It is important for us to consider not only the first project to be implemented, but also the potential for any future expansion in an effort to create a city-wide transportation use of the mode. While there are really an infinite number of possibilities, as every major street presents an opportunity, a few non-street running opportunities present themselves for consideration.
The red lines identify most of these non-street running options for construction after the starter line is completed. An interesting fact to note is that every suburb of the Wichita area has a rail service running through it. Goddard, Maize and Colwich, Valley Center, Park City, Kechi, Bel Aire, Andover, Derby and Mulvane, and Haysville could all potentially have service through their centers, creating redevelopment opportunities for these communities.
Most of the right-of-ways outlined are railroads, either active or abandoned. The southern ROW is an abandoned railroad line that runs along the west bank of the river before turning south and joining with an active rail line through Haysville. The Valley Center to Mulvane ROW is the most active railway in the area and was recently grade separated through much of downtown. Another option through the central city is on the western side of downtown where another abandoned ROW sits. The Kechi and Bel Aire branches are both active, yet somewhat quieter railways. However, the line extending north from the starter line in northeast Wichita is a cleared corridor beneath high-capacity electrical transmission lines and could form a connection between the line and Bel Aire.
I am not speaking to the engineering feasability of the any of these options. Some, like the southern ROW would be more straightforward than others, such as trying to fit transit service on the central rail corridor, but the possibilities should be explored.
If the proper planning is put in place, we could have a truely regional system in a few decades. Just for dreaming's sake, I put together a route map of what the city system could look like. I'm using the two west side options (Goddard and Colwich), two south side options (Haysville and Mulvane), the two northern most options (Valley Center and Kechi), and the branch underneath the high-capacity electric lines in the northeast (Bel Aire), in addition to the eastern branch (Andover).
I think you fail to realize just how much of this ROW has been taken and used by the owners of the land. Take the old BN tracks going east, there's a building that's been constructed on the ROW just east of Washington where the wye used to put the tracks out to the east. The ROW can never be used again for a railroad. It would take an act of Congress to get it reversed. This is why I've been trying to preserve the I-235/Kellogg ROW. It's anybody's guess at this point how that will turn out. But the ROW would be far better suited for access to the airport than is being realized at this point. The city has one objective, to eliminate RR's and crossings as much as possible. This is why I brought up the rerouting of the Wichita - Hutch track from Zoo Blvd to a route further west. Time is of the essence however, and when the ROW is eaten up, I don't want to say I didn't do anything. I've contacted District Reps regarding this proposal, what else has anybody done? By the looks of it, your page here is the only other one I see in the city that sees the problem at hand and is motivated to do anything about it.
ReplyDeleteI agree! Something needs to be done. Unfortunately my life will shortly be in a place where I cannot fight for these ideas, as I am leaving the country. I wanted to present my ideas in a public forum to raise awareness for the opportunity. I urge you to continue your efforts to maintain these important ROWs. Also, I have seen that building and was quite sad at it's construction, although we have dodged some bullets too, for example the abandoned riverfront YMCA, and for now, the delayed 235/54 interchange. I hope that we can create an effort to push for the implementation of many alternative transit and freight options as I believe they are vital to the city's ability to prosper in the future!
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