Oklahoma Passenger Rail Updates(non-HSR)

[Plutonic Panda]

I wonder if the local or state government could subsidize that rate and bring the price down to $4 for daily commuters.

[shawnw]

It's $12 for a TRE day pass to go between Dallas and Ft Worth, so really if they could just come down a little, doesn't need to go all the way to $4 (I mean, that's literally bus pass cheap right there). Also if they offered a monthly pass it would probably help.

[catch22]

I don’t think the benefit would be all that great to bother going after any serious partnerships. Hard to say without knowing the train schedule. It might not really be conducive for the masses. But if it happens to have a decent schedule for commuting there could be some potential branding work to make people aware of the option. It looks to be a 24 minute ride each way. Anyone who has driven between downtown Norman and Downtown OKC know the drive is easily about double that.

This would be a no-brainer commuter rail line. I fully understand why the FNBS railroad (Effin BS - BNFS) doesn’t want the additional scheduling headache. Having a full double track would ease that. Too many sidings right now to run a passenger schedule with freight operations. I hate to say freight schedules because BNFS doesn’t seem to have one except for a few priority trains.

[HOT ROD]

that was a very nice pitch by wichita, above. But the question I have - are they advocating to extend the current Heartland Flyer route (meaning they're ok having overnight arrival/departure) and why didn't they include OKC's metro population in their pitch (7.5m DFW + 1.5m OKC = 9m direct connection to Wichita) particularly since ICT and OKC have become much closer due to corp relocations from there to OKC.

anyway - Hope it passes and we get this implemented, the OKC-TEX additional trains are a no-brainer that should be implemented almost immediately with the Wichita/Newton and points between implemented within 5 years.

Yes, that would give a serious bump for OKC-Norman commuter rail options without even adding the RTA yet; but certainly could help make the case for the RTA esp the south corridor with the North corridor being second.

[Plutonic Panda]

Sorry this isn’t passenger rail related but for any rail geeks(is that the proper term?) on here:

https://www.newson6.com/story/611169...wr0AC2SkqazvRA

[Zuplar]

Sorry this isn’t passenger rail related but for any rail geeks(is that the proper term?) on here:

https://www.newson6.com/story/611169...wr0AC2SkqazvRA

Proper term is Railfan.

[Plutonic Panda]

Proper term is Railfan.

Railfan okay cool. For roads and highways it’s Roadgeeks. Well, Roadgeeks tend to focus more on route signage and what not.

[Mott]

In my 38 years on the ATSF/BNSF, I was a railfan, but the employees would refer to railfans in a somewhat negative way by calling them ‘foamers’. Use your imagination.....

[Plutonic Panda]

I’m trying to connect the dots but I’m failing. Foamers hmmmm

[Mott]

I’m trying to connect the dots but I’m failing. Foamers hmmmm

Anybody that would spend their time watching trains, that we have to work on, 24/7, winters and summer, and put up with management, is a little bit off, mentally and physically, hence the name foamer.

[Bellaboo]

Anybody that would spend their time watching trains, that we have to work on, 24/7, winters and summer, and put up with management, is a little bit off, mentally and physically, hence the name foamer.

I have an 18 year old nephew who must be a 'foamer'. He is autistic and his life revolves around trains. He will walk miles to photograph them. For his high school graduation his dad took him to Omaha just to see the trains and Union Pacific HQ. The wonderful thing is he is a very talented water color artist and he paints trains. He literally has people wanting to buy his art work.

[Zuplar]

I have an 18 year old nephew who must be a 'foamer'. He is autistic and his life revolves around trains. He will walk miles to photograph them. For his high school graduation his dad took him to Omaha just to see the trains and Union Pacific HQ. The wonderful thing is he is a very talented water color artist and he paints trains. He literally has people wanting to buy his art work.

Did he like Thomas the Tank when he was a kid? Thomas is the top toy/character for spectrum kids and trains tends to be a byproduct of that.

Foamer is derogatory, and while a lot of Railfan's are okay with this, many are not as it's what Railroaders (those who work for RR) call the crazy Railfans.

[Zuplar]

I’m trying to connect the dots but I’m failing. Foamers hmmmm

Come from foam at the mouth when they see a train.

Think Homer Simpson and beer.

[Mott]

I have an 18 year old nephew who must be a 'foamer'. He is autistic and his life revolves around trains. He will walk miles to photograph them. For his high school graduation his dad took him to Omaha just to see the trains and Union Pacific HQ. The wonderful thing is he is a very talented water color artist and he paints trains. He literally has people wanting to buy his art work.

Just wanting to be clear, I saw the word foamer in terms of endearment, as I was called many names, sorta like being in High School for 38 years. There was nothing more fun, if you had the right crew, to have train nuts come and ride a switch engine on Saturday or Sunday mornings at GM when we were still the Santa Fe. To see the look in their eyes when they blew the whistle, or rang the bell was a hoot! After the merger, civilians on the ‘property’, were not tolerated by management. And it amused me to the last day that I was being paid to climb on a locomotive and play with the trains.

[PoliSciGuy]

Railfan okay cool. For roads and highways it’s Roadgeeks. Well, Roadgeeks tend to focus more on route signage and what not.

Well there's a new internet rabbithole for me to fall down. Huh, fascinating.

[Zuplar]

Just wanting to be clear, I saw the word foamer in terms of endearment, as I was called many names, sorta like being in High School for 38 years. There was nothing more fun, if you had the right crew, to have train nuts come and ride a switch engine on Saturday or Sunday mornings at GM when we were still the Santa Fe. To see the look in their eyes when they blew the whistle, or rang the bell was a hoot! After the merger, civilians on the ‘property’, were not tolerated by management. And it amused me to the last day that I was being paid to climb on a locomotive and play with the trains.

I personally don't care, but speaking as a Railfan myself, others flip out if you even think that word.

I don't care if people think it's dumb/silly that I can spot the differences between an EMD or GE from a mile away.

[Plutonic Panda]

Well there's a new internet rabbithole for me to fall down. Huh, fascinating.

Lol here’s a forum dedicated to it. I’m there as well as several other posters here: https://www.aaroads.com/forum/

[Bellaboo]

Just wanting to be clear, I saw the word foamer in terms of endearment, as I was called many names, sorta like being in High School for 38 years. There was nothing more fun, if you had the right crew, to have train nuts come and ride a switch engine on Saturday or Sunday mornings at GM when we were still the Santa Fe. To see the look in their eyes when they blew the whistle, or rang the bell was a hoot! After the merger, civilians on the ‘property’, were not tolerated by management. And it amused me to the last day that I was being paid to climb on a locomotive and play with the trains.

My nephew painted a picture of a train engine and gave it to the Ft Worth office of UP or BNSF, not sure which one, (they let him ride in the locomotive one time in the yard). It's been in that office for years now. His artistic ability is fabulous.

[David]

Nice new interactive website for the Amtrak Connects US plan: https://www.amtrakconnectsus.com/maps/. The page for the OKC to Newton extention is: Newton/Wichita – Oklahoma City - Fort Worth.

Might have been posted already but I am not finding it in the thread.

[shawnw]

I'm just as excited for the FTW-Houston route.

The one (minor) disappointment so far is not leveraging this situation to add the station at Thackerville.

Interesting that they linked to the Plan OKC site in that article.

[Plutonic Panda]

Yeah I was little disappointed about that as well. Who do you write you about that?

[shawnw]

Really not sure

But there's a "take action" link on their site: https://www.amtrakconnectsus.com/take-action/

Looks like it just messages your congresspeople. But you could use that to echo support and throw in that one criticism.

[dankrutka]

The one (minor) disappointment so far is not leveraging this situation to add the station at Thackerville.

I’d love a Denton/Sanger stop too. It’s a 45 minute drive to either Gainesville or Fort Worth from Denton.

[shawnw]

Oh dang, yes agreed. Why did I think there already was one?

[jedicurt]

ugh... why can't they just connect La Junta to Pueblo so that it's much easier to get from OKC to Denver...