SMART diesel railcars by Nippon Sharyo

[bikkuri bahn]

Thought I'd start a new thread about this railcar, previously detailed in the "SUV on rails" thread.  I think this is an important design (at least for fans of Japanese trains), because I believe it will be the first diesel railcar of Japanese design to be operated in North America.  Anyway, recently a number of articles have appeared about this design.

 

1. First, some reps from the Sonoma-Marin transit agency will visit Nippon Sharyo's Toyokawa plant:

 

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20101026/ARTICLES/101029622/1350?Title=SMART-team-visits-Japan-to-assess-rail-cars

 

They are being very careful not be seen as going on a junket:

“This group is not being wined or dined or even spoken to by Nippon Sharyo while over there,” Coursey said.

 

*(What, no hot saki and geesha girls!? )

 

2. Looks like the authorities will have to iron out differences with the freight train operator which will share the trackage:

 

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20101019/BUSINESS/101019516/1036/business?Title=Rail-dispute-threatens-cargo-service

 

*they had better improve that track, I don't think sand ballast and who-knows-how-old rail is going to cut it...

 

3.This is an interesting document, which details the criteria for selection, including the various candidates considered and why the Nippon Sharyo product was selected:

 

http://www.sonomamarintrain.org/userfiles/file/Vehicle%20recommendation%202010-10-25.pdf

 

Check out the preliminary line drawings on the last pages.

 

*high level (platform) loading

*one engine per car (I expect 500 hp range)

*bolsterless bogies

*center car will have a flat nose drivers cab

*FRA compliant, so much more massive build (and heavy) than Japanese equivalents, likely will be sluggish, but not really an issue given traffic levels

[bikkuri bahn]

Western media loves to characterize Japanese politicians as "dithering" (justified with the current administration) but I think the politicians in the U.S. when dealing with transportation infrastructure are no better:

 

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20101110/ARTICLES/101119951/1350?p=1&tc=pg

 

I don't know where this line comes from:

In Japan, similar diesel-powered cars are being used in service from Nagoya to Shinagawa,

 

Wow, I had better get my pics of that one next time I visit Tokyo! :glasses9:

 

This article is related, I like the picture, which describes the state of rail transport in better ways than any words:

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20101108/articles/101109514/?tc=obinsite

[quinntopia]

2. Looks like the authorities will have to iron out differences with the freight train operator which will share the trackage:

 

That's just flat our ridiculous!  I lived in Marin County for a couple of years and that trackage sees fewer freight trains than a lot of 'rails to trails' right of ways do!  Seriously, its not like Northwestern Pacific is running 'hotshot' container trains from Novato to Healdsburg! Give me a break!

[bikkuri bahn]

That's just flat our ridiculous!  I lived in Marin County for a couple of years and that trackage sees fewer freight trains than a lot of 'rails to trails' right of ways do!  Seriously, its not like Northwestern Pacific is running 'hotshot' container trains from Novato to Healdsburg! Give me a break!

 

Yep, look at that track, I bet they're running thundering 60mph redballs every hour on that trackage, fer shure...

[Mudkip Orange]

I dunno, seems like a legit gripe to me.

 

From the freight operator's perspective, the commuter trains are still at the planning stages, and they want to start running trains right friggin' now. But from the passenger agency's perspective, they realize what freight-priority has done for Amtrak, and that maximum usage of the facilities they're investing in will ultimately require the freight operator play a subordinate role.

 

The "dithering" doesn't negatively affect the ultimate commencement of passenger operations so much as the start date for freight ops. Drawing out the process to extract a favorable contract from the freight operator seems like the smart move in the long run.