A tour of the freight trains

Christof has an interesting announcement.

We've all seen freight trains. Many of us have them in our neighborhoods. But where are they coming from? Where are they going? And why do they spend so much time sitting still? These are important questions, since the state and local governments are getting ready to spend a lot of money on freight rail. And the best way to understand the answers is to see them in person.

So we're doing a field trip. On Saturday morning, July 21, we're chartering a bus and taking it to places like Tower 26 (one of the busiest rail junctions in Houston, above) and Settegast Yard and the East End. We're bringing along Joe Adams of Union Pacific Railroad, Tom Kornegay of the Port of Houston, and Houston City Council Member Adrian Garcia to tell us about what we see from the perspective of the railroads, the shippers, and the neighborhoods around them.

Interested? The tour is open to CTC members only, but you're welcome to join if you aren't a member yet. Tour tickets are $10; memberships are $20. Email [email protected] to RSVP. But be quick -- we announced this tour by email (if you're not on our mailing list but want to be, email [email protected]) on Thursday and the bus is already nearly full. If we do fill up, we'll start a waiting list, and we may schedule a second tour, likely in the fall.

I don't think I can make this, but if you have any interest in trains (or if you'd like to ask someone why they derail), I hope you'll check it out. And I hope someone blogs about it.

Posted by Charles Kuffner on July 12, 2007 to Planes, Trains, and Automobiles