[Wells5]

The Vermont Rail System has been upgrading the tracks between the 2 places for a while. Service will begin sometime in 2022. This new service will be subsidized by Vermont taxpayers just like the Ethan Allen and the Vermonter.


Is this new route really necessary? Burlington people can take the train now to Montreal and NYC by taking the ferry across Lake Champlain to the stations at either Plattsburgh or Port Kent, NY.


https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/...rt/6115983001/

[lookashiny]

There's also a train from NYC that goes up through Vermont, though the closest it gets to Burlington is Essex. Depending on if this is quicker, it could be a success.

[vter]

I will be using the new service when it is up and running. The Burlington NYC will be quicker.

[GeoffD]

In my opinion, regional rail is totally inappropriate for rural areas. You could run free bus service that would be quicker and cheaper than the massive rail subsidies. Rail is appropriate to places where traffic congestion makes automobiles the wrong solution.



Where will the locomotive change be? You can't go to NY Penn with a diesel locomotive. The track beyond Albany isn't electrified, is it? I've ridden the Vermonter a lot but originating in southern New England headed to Philly. There's a 30 minute delay in New Haven swapping between diesel and electric.


Pre-COVID.... From White River, I personally would take Dartmouth Coach from Lebanon NH to Manhattan rather than the Vermonter. It's faster and cheaper. I never took the Ethan Allen. It was hours longer than driving and lousy times.

[JGBigGreen]

Agree 100%. I travel from the Upper Valley to Manhattan frequently. I’ll take Dartmouth Coach or Cape Air over the train any day. Faster and either cheaper, for Dartmouth Coach, or very comparable, for Cape Air.

Originally Posted by GeoffD

In my opinion, regional rail is totally inappropriate for rural areas. You could run free bus service that would be quicker and cheaper than the massive rail subsidies. Rail is appropriate to places where traffic congestion makes automobiles the wrong solution.



Where will the locomotive change be? You can't go to NY Penn with a diesel locomotive. The track beyond Albany isn't electrified, is it? I've ridden the Vermonter a lot but originating in southern New England headed to Philly. There's a 30 minute delay in New Haven swapping between diesel and electric.


Pre-COVID.... From White River, I personally would take Dartmouth Coach from Lebanon NH to Manhattan rather than the Vermonter. It's faster and cheaper. I never took the Ethan Allen. It was hours longer than driving and lousy times.

[GSPNative]

Originally Posted by Wells5

The Vermont Rail System has been upgrading the tracks between the 2 places for a while. Service will begin sometime in 2022. This new service will be subsidized by Vermont taxpayers just like the Ethan Allen and the Vermonter.


Is this new route really necessary? Burlington people can take the train now to Montreal and NYC by taking the ferry across Lake Champlain to the stations at either Plattsburgh or Port Kent, NY.


https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/...rt/6115983001/

Ask yourself next time there is any road construction:

"Is this road really necessary? Burlington people can drive now to Montreal and NYC by..."

And remember that the road "will be subsidized by Vermont taxpayers just like" any other.

[46H]

Originally Posted by GSPNative

Ask yourself next time there is any road construction:

"Is this road really necessary? Burlington people can drive now to Montreal and NYC by..."

And remember that the road "will be subsidized by Vermont taxpayers just like" any other.

Let us know the next time there is any mass transit at the end of your driveway to get you to your job.

[GSPNative]

Originally Posted by 46H

Let us know the next time there is any mass transit at the end of your driveway to get you to your job.

Sure, there is mass transit about 100 feet from my front door. But if there wasn't, Uber and Lyft can be at my front door and can take me to a train station.

[Wells5]

Amtrak ran 2 extra trains from Rutland to Manchester on 10/24 to test things out. The new route will be an extension of the Ethan Allen, which now terminates in Rutland. There is a problem in Rutland as the locomotive would have to "wye" to the front of the train in order to go north unless it had a locomotive on both ends. Middlebury is the only urban area the train will pass through.


Amtrak 406 in Burlington: The NERAIL New England Railroad Photo Archive

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by GSPNative

Sure, there is mass transit about 100 feet from my front door. But if there wasn't, Uber and Lyft can be at my front door and can take me to a train station.

This is a ridiculous argument. You're not going to Uber/Lyft to Amtrak to commute to work. Anywhere with commuter rail, nobody uses Amtrak to commute because it would cost them a fortune. I'm thinking of obvious examples like Providence to Boston/South Station or Stamford to Manhattan.