The Virginian-Pilot
©
NORFOLK
Esther Pippins stepped off light-rail train No. 406 after a test run Wednesday night with a broad smile and declared it "a smooth ride."
"It's a great running light-rail vehicle," said Pippins, who managed and operated light rail in Los Angeles for 26 years and now heads up training for Hampton Roads Transit.
This week, she and several other light-rail operations managers started testing Norfolk's trains along a 3/4-mile section of track between Brambleton Avenue and Ballentine Boulevard behind Norfolk State University.
For now, the only way to glimpse the trains in motion is from Interstate 264. Next month, testing will expand, and light-rail vehicles will run at speeds up to 55 mph east to the end of the line at Newtown Road, crossing busy streets and passing through neighborhoods.
"It's definitely going to be an adjustment," said Ben Simms, HRT's director of rail transportation. "We've got to get people used to trains operating in this area."
As the train approached a throng of reporters and cameras during a trial run, the only warning was a low humming sound followed by clanking bells, then a train horn as it got closer.
"These trains are very silent, so it's important to look before you cross the tracks," Simms said.
The train movements will be restricted to the area behind NSU for about a month. In a couple weeks, HRT's first class for light-rail operators will begin. For now, the testing occurs only at night, between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m., because contractors need access to the track during the day to finish their work on the electrical system in the daylight.
"We're pretty much logging hours, back and forth, getting familiar with the vehicles," Simms said.
Next, the manufacturer of the vehicles, Siemens Transportation Systems Inc., will conduct its assessment of how well elements of the vehicles perform before releasing them to HRT for a 1,000 mile burn-in period.
HRT purchased the nine cars, and spare parts, for $36 million. They were delivered late last year and sat idle because of cost overruns and delays while the track was constructed. Siemens' testing of the vehicles' brakes, lights, motors and other systems is expected to wrap up by the end of the year.
Once that's complete and the track west of NSU is electrified, the trains will start testing in the downtown area after the first of the year.
Meanwhile, downtowners will get a sneak preview of light rail next week when a vehicle is towed from NSU to the west end of the line in what's known as a clearance check. The exercise ensures that there's ample space for the trains to pass without striking something such as a pole or sign.
Some of the tests that began this week were to start in August, but HRT did not have some of its work completed and Siemens was not prepared, HRT spokesman Tom Holden said.
That delay, however, will not affect light rail's start-up in May.
"We're going to be ready," Simms said.
Debbie Messina, (757) 446-2588, debbie.messina@pilotonline.com
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Fun times
I saw them yesterday (last night) at Wards Corner. It looked awesome and I can't wait to ride it.
Kids
What would be the difference between kids running out in front of a train and running out in front of a car? Cars are far greater in number, are driven by people not paying attention, and move much faster in town than light rail will. Even so, if your kids runs out in front of a train, don't blame light rail. No more than you would if the kid ran out onto the highway!
Neither is remotely desirable
...but a pedestrian getting hit by a light rail vehicle would probably be worse. The train is going to take longer to stop and would probably have a higher bumper that would knock the pedestrian to the ground instead of into the air. As a result the pedestrian would probably be run over by those hard steel wheels on those hard steel rails. I wouldn't count on the best funeral provider salvaging an open casket service out of the results.
I've seen reports that LRT trains in other areas have frequent collisions with autos making left turns across mid street tracks. The auto operators are apparently forgetting to check for a train that's about to pass them. The result is often a impact between the train's bumper and the autos left side door panels or windows. Remember we're talking about a long transit vehicle with steel wheels on steel track. It's going to take longer for the LRT vehicle to stop than it would an ordinary sedan, minivan or SUV.
missing the point
& that is spend spend spend. All we want is to spend the money on something, anything, just spend spend spend. That's economic recovery @ it's worst. We can't get out of this recession unless we spend spend spend. Oh that's right, we're already out of that era, NOT! Trust me on this, there will come a time when the goose that laid the golden eggs will end up just like in the fairytale, DEAD! But hey, @least we got to spend spend spend your tax $$'s first. This is just one more avenue(pun intended) to drive us to our collective graves, all in the name of progress. This isn't going to revitalize the goose, it's going to kill it, DEAD!
Track levels and ODU/Naval Base route
With grade crossings that allow traffic to cross the light rail line in the area where it parallels West Brambleton Ave, it wouldn't work very well to construct the line significantly higher than the cross streets.
I suspect many of the electric lines supplying the power substation are underground, but there MUST be above ground lines for the trains to make contact with. Third rails like many elevated and subway trains use would be EXTREMELY dangerous for a line with grade crossings and segments down the center of urban streets. Overhead lines are the only option short of on board batteries or diesel engines.
I don't see any convenient abandoned freight railroad lines connecting ODU and the naval base to downtown or large residential areas. Construction of a light rail line to both of those destinations would require the sacrifice of lanes on the already congested Hampton Blvd. (possibly on street parking on Coley Ave south of ODU), a EXPENSIVE elevated line or the EXPENSIVE condemnation/demolition of numerous homes and businesses. Any of those options would dwarf the cost of EVMS to Newtown Rd. route.
Uh, there are elevated lines
Uh, there are elevated lines for the train everywhere through downtown Norfolk. Looks kinda trashy. There used to be trees, now it's just train tracks and wires.
You can't have electric trains without the electricity
As someone in an earlier comment apparently didn't realize. Have you read the earlier comments? Unfortunately the system here doesn't have comment reference numbers and I wanted to respond to multiple earlier comments in a single comment. Had I quoted the earlier comments I would have used much of my character allotment with the quotes.
All the concrete and asphalt used to construct the streets is also less attractive than trees. Then there's that tangle of overhead roadways connecting I-264 to the Berkley Bridge, Waterside Dr, Tidewater Dr, City Hall Av and East Brambleton Av. Imagine how much worse traffic in that area would be if all that was surface level with traffic lights and fewer lanes because space was allotted for attractive landscaping. Would you rather spend multiple billions on a Norfolk version of Boston's "Big Dig" project? Imagine how much of a project like that would have been flooded in last week's rains!
Imagine how an elevated LRT line (tracks and wires elevated) over the center of Hampton Blvd would look. That or the sacrifice of on street parking along Colley Ave. may be the the only way to serve ODU without worsening the congestion or spending a couple
So here is the deal. If you
So here is the deal. If you went to a monorail type solution where it's an elevated I beam, and the power is in the track, then it wouldn't be as obstructive as some of the overhead tracks you see in Philly and NYC (I haven't been to Chicago yet.) Look at the ODU maglev track, it isn't terribly obstructive in the air.
That should have been the mass transit solution. Virginia Beach, there is still time! Do yours using elevated maglev on the NS right of way.
Monorails are a lot more expensive
It would be VERY irresponsible to install monorail tracks without provisions to keep the electrical source out of the public's reach. Each of those support columns would require expensive foundations to support them in Norfolk's sand and clay soils. Since the beam would be MUCH heavier than ties and steel rails even ground level sections between the elevated street crossing would require foundation work.
Each station of a monorail would require facilities allowing passengers to move between street level and the at least 20' high platform(s). Access laws would require the installation and periodic maintenance/inspection of elevators for each platform.
A monorail beam makes it necessary to make much more elaborate provisions for trains to switch between adjacent tracks as they would need to do when reversing at the end of a route. It's a lot easier to shift a couple of steel rails a few inches than to exchange two different shaped VERY rigid concrete beams.
They sure paid a lot of
They sure paid a lot of money for those trains! $36 million? Really? If you google the price of a REAL diesel locomotive, and it sounds like they could have had 10 of them with some change left over.