and the Theatre District near South Ninth and Commerce Streets. Expanding the serv- ice raises the question of where to build. It appears the project with the most going for it is a 2.3 mile route from Downtown to the Stadium District, west along Sixth Avenue and south along Martin Luther King Jr. Way to South Nineteenth Street. The new line would connect downtown job centers and the “Medical Mile” of healthcare facilities to densely populated parts of the city. Thanks to John A. Lee for the news.
Information Please From time to time I get requests for informa- tion about rail operations or rail history that age and ailments make it difficult for me to respond to. So I thought I would give some hints on how to find answers on questions about the past. The Internet is an invaluable resource and research tool. If you are close to a major university, be sure to visit the li- brary and talk with the reference staff. If the library has access to the Electric Railway Journal, you are in for a feast of information on electric railway service between 1900 and 1932. Don’t forget local historical societies; many have extensive information on trans- portation. One recent question was about Cincinnati
and its proposed subway. The idea was born about the time of World War I. Construction began in the early 1920s, and continued into the latter part of that decade. The Great De- pression cooled down interests in continuing the project, even though some tunnels had been built and some surface work was fairly far along. I recall seeing the concrete work for a surface station while I was driving into Cincinnati some years ago. The tunnels have been used for pipes, cables, and storage. By the way, one reason for the subway to be built was to enable the interurban electric railways to enter the city. The interurbans were largely standard gauge, while the Cincinnati Street Railway was not. Even the famed Cincinnati & Lake Erie Railway stopped on the north edge of the city so pas- sengers could transfer to local streetcar lines. Many thanks to George Rieves for the inspiration.
Commuter Rail Service and Home Values The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transporta- tion Authority sponsored a study of subur- ban housing value in relation to commuter rail service. The benefit to Chester, Delaware, Bucks, and Montgomery Counties was about $7900 per house. Analyzing 88,300 home sales in the counties between 2005 and 2012, the study found that houses close to stations with plentiful parking and frequent rail service were worth $31,102- $37,300 more than similar houses more than three miles from a station. The study was done by Econsult Solutions, Inc., of Philadel- phia. Thanks to David Harris for the news.
Cincinnati Streetcar Cancelation Some places apparently cannot make up their minds. It appeared as if the streetcar project in Cincinnati would move ahead, but then a new mayor and several city council members were elected who opposed the proj- ect once in office. The project was canceled. Let us assume that the opponents of the streetcar project based their negativity on economics, believing, the project would cost too much for Cincinnati. KPMG was em- ployed to review the situation.
The conclusion was that it would cost the
city less to cancel the project than to com- plete it. It was estimated that it would cost between $50.3 million-$80.1 million to can- cel the project and would cost between $100.6 million- $105.7 million to complete it. $34 million dollars was already spent and cancelling the project means that money has been expended with nothing of benefit to the public to show for it. This is reminiscent of the state of Wisconsin’s cancellation of a con- tract to purchase trains from Talgo to en- hance the present Chicago to Milwaukee Hi- awatha service and extend it to Madison. When cancelations occur, money has to be paid out to cover work done and honor con- tracts even though there is not much to show for it. Elections have consequences. Mean- while, the new mayor and council have dis- covered that forward momentum has made it almost impossible to stop the streetcar con- struction at this point, so it continues. Thanks to John C. Spychalski for the news.
Flashes WASHINGTON METRORAIL is in the process of completing the new Silver Line to Dulles International Airport. Computer problems have delayed testing and the even- tual opening of revenue service. The opening date is not available at this writing. In the TWIN CITIES, the opening of the
new Green Line has been set at June 14, 2014. The Green Line will link Target Field in Downtown Minneapolis with St. Paul Union Depot. The opening will be in the same month in which streetcar service in the Twin Cities was halted 60 years earlier. Many Thanks to Bill Stixrud for the good news. The ground breaking for the Crenshaw
light rail line has taken place. When the line opens it will be the first rail service in the area since the LOS ANGELES railway service stopped in 1955. The new line will branch off the Exposition Line and run 8.5 miles to a point near LAX (the airport). The $2 billion project is expected to be completed in 2019. However, the rails may not actually reach the airport. The rail terminal will be about two miles from LAX. The Green Line light rail service is about 2.5 miles from LAX. This is getting embarrassing. Probably the two light rail lines will share a station and a people mover will link that station with airport. Thanks to Frank Bauer for the news. In the NEW YORK CITY region, Stuart
Werner reports that Governor Cuomo called for the restart of passenger service on the Harlem River Division of the old New York Central, with construction of four stations in the Bronx. Metro-North Railroad would op- erate the trains. Mr. Werner also reports that the completion date of the East Side Ac- cess Project bringing Long Island Rail Road trains into Grand Central Terminal has been put off until 2021. Originally the open- ing date was supposed to be 2009. Patience is a virtue. The Philadelphia Navy Yard, where my
Uncle Joe installed and repaired radios in submarines, has been redeveloped into an office center and a residential area. In a 2007 Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission Report it was noted that ex- tending the BROAD STREET SUBWAYto the Navy Yard site would be very useful. The cost estimate is $370 million. The project has warm support from U.S. Senator Robert Casey. Charlie Bogart sent the interesting news and thanks to him.
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