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This news out of Charleston, SC where plans for a new intermodal station serving Amtrak and various ground transit had been talked about for a few years.
Apparently after years of planning and some millions of dollars spent, there is a fatal flaw in the original plan. The article linked below is pretty sparse in terms of specifics but it sounds like the matter overlooked had to do with the track and signaling work that would have been needed to get Amtrak trains off CSX and into the new station.
Now talks are centering around trying to get some sort of intermodal facility built up at the existing Amtrak Station site.
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It should be noted that the linked item is opinion as distinct from news reportage, which likely is an explanation for the 'short on facts' noted by Mr. Presley.
While this admitted 'newssnob', whose standards of journalism are defined by publications such as The Times and the Journal, has his issues with 'mid market' media, (let's not go there with regards to 'small'), and who further realizes the web address for the material does not help this issue, we should here at this forum, where the level of maturity and respect exceeds 99% of others, take to distinguish between the two.
Henry Kisor Member # 4776
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The piece is a newspaper editorial giving the official opinion of the publication. Editorials assume that the facts have been covered in news stories elsewhere in the newspaper and that discerning readers know them.
Also, I would take a local newspaper's reporting and opinion on a local subject over that of the New York Times or Wall Street Journal, neither of which has a staff presence in Charleston, S.C., but would instead rely on the AP or perhaps Reuters for news from that locality. (Often such stories are from local member newspapers of the AP.)
Regional and local newspapers have their value.
Vincent206 Member # 15447
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There isn't a lot of information in the local media, but it looks like the new transit hub envisioned several years ago would have blocked CSX access to a nearby railyard. The fix for that problem would have cost $25 million (sounds like a new siding and signalling would have been needed). So the local transit agency decided to move the proposed new intermodal transit center to the location of the current Amtrak station and redevelop that property into the new bus station/transit center/Amtrak stop and transit agency HQ, but the FTA wasn't ready to sign off on the change.
So, with the latest plan, Amtrak would still be stopping at its current location, but local transit connections would have been improved.
Henry Kisor Member # 4776
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Vincent, what facts were not reported in the story you cite, and what is the source for the unreported facts? I'm curious.
Vincent206 Member # 15447
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The question in this story seems to be: "What did CSX know and when did they know it?" If Charleston officials wanted to build a new Amtrak station they would need to involve CSX in the scoping and design process from the beginning to guarantee success. If the local officials decided to choose a new site for an Amtrak station without consulting CSX, they would be asking for trouble. It may be that the local officials didn't fully understand or respect the fact that the tracks are CSX property and that any changes to Amtrak's operations have to be made with CSX's consent. Instead, there seems to be some anger directed at the FTA, but that seems to be misplaced.
The irony in this story is that when Charleston was designing this new station the federal government was handing out money like Halloween candy via ARRA grants. Had this project been submitted for ARRA funding, it likely could have been built with gold-plated faucets in the restrooms, marble staircases in the lobby and whatever new trackwork CSX demanded.
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