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Our local PBS station, here in the SF bay area, had another showing of "The Most Beautiful Train in the World". It's an hour program devoted to the Southern Pacific Daylight, which ran from LA to SF. It's well worth watching if it shows on your local PBS channel. I've posted a video on the Daylight, before, but I have also found a You-Tube presentation.
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I recorded this program on my DVR! I haven't had a chance to watch the full program yet, but I did catch little bits and pieces of it. The footage that I did see so far showed the daylight pulling into Salinas and San Luis Obispo. Salinas looked exactly the same (except for the era cars that were parked there)!
RRRICH Member # 1418
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Great video, Yukon!!! Thanks for sharing!
yukon11 Member # 2997
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I hope you get to watch to entire presentation, Smitty. They mentioned that, at least at one point of time, more people rode the Daylight for pure pleasure than as a means of transportation. The club car pulled in enough revenue to cover the entire train costs on any given day.
Thanks Mr Rich..glad to share it with everyone. By the way, the SP 4449 now resides in the Brooklyn Yard roundhouse, of UP, in southeast Portland, Oregon. They say it makes appearances on the average of 2 times/year for special events. For sure, the Calif. RR Museum's Railfair in 2011. I sure wish someone would think about reinstating the Daylight train, complete with 4449, as a regularly based train excursion.
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Here is a Meeting Report from RAILPAC of a meeting of folks trying to restore a Coast Rail Corridor to California. Whenever this happens this would be an extended Amtrak Surfliner Corridor train running from San Francisco to Los Angeles.
Personally I think the Coast Corridor should run SOME EXPRESS trains the whole way from San Francisco to San Diego. This way a passenger could ride from Palo Alto to Fullerton or Anaheim on a SINGLE train with NO transfers. Other Trains could still cover the shorter corridor distance from SF to LA. This would help keep the SF--LA crowd from crowding out people going to--from Orange County (etc)
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I understand there are already plans afoot to extend the routes of Surfliners 798 and 799 from San Luis Obispo to SF via the Caltrain rails. From San Jose to 4th & King in SF they would take the slot of one of Caltrain's Baby Bullets.
The time of departure from SLO of the southbound Surfliner (798?) has already been changed. It used to leave at about 4:30 PM, sometimes placing it in conflict with a late-running Coast Starlight
It now leaves at 2 PM, giving it a good empty slot in which to run. This slot, extended north to SF would have it leave there at about 8 AM and get into LA at 7:30 PM
The northbound train (799?) leaves LA at 7:30 AM and, if it went to SF, would arrive there about 8 PM.
To the best of my recollection, those times come pretty close to matching the schedule of the old Daylights.
Jack
sbalax Member # 2801
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I'd like to believe that this is why they have changed the departure of the southbound train from SLO. It has, however, screwed up what was one of my favorite day trips. We could ride from SBA to SLO and have a nice lunch and then head back on the same train. Now, if the NB is on time, there is only one hour and fifteen for lunch. There are a couple of pretty good places near the station but I enjoyed going into downtown SLO.
Frank in unusually warm SBA
amtraxmaniac Member # 2251
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I'd like to see an overnight trip between LA and SF that would provide seemless connections to and from the CZ. Something along the lines of leaving NB from LA at 8PM and arriving in EMY around 7:30am....and then leaving EMY back for LA around 7:00pm (accounting for a possibly late WB CZ) arriving in LA at 6:30am....just in time for Surliner 564. What would be even BETTER would to have TRU-CARS directly to the CZ in EMY
PullmanCo Member # 1138
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In other words, the Oakland section of the Lark?
2 a day service on the Coast Route died on April 10, 1968, the day after the California Public Utilities Commission allowed discontinuance of the Lark.
notelvis Member # 3071
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quote:Originally posted by PullmanCo: In other words, the Oakland section of the Lark?
2 a day service on the Coast Route died on April 10, 1968, the day after the California Public Utilities Commission allowed discontinuance of the Lark.
Save for the short-lived late 1970's (or was it early 1980's) train the 'Spirit of California' which ran overnight LAX to Oakland and then to Sacramento.
mr williams Member # 1928
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quote:
I'd like to see an overnight trip between LA and SF that would provide seemless connections to and from the CZ. Something along the lines of leaving NB from LA at 8PM and arriving in EMY around 7:30am....and then leaving EMY back for LA around 7:00pm (accounting for a possibly late WB CZ) arriving in LA at 6:30am....just in time for Surliner 564. What would be even BETTER would to have TRU-CARS directly to the CZ in EMY
This is already partially possible if you don't mind an Amtrak bus for part of the journey. You can leave LAX on the last NB Surfliner at 7.00, change to a bus at Santa Barbara and rejoin a train at San Jose at daybreak the next morning.
mr williams Member # 1928
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quote:Originally posted by sbalax: I'd like to believe that this is why they have changed the departure of the southbound train from SLO. It has, however, screwed up what was one of my favorite day trips. We could ride from SBA to SLO and have a nice lunch and then head back on the same train. Now, if the NB is on time, there is only one hour and fifteen for lunch. There are a couple of pretty good places near the station but I enjoyed going into downtown SLO.
When this train first started it ran back down in the 2.00 pm slot but was moved to 4.30 due to its dreadful northbound timekeeping.
Frank - if you want a little longer for lunch why not get off one stop earlier at Grover Beach? The excellent Fin's Restaurant is just by the dunes, only two minutes walk from the station at that would give you an extra half an hour or so.
Frank in unusually warm SBA
mr williams Member # 1928
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OK, I'll get the hang of using the quote facility one day.....
amtraxmaniac Member # 2251
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Bus-titution is a BLACK EYE on the face of rail travel in California. Granted...they won't be laying rail over the grapevine along I-5 anytime soon...and the San Joaquin Valley to LA over the Tehachapi Loop is not practical (4 hr train trip versus a 2 hr bus trip). But lack of Coastal Corridor Rail service between LA and the Bay area is soley due to UP's attitude towards Amtrak...'UP yours Amtrak'.
PullmanCo Member # 1138
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Mr maniac,
I think it's time for you to take History 177 (History of California) up at UC Santa Barbara.
The history of corporate antipathy to passenger service on the Coast Line pre-dates the UP/SP merger by oh,FORTY YEARS
It starts with Donald Russell.
I will agree that UP now is no more friendly to passenger traffic than SP was then... unless there is money to compensate.
That is Amtrak's problem. It doesn't have the money to pay for the speed it wants.
sbalax Member # 2801
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Mr. Williams--
Good idea! Thanks for the suggestion. I'll look into it.
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