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TRANSIT RIDERSHIP IN TEXAS CITIES UP AS GAS PRICES RISE

Higher prices at the pump have translated into more riders for mass transit agencies in Dallas, Houston and Austin in recent months.

Ridership on the Trinity Railway Express, which links Dallas and Fort Worth, was up 11 percent in May compared to the same time last year. The commuter rail line averaged 9,600 daily boardings during the period.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit light-rail boardings are up 6.4 percent during the same period.

In 2008, DART is averaging 63,000 riders per day. TRE is averaging 9,200.

Rising gas prices in recent months is a big reason why ridership is up, said DART spokesman Morgan Lyons. Regular unleaded gas prices neared $4 per gallon in Texas prior to July 4th Weekend.

Lyons said daily TRE boardings in June unofficially are between 10,000-11,000.

"We really began seeing changes late last year and more early this year as gas has risen past the $3 threshold," Lyons said. "People are doing the math. We all do it when there is a big change in prices."

In Houston, ridership on METRORail's 7.5-mile light-rail line improved 7.3 percent from March 2007 to 2008. METRORail had 6,156,507 boardings during the period.

Months away from launching its light-rail line, Austin Capital Metro had a 24 percent increase in May compared to the same time last year on its express bus routes.

Capital Metro is expected to launch its 32-mile ight-rail line from Leander to downtown Austin this fall. — TIM BLACKWELL/CRU (July 3, 2008)

METRO WORK STARTS ON PHASE II OF PLAN

HOUSTON — Construction crews began utility work in early July on the first segment of the East End Corridor on the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County’s light rail line.

The work marks the start of a 30-mile expansion as part of Phase II of METRO Solutions, which was approved in late June.

The first segment of work is on Harrisburg, from Milby to Lockwood, where most of the utility relocation will take place.

DART INTRODUCES SUPER LIGHT RAIL VEHICLES

DALLAS — The next generation of light rail vehicles is in service as Dallas Area Rapid Transit begins introducing the larger-capacity super light rail vehicle (SLRV). The first car began carrying customers on the Blue Line between Downtown Garland and Ledbetter stations during morning rush hour on June 23.

The modified cars are known as Super Light Rail Vehicles (SLRVs) because of the greater length and added passenger capacity. The SLRV will seat approximately 100 passengers compared with 75 on the current vehicles. Standing passengers on the vehicle can nearly double the capacity.

An expanded version of this story appears in the July/August 2008 issue of the Cowcatcher Round Up.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit recently began placing into service its new super light rail vehicles (SLRVs). The new vehicles offer more passenger capacity. Photo courtesy DART.

MORE RAILCARS SITTING IDLE AS ECONOMY SLOWS

The railroad industry has too many railcars for its own good, and railcar manufacturers are suffering as a result, according to a report at Forbes.com.

 More than 40,000 cars are sitting idle or in storage as demand for shipment of grains, chemicals and coal has dropped since railroads ramped up orders for railcars two years ago when the economy flourished.

Railcar overproduction has left the market flooded, with demand further depressed by railroads' increased operational efficiency, the report states. Now, with prices lower, railcar makers are talking consolidation.

In February a private investor acquired a 9.5 percent stake in railcar manufacturer Greenbrier while stating an interest in engineering a merger with Missouri-based American Railcar Industries.

Demand for railcars peaked in 2006 as many railroad companies stocked up on hopes that ethanol demand would drive substantial growth. In the first quarter of 2006 there were over 35,000 railcar orders. In the first-quarter 2008 there were only 10,000.

The sagging U.S. economy added to the stockpile as shipments dropped. According to the report, Union Pacific has 15,000-20,000 railcars in storage.

AUSTIN STEAM ASSOCATION TO OFFER FREE TOURS

The Austin Steam Train Association will offer free tours of historic railroad cars and equipment at its Cedar Park, TX, station on Sept. 13 as part of its Museum Day. Tours will be from 2-7 p.m.

Tours will be given on ASTA's 1929 vintage passenger cars, 1949 coach cars and first class Pullman lounge cars built in 1950. Visitors can also climb inside the cab of the 1960 Alco Engine and learn how the engine works!

No reservations are necessary. For more information, visit www.austinsteamtrain.org .

BNSF PLACES GENSETS INTO SERVICE IN D/FW, HOUSTON

FORT WORTH — BNSF Railway Co. announced in May that it had placed 67 GenSet switch locomotives in service in Dallas/Fort Worth and Houston. The GenSets were acquired through the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s (TCEQ) emissions reduction incentive grants program, which provides grants to eligible projects in non-attainment areas.

 The GenSet is a low-horsepower switch locomotive with three engines that operate only as needed, potentially reducing nitrogen oxide and particulate matter emissions by 80-90 percent and improving fuel efficiency by 15 percent over standard switch engines.

An expanded version of this story appears in the July/August 2008 issue of the Cowcatcher Round Up.