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General railway discussions

An interior shot of Michigan Central Station:

1718078193081.png

Source/Credit: https://www.freep.com/picture-galle...novated-michigan-central-station/73927188007/

What a difference lighting and fully restored floors make...........ahem Union Station.
 
Northern Light said:
An interior shot of Michigan Central Station:

View attachment 571377
Source/Credit: https://www.freep.com/picture-galle...novated-michigan-central-station/73927188007/

What a difference lighting and fully restored floors make...........ahem Union Station.
Click to expand...
Americans are willing to splurge on their infra. Can take them some time, but when they do it, they’re serious.

Canadians will just let it rot and wring their hands as it does. And we will take the most pedestrian choice when pushed, because ‘cheap and pragmatic’.

Yes, I’m bitter - and I wish we had more aspiration, and go for ‘great’.
 
allengeorge said:
Americans are willing to splurge on their infra. Can take them some time, but when they do it, they’re serious.

Canadians will just let it rot and wring their hands as it does. And we will take the most pedestrian choice when pushed, because ‘cheap and pragmatic’.

Yes, I’m bitter - and I wish we had more aspiration, and go for ‘great’.
Click to expand...

I would not despair so much.

The Detroit terminal sat as a bombed-out shell for decades, while down the road, the Gordie Howe bridge is a Canadian initiative that business interests on the US side bitterly opposed. Compare the condition of the 401 roadway to I-75.down to Toledo.

We have our successes

Now if we could just get Amtrak/VIa to cross the Detroit River somehow....

- Paul
 
allengeorge said:
Americans are willing to splurge on their infra. Can take them some time, but when they do it, they’re serious.

Canadians will just let it rot and wring their hands as it does. And we will take the most pedestrian choice when pushed, because ‘cheap and pragmatic’.

Yes, I’m bitter - and I wish we had more aspiration, and go for ‘great’.
Click to expand...

To be clear, the restoration was largely a private endeavour, driven by Ford Motor Company who purchased the building.

Ford is putting one of its business units in the office floors.

Currently, the station has no train service at all, as it was abandoned and left to rot for decades, Amtrak decamped to a small facility in midtown Detroit.

This is where Amtrak currently stops:

1718111725743.png


The above from Streetview, below an interior shot w/credit in the image:

1718111777577.png


***

Ford has done the restoration work in such a way that the main level of the building can be open to the public and it could see some train service again in the future.

crs1026 said:
Now if we could just get Amtrak/VIa to cross the Detroit River somehow....

- Paul
Click to expand...

Amtrak is contemplating a return to MCS when it launches Detroit-Toronto train service. Discussions are under way with Ottawa to accommodate customs services at a Windsor Station (maybe not the current one); with Amtrak tenatively hoping it can launch the service Q3 2027. (not sure they'll make that timeline, but here's wishing them the best)
 
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Northern Light said:
Amtrak is contemplating a return to MCS when it launches Detroit-Toronto train service. Discussions are under way with Ottawa to accommodate customs services at a Windsor Station (maybe not the current one); with Amtrak tenatively hoping it can launch the service Q3 2027. (not sure they'll make that timeline, but here's wishing them the best)
Click to expand...

Now you have me dreaming of catching a GO train in Kitchener, riding it to Mount Dennis, catching the Crosstown to the Science Center, and backtracking on the Ontario Line to downtown to catch the train to Chicago.....

All in good time, I hope

- Paul
 
Northern Light said:
To be clear, the restoration was largely a private endeavour, driven by Ford Motor Company who purchased the building.

Ford is putting its one of its business units in the office floors.

Currently, the station has no train service at all, as it was abandoned and left to rot for decades, Amtrak decamped to a small facility in midtown Detroit.

This is where Amtrak currently stops:

View attachment 571403

The above from Streetview, below an interior shot w/credit in the image:

View attachment 571404

***

Ford has done the restoration work in such a way that the main level of the building can be open to the public and it could see some train service again in the future.



Amtrak is contemplating a return to MCS when it launches Detroit-Toronto train service. Discussions are under way with Ottawa to accommodate customs services at a Windsor Station (maybe not the current one); with Amtrak tenatively hoping it can launch the service Q3 2027. (not sure they'll make that timeline, but here's wishing them the best)
Click to expand...

There was a New York Central/Canadian Pacific station just north of Tecumseh Street; the building lasted through the mid 1980s and you can still see the platform in satellite images. There’s plenty of room to build a modern building with customs facilities.

VIA/Amtrak would then either have to crawl through Windsor on the Essex Terminal Railway, or follow CP tracks to where they cross the CN/VIA line west of Chatham.
 
ShonTron said:
There was a New York Central/Canadian Pacific station just north of Tecumseh Street; the building lasted through the mid 1980s and you can still see the platform in satellite images. There’s plenty of room to build a modern building with customs facilities.

VIA/Amtrak would then either have to crawl through Windsor on the Essex Terminal Railway, or follow CP tracks to where they cross the CN/VIA line west of Chatham.
Click to expand...

Found a story in Windsor media that discusses the preliminary plan, which made use of the existing VIA station.:

From: https://windsorstar.com/news/local-...roposed-toronto-chicago-passenger-train-route

1718113597654.png

1718113660858.png

A map of a new passenger rail route running through Windsor shows the Amtrak route from Chicago connecting with VIA Rail’s Canadian route. The plan could be up and running as soon as late 2027.
Photo by Courtesy of VIA Rail and Amtrak /Windsor Star

This alternative was the one deliverable by 2027.

But others were under discussion, subject to more detailed analysis/budget.

*****

The Amtrak business plan initially shows this as one train daily, but has been drawn up with an eye to more frequent service.
 
crs1026 said:
Beautiful building. If only Buffalo had a re-building sponsor industry with equally deep pockets.

- Paul
Click to expand...
Totally agree. It is currently in a dead zone and the area is only getting worse.

There is no big pockets in the city anymore as they have all left town. There been talk about bring it back to life, but been all talks for decades.

There are stations across the US like Buffalo that are just good look looking, but Amtrak doesn't run there anymore or Amtrak has a small building. In some cases its only one train a day or every few days.
Northern Light said:
Found a story in Windsor media that discusses the preliminary plan, which made use of the existing VIA station.:

From: https://windsorstar.com/news/local-...roposed-toronto-chicago-passenger-train-route

View attachment 571416
View attachment 571417
A map of a new passenger rail route running through Windsor shows the Amtrak route from Chicago connecting with VIA Rail’s Canadian route. The plan could be up and running as soon as late 2027.
Photo by Courtesy of VIA Rail and Amtrak /Windsor Star

This alternative was the one deliverable by 2027.

But others were under discussion, subject to more detailed analysis/budget.

*****

The Amtrak business plan initially shows this as one train daily, but has been drawn up with an eye to more frequent service.
Click to expand...
There been talk since Ford bought the station of having more Amtrak service to it as well the reviving the Toronto- Chicago service along with a commuter line service. I believe they have allow for 4 tracks to be reinstall there.

It will be slow going through Windsor using the Essex tracks that will have to be upgraded for faster speed. The equipment will have to be VIA new sets or power on both ends
 
Bureaucromancer said:
I've gotta say that I really hate that service pattern. The exact opposite, with it being VIA extended to Detroit makes so much more sense in every way...
Click to expand...

While I tend to agree, I'm not holding my breath. There seems to be a lot more appetite in the US for Amtrak to provide service to Canada than there is in Canada for VIA to provide service to the US. The problem isn't with VIA but the federal government's unwillingness to give it the required funding.
 
allengeorge said:
Canadians will just let it rot and wring their hands as it does.
Click to expand...
The Quebec City train station is pretty.

31354727143_78a423bee6_b.jpg


And by virtue of its terminus placement, is one of the few stations in Canada that you don't need to enter some subterranean, low ceilinged dungeon to find your VIA train, like at Union below.

via-rail-canada.jpg
 
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