Exactly one month ago I made a post about the concept of building a Light Rail shuttle between Downtown and the Columbus Airport. Today, I’m posting the google map that I’ve created to illustrate the path this shuttle could take.
Most of the western end of the line is using existing rail lines, so the impact to existing auto traffic would be minimal, and construction costs would be cheaper.
On the eastern end, as the line approaches the airport, I’ve drawn it very bluntly running across the existing Southern Runway at CMH. Before you decide to comment and tell me that it would probably interfere with planes trying to take off to have a railroad-crossing, allow me to direct you some information about the ongoing expansion and redevelopment plans being implimented at the Port Columbus. The plans include completely ripping up and moving this runway, which could allow for the light-rail line to drop to an underground level to approach the airport terminal below the runways. Ta-Da!
[...] train of some sort straight down that line and into downtown Columbus (preferably stopping at a multi-modal station between the Arena District, Convention Center, and North [...]
[...] move 315 completely underground? And maybe cap over some of our existing rail lines and give us a rail shuttle to the [...]
rather than running it underground which would cost alot, why not run it down the center of International Gateway. You don’t have enough space in the existing terminal building to make a loop with a train…..trains don’t make tight turns. I think a better idea would be to the station on the ground level of the parking garage. Two lines would come in on either side of a single platform with arriving trains alternating between track 1 and track 2. And then when they depart they just go backwards.
Multi-car trainsets usually don’t make loops, they usually just reverse course.
I like that idea too. Really, anything that brings the Airport and the Convention Center together with fixed rails will be beneficial for the city.
Very nicely done Walker. Coming from Chicago I think running rail down the center of roads is not just productive in terms of space usage but as a psychological win as well. Nothing is a better sales pitch than seeing a CTA train rumble past while you’re sitting in bumper to bumper traffic on the Ike etc. (in Columbus I guess it would be 670 or International Blvd).
Thanks for drawing this up. Just like in Charetting (sp?) I think it helps people to have a visual to go along with the discussion. Even if that visual isn’t a professional document or the “perfect” answer it gives everyone a different perspective to work from. Cheers!