Caltrain Electrification

The level of education at a medium-high level university out there, in many fields, puts all but the best East Coast universities to shame. The cultural offerings make benefit pretty well too. Sure, the state government doesn't seem to know how to administer anything, but you do have the World's Most Beautiful Freeway. My days of delivering pizza, living in East Palo Alto and attending community college were a mixed blessing. There is some suburban hell aspect, or was. But since then SF has wound down the yellow brick road to a somewhat alien place, like Manhattan, so you might be better off in Sunnyvale.

They used to say the East Coast was an aristocracy, the Midwest a meritocracy, and the West Coast a wacko-ocracy, in university circles, but that may have changed too! (To put the West Coast in a less flattering sarcastic light.)

kitchin wrote: ↑Tue May 11, 2021 3:54 am They used to say the East Coast was an aristocracy, the Midwest a meritocracy, and the West Coast a wacko-ocracy, in university circles, but that may have changed too! (To put the West Coast in a less flattering sarcastic light.)

What do universities have to do with Caltrain's electrification or operations?
Are we at university.net or railroad.net?

It was about stealing copper. Got a little off track.

Caltrain electrification delayed to 2024
https://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/202 ... plications

Here's the presentation about the schedule update from Caltrain: https://www.caltrain.com/Assets/Caltrai ... rPoint.pdf

Is there a good description of the work being done to the signalling system as part of the project? I looked through the CalMod webpage and was unable to find anything detailed about it. Has Caltrain provided any specifics on the issue they are having? It would seem to be centered around a disagreement or issue with Balfour Beatty, based on the presentation. But it is otherwise very vague.

Don't know if this is related but there was a Caltrans loco engineer on this board years ago who told us about some signal issues. He explained that when the re-signalling was done changing the old route signals to speed signals, some of the new signal aspects did not match the prescribed speed of the turnouts they controlled. He said they had complained about it to management but got nowhere.

Does anyone know why a Caltrain Stadler Motor was heading east on NS through Elkhart IN at 0510 local today?

Stadler has a past history of showing off their new trains at APTA Expos; DCTA’s GTWs at Dallas and Trinity Metro’s FLIRTs at Atlanta. Maybe this KISS cab section is heading to Orlando for the November APTA Expo? It is a standard marketing scheme used by Stadler, show off your stuff!

I've found Caltrain HSR Compatibility Blog: The Exploding Cost of Grade Separations and it links to

TA PowerPoint Template - #14a - Presentation - Grade Separation Program Update - added 1-4-2021.pdf at smcta.com

What is especially relevant to here is that document lists some grade separations that are planned to be built or else are being built. Doing so will require rebuilding the electrification infrastructure at the grade-separation sites, and that will be a problem when the electrification goes into service.

Here are the projects that are listed in that presentation:

• South San Francisco - Oyster Point - 1994
• South San Francisco / San Bruno - S. Linden Ave / Scott St - (Project Study Report (Planning))
• San Bruno - San Bruno Ave / San Mateo Ave / Angus Ave - 2014
• Millbrae - Millbrae Ave - 1996
• Burlingame - Broadway - (Final Design: 2023)
• San Mateo - 25th Ave. - (Construction: 2021)
• Belmont / SanCarlos - Ralston Ave / Harbor Blvd / Holly St - 2000
• San Carlos - Brittan Ave / Howard Ave - 1995
• Redwood City - Whipple, Brewster, Broadway, Maple, Main and Chestnut - (Project Study Report (Planning))
• Redwood City - Jefferson Ave - 1998
• Redwood City - Fifth Ave - 1995
• Menlo Park - Ravenswood, Oak Grove and Glenwood - (Project Study Report (Planning))

San Francisco has some grade crossings near the downtown-SF station and the 22nd-St. one: Mission Bay Dr., 16th St., Mariposa St., and possibly some others in that area.

Here are those in San Mateo County:

• South San Francisco - Linden Ave., Scott Ave. - Planning
• San Bruno - San Bruno Ave., San Mateo Ave., Angus Ave. - 2014
• Millbrae - Center St., Hillcrest Blvd.
• Millbrae - Millbrae Ave. - 1996
• Burlingame - Broadway - Final Design: 2023
• Burlingame - Oak Grove Ave., North Ln., Howard Ave., Bayswater Ave., Peninsula Ave., Villa Terr., Bellevue Ave.
• Burlingame - Poplar Ave., Santa Inez Ave., Monte Diablo Ave., Tilton Ave. - Old
• San Mateo - 1st Ave., 2nd Ave., 3rd Ave., 4th Ave. 5th Ave., 9th Ave.
• San Mateo - 25th Ave., 28th Ave., 31st Ave. - Construction: 2021
• San Mateo - Hillsdale Blvd., 42nd Ave. - Old
• Belmont - Ralston Ave. - 2000
• San Carlos - Harbor Blvd., Holly St. - 2000
• San Carlos - Brittan Ave., Howard Ave. - 1995
• Redwood City - Whipple Ave., Hopkins Ave., Brewster Ave., Broadway - Planning
• Redwood City - Jefferson Ave. - 1998
• Redwood City - Maple St., Main St., Chestnut St. - Planning
• Redwood City - Fifth Ave. - 1995
• Atherton - Fair Oak Ln., Watkins Ave., Encinal Ave.
• Menlo Park - Glenwood Ave., Oak Grove Ave., Ravenswood Ave. - Planning

There are some gaps in existing and planned grade crossings in Millbrae, Burlingame, San Mateo, and Atherton.

Continuing into Santa Clara County, I find

• Palo Alto - Alma St.
• Palo Alto - University Ave., Embarcadero Rd. - Existing
• Palo Alto - Churchill Ave.
• Palo Alto - Oregon Expwy. - Existing
• Palo Alto - Meadow St., Charleston Rd.
• Mountain View - San Antonio Rd. - Existing
• Mountain View - Rengstorff Ave.
• Mountain View - Shoreline Blvd. - Existing
• Mountain View - Castro St.
• Mountain View - Whisman Rd., - Existing
• Sunnyvale - Mary Ave.
• Sunnyvale - Mathilda Ave. - Existing
• Sunnyvale - Sunnyvale Ave.
• Sunnyvale - Fair Oaks Ave. and southward - Existing
• San Jose - San Carlos Ave. and northward - Existing
• San Jose - Auzerais Ave., W Virginia St.
• San Jose - Bird Ave., Delmas Ave., Prevost St., Willow St. - Existing

I'll stop at Tamien station.

So it looks like a lot of grade separation needs to be done in Santa Clara County also.

lpetrich wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 11:29 am I've found Caltrain HSR Compatibility Blog: The Exploding Cost of Grade Separations and it links to

TA PowerPoint Template - #14a - Presentation - Grade Separation Program Update - added 1-4-2021.pdf at smcta.com

What is especially relevant to here is that document lists some grade separations that are planned to be built or else are being built.

The last line on the next to last page of the pdf tells much, to grade separate all of them in these three counties between SF and SJ, they will need $9-11 Billion.

I wish proponents for any construction projects stop ignoring projected costs.

electricron wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 9:06 pm The last line on the next to last page of the pdf tells much, to grade separate all of them in these three counties between SF and SJ, they will need $9-11 Billion.

I wish proponents for any construction projects stop ignoring projected costs.

I don't know if that is the projected cost of all grade separations or only those that have not yet been done.

I got the existing cost figures and scaled them to the present using Inflation Calculator | Find US Dollar's Value from 1913-2021

The cost per grade separation varies from $20 M for the 1995 San Carlos ones to $63 M to the 2014 San Bruno ones

The total cost is $522 M for 12 grade separations, or $43.5 M for each one on average.