Chicago logistics conference

To:	PeoriaandEastern@yahoogroups.com
CC:	wholelephant@yahoo.com
From:	"william wendt" Add to Address Book Add Mobile Alert
Date:	Wed, 22 Nov 2006 15:16:49 -0800 (PST)
Subject:	[PeoriaandEastern] Chicago logistics conference

I proudly, perhaps even defiantly, wore my still
resplendent P&E shirt to a major logistics conference
at the University of Illinois at Chicago Nov 21. And
that was over a two-tone gray and black NYC-suggestive
long-sleeve shirt.

I got there just in time to hear Mark Hinsdale,
planning veep for CSX, say, among other things, they
figured the population of Georgia and Florida would
soon be larger than NY and NJ and that they expected
traffic from the Northwest to increase. Of course he
paid the usual tribute to Chicago as the hub of the
rail freight universe.

I got to the mike before anyone else and said many of
the 9,000 cars a day going through Chicago might find
shorter, less congested routes over the P&E and TP&W,
that there seemed to be a long-routing problem, and
that other lines might be restored.

He agreed completely on by-passing Chicago, that CSX
was working on routing western coal via Terre Haute.
He also said tbe problem was not long-routing, just
where the lines are now, and that a Wal-Mart is
obstructing the old Erie right-of-way.

After a UPS veep spoke about congested, crumbling
highways, I got in a plug for the monorail.

There was a break-out session in which the same rail
official who said a couple months ago there would not
be enough traffic for the P&E gave a history of the
CREATE project. I asked if he had read Frank Donovan,
Mileposts on the Prairie, on the Peoria gateway
relieving Chicago congestion in WWI and WWII. He had
not.

Another break-out session had a trucker talking about
thin margins in that industry, a rail veep about
market forces, and a somewhat lengthy but nevertheless
fascinating presention by a federal transportation
official from DC on congestion pricing for highways.
It has numerous beneficial effects, such as
increasing lane capacity from 800 to 1800 in at least
one instance, cutting delays, and raising revenues. He
also said 60% of the population in Stockholm opposed
it, but the Greens insisted on it as part of staying
in the governing coalition. Now that it is in, 60%
support it.

I said this was a much more effective approach to
highway congestion than blowing more billions on
outdated transit technology, getting in a dig or two
at the Chicago trolley project canceled eleven years
ago. In the audience was the executive director of
that project and the present executive director of the
RTA, apparently the major architect of the
MovingBeyondCongestion project to raid the public
treasury. We can also figure some proper charge for
highway use will level the field among modes.

There was some discussion afterward on overcoming the
political obstacles.

Several people asked me for my propaganda. One asked
if I were a railfan. I said my personal problem with
toy department railfanning is not having the time and
moola for anywhere as much as I like. But these
delights are a by-product and one has to pay attention
to the source. Not to do so is a different form of
masturbation.

A City of Chicago speaker said public money has to be
spent as carefully as private money. There does seem
to be a certain amount of reality setting in.

What I just thought of just this afternoon is "highway
entitlement syndrome" and "There ain't no such thing
as a free highway." When that sinks in we might expect
some real changes.