The Transportation and Mass Transit Megathread

[smeagolsfree]

There will still be a large segment that will not own an AV or cant afford one.

[samsonh]

It amazes me that people believe automated cars for the masses are coming next year. There have to be MASSIVE investments in infrastructure before AV will be safe.  Not to mention advancements in the current technology. This is still 10-20 years away.

 

Not to mention we have a segment of our society that doesn't believe in investing in infrastructure. 

[Guest]

Who cares if everyone owns an AV? I am sure many will and of course the larger the proportion of AVs to non-AVs the more efficient the traffic. The larger efficiencies are to be found when AVs are used fractionally so that I do not have to 'own' a single vehicle but maintain a fractional ownership interest in a fleet that I can use when needed. I do not have to worry about parking or even maintaining the vehicle. It is clear to me that this gives the ultimate flexibility since it allows for the point-to-point and in-and-out features of an individually owned vehicle with a very minimal downside. Additionally, the cost is reduced so that 'yes' if you can rent a car you can own (fractionally) an AV.

And finally, enough with the passive - aggressive posts....I am a big boy and I do not expect many (if any) to agree with me, but sheesh just be man (or women, hard to tell) enough to be direct. We all make cost-benefit calcs on where we live and the benefit or liability of those choices. I love Nashville, but honestly if its negatives ever out-weight its positives (taxes raised above the worth of living here) I and many others will simply move on to other domiciles. Currently it is about right and I hope it continues that pattern in the future.

 

Edited January 20, 2017 by Guest

[Flatrock]

Some neat things happening around the country with resurgent streetcars.          

10 new streetcar lines taking shape across the U.S. - Curbed
http://www.curbed.com/2017/1/19/14329212/streetcar-urban-transportation-rail

[titanhog]

Ultra–High Speed Tube Trains

Magnetic levitation, or Maglev, trains have been in development for quite some time. In Japan, a recent successful test run means that plans are underway to connect the whole country by 2045 with trains capable of reaching over 480 kph (300 mph). They accomplish this by removing the wheels—and thereby, contact and friction—from the equation. Maglev trains levitate above the track, suspended by an electromagnetic field. And while the Japanese model is impressive, one company in the small Colorado town of Longmont is upping the ante by eliminating another barrier to shattering speeds: namely, wind resistance.

To be fair, eliminating this factor doesn’t so much up the ante as it blows up the entire house containing the card table. Daryl Oster of ET3 says that his company’s concept, called the Evacuated Tube Transport, is the future of transportation, and it very well may be. Its track is contained within a sealed, pressurized vacuum tube, making the capsules conceivably capable of speeds up 6,500 kph (4,000 mph), all while subjecting the passenger to G-forces comparable to that of a leisurely ride on the highway and transporting them across the entire US in less than an hour. ET3 has built prototype capsules and, as of this writing, are searching for an appropriate stretch to build the first tube.

 

 

[samsonh]

2 hours ago, nashville_bound said:

Who cares if everyone owns an AV? I am sure many will and of course the larger the proportion of AVs to non-AVs the more efficient the traffic. The larger efficiencies are to be found when AVs are used fractionally so that I do not have to 'own' a single vehicle but maintain a fractional ownership interest in a fleet that I can use when needed. I do not have to worry about parking or even maintaining the vehicle. It is clear to me that this gives the ultimate flexibility since it allows for the point-to-point and in-and-out features of an individually owned vehicle with a very minimal downside. Additionally, the cost is reduced so that 'yes' if you can rent a car you can own (fractionally) an AV.

And finally, enough with the passive - aggressive posts....I am a big boy and I do not expect many (if any) to agree with me, but sheesh just be man (or women, hard to tell) enough to be direct. We all make cost-benefit calcs on where we live and the benefit or liability of those choices. I love Nashville, but honestly if its negatives ever out-weight its positives (taxes raised above the worth of living here) I and many others will simply move on to other domiciles. Currently it is about right and I hope it continues that pattern in the future.

 

I'm not being passive aggressive. Sorry you take it that way. I'm being very upfront about the needs to make Autonomous driving feasible. Even basic reading on the subject shows that not only does technology need to be better but so do our roads. This requires money and investment, something our republican governor is proposing currently and that I support. 

[Guest]

I doubt Haslam's legislation makes it through without some major changes (even with the road builders applying pressure). It will be interesting to see the outcome of the referendums... Davidson County has the best chance to pass but some of the ring counties will be hard pressed to pass approve the increase taxes, IMO. What then happens to the Regional Transportation Plan?

The interesting thing about this legislation is the revenue neutral aspect...approx $200 million in new taxes, but approx, $200 million in tax cuts....so no complaints from me.

[fieldmarshaldj]

16 hours ago, titanhog said:

Ultra–High Speed Tube Trains

 

Magnetic levitation, or Maglev, trains have been in development for quite some time. In Japan, a recent successful test run means that plans are underway to connect the whole country by 2045 with trains capable of reaching over 480 kph (300 mph). They accomplish this by removing the wheels—and thereby, contact and friction—from the equation. Maglev trains levitate above the track, suspended by an electromagnetic field. And while the Japanese model is impressive, one company in the small Colorado town of Longmont is upping the ante by eliminating another barrier to shattering speeds: namely, wind resistance.

 

 

[BnaBreaker]

8 hours ago, fieldmarshaldj said:

LOL, love the photo... Airplane is such a classic.  Maglev trains are really incredible though.  I rode one from my hotel in the Pudong District of Shanghai out to the airport which is about 40 miles outside the city center, and although we were moving at around 250 MPH, it was easily the smoothest train ride I've ever experienced.  

Edited January 21, 2017 by BnaBreaker

[titanhog]

^^Yeah...but what about the "tube train" possibility?  4000 miles per hour!!  Can you imagine?

[fieldmarshaldj]

1 hour ago, titanhog said:

^^Yeah...but what about the "tube train" possibility?  4000 miles per hour!!  Can you imagine?

Absolutely.

Edited January 21, 2017 by fieldmarshaldj

[rookzie]

I think I'd rather have the "tubes tied".   As far as the mention in the past on the concept of "Express bus" is concerned, for quite a number of years now have been limited set-ups that incorporate true-fixed guide-way BRT.  This would allay my biggest safety concern with manual steering of BRT vehicles at high speeds along busways of opposing lanes of travel.

 

It's referred to as a "Kerb Guided Busway" ("KGB"), which mechanically guide buses on a dedicated busway with less space (sectional width) than that which would be needed for driver-steered buses.   In practice, these vehicles utilize vertical guide idlers on the front, to allow driver-steered buses a degree of latitude in deviation from the dead center of the pathway, so basically they provide the general characteristic benefit of fixed movement afforded with steel wheels on rails but without being actual trains such as the rubber-tired Montreal Metro, by allowing safe opposing movements when traveling at Interstate highway speeds.  The buses can embark on a kerb busway deployment at designated entry and exit points, outfitted with tapered transitions.  This effectively makes the buses "amphibious" to mixed roadway traffic or to true unimpeded express travel with the bonus sense of assurance from movement-constraint control.  The systems can be diesel-hybrid or dual-mode external-electric/diesel-hybrid.

The biggest caveat I perceive is the cost of fabricating a stable and properly aligned guideway of this type, such that the cost and implementation period of an infrastructure, including stations, transitions, roadbed and subgrade provisions and conceivably any system signalling required for safe distance separation (on a fixed and constrained guideway), would not necessarily be a marked advantage compared to even a modest light-rail set-up.  While rail cars generally are significantly more costly in initial outlay than are motor coaches, and generally have longer vehicular lifespans, with or without rebuilding, to lay a kerb guided busway with a combination of precast and in-place fabrication would not necessarily be a significantly cost-saving deal, in terms of R.O.I., but in concept such a design could be scalable to be shared with or upgraded to light rail or tramways.

But I do believe that any way to utilize an Interstate median for barrier-separated transit even for tired vehicles would be high-value addition to an otherwise  maxed out utility.

 

Edited January 22, 2017 by rookzie

[Flatrock]

Has anyone heard fresh rumours or rumblings re: future CSX Rador Rail Yards relocation? I know it's a pretty far fetched possibility....just curious if anyone on this board has new info. Thanks!  

[titanhog]

Tesla now with new electric car with 335 mile range.  Finally starting to get decent mileage on these autos.  Once the prices come down, too...I imagine we'll start seeing some major shifting to consumers purchasing electrics.  Also...will be nice if that battery range can just keep going up.

http://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2017/01/24/tesla-selling-electric-car-with-335-mile-range.html

[markhollin]

Nashville ranked with 3 of the Top 50 Worst Bottlenecks in the Nation:

http://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2017/01/25/nashville-is-home-to-several-of-the-countrys-50.html

[bigeasy]

58 minutes ago, markhollin said:

Nashville ranked with 3 of the Top 50 Worst Bottlenecks in the Nation:

http://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2017/01/25/nashville-is-home-to-several-of-the-countrys-50.html

And only 3 states ranked worse than TN with total bottlenecks on the list. (CA-WA-TX)

[MLBrumby]

Not surprised that stupid stupid (did I say, "stupid") narrowing of I-65 southbound at Trinity Lane made that list.  I think someone from TDOT must have a relative who is buried in that rocky mound that supports the Fern Avenue overpass. I remember back in summer of '97 when I spent pretty much all my working time in Nashville (first year as an attorney) and I lived in some apartments off I-65 north at Old Hickory. So I had to drive in every morning, and (OMG!) that bottleneck was a pain.  It was actually under construction at the time, and I thought this is great, that they will fix that bottleneck by blowing up that stupid rocky portion and build a new bridge.  They had the road under construction all summer... and spent a ton of time on that bridge.  But did they redo the Fern bridge?   Nooooooooo!  They just squeezed one more lane under it.  All of the inner leg of I-24 needs major revamping. It's absurd! 

[SoundScan]

It's odd that TDOT has spent hundreds of millions widening I65 north of town from the Trinity/Fern bottleneck all the way to Vietnam Veterans Blvd but has yet to address the actual sources of that traffic. Perhaps that work is on the growing project backlog?

[Flatrock]

3 hours ago, markhollin said:

Nashville ranked with 3 of the Top 50 Worst Bottlenecks in the Nation:

http://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2017/01/25/nashville-is-home-to-several-of-the-countrys-50.html

Good grief. We're somewhere in the 30's in total U.S. MSA population....and have THREE of the top 50 bottlenecks...!!?? I think we're overrepresented, even with the trucking component per the article. C'mon Tennessee, let's figure this **** out.  

[smeagolsfree]

That bottleneck is on the list. They will replace the Fern St. bridge. I just remember hearing this a year or so ago on one of the TV reports.

[LA_TN]

11 hours ago, smeagolsfree said:

That bottleneck is on the list. They will replace the Fern St. bridge. I just remember hearing this a year or so ago on one of the TV reports.

 

On 1/25/2017 at 5:33 PM, SoundScan said:

It's odd that TDOT has spent hundreds of millions widening I65 north of town from the Trinity/Fern bottleneck all the way to Vietnam Veterans Blvd but has yet to address the actual sources of that traffic. Perhaps that work is on the growing project backlog?

Widening of roads is always from outside to inside (downtown). I-65 from Trinity to DT loop should be next (hopefully). There is still a Phase IV of the I-65 north project to be completed (I-65 southbound to Briley eastbound)

[markhollin]

Mayor Barry ramps up pitch for transit funding referendum:

http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2017/01/31/barry-ramps-up-pitch-transit-funding-referendum/97306974/

[nashvylle]

please, both referendums pass. 

[rookzie]

There actually have been cases where referendums repeatedly have failed to be passed, but transit finally managed to get manipulated past the lobbying hurdles.

Houston is one such notable exception to jump-starting referendum passing, and the failure to pass was circumvented with political will. Since the launch of Houston's light-rail (METROrail) start-up, which reportedly exceeded initial expectations dramatically, expansion already has been undertaken and further planned, in part as a result of eventual voter approval.  The funding of extensions had not always been without questionable reporting practices, however, but even this can serve as a learning check-and-balance, for others in yet embryonic stages.

 

Edited February 1, 2017 by rookzie

[markhollin]

Gov. Haslam has $1 billion in Nashville area road upgrades on his wish list for budget:

http://www.nashvillepost.com/business/transportation/article/20851184/on-haslams-wish-list-more-than-1b-for-middle-tennessee