw this on reddit:  http://www.reddit.com/r/tulsa/comments/222t85/edm_scene_in_tulsa/cgjhpob

"Amtrak has plans to run high speed trains between Tulsa and Dallas starting in 2016 (Amtrak Texas Star, a three-way route with endpoints in Tulsa, OKC and Austin, meeting in Dallas), which means the Jazz Museum needs to find a new home."

I searched for "Amtrak Texas Star" on Google, and got nothing.  Has anyone else heard anything about this?  It's from Reddit.  So, I am taking it with a grain of salt.

[Hoss]

I saw this on reddit:  http://www.reddit.com/r/tulsa/comments/222t85/edm_scene_in_tulsa/cgjhpob

"Amtrak has plans to run high speed trains between Tulsa and Dallas starting in 2016 (Amtrak Texas Star, a three-way route with endpoints in Tulsa, OKC and Austin, meeting in Dallas), which means the Jazz Museum needs to find a new home."

I searched for "Amtrak Texas Star" on Google, and got nothing.  Has anyone else heard anything about this?  It's from Reddit.  So, I am taking it with a grain of salt.

What was the date of the post?  If April 1, you bought that hook/line/sinker.   

[dioscorides]

What was the date of the post?  If April 1, you bought that hook/line/sinker.   

That is what I thought at first, too.  It was posted yesterday.

[dioscorides]

State board votes to sell Sooner Sub rail line to existing lease holder
By CURTIS KILLMAN World Staff Writer

http://www.tulsaworld.com/communities/sapulpa/state-board-votes-to-sell-sooner-sub-rail-line-to/article_98c7869e-d47a-11e3-925b-0017a43b2370.html

OKLAHOMA CITY -- The state Transportation Board voted unanimously today to sell a railroad line between Sapulpa and an Oklahoma City suburb to the existing lease holder for $75 million.

The board voted 8-0 to sell the line to Watco Cos., which owns Stillwater Central Railroad Co. The company currently leases the rail line and has indicated it plans to work with another company to offer passenger service.

The board heard a recommendation from Gov. Mary Fallin's cabinet secretaries to sell the line, known as the Sooner Sub.

The issue of the rail line's sale had sparked controversy, with proponents of passenger rail calling on the state not to sale the line. Tulsa Rail Advisory Committee Chairman Rick Westcott said in March that "ODOT needs to tell us and show us why it's in the public's interest to sell the line."

Westcott, a former Tulsa City Councilor, supports having a passenger rail line between Tulsa and Oklahoma City. Passenger rail proponents feared that if the state sold the line, a private company could operate it as a freight line.

However, Stillwater Central Railroad Co. has indicated it would work with losing bidder Iowa Pacific Holdings to operate a passenger line.

During today's Transportation Board meeting, the board heard a recommendation from several Fallin cabinet secretaries that the state sell the line to Watco.

Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Co., also was bidding with Watco to purchase the line known formally known as the Sooner Subdivision. The line runs between Sapulpa and Midwest City.

The line has principally carried freight, but passenger trains from another railroad company, Iowa Pacific Holdings, ran on it in February to demonstrate the viability of such a service.

The Iowa Pacific and Stillwater Central railroads have an agreement that calls for Iowa Pacific to work toward establishing daily passenger service between Midwest City and Tulsa.

BNSF is owned by billionaire investor Warren Buffett's company, Omaha, Neb.-based Berkshire Hathaway Inc. A subsidiary, BH Media, bought the Tulsa World last year.

[Townsend]

Fallin's got veto power.  I'm interested to see if someone gets in her pockets and she goes against her cabinet.

[Radvlad]

So we now have the option to drive to Sapulpa, catch a train to Midwest City and connect to a bus that will take us to OKC for 70 bucks?

Sweet.

I believe this is one of the main problems that will need to be overcome. Right now it just takes too long by train to be meaningful to the business passenger. There are only so many people who will pony up the money for a novelty trip. After they have traveled once, who will be left to ride the thing?

Rail service from Tulsa will only work if places like Dallas or Kansas City are the destinations. OKC could be a stop on the way to Dallas, just like Joplin could be a stop on the way to Kansas City. However, either city on their own, will not generate enough local traffic.

[sgrizzle]

The Jazz Museum wouldn't effect the train, unless the entry/exit is through the roof of the train.