Technology:
In the recent DRPA study, the rail system options (also referred to as the mode of transportation) that were evaluated included:
- Using existing PATCO technology and standards.
- Using existing RiverLine technology and standards.
- Implementing a hybrid technology - PATCO Light Rail (formerly known as Modified PATCO in the 1990s NJ Transit studies)
Website readers may be familiar with the existing PATCO line and with the NJ Transit RiverLine.
- PATCO trains are electrically powered from a third rail and do not cross any streets at level intersections.
- RiverLine trains are diesel-powered light rail vehicles that cross streets at level intersections protected with railroad crossing safety devices.
PATCO Light Rail combines aspects of both PATCO and traditional Light Rail technology. PATCO Light Rail vehicles would operate as existing PATCO trains do in Philadelphia and Camden. After branching off the existing PATCO line toward Glassboro and Millville, PATCO Light Rail vehicles would eventually descend to ground level, cross streets at level intersections, and switch to an overhead electric power supply system. Selective elimination of level intersections could be implemented on a site-specific basis after thorough evaluation.
A study conducted by the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, while investigating public transportation usage and patterns in the Delaware Valley region, has indicated that mandatory transfers reduce ridership by 40%. This suggests that fewer Philadelphia-bound commuters would be willing to utilize a rail system that does not offer direct access to Center City Philadelphia from southern New Jersey. As a result, a Diesel Light Rail system is unlikely to macth the maximum reduction of single occupancy vehicle journeys, and the associated negative environmental impacts, that would be possible if a PATCO Light Rail system was implemented.
PATCO Light Rail technology is neither revolutionary or evolutionary. Examples past and present include:
- Skokie Swift - Chicago Transit Authority
- T-Bane Line 1 in Oslo, Norway
- Metro Line 51 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- The Calandlijn Metro service in Rottterdam, The Netherlands
The newest example is the RandstadRail system between The Hague and Rotterdam in The Netherlands. RandstadRail and the proposed PATCO Light Rail system have similar characteristics:
- conversion of an existing railroad line for rapid transit service.
- operational integration with an existing rapid transit system.
- railcars can take power from from a third rail or overhead wire.
- operation over a rail line that includes level intersections with streets.
At Right: Computer generated image of proposed PATCO Light Rail station in Woodbury (Parsons-Brinckerhoff)