Kzoo looks to close 3 crossings, move railyard

[Saturnalia]

And leave space for a future passenger rail connection to Grand Rapids…

How about no.

[MiddleMI]

How about people like you stop being weird about constructive suggestions like this?

[kd_1014]

I suggest that pigs fly. I will strike down any criticism I receive.

[Saturnalia]

How about people like you stop being weird about constructive suggestions like this?

How about people like you figure out how to use the quote feature?

The whole Amtrak from GRR to CHI via Kzoo topic has been discussed ad nauseum on here before. It's a terrible idea that abandons HOM, BAM and SJM, over half of the PM's ridership, while also costing millions to get the GDLK upgraded to the same standards that the CSX already is.

It's a dumb, horrible idea.

[GP30M4216]

And leave space for a future passenger rail connection to Grand Rapids…

The property in the NW quadrant of the GR&I and MC diamond is owned by NS and Kalamazoo Brownfield Authority.

But I’m happy with the Pere Marquette just the way it is

[Plannerdad]

I have no objection to the Pere Marquette route. But it misses the high speed corridor where most of the state and federal dollars will go. And The Gun Lake Tribe is building a city between GR and Kalamazoo. I think the two routes could complement each other. It is only money!

[Saturnalia]

I have no objection to the Pere Marquette route. But it misses the high speed corridor where most of the state and federal dollars will go. And The Gun Lake Tribe is building a city between GR and Kalamazoo. I think the two routes could complement each other. It is only money!

Yeah, they spent all this money and haven't even added any trains to the existing route.

The idea that the Pere Marquette "misses out" on the improvements on the Michigan Line is like saying flights out of San Francisco are missing out on the improvements at LAX.

They're two completely different services.

Now, a GR-Kzoo train is a different subject entirely.

[Plannerdad]

All I am suggesting is to not preclude the option of connecting to GR. The GR metro area has almost 3/4 of a million people and could help the high speed corridor. My idea is creating kind of a Holland-Grand Rapids-Kalamazoo loop with self contained equipment of some kind, quasi-commuter service.

[justalurker66]

It's a dumb, horrible idea.

How about Kalamazoo to Traverse City?

I agree. While moving the railyard would qualify as a "fantasy" plan and lesser improvements (such as a NE connection on the diamond) are close to fantasy land the oft discussed fantasy passenger rail plans are just distractions.

[Saturnalia]

It's a dumb, horrible idea.

How about Kalamazoo to Traverse City?

I agree. While moving the railyard would qualify as a "fantasy" plan and lesser improvements (such as a NE connection on the diamond) are close to fantasy land the oft discussed fantasy passenger rail plans are just distractions.

Moving the GDLK yard isn’t as far-fetched an idea, honestly. As pointed out, there are locations potentially available both north and south of town. GDLK doesn’t need a *huge* yard, it isn’t like they would be building a new North Platte.

Ultimately it depends on how much the City (and State) want to spend to fix these problems. Watco isn’t going to do it since what they have works for them.

I personally tend to believe that the Northeast connection is the most likely solution, perhaps coupled with rationalizing north of BO to just one main with a new connection up north.

One major not-yet-discussed factor may someday be train frequency on the AML. If they ever do end up beefing up the frequencies a lot, then train v train interference will also be much more of an issue compared to what it is now. GDLK has plenty of large windows to do their thing without getting in Amtrak’s way.

We’ll see. Just about anything is possible with enough time, money and resources. Just a matter of what the parties involved want to commit to!

[Standard Railfan]

How about people like you stop being weird about constructive suggestions like this?

How about people like you figure out how to use the quote feature?

The whole Amtrak from GRR to CHI via Kzoo topic has been discussed ad nauseum on here before. It's a terrible idea that abandons HOM, BAM and SJM, over half of the PM's ridership, while also costing millions to get the GDLK upgraded to the same standards that the CSX already is.

It's a dumb, horrible idea.

Apparently MDOT does not share your sentiment. See page 92 paragraph 6.5.6.

https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/-/media/P ... 564B493B8A

[Saturnalia]

How about people like you stop being weird about constructive suggestions like this?

How about people like you figure out how to use the quote feature?

The whole Amtrak from GRR to CHI via Kzoo topic has been discussed ad nauseum on here before. It's a terrible idea that abandons HOM, BAM and SJM, over half of the PM's ridership, while also costing millions to get the GDLK upgraded to the same standards that the CSX already is.

It's a dumb, horrible idea.

Apparently MDOT does not share your sentiment. See page 92 paragraph 6.5.6.

https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/-/media/P ... 564B493B8A

All that says is that they’ve been suggested, that’s it.

And I agree. They’ve been suggested. But those ideas are crap.

[Standard Railfan]

How about people like you figure out how to use the quote feature?

The whole Amtrak from GRR to CHI via Kzoo topic has been discussed ad nauseum on here before. It's a terrible idea that abandons HOM, BAM and SJM, over half of the PM's ridership, while also costing millions to get the GDLK upgraded to the same standards that the CSX already is.

It's a dumb, horrible idea.

Apparently MDOT does not share your sentiment. See page 92 paragraph 6.5.6.

https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/-/media/P ... 564B493B8A

All that says is that they’ve been suggested, that’s it.

And I agree. They’ve been suggested. But those ideas are crap.

I realize that the idea has only been suggested, but MDOT does not delete the idea over subsequent planning cycles.

I’m not an expert, but it seems plausible that one train set could run up to 3 round trips between Holland, Grand Rapids, and Kalamazoo scheduled to meet Wolverine and Blue Water trains.

The greater frequency would allow passengers more flexibility going to and from Chicago as well as allow convenient travel to points in Central and Southeast Michigan. Using the connection at Kalamazoo allows for expanded higher speed service without paying to maintain a corridor over the CSX lines.

[joeyuboats]

Just out of curiosity, how many rail served industries are in Kalamazoo?

[AARR]

Check Wiki for the complete list but there are 10 including Portage. GDLK has done an impressive job getting new customers.

Just out of curiosity, how many rail served industries are in Kalamazoo?

[justalurker66]

Apparently MDOT does not share your sentiment. See page 92 paragraph 6.5.6.

https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/-/media/P ... 564B493B8A

So an "other proposal" that didn't even make the cutoff to be a named "other proposal" in the report?