Anybody who buys The Morning Call on Monday knows what slim pickings is. The paper is produced on Friday, with a one man weekend crew, to cover the police blotter. There's hardly enough paper to cover the bottom of a bird cage. That leaves the
news junkies forced to read garbage like this. Even the blogosphere is slim pickings. Another local blogger says that I'm lazy and preoccupied with choo choo trains. I actually haven't done a choo choo post in over six minutes, that's how long it took me to read the paper this morning. Truth to be told, I am fascinated with how much Allentown has changed within the last 50 years, and the railroads are a good metaphor. In my youth, the city was serviced by rail branch lines with dozens of sidings, supplying many industries with raw materials, to produce products distributed all over the country. Those industries fostered a large middle class, and a high standard of living. We were the truck capital of the world, we were home to the first transistors, and a retail legend. The tower shown above in 1963, and the gas tank in the background, were on Union Street. Although they are both now gone, this lazy blogger will continue to combine history, news and commentary for those of us who still remember a different era.
reprinted from November of 2013
On a related note, the lack of passenger train service to New York and Philadelphia is a constant drag that reminds me of the second class status of this community relative to similar sized communities elsewhere.
ReplyDeleteAMEN! John 7:16am.....PJF
ReplyDeleteThe Morning Call effectively ended as a newspaper when it was sold by the Miller family. If you look at the archives in newspapers.com, you can see the quality is gone.
ReplyDeleteThe lack of passenger train service from Allentown to New York City is the reason why The Morning Call devolved into such a work of left wing propaganda that, apparently, not even a whole lot of people in the all-Democrat Party town that is the City of Allentown want any part of TMC's deplorable contemporary product?
ReplyDeleteWow, who would have thought.
ROLF OELER
@8:08 In all honesty, the transit bus service that currently runs from Allentown to Manhattan is probably as efficient as passenger rail service would be. It's also operated by a private busness, with no drain on taxpayer resources, as a commuter train would be. The roadway already exists, and it doesn't stop in 10 places, as a train service would have to in order to get the local funding and right of ways.
ReplyDeleteRail service between Allentown and New York City ended in the mid 1960s, 50+ years ago. It wasn't economic then, and it isn't now.
Now as far as rail to Philadelphia, I believe SEPTA runs up to Lansdale. It used to run to Allentown as late as 1979, and it was discontinued due to poor trackage. Again, just how long does a bus take to get to Philadelphia, an hour? How long would a train take? At least that long. Who would pay for the rights-of-way, for the construction of the stations to connect to Lansdale, SEPTA?
Why does everyone else have to subsidize train rides for those FEW who would utilize it?
Spot on, Jamie. Millennials and their baby boomer admirers think all things begin and end with a train to New York. Such a train would, indeed, take about three hours. Run the numbers: who lives near the downtown train stations? So, begin with about a twenty-minute drive to get to the choo-choo from Whitehall, Macungie, Coopersburg and other bergs who house the management class that would likely be the riders. Naturally, one would have to arrive early to be sure not to miss the train, which at best might run hourly...also add another ten minutes or so.
ReplyDeleteNow, any train leaving from Allentown would surely stop at Bethlehem, Easton, P-burg, Clinton and several more stations in Jersey. Now, figure another 15 or more minutes to transfer from the LV diesel to a required electric motor-driven train into Manhattan. Yes, Bieber and Transbridge are the best bets.
And finally, if anybody thinks adding 'better' bus or train service to NY wouldn't have the LV take on all the negative aspects of the rotton apple is kidding himself.
The points on the train are accurate. Mainly, the problem is that this service is "long haul" and not the equivalent of a slow, high density commuter network. Basically, we are replacing a plane with a train and need to think of pricing in a similar manner.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that a few Americans decided commuting 2.5 hours daily is a good idea really shouldn't be everyone's problem. Invest that "savings" into a bus pass!
History should always be of interest. It does not necessarily mean that it is possible to replicate that environment. As for your blogger interests, that what is great about blogging , you are free to write about whatever your interest is, you do not have to answer to no one. Continue to enjoy yourself.
ReplyDeleteAnswer to no one is good advice. We don't always agree but I enjoy the trips down memory lane.
ReplyDeleteRay and Valerie,
ReplyDeleteThat's what it is Memory Lane!. This "old man" grew up as a young lad riding the Trolley Cars, and the Steam Locomotives. Also walking over the Wooden Trestle Bridges,above the tracks, during the past era of the 1940's into the early '50s, before shipping off Overseas. Thank You Micheal! For keeping all this alive, for those of us who remember those "good old days".....PJF