[PRCo] Re: Baltimore Light Rail Shuts North End

[Ken and Tracie]

It seems forgetting or ignoring previous knowledge is more dangerous than 
moving into unknown territory.

I must be getting old because I can remember when the only risk to 
streetcars from fallen leaves were flat spots on wheels from braking cars 
sliding..........

K.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Schneider Fred" <fwschneider at comcast.net>
To: "Bente Bruce" <bbente at bellsouth.net>; "Peter Folger" 
<transitman at maine.rr.com>; <pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>; "Murphy Rick" 
<rpmurphy at charter.net>; "Ken Spengler" <kenspeng at mac.com>; "Lybarger Ed" 
<trams2 at comcast.net>
Sent: Wednesday, November 19, 2008 11:32 AM
Subject: [PRCo] Baltimore Light Rail Shuts North End


> You guys will love this one ... modern technology forced the closure
> of the north end of the Baltimore Light Rail line indefinitely on
> Monday because of falling leaves.   I guess we never had sap on the
> rails before.  Something new and different like my cynical sarcasm.
> Today's news is that they are also running short of buses.   (Some of
> you -- Jack, Phil, Dave H. are getting blind carbons to not disclose
> addresses.)   Comments back to me will be appreciated.
>
>
> www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-te.md.rail18nov18,0,3518289.story
>
> baltimoresun.com
>
> Half of light rail halted indefinitely
>
> Leaves trigger braking glitch, causing trains to slide, wheels to bend
>
> By Michael Dresser and Brent Jones
>
> November 18, 2008
>
>
>
> Thousands of Baltimore-area commuters were forced to abandon trains
> and board buses yesterday, the first workday disrupted by a light
> rail shutdown that closed the northern half of the system. State
> officials were unable to say how long service would be curtailed by a
> problem caused in part by the fall of autumn leaves.
>
>
>
> Commuters attempting to take light rail between North Avenue and Hunt
> Valley were diverted to shuttle buses, which passengers said added as
> much as 90 minutes to the trip.
>
>
>
> Light rail typically serves 30,000 riders a day - about half of whom
> use the northern stations.
>
>
>
> MTA officials were scrambling to find a way to fix a computerized
> safety system that regularly over-reacts to slippery conditions and
> brings trains to a hard stop, frequently damaging their wheels and
> making them vulnerable to catastrophic cracking.
>
>
>
> "I understand there has to be train maintenance, but there seems to
> be lots of train maintenance recently," said Lori Biddle, 30, who was
> among several dozen commuters waiting for a shuttle to arrive at the
> North Avenue station about 4:45 p.m. yesterday.
>
>
>
> Biddle said it took her an extra half-hour yesterday morning to go
> from Lutherville to Camden Yards, where she works: "It is a bit
> frustrating."
>
>
>
> Maryland Transportation Secretary John D. Porcari defended the MTA's
> decision over the weekend to suspend service on the northern section.
> "They take customer service interruptions very, very personally, as
> do I," Porcari said. But, he said, "if we ignored it, it could be a
> safety issue, and safety trumps everything."
>
>
>
> Problems with light rail go back to the original design and route of
> the system, which opened in 1992 under pressure from then-Gov.
> William Donald Schaefer to get it running in time for the debut of
> Oriole Park at Camden Yards. The northern section of the line follows
> a narrow, old railroad right of way along the Jones Falls Expressway
> through forested parkland before emerging from the woods north of
> Ruxton.
>
>
>
> The problem, Porcari said yesterday, is that trains run over fallen
> leaves and can grind the wet plant matter into what he described as a
> "gelatinous substance."
>
>
>
> When another train comes along, the wheels of its cars can slip and
> slide on that substance, triggering an emergency response from a
> computerized "train protection" system installed after two light rail
> crashes at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall
> Airport, in which 35 people were injured.
>
>
>
> The computerized system, in use since 2004, has succeeded in
> preventing trains from crashing into each other or into barriers at
> the end of the line. But according to MTA administrator Paul J.
> Wiedefeld, its hair-trigger response to slippage on the tracks has
> resulted in hard, sudden stops that can flatten the metal surface of
> the wheels - putting them in added danger of cracking.
>
>
>
> Wiedefeld said the MTA has paid more attention to the issue of wheel
> damage since the discovery last spring of a crack in one of the
> wheels of a car in a rail yard.
>
>
>
> That discovery prompted the agency to inspect wheels much more
> frequently than the 45-day schedule recommended by the manufacturer.
> That led to service disruptions, including severe crowding and long
> waits at platforms.
>
>
>
> Last week, as train slippage caused by leaves sent a growing number
> of cars to the shop, the MTA announced that it would terminate its
> northern service at Timonium, using buses to serve stations between
> there and Hunt Valley. But by the weekend, the MTA had so many cars
> out of service that it decided to call an emergency halt to service
> north of North Avenue - the most leafy section.
>
>
>
> Wiedefeld said the agency is attempting to find an interim solution
> to the problems by recalibrating the train protection system so that
> it acts more like the anti-lock brake systems found on cars. The
> "ultimate fix," he said, will not come until the MTA completes its
> planned midlife overhaul of its train cars - a project expected to be
> finished about 2011-2012.
>
>
>
> Until then, Wiedefeld said, the MTA has its maintenance shop working
> around the clock to repair or replace wheels. He said the flattened
> wheels can be fixed three times before they require replacement - a
> procedure that can put an entire car out of commission for 15 days.
>
>
>
> Wiedefeld said he does not have an estimate now of how long it will
> take to fix the computer problem. He said any proposed solution would
> have to be tested on the main line and then verified by an
> independent contractor before it can be implemented. He added,
> however, that he doesn't think the disruptions will persist for months.
>
>
>
> Porcari echoed Wiedefeld's reluctance to be pinned down to a target
> date for the return of full service, noting that the weather could be
> a factor in how long the disruptions continue.
>
>
>
> "The natural tendency is to be conservative in your estimates and
> then over-deliver if at all possible," he said. He noted that when
> transportation officials discovered weaknesses in the Bay Bridge's
> side barriers after a fatal tractor-trailer crash last summer, they
> originally estimated 10 weeks of severe lane closings but ended up
> wrapping up the work in about two.
>
>
>
> For riders of light rail, relief can't come soon enough.
>
>
>
> Lee Russell, 60, said it took him an extra 90 minutes yesterday
> morning to get from Timonium to his job at the state Department of
> Health and Mental Hygiene near the Cultural Center stop. Russell said
> he learned about the shuttle buses when he arrived at the Timonium
> station, and traffic and the frequent stops stretched out his trip.
>
> Russell, a longtime rider, will continue to use the transit system
> because he doesn't have a downtown parking pass, but he added that he
> expects delays to be reduced substantially.
>
> "I've put up with a lot over the years, including when they were
> laying double tracks," he said.
>
>
>
> Jim Dutt, 65, who commutes from Mount Washington to the Mount Royal
> Station, said he learned only yesterday morning that he would have to
> board a shuttle bus. He said he was 30 minutes late to his job at the
> University of Baltimore.
>
> "I think [MTA] needs to explain a little bit more as to why this is
> taking place at this point and why it's taking so long," Dutt said.
> "Last week, they were running single cars. And now it's gotten worse."
>
> Dutt said he will continue to ride the train but will adjust his
> start time.
>
>
>
> "It's one of the hazards, I suppose, of using the light rail," he
> said. "But I'm not going to switch. I enjoy coming to work by rail
> and not having to worry about a place to park."
>
> Autumn leaves are not a problem unique to Maryland's light rail
> system, said Martin Schroeder, program manager for rail at the
> American Public Transit Association. He noted that when the trade
> group held its 2006 rail conference, it put together a panel of
> experts to deal with that issue alone.
>
> "It's a problem of physics," Schroeder said, adding that leaves can
> reduce friction on the rails to about one-sixth of normal: "It's like
> your car on ice."
>
>
>
> Porcari said the problems with leaves reach their peak in late
> October and November but subside soon after that.
>
>
>
> "The leaves will all be done very soon," he said. "A couple of good
> winds, and we'll be off to the races."
>
> Copyright © 2008, The Baltimore Sun
>
>
>