LAST EDITED ON Jul-06-03 AT 10:26 PM (EDT)
Just thought I'd post information about the Alaska RR and my observations of it after being up here for nearly a year after moving up from Denver.... Plus Uncle Ted likes to pass a whole lot of everyone elses tax dollers up to the 49th state, so this could also be getting a little return on your 'investment'
And no where in here do I say 'shameless plug for the 4 alaska RR cars I just uploaded'for real info go to http://www.alaskarails.org/ , or
http://www.alaskarailroad.com/In Colorado I was familliar w/ the joint line, 20+ trains a day, UP up in Cheyenne w/ the two track super mainline, or even the BNSF line from Cheyenne-FCtCollins-Denver with several mixed freights a day............ you don't get that up here. The speed limit never get up above 50, in 2003 there just starting w/ a signalling system, the operating margin is around .99 (state run company) vs. .60 something for CN, and BNSF, NS, CSX, UP have margins in the .70's, and 80's. But they do operate a thriving passenger buisness that has (in the summer) 1 train up, 1 train back a day fram Anchorage to Fairbanks (12hr ride), 1 train down and back to Wittier, 1 train down and back to Seward... in the Winter the Pass. buisness gets knocked back to 1 train up on Sat and back on Sun from Anchorage to Fairbanks. For fright service the main item are the 4 daily trains between Anchorage and Fairbanks 1 down in the AM, another down at PM w/ counterpart return trains. These are made up mostly of Jet fuel going from the North Pole refinery to the airport, but also have intermodal, and mixed freight. About the only freight that travels south of Anchorage is a Wednesday mixed freight train going to the barge at Wittier (I can usually spot it at 8:30pm on a Wednesday afternoon) and on to Seattle, and also occasional freight traffic to Seward, but in this last winter the Seward line was mothballed because the coal export contract to S. Korea expired (3 50+ car coal trains a week, that had to double 2 hills). So without any major need they just closed off the line. Then theres also the dirt shuttle trains that bring in rock from Palmer 40 miles to Anchorage. -- short haul but high volume, three trainsets of 50 some cars delivering rock to the three plants in town.. all construction needs rock backfill for support...One thing that the local RR has that I didn't see w/ the big Denver outfits.... public relations .... (and not the kind that only happen after a derailment) such as the open house in the beginning of May.. come down, kick the tires, have your kids climb on the engine, free train ride (a little down and back 15min turn) free stuff!!! .. saw a huge turnout of people there.. 
and why do the do lots of PR.... to make the public more informed about the operation of their (the publics) RR. -- but you still get those people here in town saying "the gravel train going by my house is to loud!!" --next time look to see where the RR tracks are when you buy a house..But with the good RR PR , the fact that nearly everyone who lives in Alaska has out of state guests coming in w/ pockets overflowing with $$$ might have something to do with it..... more butts to fill seats.Then at the end of last June, my wifes parents came up to visit for a few days, and I got tasked with finding 'Alaska Stuff" to do...
The dirt cheap price of $150 gets each person a round trip train ticket from Anchorage to Seward, 1/2 day boat tour around Resurection Bay at Seward, and full lunch on the boat--- every thing else was yadda, yadda, yadda, I was just there for the train ride. After convincing my wife the boat tour would be ok, because the people at work said so...(she got 'uneasy' on a previous Denver-Glenwood springs ski train trip) approval was granted. Train left at 6:30 am had 2 GP40's, power car, baggage car, 2 coaches, 2 vista Domes, snack car, and dining car (bring your own food on the train trip).
(caution low quality pics.... oh well).
riding in the coach was ok, large windows and all, but then you could go to the Vista Dome and look out... much better (my previous train experiences have been AMTRAK, and ski train, so the dome car was a new thing..... 
then from the dome you could go to the vestibules between cars for a more auditory experience, and hang out the car if you wanted to get some good shots...
got to Seward, where like always raining and overcast, heres a shot of the coal loading terminal the Railroad just purchased w/ federal funds... your tax dollars at work... (more info about it at the http://www.alaskarails.org/ site) 
Then the boat tour... started out ok, till it got closer to the open ocean at the mouth of the bay, and the 10' up and down seas... lots o' people 'going' over the side.... my wife doesn't think train trips are that bad anymore. On a 'normal' day probably would have been better, still reccomended as something to do....back to the train trip...
On the return trip I discovered you could stand in the vestabule of the last car and watch the tracks recede, and keep an eye on the break gauge, and not have many people crouding you.... best seat on the train... although 40MPH normally doesnt sound like much, back here it sounded like 100+
Although I had never been on the real Cumberes and Toltec in CO, but have driven the MSTS route... the loop section of the Seward route seems pretty comparable to 'tanglefoot ciurve'. On the Seward route 3% grade, but w/ modern equipment....
uphill tracks on the left, downhill side in the clearing on the right..
and looking back at a glacier, back at the tracks... before the camera battery gave out...
then got back to Anchorage at 11pm at night...
highly reccomended to anyone to take the trip up here, and on the train to Seward.... oh, and some free Alaska RR souvineers for everyone in the file library...more to come when I get around to doing them....
Matt
Printer-friendly page | Edit | Reply | Reply With Quote | Top
