1st video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3k18JlBPb0
2nd video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR81Pqfwo30
1987 video before station closed and before vandals gutted it:
Judging from the YT comments on all three videos, it looks like people would really like the trains back in the building. It does make sense especially if cross-river service is ever started up again.
The current Wolverine corridor trains no longer pass by the station, taking a beltline around downtown to reach their suburban terminal.
So what?
The current Wolverine corridor trains use the former Michigan Central tracks to reach Detroit which also double as the approach tracks to the MC station, they still have a choice of serving MC station easily with little impact in time to the Wolverine Corridor, rail and wyes are all still in place and the trains are push-pull.
Look at GOOGLE EARTH, enter Detroit Amtrak Station and follow the tracks to the South, the first big rail junction you come to is the current tracks Amtrak comes into Detroit on from the West, they currently use a leg of a wye to veer left at the first wye instead of continuing straight. However if they did continue straight to the station it is no more than a mile or two to the MC Station and they have the reverse wye in place so they can pull into MC station, stop, reverse direction of the train and continue onto the current Wolverine Corridor stops. We are talking maybe a 1-1.5 mile each way detour off the existing corridor and train reversal, it is not a big deal to change the route to include MC station as a stop. They can reroute all the trains or just route the talked about Chicago to Toronto future service to stop at the station instead of serving the surbuban stops. They could also split the suburban train stops as a seperate route and terminate at MC station or even Dearborn / Ann Arbor. Lots of flexibility here because almost 90% of the rails serving MC Station are still in place.
MC Station is closer to downtown Detroit then New Center station and New Center station was never intended to be a permanent structure. It was built cheaply to PRE-FAB standards vs being built as a lasting structure. I worked at New Center when the station went up and remember
They could do that, and something similar is done with Keystone service. The quickest I see the reverse turn-around at Phily is 10 minutes, although some are longer. With the slowdown, speed-up, extra 2-3 miles, and slow thru the wye, maybe add another 10 minutes. So it would add about 20 extra minutes for the trip.
Would they notice after the HSR improvements Chicago to Detroit also shortening the time? Not sure how that would work. However, Bill Ford mentioned at the initial rebuilding ceremony the Ford family wanted to see some rail passenger service restored to the MC Station. He did not specify though…so who knows. It would make sense from Dearborn because that is where the Ford HQ is, almost across the street from the Dearborn Amtrak Station. So almost a rail link there between two major Ford Office campus’ So it makes sense he would mention that but then I think Amtrak currently discourages Dearborn to Detroit travel as too short of a trip?
If it was up to me I would also rebuild the GT riverfront station. Use the Dequindere Corridor as the approach and elevate the last few blocks and expand to 2-3 tracks. A station close into Ren Center would be even more convienent for commuter service a large portion of the GM HQ workers are from the Northern Suburbs…Richland Hills, etc. This second part is dreamland though as I don’t think Detroit has the money for this with their other plans.
I was always impressed by Phily’s solution to their downtown train situation. They essentially linked two stub-ended terminals with a tunnel so the ex-Reading and ex-PRR trains could continue thru downtown. The ultimate solution for Detroit would be to tunnel between the MC depot and the the ex-GTW terminal and continue up the Dequindere Cut to the northern suburbs. It would solve a lot of problems. We can dream.
As far as trains between Dearborn and MC station, there was long term plans for an Ann Arbor-Detroit commuter train. Michigan even purchased two dozen ex-Metra gallery cars, which have been in storage for years.
Maybe the Woodward avenue streetcar could be extended down Michigan avenue to Dearborn- On Michigan avenue right in front of the MC station you can see the remnants of paved-over streetcar tracks.
Detroits dream is to make Woodward Avenue the retail shopping Mecca it was prior to the late 1960 riots. Hence the original choice to connect New Center area with a street car. So it is possible they will extend it further, I doubt they will extend it all the way to Dearborn but possibly Dearborn city limits? Believe it or not Detroit still had a few outdoor movie theater screens in operation when I was there in the early 1990’s. One of them was near the River Rouge Plant somewhere. Detroit has a lot of really cool stuff like that tucked around the city in places…it was never a complete ruin of a city.
They are already talking about some form of mass transit to MC Depot. So far talks on People Mover extension, Street Car or dedicated bus shuttle from downtown. No decision has been made or committed to yet as far as I know. Just talk.
Nearly 30 years ago? Could be many changes in that time, better or worse. Mike actually lives in Michigan.
I thought everyone here knew Midland was a city in Michigan where DOW Chemical had it’s HQ…apparently you did not. [:O] It’s a pretty big company to miss.
Detroit is a fascinating place- there’s no end to interesting stuff. Unlike Windsor which is boring as hell.
Of course I knew Midland is in Michigan. But I suspect Mike knows the Detroit area today better than a person who lived around Metro Detroit almost 30 years ago. I lived in East Lansing for several years 30+ years ago but I wouldn’t even offer an opinion about how it is now.
It all depends what you’re looking for. The Windsor Ballet is famous. There is a really nice neighborhood just inland from the ViaRail station in Walkerville. Before the railroad consolidations, the CN Ferry Yd was interesting, along with PC’s yard.
I have lived in Michigan for the last 50 years but never in Midland. The inspiration for my pen name came from the book Rails Across the Midlands which was about the lines around Ohio and the surrounding states including Michigan. I lived in Kalamazoo when I first moved to Michigan, but that is as close as I lived to Detroit. I live in northern Michigan about 200 miles away. Most of my info on Detroit comes from reading the Sunday Free Press. I passed thru MC Depot about 30 years ago when the Wolverine had a Toledo leg. The other connection to this story was that the refurbished Metra cars for the planned Detroit commuter trains were stored in my town. That is until the winter some vandals methodically went thru the cars and caused a half $million in damages. The cars were moved to the ex-AA end of track in Yuma, MI., where they can be seen on Google Maps satellite view.
Well, good for you. Now stop trying to limit the discussion here with your foolish standards and quit your griping.
Your metric is absolute foolishness. The internet gives me extensive access to MiDOT studies, meeting minutes, etc. I don’t have to live in a geographic area to have knowledge about it. Can you imagine not being able to forecast for an area Economically applying that standard? We would need to have what? 320 million Economists before we would have a reliable forecast because each of them would need to live in an exact area to forecast for it.
Also, I did not detract anything that MidlandMike contributed, I only added to it. So you want me to withhold my contribution entirely because I don’t live in Michigan. So nobody here can talk about Virginia unless they live there currently? I have to say that it’s a real stupid limitation on the conversation here to try and apply that standard. So is your “resident expert” standard. Get a life, it’s an informal discussion board.
Good you posted that, Hebdo was about to award you his “resident expert” forum title…lol.
I was aware of the MIDot cars there are youtube videos and print articles on them.
My Sister and Brother-in-law live in a Northern Detroit suburb. I also have two brothers in Phoenix, AZ. Another in Iowa. Extended family all over including Europe.
Hey CM, Thanks! I live in Israel, but have membership in the American Legion, am xtill very interested in everything North American that interested me before moving here, continue to try to “push-the-button” with my scheme to cut Amtrak food-and-beverage losses while improving quality, etc. Thanks.
But regarding trains coming back to the Station:
Is there still a reasonable passenger-train Buffalo - Detroit shortcut, with the MC-Canada Southern gone? I recall the Lehigh Valley did have through Pullmans NY - Chicao via the Grand Trunk and CN, and even through coaches at college-break times, but (!) they went through Durand, not Detroit, and (2) does such a connection stilk exist?
I probably used the MC Detrout Station about 200 times in my life (so far?).
Maybe so, Backshop but I normally stay downtown on Oullette avenue- not much going on there. Fortunately I don’t need to go to Windsor as often as I had to.