MONRAIL MADNESS

 

While taking a summertime break this week, here’s a column I wrote awhile back.

 

What is this fascination that people have with monorails?  I can’t tell you how often people suggest them as “the answer” to our state’s clogged roads.

“Why don’t we build a monorail down the middle of The Merritt Parkway?,” asked an architect at a recent meeting.  To my astonishment, such an idea was once studied!

As lore has it, back in the mid-1980’s local tech giant Sikorsky was asked by CDOT if a monorail could be built and a plan was submitted.  Sure, such a system could be built, they concluded, but where would you put the stations and the necessary parking? 

Since hearing of this white-whale of a tale, shared by Merritt Parkway Conservancy Executive Director Wes Haynes, I have been on a relentless search for details of the proposal, but I’ve come up empty.  Sikorsky has no record of the plan.  CDOT said “Huh?”

Digging through the archives of the Stamford Advocate I found articles from 1985 discussing the idea:  a $700 million monorail down the median of the Merritt Parkway from Greenwich to Trumbull as an alternative to Bridgeport developer Francis D’Addario’s idea of widening the parkway to eight lanes… or double-decking I-95.

Motorists were surveyed and CDOT apparently spent $250,000 for a study.

The amazing research librarians at the State Library dug through their dusty files and came up with a CDOT report from 1987 pooh-poohing the idea, not only on grounds of impracticality but because it would compete with existing rail service.  Heavens no!

In 1998 a monorail was once proposed for Hartford, connecting downtown to Rentschler Field in East Hartford.  It was to cost only $33 million and the cost was supposedly to be paid by the Feds.  It never happened.  The idea was revived again in 2006 when the Adriaen’s Landing convention complex was opened, but again, nothing.

A pseudo-monorail “People Mover” system was built at Hartford’s Bradley Airport in 1976 connecting the remote parking to the main terminal, all of seven-tenths of a mile away.  The fixed-guideway system, with cars designed by Ford Motor Company, cost $4 million but never operated because the $250,000 annual operating was cost was deemed impractical.  In 1984 it was dismantled, though you can still see one of the original cars at the Connecticut Trolley Museum in East Windsor.

Whatever your fantasies are about space-age travel by monorail, let me dispel your dreams with some facts.

Disney Monorail

Monorails are not fast.  The Disneyworld monorail, built by a Japanese company, has a top speed of 55 mph but usually just averages 40 mph.  Even on a bad day Metro-North can better that.  The 3.9 mile long Las Vegas monorail does about 50 mph shuttling losers from casino to casino.

Monorails are expensive.  The Vegas system, opened in 2004, cost $654 million.  That’s why existing monorails like Disney’s have never been extended.

Tokyo Monorail

Monorails are not Maglevs.  Don’t confuse the single-track, rubber-tired monorails with the magnetic-levitation technology in use in Shanghai and being tested for passenger trains in Japan.  The Shanghai maglev can travel over 250 mph, the Japanese test trains have hit 374 mph.

No, monorails are not in Connecticut’s future and are not the answer to our woes.​

 

HEALTH RISKS WHILE FLYING

Think air travel is just about delays and lost luggage?  Your body has other plans.

Forget plane crashes and fights about who gets the armrest.  If you survive TSA, a middle seat, and boarding group 9, now you have to make it through the flight itself without your body unraveling like cheap luggage on a baggage carousel.

Let’s start with Deep Vein Thrombosis, or what they call the “Deadly Window Seat Special.”  You sit there for five hours without moving (thanks, beverage cart), and your blood turns sluggish, like airport Wi-Fi during a gate change.  Congratulations — you’re now flying DVT Airlines.  The longer the flight, the better your odds of a one-way ticket to the ER.  Solution:  get up every hour or so and walk.  And drink lots of water.

Feeling thirsty?  You should be.  Aircraft cabins at altitude are drier than the pretzels in coach. Humidity in-flight hovers around 10%, meaning your eyeballs are shriveling and your skin is turning into parchment.  Lubricating eye-drops and moisturizer should help.

Speaking of airplane air, did you know the cabin is pressurized only to the altitude of Denver?  That’s great but only if you're a bighorn sheep (the 787, A350 and A380 jets are an exception).  For the rest of us, the lower oxygen can make you woozy or give your heart a surprise cardio session.  Got COPD or anemia?  Check with your doctor before flying.

Then there’s the inflight ear torture, courtesy of barotrauma.  This is why babies start crying before landing.  As the plane descends, your ears feel clogged as the pressure builds. Pop. Crackle. Pain.  But don’t worry… chewing gum, awkward jaw-stretching exercises or giving babies a bottle will probably help.  Or buy yourself a pair of EarPlane earplugs.

Crossing several time zones? Get ready for jet lag, also known as time-travel-induced dopiness.  Your body thinks it’s 3 a.m. in Hartford, but you’re eating airport sushi in Tokyo.  They say it takes one day of adjustment for each time zone you cross.

And for you frequent fliers: congratulations on your elite status… and cumulative cosmic radiation exposure.  One transatlantic flight gives you about as much radiation as one or two dental x-rays.  Not glowing, but not nothing.  Trans-polar flights leave you the most vulnerable.

Add in poor air circulation, recycled germs, and some guy sneezing in row 13 — and suddenly that N95 mask doesn’t seem so paranoid.  Still feeling like a little nosh?  Too bad.  Your guts are rebelling too. Gas expands at altitude, so avoid the bean salad.

Flying doesn’t just take you places. It slowly breaks down your body in a pressurized metal tube full of crying babies and funky air.  But hey, at least your suitcase made it to Cleveland.

PS:  While train travel is my preferred mode, extended sitting enroute is still a problem.  But at least you can get up at will and stroll to the Café Car for some over-priced AmFood.  Try the cheeseburger.  It’s actually pretty good.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

The end of June has a sense of finality.  School wraps up, celebratory parties are held and everyone looks forward to the summer.  But there’s a lot of unfinished business on the transportation front worth remembering.

AMTRAK AVELIA:            Whatever happened to Amtrak’s promise to have the new Acela trains in service “by the Spring”?  The initial contract for 28 train sets was signed in 2016 with the first prototype of the sleek nine-car sets delivered for testing in 2020.  The plan was for all the new trains to be running between Washington and Boston by 2022.

Amtrak Avelia

Computer simulations found problems as real life testing continued. By 2024 the hope was for the new trains to be running by now.  But we’re still waiting.  Amtrak’s only explanation for the latest delays is “crew testing”. 

The new trains have been sighted in New Jersey (where maximum speeds of 160 mph are possible on short stretches of track) but I’ve not seen Avelia on Connecticut tracks… yet.

DIGITAL DRIVERS LICENSES:             In September 2021 the Connecticut DMV and Governor Lamont announced that ours would be among the first states to allow smartphone users to show a digital version of their driver’s license on their devices.  To date, 17 states offer such options.  But still not Connecticut.

When I last asked DMV what was delaying the launch, their PR team gave me some boilerplate answer about “testing” and “security”… but no announced date for the launch.

How can California have solved those issues but we can’t?

WALK BRIDGE:               Built in 1896, this crucial rail bridge in South Norwalk has a history of problems.  In one year alone the bridge was stuck 16 out of 271 times it opened.  Now it’s undergoing a $1.5 billion rebuild, not just of the bridge but its supports and nearby tracks.  The IMAX theater in the adjacent Maritime Museum was demolished to make way, but work on the bridge structure itself is still years away.  The removal of the existing tower structure for overhead wires is scheduled to begin in 2026 with the new bridge (finally!) being finished in 2029.

Proposed new bridge

DARIEN TRAIN STATION:          Last rebuilt in 2003, the station’s platforms were starting to crumble.  By 2018 it was clear that CDOT would have to replace them. The $40 million contract called for first-of-their-kind heated platforms, obviating the need for corrosive salt to melt ice and snow.  Half of the platforms were removed and the station waiting room was closed.

But now, years later, construction delays and problems with the electrical system have slowed the work, initially promised to be done by now.  It’s hoped the first half of the new platforms may be ready later this summer.  Then the other half of the platforms will be demolished and rebuilt.  By March 2026 the work will (hopefully) be done and the station’s 1800+ daily commuters will be able to use the new station platforms.

 

Engineering projects take time.  But with every ceremony celebrating the launch of a new project there are overly-optimistic promises of speedy completion.  The pols take the credit while we just wait and grow more cynical watching the costs rise.

 

OVERNIGHT TRAVEL: FROM WORST TO FIRST

There’s something very satisfying about the efficiency of overnight travel.  In the best of conditions you make your journey and awake, refreshed, at your destination.  But how well you sleep depends a lot on how you travel.

Here’s my list of overnight travel options, from worst to first:

DRIVING ALL NIGHT:       In my carefree youth I once drove all night from Chicago to NYC.  Tired and wired (on a LOT of coffee) I encountered no traffic and made really good time but arrived exhausted.  Not a good option… and probably not safe.

SLEEPING IN THE AIRPORT:     This one doesn’t really count, as you’re not really traveling.  And those not-so-comfy chairs at the gate don’t really allow much sleep.

The good news is that many airports (ATL, DFW, JFK) now offer Minute Suites with daybeds and showers. You can book them for an hour ($48) or for an eight-hour overnight ($175).

SLEEPING ON THE PLANE:       It’s not by chance that overnight flights are called “red eyes”.  Sure, flying overnight is fast, but if you’re sitting in coach on a crowded plane, good luck with any shut-eye.  This is why I hate flying to Europe.  You arrive jet lagged, in a different time zone and anxious to just sleep, not go sight-seeing.

Coach Class

Now, if you’re in Business Class, rest is possible… at a price.  And if money is no object, there are ultra-luxe accommodations like on Air France’s La Premiere, a private suite ten-feet square with three-star gourmet meals curated by Michelin-starred chefs, served on porcelain with Christofle cutlery… and a full bed.  Roundtrip fare JFK-Paris, about $20,000.

La Premiere

TAKING THE BUS:           “Riding the dog” (Greyhound) is not my idea of fun anytime, but there are some private companies re-thinking bus travel with much comfier accommodations. In Texas, Vonlane offers “luxury motor coaches” with Business Class seating.  Similar service between NYC and DC is offered by private carriers but not on the overnights.

TRAVEL BY SHIP:            Alas, not many options here aside from cruising or crossing the Atlantic.  But in the old days, there were steamboats plying the waters between Hartford and New York City.  As I wrote a few months back, the 14-18 hour journey had both “deck class” and cabin class accommodations.

TRAVEL BY TRAIN:         Not surprising that this is my favorite option.  But as with flying, if you’re stuck in coach class your slumber may be less than optional.  Amtrak offers bedrooms… from Roomettes to Bedroom Suites… but they’re always booked weeks in advance and are far too expensive.

There are several start-ups looking to offer much nicer (and affordable) sleeping cars, like Dreamstar which hopes to launch next year between San Francisco and LA.  And Lunatrain, running NYC to Atlanta and Chicago.

We’ll have to see if either company is successful in its launch, modeled after the highly popular NightJet train service you’ll find throughout Europe. Even in Japan, the country that launched true high-speed rail 50 years ago, there are sleeper trains offering everything from cabins to tatami mats.

Japan's "Sunrise Express"

So, as you plan your summer travels, check out these options.  You’ll save on hotel rooms and maybe have an adventure!

 

 

WIRES DOWN ON METRO-NORTH

We take our train service for granted.  For the 80,000 daily Connecticut riders on Metro-North the service is dependable and on-time… usually.  But not last Thursday evening (June 5^th), the hottest day of the year (so far), when the overhead catenary power lines were dragged down near Westport.  No power means no trains.

What caused the problem won’t be known for a while.  Given the heat it might be “wire sag”.  Or maybe it was a worn out pantograph carbon shoe (the thing on top of the train that touches the catenary power line).  Whatever the cause, the results were fast and long-lasting.

Scores of trains were delayed throughout the Northeast Corridor, both on Metro-North and Amtrak. But two were stranded between stations with no power… and no AC.  One, an Amtrak train carrying 400 people, got very hot.  Because the windows don’t open, people started to get upset according to media reports.

Metro-North trains have long carried emergency water supplies for such incidents, but not Amtrak trains.

Eventually diesel trains came to the rescue (along with local fire fighters), but the delays were far from over… lingering into Friday’s service the next day.

How did passengers on the delayed and rerouted trains make out?  Based on interviews, pretty well given the circumstances and Metro-North’s quick response.

Substitute buses are usually the answer, but at the peak of rush hour (when the incident occurred) most buses were already on their regular runs.  It’s not like there’s a fleet of spare buses on standby.  And remember… a full Metro-North train can carry 1000 passengers.  A bus, maybe 60 (including standees).

A reporter friend of mine who lives in eastern Connecticut grabbed the 5:22 pm train from Grand Central to New Haven and, within minutes of departure the hundreds of passengers onboard were warned of problems:  the train would terminate at South Norwalk.

South Norwalk station

There he caught a bus, only to be dumped somewhere in East Norwalk when the driver pulled to a stop and said “I’m done working, everybody off.  There’s another bus coming.” 

“None of us knew where we were,” said my friend, eventually paying $120 for a cab to West Haven where he’d parked his car.  He eventually got home about 11:45 pm.

“Everybody was pretty ‘chill’ and patient,” he said, impressed that Metro-North staffers wearing distinctive vests were at the stations directing the throngs.  “I’m just glad that Metro-North was doing something,” he said.  “The whole experience taught us just how vulnerable we are when things go wrong.”

Greens Farms station

Another colleague, Paul Murnane from WINS, caught an 8:00 pm train from GCT, getting no further than Greens Farms where the platform was jammed with tired travelers.  Sure enough, vested railroad staffers directed the throngs down a hill to three waiting buses which immediately filled up and departed.  More buses were promised and quickly arrived. Murnane’s bus even got a State Police escort, arriving in Fairfield at 11:30 pm.

Again, he says the crowds were patient and well behaved.  “It’s hard to have a riot in Vineyard Vines,” he said, commenting on the riders’ summer attire.  A 40-year rider of these rails, he too was impressed with the railroad’s response.

Stuff happens on a railroad depending on aging infrastructure.  So if you’re taking a train, always have a “plan B”.  And BYO water.

And kudos to Metro-North for their handling of this situation, especially for keeping passengers informed.

 

LICENSE PLATE FRAUD

“This is the number one form of tax evasion in CT.  Connecticut is losing millions annually and our DMV does not care.”

So says Stonington Tax Assessor Jennifer Lineaweaver, President of the state association for her profession (the CCAO).  She’s speaking of CT residents who register their cars in other states to avoid local property taxes.  ”CT is also losing money on registrations, emissions, insurance and unpaid parking tickets that cannot be enforced,” she says.

It's super easy to get Maine plates for your vehicles… without even traveling to the state or having an address there.  You can even register in Montana, a scheme especially popular with expensive motor home owners.

A couple of years ago Vermont admitted there were 3600 cars registered in that state by Connecticut residents.  In Maine there were 1400.  In Bridgeport, City Councilman Alfredo Castillo was even caught with five cars registered next door in Shelton, trying to save himself $1300 in property tax.

“I am absolutely certain that those numbers are extremely low,” says Assessor Lineaweaver.  So the losses are even worse than you might think.

The problem is there’s almost no enforcement of Connecticut laws.

“Connecticut DMV says that ‘taxation’ is not their issue,” she says.  “A few years ago, we had the law changed so that DMV would have to look up any out of state plate that the assessor requests and DMV had the law reversed a year later.  During the one year (the law) was in place, DMV refused to comply with the law and said they would have the law repealed the next year, which they did.”

Not getting much help from DMV, some cities have hired private firms to help. In 2022, Danbury contracted Capital Tax Recovery to scan license plates throughout the city.  Over 8,000 vehicles were under investigation. The firm pocketed 40% of the additional tax revenue collected as their fee, with no upfront cost to the city.  In Waterbury they caught 4000 cars. In Stamford almost 8000 cars were caught, bringing that city $1.3 million.

Many towns allow anonymous reporting of scofflaws.  If your neighbor has Montana plates you can also wish them good luck getting a town dump sticker or beach pass requiring proof of local residence.

Connecticut DMV Commissioner Tony Guerrera tells me the problem with out of state plates is that drivers often claim legal residence in another state, like Florida.  “If they live there 6 months and a day, they’re considered legal residents (of Florida)” he told me. 

But Connecticut law mandates that vehicles "garaged" in a municipality—meaning regularly parked overnight, even on the street—must be taxed there, regardless of where they may be officially registered.  Spend your winter in the Sunshine State but more than 90 days each summer in Connecticut, and you have to pay, even with those Florida plates.  The penalty is a $1000 fine.

In Connecticut, the vehicle property tax is a significant source of revenue for municipalities: $1 billion a year.  But why does a car in New Britain pay four times the tax than the same vehicle in Greenwich?  These inequities just encourage tax avoidance which is, apparently, rampant and unchecked.

“We don’t have the staff (to enforce this),” the DMV Commissioner laments. His agency has its own sworn, gun-carrying police force, but Guerrera says they only work on truck inspections…. even though “registration compliance” is, according to law, one of their duties.

How is our legislature handling this problem?  With a “task force” which met seven times in 2023 considering reforms.  But never reached a consensus and never approved their final report.  In any case, their draft recommendations were given a thumbs-down by CT Dept of Revenue Service Commissioner and former mayor of Danbury Mark Boughton. 

So, what’s a car owner to do?  Well, I hear that Montana is a nice place to visit in the summer.

 

TOR = TRANSIT ORIENTED RECREATION

The recent cool and weather aside, it’s officially summer!   Time to get out and enjoy our state’s wonderful parks and beaches and take advantage of TOR.

You know what TOD is, right?  Transit Oriented Development… building homes and offices near mass transit facilities.  Well, I’m going to suggest you think about TOR… Transit Oriented Recreation.

Did you know you can travel to many state parks and beaches by train and a connecting bus shuttle?  Details on this year’s program are still to come, but CDOT and DEEP have partnered since 2021 to offer ParkConneCT from Memorial Day through Labor Day.

In years past, beach and park shuttles meeting in-coming trains have been free on weekends and holidays, taking you to places like Sleeping Giant State Park in Hamden or Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison.

While many state parks close their gates on weekends when their parking lots are full of cars, the shuttle buses can still deliver you to Mother Nature without the hassles.

The state’s modest marketing efforts to attract tourists seem to be working as the number of visitors was up 2% last year.  Officials say tourism brings Connecticut $18.5 billion each year… more than what’s seen in Maine, which bills itself as “Vacationland”.

And it’s clearly our beaches that are a main draw.  Who needs to endure I-95 when you can take the train to visit…

Sherwood Island State Park in Westport:  Just take Metro-North to Westport Station and grab the Sherwood Island Shuttle from the station to the park to enjoy swimming, picnicking and great views of LI Sound.

Silver Sands State Park in Milford:   Metro-North gets you to Milford Station where a walk or bike ride to the beach presents newly refurbished boardwalks, pristine beaches and bird-watching spots.

Bluff Point State Park in Groton:  Take Shore Line East or Amtrak to New London Station, then grab the SEAT (Southeast Area Transit) Route 11 bus to the beach where you can enjoy walks along the coast, biking and fishing.

 

Beyond TOR, how about TOE…. Transit Oriented Entertainment?

 

You wouldn’t think of driving to NYC to see a Knicks or Rangers game.  You’d take the train, right?  Well, you can take Metro-North directly to Yankee Stadium too.  Or to Bridgeport to see Ringo Starr at the Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater… also walking distance from Amtrak and the Port Jeff Ferry.

 

Going to see a play at The Shubert in New Haven or Andrea Bocelli at the XL Center in Hartford?  Ditch the car and try mass transit.

 

And if you’re a railfan, visit the Essex Steam Train & Riverboat by training to Old Saybrook and hopping into a cab for the quick ride back into history.

 

If you’re city-bound, check out Metro-North’s “MTA Away” packages… train and event tickets, often at a discount… for venues both in NYC and the ‘burbs.  You can go star gazing or catch an outdoor concert in Forest Hills without a car.

 

Whatever your destination for summer fun, think twice before enduring the traffic and maybe consider taking mass transit.