Portland Passenger Rail

[F-Line to Dudley]

The Mountain Branch will be a rail trail before they're ever ready to entertain the option of east-west rail. Frankly, the more time they waste studying this at arm's length the less time they spend figuring out the logistics of an easily effective express bus. Analysis paralysis FTW, and it's clouding the Union Station siting process.

 

[markhb]

I do think that one of the reasons Sites 1 or 2 weren't chosen (besides the desire to maintain the current Portland maintenance facility) is that they don't want to get into an eminent domain battle with the owner of both those sites: MaineHealth, aka Maine Medical Center. Because that cozy "nonprofit" of a hospital will lawyer MaineDOT into the ground.

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

I do think that one of the reasons Sites 1 or 2 weren't chosen (besides the desire to maintain the current Portland maintenance facility) is that they don't want to get into an eminent domain battle with the owner of both those sites: MaineHealth, aka Maine Medical Center. Because that cozy "nonprofit" of a hospital will lawyer MaineDOT into the ground.

I can't for the life of me fathom why they are placing Thompson's Point layover on such a pedestal. It hasn't been used as a regular yard ever since the Brunswick extension opened and shifted the maint base out there. It only takes very occasional non-revenue equipment extras, which is hardly an essential function. And if they ever did need space for a Portland layover the unused CSX Yard 8 has plenty of space almost as nearby. It's as disposable as they come.

 

[riptide]

I can't for the life of me fathom why they are placing Thompson's Point layover on such a pedestal. It hasn't been used as a regular yard ever since the Brunswick extension opened and shifted the maint base out there. It only takes very occasional non-revenue equipment extras, which is hardly an essential function. And if they ever did need space for a Portland layover the unused CSX Yard 8 has plenty of space almost as nearby. It's as disposable as they come.

The idea that Site 3 is the only option that can facilitate convenient train movements into Thompson’s Point is only true if you assume that no track infrastructure mods can be made. Seems like they could restore the missing leg of the wye pretty easily, and that would let them access the Mountain Branch from a better-located station site. This idea was never mentioned in their study, as far as I can tell, so it’s not clear if they considered the possibility.

 

[riptide]

Cumberland postpones rail-to-trail vote, abutting property owners opposed

The Casco Bay Trail Alliance, which seeks to alter the Berlin Subdivision rail corridor to add a trail looping from Portland to Lewiston/Auburn, is asking towns along the route to sign off in support. Cumberland recently voted to postpone a decision.

www.pressherald.com

The Casco Bay Trail Alliance (bike lobby) is hoping to get Portland City Council to pass a resolution next month in favor of converting the Berlin Subdivision into a trail. This is the alignment that the 295 bypass would tie into. Clock’s ticking on that option continuing to remain on the table.

 

[markhb]

It's a pipe dream. The Union Branch is in the abandonment process if it isn't already completed. Personally, I'd be more interested in the line serving revived industrial uses on Presumpscot Street, but no one has been beating the drum for that.

 

[kpimeasap]

I'm just going to leave this here: https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=15tyYZEwi1go13wGsAKCCCqwCN8uZrQg&usp=sharing

I am going to be building a Google site to handle constructive feedback. This is a fantasy map, I hope it inspires you or someone you know to think bigger than the endless vacuum that car dependency has become. Remember, true freedom is having more than one option for mobility than just a car.

According to Investopedia via Voronoi, the average household (of which there are 131m in the US) will spend $811k over a lifetime on a personal vehicle. If 38% of households switched entirely to rail as their main source of mobility, that would $40.6t available to construct and maintain that multi-generational investment.

So what are we waiting for? And an acceptable answer is NOT that cars are the way it's always been; I submit every piece of history that people moved around prior to 1910 as evidence.

 

[cneal]

Totally agree that there are massive savings to be had from living car-free – a big reason my wife and I were able to afford to buy a home in Portland is because we're a one-car family, and thus we save over $12,000 a year on the costs of car payments, insurance, fuel, repairs, and all the time-wasting hassles that come with babysitting another car.

The biggest challenge in converting more households to car-free, IMHO, isn't the lack of intercity rail (which the state's biggest population centers already have) – it's the lack of sidewalks and walkable neighborhoods in most of the state.

A massive study by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics found that over half of all vehicle trips in the US are under 5 miles in length – a distance that can be easily covered on a bike. Almost 1/3rd of trips are under a mile – a distance that would be easily walkable, if that were an option.

By contrast, just 2% of all trips were further than 50 miles – the kinds of trips that an intercity rail network would serve:
https://www.energy.gov/eere/vehicle...lf-all-daily-trips-were-less-three-miles-2021

So we need better transportation options that can serve the everyday *local* trips people make to their grocery store, schools, health centers, friends' houses, and everything else. Those local trips are the vast majority of trips people make.

Metro is slowly improving their service and gaining more riders, and Census data shows that more households in Portland are going car-free. The more that happens, the more money we shift from spending on cars (which again, costs us $12K per car per year, and most of that spending goes out of state) to the local economy instead. And the more local businesses market themselves to walk-up local customers instead of drive-thru customers, the easier it gets for more families to get rid of their cars.

 

[PWMFlyer]

We have 2 great opportunities for rail that are on the brink to go away forever.
Berlin Line from Portland to Auburn (SLR) that is being pushed as a trail. Conway Scenic Should buy this line and offer the ski train to bethel or the Casino in Oxford or possibly to Montreal. Close to cruise ships if the bridge was rebuilt and option for Roux.
The other is the Mountain Division Line conversion to trail, Conway Scenic was interested in this line. Both lines are being pushed by MDOT and Nate Moulton who wants nothing to do with these lines.

 

[#bancars]

Totally agree that there are massive savings to be had from living car-free – a big reason my wife and I were able to afford to buy a home in Portland is because we're a one-car family, and thus we save over $12,000 a year on the costs of car payments, insurance, fuel, repairs, and all the time-wasting hassles that come with babysitting another car.

The biggest challenge in converting more households to car-free, IMHO, isn't the lack of intercity rail (which the state's biggest population centers already have) – it's the lack of sidewalks and walkable neighborhoods in most of the state.

A massive study by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics found that over half of all vehicle trips in the US are under 5 miles in length – a distance that can be easily covered on a bike. Almost 1/3rd of trips are under a mile – a distance that would be easily walkable, if that were an option.

By contrast, just 2% of all trips were further than 50 miles – the kinds of trips that an intercity rail network would serve:
https://www.energy.gov/eere/vehicle...lf-all-daily-trips-were-less-three-miles-2021

So we need better transportation options that can serve the everyday *local* trips people make to their grocery store, schools, health centers, friends' houses, and everything else. Those local trips are the vast majority of trips people make.

Metro is slowly improving their service and gaining more riders, and Census data shows that more households in Portland are going car-free. The more that happens, the more money we shift from spending on cars (which again, costs us $12K per car per year, and most of that spending goes out of state) to the local economy instead. And the more local businesses market themselves to walk-up local customers instead of drive-thru customers, the easier it gets for more families to get rid of their cars.

What's the percentage of car free households in Portland? I could see it being doable if you pretty much spent 90% of your time on the peninsula.

 

[ritchiew]

What's the percentage of car free households in Portland? I could see it being doable if you pretty much spent 90% of your time on the peninsula.

For all of Portland, it's about 16% of households that are car-free. That's high for US cities.

Urban Stats

urbanstats.org

For Downtown Portland, which is basically just the peninsula, it's 36% car-free.

Urban Stats

urbanstats.org

 

[#bancars]

For all of Portland, it's about 16% of households that are car-free. That's high for US cities.

Urban Stats

urbanstats.org

For Downtown Portland, which is basically just the peninsula, it's 36% car-free.

Urban Stats

urbanstats.org

Thanks! The peninsula figure is actually much higher than I would have expected.

 

[HenryAlan]

Urban Stats

urbanstats.org

Wow, awesome data analysis tool, so glad I popped in to this thread!

 

[markhb]

For all of Portland, it's about 16% of households that are car-free. That's high for US cities.

Urban Stats

urbanstats.org

For Downtown Portland, which is basically just the peninsula, it's 36% car-free.

Urban Stats

urbanstats.org

Considering that the peninsula is about 40% of the city population, based on Council districts, they make up c.14% out of that overall 16%.

 

[ritchiew]

Thanks! The peninsula figure is actually much higher than I would have expected.

Actually, good point, because I think was reading that wrong. My bad. That 36% in "Downtown Portland" is just one neighborhood on the peninsula, basically the Old Port and waterfront. Here's a better link comparing all the neighborhoods on the peninsula. I haven't figured out a total percent car-free for you, but it looks like it's in the 20s. Still pretty high.

Urban Stats

urbanstats.org

Considering that the peninsula is about 40% of the city population, based on Council districts, they make up c.14% out of that overall 16%.

Sorry, I had my numbers wrong, so I think that led your numbers off, too. The peninsula definitely makes up a lot (most?) of the car-free households. But still, North Deering appears to be the most populous neighborhood and still has 12% car-free households, which is pretty high.

Urban Stats

urbanstats.org

 

[DV74]

What's the percentage of car free households in Portland? I could see it being doable if you pretty much spent 90% of your time on the peninsula

Almost car free here. As a couple, we have just one car which is mostly needed for work. So I am at 0.5 cars. I drive it maybe once a week.