The announcement this week of federal money dedicated to a rail project in Ohio is great news for Dayton. The passenger line that will link Cleveland to Cincinnati will have a stop in our city. The plan is for the station to be in the same location as the old Union Station downtown. This would be about a mile away from Huffman. I’ve walked to that area before, but a bike would make the trip super easy. Come to think of it, a folding bike would be perfect for that commute – ride down to the platform, collapse the bike, and hop on the train with it.
The new passenger rail system would allow Daytonians to work in Cincinnati or Columbus. Even at less-than-high-speed, the rail commute seems more appealing than my current 30 minute drive time to work in Piqua. I really can’t do anything but drive and listen to music on my way to work now, but sitting on a train for an hour opens up the possibility of replying to a round of email and taking notes while on cel phone calls. I may actually be more productive with a little longer commute! And, the thought of getting a little exercise on my way to and from the station while abandoning fuel and car maintenance costs is very appealing.
Hopefully the new train station will be the shot that downtown needs, too. The arcade is scheduled for renovation and would be a perfect place for all kinds of commuter services. Suburban commuters would depend less on the highway and drive downtown to park. A grocery store immediately adjacent to the train station would make a killing as riders could shop and drive back home after work. I’m sure there a lot of other possible amenities for rail passengers, too. What else makes sense? Do we have any entrepreneurs among us?
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3 Responses to “Can’t wait for rail”
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January 31st, 2010 at 12:38 PM
If it happens, I know I will ride the train just to ride the train. The scenes available from a seat on a train are like no other. My favorites are the looks on the faces of children – you just know they would give anything to be on the train with you, speeding along on a trip to some place exciting or romantic or both. My second favorites, of course, are the eldertly – their look is one of remembrance, of the places their trains took them back in the day. We should form a club and take the train once a month. Any takers?
January 31st, 2010 at 8:17 PM
We are an experienced Amtrak family, having taken the train to Glacier National Park [Montana], Albuquerque, Denver, and Los Angeles/San Francisco. We are looking forward to a light rail local/regional option. John, if you start a monthly rail club, count us in!
February 2nd, 2010 at 9:59 AM
Sign us up!