What's up with Milwaukee's new station?

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PetalumaLoco

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From my Amtrak newsfeed;

"Tonight at 10:00: the TODAY’S TMJ4 I-Team is investigating what appears to be a very expensive mistake…and you paid for it!

A brand new, expensive Amtrak station may soon cost taxpayers even more money, all thanks to what some say is a really bad design."

Tonight at 10

I wonder what it is? (I hate these news station teasers :angry: ).

Dennis
 
"Tonight at 10:00: the TODAY’S TMJ4 I-Team is investigating what appears to be a very expensive mistake…and you paid for it!A brand new, expensive Amtrak station may soon cost taxpayers even more money, all thanks to what some say is a really bad design."

Tonight at 10

I wonder what it is? (I hate these news station teasers :angry: ).
Best case scenario: they built it on the small side at the insistence of local government officials who didn't think a larger station was necessary, and the station has been overwhelmed by unanticipated high and growing ridership and needs an expansion?

I doubt that's it....
 
I did some googling and the only thing I came up with was a reference to standing in the rain waiting for a train. I saw some small glassed in and roofed waiting area in the video, is that enough?
 
Ok, it's an open air station. Water leaks down into the elevator shafts (elevators to overhead walkway to cross to another platform) and fries the motors. Also since it's an open air station, snow can drift in front of the elevator doors, blocking them.

News report.

So get a caulking gun, and bury some hot water pipes in the platform.
 
So get a caulking gun, and bury some hot water pipes in the platform.
Totally! The solution is not to sit around, call the elevator repair crew when the elevator breaks, and complain how that costs a lot of money when you have to do it often. The solution is to just enclose the elevators!

What does building it as an "open concept for security purposes" mean??? "If we can see the elevator from across the way, terrorists will be scared to use it because they know we're watching them?"
 
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I would guess they might mean security from people loitering in the station, not terrorism.
 
Security for trains can't be air tight, period. I don't know why they bother with it.
They don't need it to be airtight at this station, they just need it to be raintight and snowtight :p
This is the Sturtevent, WI station, not the new Milwaukee station. It was built by the city and also with State funds. I have seen the station and it is pretty small and obviously not very practical.
 
What I can't believe is that there is no resturant or bar!!!! The station itself is fairly decent but on weekends one is stuck with the vending machines because there is no Hia cart service. That, is the real crime. Not a few leaks or whatever.
 
What I can't believe is that there is no resturant or bar!!!! The station itself is fairly decent but on weekends one is stuck with the vending machines because there is no Hia cart service. That, is the real crime. Not a few leaks or whatever.
There's been some talk in the media recently about wanting a restaurant in the new station. But there seems to be disagreement about what type of restaurant. Several leaders insist it be a nicer, non-fast food restaurant. Something that people not using the train will come to use. I think that's a pipe dream. I'd love it if it would happen, but the lack of it happening over the last year indicates to me that no businesses are interested. I think a fast-food place would be fine there. Look at other cities' train stations and you basically see fast food. Chicago has a fast-food food court. New Orleans has a Subway. And there's nothing wrong with that.

In defense of the current situation with just vending machines, they do have a machine with Cousins subs in it for (I think) $4. That's a pretty decent choice and likely better than what you could get on the Hiawatha food cart. (never used the cart so I don't know for sure)

The real crime is the number of trains using the station. Let's get hourly service to Chicago, the KRM (and other lines) commuter rail, and several trains a day each to Madison, MSP, and Green Bay. The restaurant "problem" would then solve itself.
 
always be wary of local tv news reporters claiming to have a scoop... it's almost always over-hyped nonsense.
 
Are you saying that there really isn't anything important in the story:

Local Dog Chases Local Cat Over Fence!

Then gets distracted by squerill and knocks over garbage can!

Ms. Whitfield concerned about safety of neighborhood over dogs. "The town council, they don't care about us little people who have no way to fend off animals like that vicious westie brute, Fifi." Ms. Whitfield, a 96 year old resident of Pleasantville, was standing near the garbage can at the time and was an unfortunate victim of having to watch the dog in his inhuman pursuit of acting like a dog.?
 
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