From: tls@panix.com   
      
   In article ,   
   danny burstein   wrote:   
   >[Hartford Courant]   
   >   
   >  17-Car Construction Train Works Its Way North,   
   >Laying Track On Hartford Line   
   >   
   >With just 15 months before the Hartford Line's commuter service is due to   
   >begin, a 17-car construction train is slowly laboring north through   
   >Wallingford, putting down as much as a mile of track a day.   
      
   It's less impressive than you might think.  That whole thing was 2 tracks,   
   with considerable sections through industrial areas between New Haven and   
   Meriden that actually had a continuous side track for switching, for a very   
   long time.  It is on a deep bed of gravel over cinder over gravel that was   
   heavily refurbished (maintaining its original width) when they reduced most   
   of the line to single track in the mid-late 1990s.  But all the   
   clearances are adequate for double track and then some, and they were   
   _mostly_ careful that the new single track alignments weren't   
   straight-down-the-middle.  This is really more like a track/tie   
   replacement job than laying a whole new track -- think what Metro- North   
   uses the same automation to do every few summers, beefed up.   
      
   Double-track but not electrified... like the old Shore Line East service,   
   and about the same travel time from "Fairfield County jobs".  Even with 17   
   trains a day -- roughly one in each direction every other hour -- it's hard   
   to believe this will be tremendously successful.   
      
   --   
     Thor Lancelot Simon	                                     tls@panix.com   
      
       "The dirtiest word in art is the C-word.  I can't even say 'craft'   
        without feeling dirty."	-Chuck Close   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)