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Rumpled

Service Attendant
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Dec 14, 2007
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I'm thinking about trying to go to spring training (no pun intended) to catch some games in Tempe over my daughter's spring break. About 3-23 to 3-28 maybe.

I live right near the IRV station, but can easily drive to FUL or take a Pacific Surfliner to FUL or LAX (more AGR points!)

My first look at Amtrak reservations has me take the Southwest Chief to Flagstaff and then a ~3 hr bus ride to Phoenix. And it's a two and half hour wait for the bus!

(Actually, it stupidly sends me on a PacSurf from IRV to LAX and then get on the Southwest Chief. I could take a later PacSurf and get off in FUL for the Chief. The ony benefit might be getting a better seat in LAX)

I looked at the system a little more and found the Sunset Limited goes a lot closer to Phoenix. Getting off in Maricopa puts me only 35 miles away according to Google Maps.

A cheaper fare ($50-55 vs $113-118), a pretty cheap roomette option at $63 vs $114, a shorter overall trip (~10 hrs vs ~18hrs) no long bus ride; but, here's the kicker - no short bus ride!

I would get a econo rental car anyways, but a little looking around and I can't find a rental car place in Maricopa.

Any veterans got tips on finding a car in Maricopa; or other late night transit options to and from Phoenix?
 
Apparently an Angels fan. The Texas Eagle also stops at Maricopa, and I didn't find any car rentals there either. Just taxis and limos. Best option might be to find the closest rental agency location, then hack it from Maricopa to there. And doesn't one of those rental outfits say in its TV commercials that they'll bring the car to you?

Personally, I'm waiting for Spring Training 2009, when the Dodgers relocate from Vero Beach, FL to Glendale, AZ.
 
Originally an A's fan, but have adopted the Angels locally.

Enterprise picks you up, but not at ungodly Amtrak hours, their nearest outlet is ~20 miles away.

I think Sky Harbor looks like my only choice; but looks to be a VERY expensive cab ride. Maybe I'll look into Super Shuttle type vans.

The Dodgers actually have some home spring games in Phoenix this year; looks like they're moving part of this year.

Back on topic

Any Maricopa experts?
 
Any veterans got tips on finding a car in Maricopa; or other late night transit options to and from Phoenix?

>>

Amtrak station

Maricopa, AZ (MRC)

19427 N. John Wayne Parkway

Maricopa, AZ 85239

Enterprise Rental

1148 E. FLORENCE BLVD STE 2

CASA GRANDE, AZ 85222-4216

Tel.: (520) 836-9050

Total Est. Distance: 22.73 miles

Enterprise Will pick up with advance notice.
 
Back OFF topic. HAHA!!

The Dodgers have some Spring Training games in Arizona in 2008 because they'll be returning from exhibition games in China (vs. BoSox, I think). The Players Association thought it would be too much of a hassle to fly from China, back to Florida, then back to L.A. right before opening day. Apparently steroids don't cure jet lag.

Now RAIL topic:

Pretty sad that there is no transit to speak of that goes to Dodger stadium. Also lame that although there's a Metrolink/Amtrak station in the Angel stadium parking lot, current train schedules pretty much prevent the use of rail for attending non-day games. Sure, you can GET to a night game on a train, but you can't get BACK afterward. Stinks.
 
As far as Dodger Stadium. union Station is only about a mile and half. A bus (#2?) goes down Sunset from the train station. Not all that bad of a hike up the hill. They used to run buses from the train, but stopped; they should do it again, what with Metrolink and Red Line and all.

As far as Angels night games. The Southbound PacSurf leaves ANA at 10:50 pm. Northbound a similar time.

So, after a game you've got ~1 hr to get out of the stadium and stroll over. (It's about as fast as getting out of the parking lot!)

I do it all the time just to avoid driving during rush hour to ANA. It works even better for Ducks games that finish later than normal baseball with a farther stroll.

If you want suds to kill the time, Hooters is right there.

Mr Ed - Thanks, but as I mentioned, Enterprise doesn

t pick up at ungodly Amtrak hours. The train is scheduled to arrive at 10:07 pm and depart at 1:23am!
 
I challenge anybody to walk from LAUS to Dodger stadium and not call it a major trudge. Even with the bus, when you get off it's another half mile mostly uphill to the park. Yeah, there were recently buses from LAUS to Friday night games -- free if you showed a Metro ticket. But those were halted when the current Dodgers owner - Frank McCourt - (who made his money in Boston parking lots) discovered that the meager transit was cutting into his stadium parking lot revenue. He promptly killed the bus service and raised stadium parking by 50% - from $10 to $15. It's the lack of public transit that allows such gouging to continue.

As for Angels night games, I live north of LAUS. The last northbound from Anaheim, including a bus transfer to my station, departs at 8:09 p.m. So I can see what, half an inning?
 
Tucson probably has better car availability, but it's 2 hours further down the rails and then another two hour drive back to Phoenix (not sure that I'd want to be starting a drive that late at night after traveling all day ); at that rate, I might just drive mself to Phoenix from home.

Whooz- yeah, living that far North you wouldn't see much. The games start at 7:05 now; so you might get in a whole inning. If they had any 5pm games you just might eek it out.

Any further Maricopa experts?

I see there's a Harrah's casino real close, staying the night might be an option, but the whole point was getting to Phoenix where I can stay in a timeshare for essentially free.
 
found this on azrail.org, White’s Shuttle 520/568-4404 provides a limousine service between metro Phoenix points and the Maricopa depot. I did not call to find hours of service though. I would be interested in solution as I would like to train to Tempe in April.

There was service to Phoenix till 2001, when a railroad merger cause amtrak to phone to the south ? The current station in maricopa is a zephyr car from what I can tell.
 
MrEd said:
There was service to Phoenix till 2001, when a railroad merger cause amtrak to phone to the south ? The current station in Maricopa is a zephyr car from what I can tell.
Click to expand...
This has been discussed at length in the past. The line through Phoenix left the SP main at Wellton AZ, 38 miles east of Yuma AZ and rejoined the mainline at Picacho AZ, 50 miles west of Tucson. Total distance between these points, 166 miles via the main line through Maricopa and 209 miles via the Phoenix Line. The Phoenix Line, at least the portion west of Phoenix, has or had 113 lb/yd jointed rail or lighter, probably all 60 to 80 years old, and an ABS signal system with semaphores. West of Phoenix there was very little traffic, and except for the western few miles little or no industry.

The line east of Phoenix has considerable industry and had been reasonably well, as much as anything on SP was under Anchutz (sp?), kept up. It is still in service.

The line west of Phoenix was a different story. It was reaching the point that major investment would be required just to maintain status quo, as the rail, ties, and signals were all needing major maintenance or replacement, otherwise the line would have to be dropped to 25 mph or lower speed limits.

Based on the employee timetable of 2004 (at that time they were accessible on-line), east of Phoenix the line is good for 40 to 60 mph. West of Phoenix, a total distance of 135 miles, 100 miles is limited to 25 mph, 20 miles is out of service and the remaining portion on the Wellton end is the "Roll Industrial Lead" limited to 20 mph.

It would probably take something on the order of $300 million to make the line west of Phoenix a 79 mph or faster line. It would take fairly close to the same to make it a 60 mph line, as what is there now is essetially scrap. For one tri weekly train, to spend this kind of money on this line makes no sense at all.
 
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George,

Thanks for that insight. I understand all of that; but if they want riders, how about they make it actually convenient. A little bus to Phoenix from Maricopa would be good. Right now it's so close,yet so far.

Mr Ed, I'll check on the shuttle and that link, thanks.
 
They really should make a van connection, like they do from Williams JCT or Lamy to Santa Fe. It would make Maricopa a much more attractive station.
 
The last I was in Maricopa about a year ago, there is a station building, one of those squarish modern Amtrak buildings, which looks like a reasonable station, with ticket office. The Zephyr car was across the parking lot. It was apparently used as the station for awhile, but it just sits there locked up.
 
Rumpled said:
George,Thanks for that insight. I understand all of that; but if they want riders, how about they make it actually convenient. A little bus to Phoenix from Maricopa would be good. Right now it's so close,yet so far.
Click to expand...
I was of the impression that they did have a connecting bus for a while when the change from Phoenix Line to main line (also called the Gila Line, by the way) was first made, but at some point the bus dissapeared. Have no idea why. I would have though there would have been enough people using it to make it worth while.

I still think it would make sense to restore the Phoenix Line, assist UP in completing their double tracking and add a third track west of Wellton as needed and start multiple trains per day service between Tucson, Phoenix and Los Angeles. And: The cost between fixing the line up for 79 mph or for 110 mph is negligible. New track cost would be identical, just a little closer tolerances. Only the signal costs would be higher, and since what was there needs replacing in its entirity not that much differnece there, either. So: run 79 mph max west of Wellton and 110 mph max between Wellton and Phoenix.

Of course, Southwest Airlines would fight it tooth and nail, but whether they have the same political clout in Arizona and California that they did in Texas is questionable. (For many, Southwest Airlines is regarded as the executionor that killed the "Texas Triangle" high speed scheme.)
 
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