The CapMetro Metrorail trains has finally opened for passengers, on Monday March 22. I visited Austin on Tuesday to ride Austin's first attempt at running local trains in a long time. Here's some photos I took.......
My impressions:
This whole project was built to show Austin commuters what trains can do as cheap as possible. It's more a demonstration project than what many here would consider an effective commuter railroad. The station platforms aren't longer than one Stadler GTW 2/6 train, so that's how long the train can be at around 135 feet, holding at most 110 sitting passengers or 200 passengers including those standing. They have severely limited schedule of trains per day, running trains like most commuter operations only during the morning and evening rush hours. But unlike most commuter operations, the ability to increase the capacity of the trains is very limited because of the extremely short length of the station platforms I mentioned earlier. Obviously, CapMetro is going to have to spend twice as much in capital funds than they have already to increase Metrorail capacity, adding both longer station platforms and more GTWs to their fleet. As built, with the limited commuter rail scheduling, even with completely stuffed trains, the maximum number of passengers per day will be around 3000. Adding just one one-way train per day adds at most 200 more passengers a day.
The Stadler GTW 2/6 railcar ran smoothly and quietly, with very comfortable seats. The windows are large and tinted, sightseeing along the corridor was easy. There's at least 4 bike racks, and 2 wheelchair spaces per railcar. The low floor cars allowed easy and level boarding from the relatively low station platforms. Those few choosing to ride this train for their daily commute to work aren't going to be disappointed. On the other hand, if too many decide to take this train, it's going to be very crowded