--> With quote from ACERider Michael Graff.

Published Saturday, December 16, 2000, in the San Francisco Chronicle

ACE To Add Later Trains
Altamont Pass commuter service runs at capacity

Michael Cabanatuan, Chronicle Staff Writer

A long-awaited third train for the Altamont Commuter Express appears to be
on track for a mid-February start, delivering relief to passengers who
crowd onto packed trains for the trip between the San Joaquin Valley and
the Silicon Valley.

ACE, as the commuter railroad has come to be known, runs two round-trip
trains in each direction between Stockton and San Jose, passing through
the Tri-Valley and southern Alameda County en route. One of those trains
returns to Pleasanton and makes a second trip to Silicon Valley.

The round-trip trains are overcrowded, carrying scores of commuters who
cannot find seats and are forced to stand or sit on the steps or in
vestibules.

The trains have seats for about 1,550 passengers, but patronage averages
2,100 each way.

"I've heard all kinds of stories," said Michael Graff, who has ridden ACE
since it started in October 1998. "I talked to one guy from Tracy who said
he's stood all the way home on some trains."

With the Silicon Valley's high housing prices forcing many workers to move
to the Tri-Valley area and the San Joaquin Valley, and traffic over the
Altamont Pass and Sunol Grade ever on the rise, ACE attracted crowds of
riders from the start. It has continued to grow steadily.

"They're carrying about as many as they can carry without adding more
trains," said Ric Silver, executive director of the Train Riders
Association of California.

ACE's popularity is not limited to its passengers. Politicians and Silicon
Valley employers also love the commuter railroad and have won state and
federal money for additional trains.

ACE took delivery of two new locomotives and five double-deck passengers
cars and had planned to start a third train by this fall. But the Union
Pacific Railroad, which owns the rails used by ACE, delayed the start
until it could study the capacity of its tracks and determine what
improvements will be needed to accommodate more trains.

"Capitol Corridor is looking to add trains, ACE wants to add service and
the railroad is adding freight service, so there is a concern by the
railroad that there might not be enough capacity," said Brian Schmidt,
ACE's rail services director.

The Union Pacific study is expected to be finished in January, Schmidt
said, and ACE officials are confident they will get the go-ahead for a
third train that would leave Stockton about 6:30 a.m., an hour later than
the current latest train.

The new train would stop in Pleasanton shortly before 8 a.m. and in San
Jose about 9 a.m. The evening train would leave San Jose about 6:45 p.m.
Later trains have been the top request of ACE passengers in surveys.

This week, the ACE Authority, a governing board with members from Alameda,
Santa Clara and San Joaquin counties, gave the go-ahead to negotiate with
Caltrain to use its tracks between Santa Clara's Great America station and
San Jose's Diridon station.

Switching from the Union Pacific tracks would help ACE trains avoid delays
on the heavily used stretch. Schmidt said it would also allow ACE to run
trains through the downtown Santa Clara station, close to Santa Clara
University and some employers.

"That will probably add 150 riders a day," Silver said.

There are already plans for a fourth train, using money from Gov. Gray
Davis' transportation program. ACE has ordered seven passenger cars and
will start negotiations with Union Pacific once its capacity study is
complete.

Schmidt said a fourth train could begin operating by the end of next year.

E-mail Michael Cabanatuan at mcabanatuan@....

I like Yeoh's ideas for the new ACE trains.  I think it would be a good idea
to have a train leaving San Jose for Stockton at 8 PM, or thereabouts.  Also,
since the vast majority of the riders are between Vasco and Great America (or
soon to be SC Caltrain), then turnback trains are very cost effective.  I
have heard that the trains cost about $15 per mile for track rent, fuel and
labor, and the Pleasanton turnback train broke even rather quickly with a
hundred or two passengers.

One constraint is the shuttle system at Great America.  It takes about an
hour for the farthest ones to go out and back, so the train spacing is
planned for about an hour in the morning (a little more in the evening).  One
thing that could be done is combine some of the shuttles on the last morning
run and the first evening run - Orange and Red could be combined, Baypointe
and Purple, etc.  The runs would be slightly longer, but the ridership would
be lsee than the sum of the individual runs.

A second constraint is the single track.  Even if there were a lot of train
sets, running turnback trains every fifteen minutes would not work without
double track, or lots of passing sidings.  (Which is planned for the future).

A third constraint is track speed.  ACE averages less than 40 mph, and it may
be more cost effective to spend money on track (at the same time sidings and
double track is added) and get the train sets (at $20 million apiece) running
50 percent faster, rather than getting 50 percent more train sets.

One thing I would like to see is to leave a trainset in Vasco (or on a nearby
siding), overnight.  Then a 4:45 to Santa Clara Caltrain, then turnback to
Tracy or Stockton for a later run.  An afternoon train (the 7pm) could
terminate at Vasco.  If passengers wanted to leave at 7 PM for Tracy and
east, the Amtrak Bus would still be there for those destinations.

Also, I would like to see an earlier train (again, could be a turnback)
leaving about 3 pm.  Lots of people work early and go home early some days.

When we go to the fourth train (the Modesto train), we can look at
half-hourly service from Tracy to SC Caltrain during commute time.  For many
trains SC Caltrain has good connections, north and south, so it can be a good
connection point, eliminating some runs to Diridon.

On the other end, Tracy has good bus connections to Stockton and Modesto, so
some midday trains, and some late trains could terminate in Tracy.  Of
course, during commute times, Stockton (and Modesto) should be the terminal
points.

-- Mike O'Dorney

Basically, the turnback train (#95 and #96) will be deleted and the
third trainset will be used.  This change deletes the morning reverse
commute from San Jose to Pleasanton, but adds a later evening run with
a 7:04pm Great America stop.  Also, all trains will stop at the Santa
Clara Caltrain station.  Other trains will have minor schedule
adjustments.

Note that today, ACE operates six trains per day, and under the
proposed new schedule, ACE operates six trains per day.

ACE announcement:

  On Monday, December 11, the ACE Authority agreed to allow rail
  planners to arrange for transit shuttles to meet a third ACE train and
  to add another stop in downtown Santa Clara, using Caltrain rail track
  between the Santa Clara Station and downtown San Jose.

Details:

Note that there has been a third westbound morning train since early
2000, with VTA shuttles; the change is that instead of beginning at
Pleasanton, it will begin at Lathrop/Manteca (and no doubt become more
crowded).  The #95 will be deleted and #05 added.

The #96 reverse morning commute from San Jose to Pleasanton will be deleted.
The evening #06 will be added, with at 06:45pm San Jose departure and a 07:04pm
Great America stop.

Since the number of morning westbound trains will equal the number of evening
eastbound trains, it may be possible to allow bikes on the third morning train
(currently, bikes are allowed on all trains except the #95).

Of interest is that the #04 evening train becomes 12 minutes earlier,
so it will stop at Great America at 05:44pm instead of at 05:56pm. The
Amtrak Capitol #732 train at 05:52pm will become less useful to ACERiders
bound for Fremont, and ACE ridership for the evening Fremont bound
riders will increase.

My morning preference would be to leave the add te third train #5 as
planned, but keep the #95 and #96, turn it around at Vasco rather than
at Pleasanton, and arrive at San Jose around 10:00am.

My evening preference would be to keep the #02 and #04 as they are
today, and add a San Jose to Livermore train #06 departing San Jose at
05:34pm, turn it around at Pleasanton, then leave San Jose again at
around 08:00pm.

Obviously my preference uses more track-time and track-miles, so t may
be harder to negotiate.

For the current schedule, see
   http://www.acerail.com/schedule.html

for the proposed schedule, see
   http://www.acerail.com/commuter.html#schedule

ACE announces:

   According to San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission Chairman Phil
   Pennino, the third train is contingent upon reaching a track-use
   agreement with Union Pacific Railroad and getting permission from
   Caltrain to use a portion of its tracks.  These issues should be
   resolved to allow a mid-February start-up.

YY

The shuttle busses' stops at the Santa Clara/Great America station
have been rearranged.  The VTA shuttles are closest to the train
platform, centered under the Tasman overpass.  Private/employer
shuttles are to pick up passengers northwest of the platform, about
100 metres further along Stars and Stripes Drive.

This rearrangement should prevent some of the double parking gridlock
in the morning as some 30 or so busses trek into this deadend street.

There are maps of the new bus layout posted inside the VTA busses and
under the Tasman overpass, though most of these maps are just paper
celotaped to the concrete, to they won't last long.


YY

YY has good information on the new AC transit schedules.

One thing I like to do is to park at Pleasanton BART in the morning, so my car
is at BART when I return on BART in the evening.

This pretty much rules out the first ACE train, since the Pleasanton ACE-BART
shuttle starts at ACE, goes to BART, then ACE (second train).  One thought I had
was to go to Fremont by BART, then connect to ACE at Centerville.  Again, this
misses the first train, unless I leave Pleasanton at 4:31am.  And there are
shuttles (252 and 253) that go ACE-BART (and BART-ACE in the evening).  What
wluld be good is the reverse - so BART riders can make the first train after
arriving at 5:50am  in Fremont. 12 minutes to load, cover 1.5 miles, unload.
Tight, but doable.

Mike O'Dorney

But YY's idea of parking at BART and taking ACE is a good one.

Good news - starting 2000 December 17 there are more bus connections
between BART and the Fremont-Centerville ACE/Amtrak station.

To/From Union City BART:
The 211 goes between Union City BART and Fremont BART
via Fremont Blvd.

   http://www.transitinfo.org/Sched/AC/New/211/

And To/From Fremont BART:
The 215 goes from Newpark Mall past Centerville station
on Peralta to Fremont BART.

   http://www.transitinfo.org/Sched/AC/New/215/

YY.
"Can't find a parking spot at Fremont-Centerville ?
  Park at Bart and take the bus!"

modorney@... writes:

> 4. Ace trains don't need to "park" at Diridon, they
> can be put to use as midday trains.  Send them back
> out to the east.

Yes, the trains would be more useful if put on a turnback schedule
(like trains #95 and #96), or sent up the peninsula to add to Caltrain's
weak schedule and livery, but as long as the Union Pacific track
negotiations are dragging out, making the existing trains longer would
be better than leaving equipment (the third and soon fourth trainset)
lay idle in a yard somewhere like Stockton.

From a recent _Commuter News_

   Dear Sore Feet,

    ACE is very aware of the crowded conditions on the current trains: we
    value our loyal commuters, and are doing everything we can to
    alleviate the problem. I appreciate your innovative thinking - adding
    additional cars does seem like a viable solution. However, the problem
    with the "long" train approach is that to pull more than six cars
*  requires two locomotives: when the additional cars are added, the
*  train is too long for the storage site in San Jose. So we are working
*  on both the negotiations for the third train and a new storage
*  facility that can accommodate longer trains. Thanks for your
    suggestion - we'll keep you updated on our progress in this crucial
    matter!

    Cealy Lein


YY
  squid @ panix . com

ACERail set a new ridership record this morning.
Tuesday November 28 - Westbound AM Ridership = 2,230 riders.

YY

From the what-to-do-if-you-miss-your-train dept:
(Note there is no service to Fremont on this bus route --
  looks like the I-680 and North Mission park and ride stop
  was eliminated.

(slightly old) News from ACERail:

Effective October 29, the ACE / Amtrak Work Late Bus #3910 now departs
15 minutes earlier from San Jose (6:40pm) and Great America
(7:00pm). Please see new "revised schedule" below.


SCHEDULE:  ACE BUS 3910
(New Schedule) San Jose Diridon:  6:40 PM
Great America:  7:00 PM
Fremont:  NO STOP
Pleasanton:  7:40 PM
Livermore:  8:00 PM
Vasco:  NO STOP
Tracy-Wendys:  8:25 PM    NOTE: A
Lathrop-Manteca:  8:45 PM    NOTE: D
Stockton ACE:  9:35 PM

NOTE A:   Does not stop at ACE Station.
NOTE D:   Stops to discharge ACE passengers only.

Note: Bus 3910 available to Monthly Pass and 20 Ride
Ticket Holders Only. (Must validate before boarding).

YY   squid @ panix . com

I agree with Yeoh Yiu on ACE improvements.

1.  Add a GA Ace/Amtrak station by building it
with the eastern platform stairs following the
contour of the slope under the present bridge.
That way, one steps off the LRT and walks to the
ACE/Amtrak platform withoout having to cross traffic.
The west end of the platform would be at the light, and
would provide level, wheelchair access.

2.  Many of the shuttles can be split into two parts
Yellow and Orange come to mind.  Also, when the new
schedule starts, and ACE stops at Santa Clara Caltrain,
it may make sense to move the Gray and Yellow shuttles
to SC Caltrain.

3. The shuttles are geared for a one hour round trip.
The Brown (Baypointe) shuttle could extend down First
for a few stops.  Also, there could be a local
(Champion, etc). Baypointe, etc.

4. Ace trains don't need to "park" at Diridon, they
can be put to use as midday trains.  Send them back
out to the east.

reminder VTA open house

My recommendations:

Include electric commuter trains on various routes in major investment study
(see http://members.nbci.com/ntechcentral/transit/dualloop.htm )

Don't wait until 2006 or until the I-680 carpool lanes before
improving bus service.

Add queue jumper bus lanes to Mission College westbound near Great
America during evenings, and other bottlenecks.

Add a light rail station on Tasman near/on top of the Great America
train station.

Add ACE shuttle service to Cupertino
  (de Anza & stevens Creek:: Apple Tandem-Compaq area)
Extend ACE shuttle service in Sunnyavle - Mountain View
  - Palo Alto - Menlo Park.

Add evening bus serice to Fremont-Centerville and Fremont BART.

Split longer shuttle lines into local and experss; ex add a Yellow2 shuttle
which doesn't stop north (logical eastward) of US-101

current x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---|

should be

local   z--z--z--z--z--z--z--z--z--|
express ---------------------------y--y--y--y--y--y--y--y--y--y--y--

   YY squid @ panix . com

The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) has funds and wants
to improve ACE.  They're asking your help to advise them what improvments
you need.

Excerpt:

   "VTA's approved recommendations and next steps are:
    ...

    [3] Continue to support expansion of the Altamont Commuter Express
        (ACE), the Capitol Corridor Intercity, and Amtrak rail services
        on the Alviso line.

Come to a VTA meeting and explain what improvements you want in ACE.

  YY


  From: Fremont-South Bay Corridor <fremont.southbay@...>
  Subject: Fremont South Bay Corridor Update
  Date: Thu, 09 Nov 2000 12:53:04 PST

***********************************************************************
          1996 Measures A + B Transportation Improvement Program
                 Fremont-South Bay Corridor
***********************************************************************

Fremont South Bay Corridor Update

Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is working closely
with local jurisdictions on region-wide strategies to address traffic,
access to jobs, and air quality concerns.  Proposed improvements in the
Fremont-South Bay Corridor are an important part of these efforts.

Following a substantial public hearing process, VTA staff made four
recommendations reflecting public comments and staff findings.  These
recommendations were approved by the Policy Advisory Board (PAB) on
September 20, 2000, the VTA Board of Directors on October 5, 2000 and
the County of Santa Clara Board of Supervisors on October 17, 2000.

VTA's approved recommendations and next steps are:
· Include the Fremont-South Bay Commuter Rail Project as an alternative
in the Fremont-South Bay Corridor Major Investment Study
(MIS)/Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)/Environmental Impact Report
(EIR) and take no further action on the project until the MIS is
completed.
· Pursue State funding from the Governor's Traffic Congestion Relief
Plan to undertake the MIS/EIS/EIR.
· Utilize 1996 Measure B and other potential funding sources to
implement enhanced express bus service as an interim solution to traffic
congestion in the corridor.
· Continue to support expansion of the Altamont Commuter Express (ACE),
the Capitol Corridor Intercity, and Amtrak rail services on the Alviso
line.

YOU ARE INVITED
VTA will continue to stay in touch with you about future meetings and
workshops.  At this point, three community workshops have been scheduled
to provide information and to offer the community an opportunity to give
  input on and get specific questions answered regarding the
recommendations and next steps for the corridor:

Thursday, November 30, 2000
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Fire Training Center
Multi-Purpose Room
255 South Montgomery Street
San Jose, CA
This location is within walking
distance of the San Jose Diridon
Station and VTA bus lines 23, 24,
63, 64, 65, 68, 81, 85, and 180.

Monday, December 4, 2000
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Embassy Suites
901 East Calaveras Boulevard
Milpitas, CA
This location is within walking
distance of VTA bus line 70.

Wednesday, December 6, 2000
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Fremont Marriott
Grand Ballroom
46100 Landing Parkway
Fremont, CA
This location is within walking distance of AC Transit
bus line 22.

For More Information
Contact VTA Community Outreach at (408) 321-7575,
TDD only: (408) 321-2330 or log on to: www.vta.org.
Please address written comments to:
VTA-Planning & Programming,
3331 North First Street, Building B,
San Jose, CA  95134-1906 or e-mail:  fremont.southbay@...
or fax:  (408) 955-9765.

"The Catellus project also includes building an Altamont Commuter
  Express station at the edge of the site."

Cisco is planning to occupy large office developments in Alviso
and Fremont.  Below are a MercuryNews story and a link to the
developer's map.

YY

Developer's Map
http://www.catellus.com/assets/images/Site_Plan.GIF

http://www0.mercurycenter.com/premium/local/docs/ciscomove06.htm

Networking giant Cisco Systems Inc. confirmed Sunday it will build a
new campus in Fremont -- its largest outside of San Jose -- continuing
high-tech's reach into the East Bay.

Cisco officials said an agreement was signed on Friday with developer
Catellus Commercial Group to take over 3.4 million square feet of
space in the 8.3-million-square-foot Pacific Commons office park in
south Fremont.

The new 280-acre campus near Fremont Auto Mall would be Cisco's
third-largest site in the region and Fremont's largest employer,
eclipsing New United Motor Manufacturing Inc., which employs about
4,000 workers.

``It's extremely important to us because it could mean 10,000 jobs,''
said Fremont Mayor Gus Morrison. ``And as far as the jobs-housing
balance goes, it's really good for us. There's far more housing
available in the East Bay than in Santa Clara County. It's going to
bring people a little closer to home.''

Ellen Jamason, Cisco's director of real estate and facilities,
couldn't say exactly how many workers would be headed to Fremont. She
said the company doesn't assign workers to a location until shortly
before it is established.

Cisco has its 5-million-square-foot headquarters offices in north San
Jose and has proposed a 6.6-million-square-foot facility in south San
Jose's Coyote Valley.

Jamason said Cisco would build the Fremont project in phases. The
Fremont plans won't affect the project in Coyote Valley and were never
intended as a backup if the controversial San Jose project falls
through, she said.

The Coyote Valley project recently won approval from the San Jose City
Council, but is expected to face legal challenges from
environmentalists and others concerned about growth and traffic
impacts.

Cisco -- San Jose's largest private employer with 15,000 workers --
also has a 1.2-million-square-foot facility under construction in
Milpitas near its headquarters and a 2.2-million-square-foot site that
is being built in Alviso. In addition, the company is working on plans
to develop a much smaller site in Dublin.

Company officials said that, after looking at the entire Bay Area for
new places to expand, Cisco selected the Fremont site because it's
closer to more affordable housing and transportation and to
communities where land is still available to build housing.

``It's part of our long-term greater Bay Area strategy,'' said
Jamason, who said the deal has been negotiated for months.

The high-tech giant plans to lease space at the Pacific Commons park,
which also has signed Intel to lease 74,000 square feet. Catellus
plans to break ground next spring for the Cisco portion of the
project, which may be completed in less than two years.

Catellus received Fremont city officials' approval for the development
in May. It calls for developing about one-third of the site's 840
acres. Much of the rest will be preserved as natural wetlands.

The Catellus project also includes building an Altamont Commuter
Express station at the edge of the site.

This is the first time Cisco has worked with Catellus, Jamason
said. Unlike the uproar over Coyote Valley, the company hasn't
encountered any opposition to the Fremont project, because the city
already has given approval to building plans.

Cisco has a global workforce of 36,000 employees in 75 countries,
according to officials. The company has been hiring about 3,000 people
per quarter.




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contact Connie Skipitares at cskipitares@... or (408)
343-4526. Staff writer Dennis Akizuki contributed to this report.

I noticed various real estate agents listing 'close to ACE'
as a feature their properties, and investigated a bit further.
I searched a bit further about who/what links to www.acereail.com.

A tool which does this is at
  http://www.searchengineworld.com/cgi-bin/reputation.cgi

"This utility takes the sites that are linking to you, indexes their
  listings on Altavista, and then presents you with a list of words that
  your page is known for in decreasing order".

Below are the the results for www.acerail.com ; it appears the
most common by far type of website linking to www.acerail.com is
'real estate'.

WebPage Reputation Calculator fro http://www.acerail.com

Total Links found 252 Total Links Checked: 252

Keyword chart Relative Weight

real            289
estate          274
san             109
livermore       107
links           105
danville         99
pleasanton       90
california       74
blackhawk        71
transit          63
bay              59
alamo            58
valley           58
area             57
rail             56
dublin           54
ramon            49
commuter         46
tracy            40
diablo           39
transportation   37
needs            36
services         36

  YY
http://omor.com/transit/


--aSeM1mkv8kt2Jjzmc-KlEKbgq1wlr0tYhPgDcid--

Summary:
If you're lurking on this list and have never actually seen
an ACE train, here's your chance: ACE runs from San Jose
to San Francisco and back on Sunday October 29.


YY.

[remainder edited for brevity]

  Subject: PR2000 announcements
  Date: Fri, 27 Oct 2000 15:00:23 -0700

Folks along the Caltrain line can see an ACE train test run on the Caltrain
tracks Sunday Oct. 29.

This train has low-floor boarding, and Caltrain is considering buying
similar equipment for additional service commencing in the next few years.

While only relatively few privileged guests have been invited to actually
ride the train, all are welcome to come and gawk.  The schedule is as
follows:

Northbound *  Leave San Jose 	 11:10 a.m.
			     " Mountain View  11:30 a.m.
			     " Menlo Park  11:40 a.m.
			     " Redwood City  11:55 a.m.
			     " San Mateo  12:10 a.m.
			 Arrive San Francisco  12:45 p.m.

Southbound *
			 Leave San Francisco  1:05 p.m.
			     " San Mateo  1:35 p.m.
			     " Redwood City  1:50 p.m.
			     " Menlo Park  2:00 p.m.
			     " Mountain view  2:10 p.m.
			 Arrive San Jose 	 2:35 p.m.

				 * Times dependent on slow orders/
trackwork that may be in effect.

Summary:
  Due to crowding on trains, ACE is considering banning bicycles on trains.

I think everyone realizes that "one more bike equals one less car", even if
they don't ride a bike.  So efforts should be made to fit more bikes, if
possible.  I have noticed that bikers "bungee" their bike to bikes already in
the racks, and do other things to help out fellow bikers.  Also, bikers often
hang around their bikes (and don't take a seat).  The trains are getting
stuffed full, however, and the bike deck area is filling up with standing
(and sitting) passengers as every square foot of floor has somebody on it.

And every ACE rider knows that the problem is only a problem between
Pleasanton and Great America and worse in the evenings.  Instead of
penalizing the bike riders, why not have a "turn back" train running Great
America to Pleasanton (leave GA at 3:35, arrive Pleasanton at 4:25, leave
Pleasanton 4:35, arrive Diridon 5:35 for the 5:43 departure).  Also, don't
worry about parking space for the trains in the day, make at least one train
7 or 8 cars (only open the 5 in Pleasanton, etc).  Let us walk back, inside
the train, to the end cars.  Don't park this train - keep it moving, at the
end of the second run (Diridon - 7:53am) send it back out to at least Tracy
for another run back in at 9:30, or so, from Tracy.  Or rent the train to
Caltrain and run it up to SF or down to Gilroy.

-- mike




I think everyone who rides ACE

RicSilver@... writes:

YY> According to today's
YY> http://www.acerail.com/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/acerail/status.pl
YY>  "1st Week of over 20,000 passengers carried".
YY>   ACE carried 20,000 passenger trips last week.  For comparison, Caltrain
YY> claim about 35,000 per day, and BART claims about 330,000 per day.  >>
YY>

> Why do you compare what ACE carries per week with what Caltrain and BART
> carry per day?
>
> wouldn't it be better to compare weeks or days or months across the board ?

A fair point.
Reason: I provided the data I had close by, just for comparison of magnitude.

  ACE      * 10  ~= Caltrain
  Caltrain * 10  ~= BART


Note: ACE is a 5 day (weekday only) service, Caltrain and BART are 7
days per week, with lower service and ridership on weekends.  To
divide weekly ridership by 7 underestimates commuter ridership for
Caltrain or BART.

YY

Summary:
Due to crowding on trains, ACE is considering banning bicycles on trains.
Presumably the ban would be lifted once ACE acquires the track rights
in order to run more trains or acquires the mid-day storage rights in
in San Jose in order to run longer trains.

ACE is requesting comments from users on this issue now
(during October 2000).  As the rainy winter season starts, ridership
will grow and crowding will get worse.

My comments:

People bring their bikes on ACE because they don't want their bike
rained on, vandalized, or stolen while parked at the station.  Or
because they have no better way to get to and from the stations.

More available and publicized suitable bike lockers at ACE stations,
and improved bus service would be attractive to cyclists.

I'd like to see one railcar per train designated as a bike car,
clearly marked as a bike car, with lots of racks provided in lieu of
some seats, and more handrails, and more straphangers during peak
loads.

Crowding is more severe between Pleasanton and Santa Clara/Great America.
Cyclists should still be encouraged to use ACE from Stockton <--> Pleasanton
and San Jose <--> Santa Clara/Great America.

Even if you don't cycle, cyclists may give up pedaling to the station and
start driving and leave no parking for you.

YY
squid @ panix . com
http;//omor.com/transit/

1. ACE Request for comment
2. ACE October newsletter excerpt on bikes
3. ACE Bike FAQ

  ********************************************************

1. REQUEST FOR SUGGESTIONS REGARDING BICYCLE RIDERSHIP ON COMMUTER TRAINS

  In the October Edition of the Commuter News, it was suggested that a
  possible moratorium against bicycles on board the ACE trains might be
  necessary due to the space constraints currently being experienced by
  passengers. The article in question was presented as a possibility
  only.  In an effort to review all possible solutions, ACE is inviting
  interested parties to submit constructive suggestions/comments
  regarding the bicycle issue, and indicate whether they would like to
  be put on a mailing list so that responses relevant to this issue
  could be forwarded to the entire list.

ACE requests comments via www at
http://www.acerail.com/comments.html
(Comments Page) and direct to "Bicycle issues".

Background:

From the October 2000 "Inside Track Commuter News"
http://www.acerail.com/commuter.html

2. BICYCLE MORATORIUM LIKELY

  Responding to passenger concerns about the crowded conditions on the
  ACE trains, ACE officials are considering enacting a temporary bicycle
  moratorium to provide much-needed additional seating.  With the
  current system, bicycle storage can only be accessed by raising the
  three-person seat above the storage area, forcing three passengers to
  abandon their seats each time the bicycle securement is needed.

  While the bicycle moratorium solution would improve the comfort level
  for many passengers, it would seriously impact bicycle riders, many of
  who depend on their bicycles for in-town transportation.

  ACE would like to develop an alternative to the current bicycle
  securement system that would provide storage for bicycles without
  sacrificing essential seating, but since the Federal Railroad
  Administration requires that bicycles be firmly secured, a feasible
  solution has not yet materialized.

  Without an alternative to the current system, a bicycle moratorium
  will be necessary. ACE officials are eager to develop a mutually
  beneficial solution to this problem: passengers are encouraged to
  inform ACE of any possible ideas at: stacey@...


3. From the ACE FAQ:

"Can I bring my bicycle on-board?"

  Yes, and you may leave it in one of the bicycle lockers provided at
  each of the platforms. The #01 and #04 trains have a total of eight
  bicycle spaces available, and the #02 and #03 trains have a total of
  24 bicycle spaces available. These spaces are available on a first
  come, first serve basis.

In a message dated 10/23/2000 3:39:48 PM Pacific Daylight Time,
squid@... writes:

YY> According to today's
http://www.acerail.com/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/acerail/status.pl
  "1st Week of over 20,000 passengers carried".
   ACE carried 20,000 passenger trips last week.  For comparison, Caltrain
claim about 35,000 per day, and BART claims about 330,000 per day.  >>

Why do you compare what ACE carries per week with what Caltrain and BART
carry per day?

wouldn't it be better to compare weeks or days or months across the board ?


Ric Silver

According to today's

http://www.acerail.com/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/acerail/status.pl
"1st Week of over 20,000 passengers carried".

ACE carried 20,000 passenger trips last week.
For comparison, Caltrain claim about 35,000 per day,
and BART claims about 330,000 per day.

YY.

Date: Thu, 19 Oct 2000 13:43:41 -0700
From: Adrian Brandt <abrandt@...>
Reply-To: abrandt@...
Organization: Nortel Networks
Newsgroups: ba.transportation

Published October 18, 2000, by  the Alameda Newspaper Group

Altamont passage takes toll on many
Poll reveals 4 hours average drive-time

By Mark Abramson
Staff Writer

TRACY -- A survey by the San Joaquin Partnership and the San Joaquin
Council of Governments shows that commuting is taking its toll on many of
the estimated 38,000 people who drive to work in the Bay Area every weekday.

The poll of 21,500 respondents indicated the average commuter spends four
or more hours driving to and from work each day.

Officials hailed the survey and report as indicative of the need to lure
big businesses and good-paying jobs to the San Joaquin Valley.

"I think it's a good step in demonstrating the need for jobs in the
Valley," said Gerald Raycraft , Manteca community development director. "I
think the biggest thing we'll need to do is plan for (attracting
businesses and good-paying jobs)."

The survey was done in March and its results show that most commuters
drive from Tracy (38 percent). Manteca and Stockton commuters each make up
about 14 percent of the people and Lathrop accounts for about 3 percent.
Many of the people (59 percent) are only commuting to jobs in Alameda
County, but some drive as far away as San Francisco (3 percent) and San
Mateo (3 percent) counties. People who work in Santa Clara make up the
second largest number of commuters (28 percent).

"ACE (Altamont Commutter Express) Rail has been a success," Tracy Mayor
Dan Bilbrey said about the train service from Stockton to Silicon Valley.

The plan to expand ACE from two to four, and possibly eight trains a day,
will not be enough, he added.

Officials with the San Joaquin Partnership and the SJCOG say an exorbitant
cost of living in the Bay Area is the major reason for clogging Interstate
580 and smaller highways with up to 117,000 vehicles a day traveling to
and from the Bay Area. A lot of the vehicles are transporting goods from
the Valley to the Bay Area.

One solution is attracting electronics and communications companies as
well as some other high tech industry to the Valley, said Michael Locke,
the San Joaquin Partnership president and chief executive officer. He
anticipates that those industries will see the most growth in jobs during
the 21st century.

The survey also shows companies that the Valley has a college-educated
workforce, Locke said. About 24 percent of the respondents had at least a
bachelors degree and the average salary was $59,600.

Many people are thirsty for new jobs in the Valley that have similar pay
to Bay Area companies. Eighty-seven point eight percent of the respondents
said they were willing to take a comparable job in or near their home.
People are being stressed out by long hours on the road and less time with
family, Locke said.

"When I lived in San Francisco, I could do things when I got home,"
commuter Carl Dellanno said.

Dellanno commutes from his Tracy home to work as a program librarian at
the U.S. Postal Service Information Service Center in San Mateo. It used
to take him about two hours to drive each way, but he changed his work
hours to miss rush-hour traffic. He moved to Tracy in August 1999.

"I'm less worn out, but I'm still worn out," he added. "This (60 miles) is
the maximum I can drive. It's painful. It's wearing me down."

--
Adrian Brandt
ESN 265-7878 / 408.495.7878
abrandt@...

Good news - More busses in December between Fremont-Centreville and
Fremont BART.

YY.

[fwd]

  Date: Fri, 13 Oct 2000 10:38:10 -0700 (PDT)
  From: Christian Peeples <chris_peeples@...>

Dear All:

      Re. Improved connections between
Fremont-Centerville and Fremont-BART.

      AC is going to put in improved service in Fremont
and Newark on 17 Dec '00, about 400 more hours of
service daily.  There will be two new routes that will
do the route above.  The 211 will go from Union City
BART to Fremont BART via Fremont Blvd. and the 215
will  go from Newpark Mall past Centerville station on
Peralta to Fremont BART.  The new schedules and maps
are not on our web site yet, but check
www.actransit.org in the next few weeks.

  -- Chris Peeples --

You may have noticed that some morning cars have the interior lights
out, and other morning cars have interior lights on.  There is a plan
and a pattern [see below] to these darkened cars, though I've never
seen any officially marked as 'quiet car' or quiet cars announced
before.

http://www.acerail.com/info.html


  Q. My wife and I travel from Manteca to San Jose on the ACE train, a
     two-hour commute. What is your policy on the sleeper cars?

     Sleepy Commuters

  A. Dear Mr. & Mrs. Sleepy,

  The ACE train travels a complete distance of 86 miles from Stockton to
  San Jose. Realizing that our passengers travel a great distance we
  have designated the last two cars a s cars. This provides a relaxing
  atmosphere for our long distance travelers to snooze or read
  quietly. Passengers wishing to engage in conversation or use cell
  phones are encouraged to move forward on the train as a courtesy to
  our tired passengers in the rear.

  If you encounter noisy, disrespectful passengers during your commute
  please contact the ACE train attendants.

This is not quite as organized as on other commuter trains systems, eg
the London-Heathrow Express, but still, it's far better than being
trapped between loud BART patrons.

http://www.heathrowexpress.co.uk/hex_html/service/service_3.htm
http://www.heathrowexpress.co.uk/hex_html/service/layout.htm

YY.

From
http://www.sjmercury.com/columnists/richards/docs/roadsac09.htm

Q. I take the ACE train from Fremont to Great America to avoid driving
on our overcrowded freeways. All we need is three trains running in
the morning and three in the evening. That is it. That will solve most
of our commute problems. But we again are seeing another round of
tensions among Union Pacific, Amtrak and ACE. Just when we have an
option to keep our cars locked up, Amtrak and Union Pacific come back
with all sorts of hurdles. Why is it so hard to keep a scheduled train
running without hiccups?


Baqar Zaidi and about 3,000 ACE regulars


A. You should have a third train by the end of the year. Transit
officials thought they had an agreement in June to start running three
daily trains. But Union Pacific, worried that the extra train would
affect its freight service, balked. Any compromise probably means that
ACE trains would operate on the Caltrain tracks between Santa Clara
and San Jose, which also will take ACE into the downtown Santa Clara
station. Several other issues need to be resolved, so hang tight.

Published Sunday, October 8, 2000, in the San Jose Mercury News

Bob Cabral, 62, train advocate

Supervisor helped promote Altamont rail line

BY ELISE BANDUCCI
Mercury News

San Joaquin County Supervisor Bob
Cabral, known as the father of the
popular ACE commuter trains that run
from Stockton to San Jose, died of a
heart attack Wednesday. He was 62.

Mr. Cabral, a supervisor since 1993, was
the first chair of the Joint Powers
Board that governs the Altamont Commuter
Express trains that were launched in
1998.  The trains allow commuters to
avoid the gridlock on Interstate 680's
Sunol Grade, the second-most congested
roadway in the Bay Area.

``We called him the father of the ACE
train because it was his initiative and
drive that brought this into being,''
said San Jose City Councilwoman and
joint powers member Charlotte Powers.

``It was his vision for the need to
reduce the congestion on the Sunol Grade
which really led to the formation of the
Joint Powers Board,'' she said. The
board is made up of representatives from
Santa Clara, Alameda and San Joaquin
counties.

The ACE trains have become a huge
success. Powers said a report last month
showed the train had 2,000 riders a day
from Stockton to San Jose. ``And that is
standing-room only.''

Mr. Cabral was also a founding member of
the Inter-Regional Partnership, a
collaboration among San Joaquin,
Stanislaus, Contra Costa, Alameda and
Santa Clara counties to balance housing
and jobs.

``He was a wonderful man who understood
that most of our problems are regional,
and he worked tirelessly to achieve
regional cooperation,'' said Santa Clara
County Supervisor Pete McHugh, who
worked with Mr. Cabral on the
partnership.

Mr. Cabral's third term as a San Joaquin
County supervisor would have begun in 2001. From 1986 until becoming a
supervisor, he was executive manager/secretary of the San Joaquin Farm
Bureau, according to a news release from the San Joaquin County Board
of Supervisors.

Mr. Cabral was a board or committee
member for Delta College, Modesto Junior
College and Escalon High School. He was
on the board of the Council of
Governments in San Joaquin County and
vice chair of the San Joaquin County
Rail Commission, the news release said.

He also served as a director of the San
Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control
District and on the Agricultural
Advisory Board, among other positions.

He was an operations manager for Castle
& Cooke/Ames Mercantile Division from
1959 to 1970.

Born and raised in San Joaquin County,
he graduated from Ripon High School in 1955.

``The passing of Supervisor Cabral will
clearly leave a void on the board of
supervisors not only because of his
expertise and his charm, but we're going
to miss his good nature,'' San Joaquin
County Supervisor Steven Gutierrez said.

Powers said that part of what inspired
Mr. Cabral on the ACE project was his
concern that people be home with their
families instead of stuck in traffic.

``We will miss him,'' she said. ``He was
. . . very dedicated to the people of
San Joaquin County.''


Bob Cabral

Born: Nov. 25, 1937, in French Camp.

Died: Oct. 4, 2000, in Escalon.

Survived by: Wife, Jean; children,
Robert Jr., Claudia and Kathleen; and
mother, Adeline.

Services: Rosary 7 p.m. Monday at
St. Patrick's Church, Escalon. Mass 10
a.m.  Tuesday at St. Patrick's Church.

Memorial: Donations may be made to the
San Joaquin Farm Bureau, Agricultural
Education Foundation, Bob Cabral
Memorial Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box
8444, Stockton, Calif. 95208.

Published Friday, October 6, 2000, in the San Jose Mercury News

   Agency derails train plan

   The planned stopgap for a future BART
   extensionis also likely to be rejected
   by Santa Clara County supervisors, as
   the agency recommends buses over
   controversial trains.

   BY GARY RICHARDS
   Mercury News

http://www.sjmercury.com/premium/local/docs/train06.htm

...

   The VTA's policy advisory board voted last month to delay the proposed
   commuter rail line, acceding to Fremont neighborhood opposition and a
   changing commuter landscape. The VTA instead recommended interim use
   of express buses. The commuter rail plan would have served as an
   interim solution for traffic congestion before a BART extension from
   the East Bay is completed.

   The board also recommended a study that
   would consider all transportation
   options for improving traffic between
   the East Bay and South Bay. That study
   is required before federal money can be
   made available for any transit options,
   including a BART extension.

   Santa Clara County Supervisor Pete
   McHugh of Milpitas also wants the VTA
   staff to look into the use of the Alviso
   Line tracks, which are used by Altamont
   Commuter Express and Capitol Corridor
   trains, although neither links with BART
   in the East Bay.

   Any express bus service wouldn't begin until
   a southbound carpool lane
   on Interstate 680 is completed, which
   could take two to three years. The bus
   service would use funds authorized for
   the commuter train line.

   A rail line linking BART to downtown San
   Jose was popular in 1996, when Santa
   Clara County voters approved a
   nine-year, half-cent sales tax to fund
   18 highway and rail projects. But since
   then, many Bay Area officials have
   pushed for BART.  This fall, Santa Clara
   County voters will be asked to approve a
   30-year, half-cent sales tax to pay for
   a BART extension, along with numerous
   other transit upgrades.

   The commuter train plan also ran into
   financial trouble -- at least a $54
   million shortage. In addition, if a BART
   extension becomes reality, it would be
   built along the same
   tracks. Constructing a new BART line
   while commuter trains were operating
   could increase the cost of building BART
   by $220 million.

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squid@...

The Train Riders Association of California (TRAC) and the Rail Passenger
Association of California (RailPAC) have just received a copy of the Capitol
Corridor Draft Build Out Schedule Plan.

This is the draft of what the Capitol Corridor schedule will be one frequency
is expanded to the top level.

It also included the schedules of the San Joaquin, ACE, Starlight and Zephyr
so that you can see how all the various mess together.

The full build out schedule calls for 17 train a day between Sacramento and
San Jose Plus extra service between San Jose and Emeryville and Oakland and
Sacramento.

Additionally there is additional service to Roseville and Auburn.

Generally plans call for adding about 4 trains a year. The first two will be
added next spring.

If you'd like a copy of the schedule send me by return E-mail, you postal
mailing address.

We'll send it out to you by return mail.

Richard L. Silver, Executive Director
Rail Passenger Association of California (RailPAC)
Train Riders Association of California (TRAC)

This is your last week to try Pleasanton ticket vending machine.



The Ticket Vending Machine demonstration new from www.acerail.com:

Program will end on September 29, 2000. The lease agreement with
Metrolink[*] has expired and they have requested the return of the
equipment. Tickets at the Pleasanton station will be available for
purchase from the station attendant.


[*] Los Angeles area commuter trains. see
http://www.metrolinktrains.com/tickets/


squid.

Train Status

Updated: Mon Sep 25 16:40:21 2000

Due to several new track maintenance projects announced by Union
Pacific Railroad Thursday afternoon between Fremont and Stockton, we
again anticipate moderate delays to both morning and afternoon ACE
Trains for the next several days. ACE again appreciates your
understanding during this temporary situation.

-----

as of Sept 25, these delays look to be on the order of 20 to
30 minutes.

squid.

The VTA proposed operating a commuter rail line from San Jose to
Union City BART.  This line would intersect with ACE in Fremont.

The VTA Policy Advisory Board voted to shelve this VTA commuter rail,
and instead make unspecified improvements in ACE, the Capitol Corridors,
and busses.

Below is from PR2000, a transit advocacy group based in Palo Alto.



squid.

  From: Margaret Okuzumi <okuzumi@...>
  Subject: A few words about the Union City commuter rail
  Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2000 13:01:29 -0700

some of you have been following the newspapers and wondering about the
status of the Union City - San Jose commuter rail.

The VTA Policy Advisory Board is meeting tonight at 7 pm at 70 West Hedding
in San Jose. Yes, we will be there with handouts, although I did not sent
out a general alert earlier.

They will vote to kill the project, which was supposed to be up and running
in the year 2003.  However, this fight will be escalated to the Valley
Transportation Authority at its board meeting on Thursday, Oct. 5, and
subsequently at the Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 10.
  Please note that in your calendars now.  The Oct. 5 VTA board meeting
should be in the evening.  The Board of Supervisors meeting on Oct. 10 will
be during the day.

While we have had problems with how this project has been planned all
along, we don't want to see this project killed.  One of our long-time
members, Bill Wullenjohn, Sr., prepared a terrific analysis.  Please see
the info at http://www.geocities.com/railfremont/vtacr.html.  For a map of
the routes, see http://www.rail2000.org/maps/ebay-lines/

The first priority of most of the PAB members is getting the BART extension
to San Jose.  Until Measure A is defeated, and unless Measure A is defeated
badly, this will not change.  It was obvious BART was the real
reason for selecting the ex-WP route which is facing such neighborhood
opposition.  Their whole intent was to make BART look as appealing and
competitive as possible while making the commuter rail look as inefficient
as possible.  The PAB members include Ron Gonzales, Cindy Chavez, and
Charlotte Powers, of the City of San Jose; Supervisor Pete McHugh, Jim
Lawson (of Milpitas), Supervisor Jim Beall, and non-voting members Gus
Morrison of Fremont, Alameda County Supervisor Scott Haggerty, and
alternates Mark Green of Alameda County and Tom Blalock of the BART board.

Mayor Gonzales promised earlier this year in his state of the city speech
that San Jose would be connected to BART with a commuter rail link while he
is in office.  This project was promised to county voters in 1996.  We need
to hold them to those promises.

It looks like the VTA and PAB are now looking to cannibalize the funding
for the commuter rail for BART.

With the VTA and PAB stacked against us, looks like we're going to again
have to look to the Board of Supervisors for leadership on this issue.  In
my next email we'll have a sample letter you can use.

Our message is:

- they must not kill the project in overreaction to neighborhood concerns.
  They neglected to obtain or listen to public input early in the process
concerning the route.

- they need to study the other two alignments (routes) just like they
studied WP.  We need real
information, not speculation.  This study should coincide with the results
of the Alviso capacity analysis which is due to be completed in January.

- If the other two alignments after further study, don't pan out, then the
money should go toward expanded ACE and Amtrak service and an
ACE/Amtrak/BART connection in Fremont (shuttle, Shinn station, etc.)  They
also need to specify exactly what the "enhanced express bus" would be, how
it compares to the existing 140/180/520 service, and what it would cost.

We encourage your attendance at the meeting tonight to voice your support
for rail.  It's going to be ugly, and I don't want people to get
discouraged.

The NIMBYs, in their panic, are misguidedly pushing to completely derail
the project.  We need the near-term traffic relief and that the rail
service can provide.  So come and speak out tonight if you can, and start
those letters flowing again.

Thanks,

Margaret Okuzumi
Peninsula Rail 2000
www.rail2000.org
(650) 417-2571