e_moon60 (e_moon60) wrote,
e_moon60
e_moon60

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Can Haz Train to City...

This week Capitol Metro's new train went "live" with passengers--free rides this week--and today I finally got loose to ride it.    The schedule is designed purely for commuters, so far, the result (in part) of having to share track with freight lines (notoriously hostile to passenger trains of any type.)    This means if I ride it in, I have to get up really early, and then stay in the city until the afternoon trains run north again, but...it saves me 3 gallons of gas (at least) on every round trip to downtown, plus the hassle of driving those miles.   Many of us on board today hope that the schedule can be extended to include a mid-morning and mid-afternoon run, and an evening run for those who want to stay in the city to eat dinner or see a movie before riding back out to the far end of the line (or elsewhere.)  I'd love to be able to take it downtown for choir practice, for instance.

It was a beautiful day, and the train was crowded both directions (and apparently, both directions on most of its runs on this week.)  On the way to the city, I got a seat the whole way; on the way back, did not for the first half (approx.)    The train itself is attractive, quiet (except for the excited conversation of the passengers packed into it) and smooth.    When not stuffed to the gills (about like a NYC subway at rush hour, this afternoon) there are places for wheelchair passengers and hooks for bikes to be hung up near the doors.   The seats are comfortable, when you get one. 

It's been a long time coming, and went way over budget, but it's a start on serious mass transit in addition to bus service--and a lot of fun.   I spent my city hours with my web-guru, discussing the revamping of one of the websites in much more detail than we've had time for in the past months...
Tags: commuting, train
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  • 15 comments

  • Interesting bug

    This afternoon I saw a treehopper (or some kind of hopper) on the kitchen window screen, so went outside to photograph it. The wind was very…

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