What is Connecticut’s relationship with Metro-North? Client – vendor? Shared partnership? Stockholm syndrome? Or is the railroad a “fanged sloth” hanging around our neck? All of those analogies has been made to the state’s 30+ year relationship with Metro-North, part of New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). But given their dismal safety record and … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: Is Metro-North Irreplaceable?
Talking Transportation: “Getting to the Airport”
The old Cunard line used to say that “getting there is half the fun.” But anyone who’s endured the challenges and indignities of air travel know that getting to the airport can sap your strength, if not your wallet. Consider the alternatives. A car service is certainly convenient. But at $110 one way to LaGuardia, $140 to JFK and $150+ to Newark, getting to the airport … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: “Getting to the Airport”
Talking Transportation: The Myth of the Third Rail
Metro-North’s mangled and much-maligned service in Connecticut is made all the more challenging by a technological quirk of fate. Ours is the only commuter railroad in the US that operates on three modes of power … AC, DC and diesel. On a typical run from, say, New Haven to Grand Central, the first part of the journey is done “under the wire”, the trains being powered by … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: The Myth of the Third Rail
Talking Transportation: The Toughest Job in Transportation
Who do you think has the toughest job in transportation? Airline pilots? Long-haul truck drivers? Metro-North conductors? To my thinking, the toughest job is being an airport TSA agent. Forget the recent furor over revised Transportation Security Administration rules soon to allow small knives in carry-on luggage. The plastic knives the flight attendants distribute in … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: The Toughest Job in Transportation
Talking Transportation: Promises Still Not Kept
Someone once said: “Judge me by my actions, not my words.” So let’s do just that, comparing recent rhetoric to reality when it comes to Metro-North. EXPANDED SERVICE: During the election campaign much was made of a promised expansion of off-peak train service, growing from one train an hour to two. But when the new timetable came out Nov. 9, riders found that the 14 … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: Promises Still Not Kept
Talking Transportation: Commuters Have Clout
The recent elections have shown Hartford an important fact: the 120,000 daily riders of Metro-North have political power. The Commuter Action Group, of which I am founder, endorsed only five candidates for election and they were all winners. (Trust me, there were many others seeking our endorsement, but they didn’t have the track-records (pun intended) to warrant our … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: Commuters Have Clout
Talking Transportation: Free Parking Isn’t Free
America’s obsession with automobiles is not only creating gridlock and ruining the quality of our air, but it’s eating up our land and sending real estate costs upward. Because, once we drive our cars off the crowded highways, we assume it’s our constitutional right to find “free parking”. For decades, city planners and zoning regulations have shared with Detroit in an … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: Free Parking Isn’t Free
Talking Transportation: Five Terrible Ideas for Solving Traffic Congestion
The fall campaign has brought a welcome discussion of the state’s transportation woes, especially getting mass transit back into a state of good repair. But gubernatorial candidate Tom Foley says he thinks the real issue isn’t the trains and buses but highway congestion. Yet, he offers no solutions, saying only “we’ll figure it out.” Really? Tom, if there were easy … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: Five Terrible Ideas for Solving Traffic Congestion
Talking Transportation: No Blue Ribbons for Metro-North
The long awaited MTA “Blue Ribbon Panel” of experts has issued its report on Metro-North and its sister railroads, and it isn’t pretty. Their 50 page report confirms much of what we already knew: that the railroad placed too much emphasis on “on time performance” instead of safety … that there were serious repair issues unattended to for months … and that there has been an … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: No Blue Ribbons for Metro-North
Talking Transportation: Why a Another Fare Hike Seems Inevitable
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but chances are we will see another fare hike on Metro-North in the coming months. Not that any elected official would endorse such a plan (at least not before the November elections), but once again Connecticut is not totally in control of its financial destiny when it comes to our trains. True, fare increases in Connecticut must be … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: Why a Another Fare Hike Seems Inevitable
Talking Transportation: To Vermont, By Train
Like many, I love Vermont. But I’m not crazy about getting there. From my home to Burlington VT is about 300 miles. By car, that’s at least five hours and about $50 in gas each way. Flying may seem quicker, but with the airport drive, it’s not much better and about $150 each way. But there’s another alternative: Amtrak. There are actually three trains a day that will … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: To Vermont, By Train
“Talking Transportation: Is It Safe To Ride Metro-North?
It has been seven months since a drowsy engineer drove a speeding Metro-North train off the tracks at Spuyten Duyvil, killing four and injuring 59. Months earlier a derailment and collision near Bridgeport sent 70 to the hospital. Ever since, the railroad has promised that improving safety is its top priority. So does that mean the railroad is now “safe”? Aside from … [Read more...] about “Talking Transportation: Is It Safe To Ride Metro-North?
Talking Transportation: “Traffic Calming”
You’ve seen the bumper stickers: “Slow down in town”. They’re an often futile attempt to encourage speeding motorists to be more respectful of the neighborhoods they are zooming through, especially of the pedestrians. I wouldn’t exactly call it road rage, but why is it that when we’re behind the wheel, our goal is to get on down the road as fast as traffic will allow, the … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: “Traffic Calming”
Talking Transportation: Things Are Getting Better on Metro-North
I know it may be hard to believe, but I think things are getting better on Metro-North. Last week I finally met Joseph Giulietti, the new President of Metro-North. I found him to be very smart, quite candid and equipped with a reasonable plan to bring this railroad back to its once-deserved world-class status. On May 11th a new timetable will become effective, aimed at … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: Things Are Getting Better on Metro-North
Eight Little Known Facts About Flying
We may never know what happened to that Malaysia Airlines 777, but there’s plenty more we should know about flying, even domestically. Here are some little-known truths of aviation as shared by pilots and flight attendants: Lavatory Doors Don’t Really Lock: They can be opened from the outside by just sliding the “occupied” sign to one side. This isn’t so attendants can … [Read more...] about Eight Little Known Facts About Flying