Passenger Trains in DR?

Sep 20, 2003
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I think it looks pretty good.

I still think having train links between major cities and a limited number of street cars would be nice.
 
Feb 7, 2007
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Trains in the DR yes yes yes, MAGLEV Bavaro - Santo Domingo in just under 30 minutes. Would be wonderful if it took less time to get let's say from Friusa to Santo Domingo than from Friusa to the PUJ Airport.
 

PICHARDO

One Dominican at a time, please!
May 15, 2003
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Santiago de Los 30 Caballeros
Pichardo, any chance that passenger trains will return to the Dominican Republic?

That's how the gov plans to introduce the breakup of the transport union's control over the network from the industrial parks to the ports. The rails will be touted as passanger service solutions but in the shadows will be the rails for commercial containers transport.

A bidding made by Metaldom and associates for the supply of rails and other large metal infrastructures for the project, pushed the plans back until they have the capacity to supply it 100%.

They are undergoing expansions and major investments to achieve it.
The second aspect that delayed the plan, had to do with property clearances.
As the the new GPS based mapping is still being put into service, there's a lot of land that still needs to be ruled in court for.

45% is still under some type of litigation come deslindes.

Others are being cleared as we speak.

Given the impact the expanding Metro and new cable cars will have unto the transportation terrorist cells, the gov is going easy on this major, major, back-bone breaking project against the owners of the country.

We are talking double stacked rows and rows of trains.

Not only that, but also interconnecting the cargo carrying airports to the rail system along with passengers.

It's a very ambitious project.

It will kill the monopoly of transport unions...
 

PICHARDO

One Dominican at a time, please!
May 15, 2003
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Santiago de Los 30 Caballeros
Tren1.jpg


Tren2.jpg


Tren3.jpg


Tren4.jpg


Tren5.jpg
 

windeguy

Platinum
Jul 10, 2004
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As much as I like the idea of a train system, I cannot help but having this thought:

Man hole covers go missing and sold at scrap metal prices.

Imagine the scrap metal sales potential for train rails that weigh 43 pound per foot.

b4fae20189ff42dd9cf46cdf190d2c66.jpg
 

PICHARDO

One Dominican at a time, please!
May 15, 2003
13,280
893
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Santiago de Los 30 Caballeros
As much as I like the idea of a train system, I cannot help but having this thought:

Man hole covers go missing and sold at scrap metal prices.

Imagine the scrap metal sales potential for train rails that weigh 43 pound per foot.

How many rails are now missing from the SD metro???

And unlike the sugar industry rails, these are welded together all along the way...
Including electronic sensors that will trigger a full break of the train if a gap is detected on the train's path 10 km ahead of the path of travel.
 

PICHARDO

One Dominican at a time, please!
May 15, 2003
13,280
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113
Santiago de Los 30 Caballeros
If you follow the line trail on the DR map to the left of the images, you can clearly see how this line#1 of the hybrid rail will link all the major industrial parks from Haina to Codevi at the DR-Haiti border.
 

windeguy

Platinum
Jul 10, 2004
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How many rails are now missing from the SD metro???

And unlike the sugar industry rails, these are welded together all along the way...
Including electronic sensors that will trigger a full break of the train if a gap is detected on the train's path 10 km ahead of the path of travel.

I was not referring to the Metro. I was referring to the potential for inter-city railway systems. You underestimate your countrymen's abilities to work with.
stock-photo-grinder-machine-with-cutting-wheel-isolated-on-white-73527040.jpg
 
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PICHARDO

One Dominican at a time, please!
May 15, 2003
13,280
893
113
Santiago de Los 30 Caballeros
I was not referring to the Metro. I was referring to the potential for inter-city railway systems. You underestimate your countrymen's abilities to work with.
stock-photo-grinder-machine-with-cutting-wheel-isolated-on-white-73527040.jpg

You do understand the difference between iron and high strength steel rails? Right???
The cutting wheels will be more costly than all the steel they get to cut away...

It's like cutting the butter knife with the butter stick itself...
 
Oct 11, 2010
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Pichardo, any chance that passenger trains will return to the Dominican Republic?
Cuba will have them first. Oh, I forgot, Cuba has had them for 60 years.

Couldn't resist . . .

The Cuban rail system is not in good shape by any means, but there are several trains daily that cross the ENTIRE country from Havana to Santiago, stopping at many cities.

And I can hear it already, "it's unreliable", "it's falling apart", "it's antiquated", bla, bla, bla . . .

Sure, it's all those things and worse, but let's see how long it actually takes to be able to board a train in Santo Domingo and travel directly to Puerto Plata.
 

windeguy

Platinum
Jul 10, 2004
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You do understand the difference between iron and high strength steel rails? Right???
The cutting wheels will be more costly than all the steel they get to cut away...

It's like cutting the butter knife with the butter stick itself...

Takes about 90 seconds with the correct tool.

[video=youtube;gm9D66Ao5b0]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gm9D66Ao5b0[/video]
 

windeguy

Platinum
Jul 10, 2004
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No access to power because the power company turned of the electricity? After all, this is the DR. Use a torch and cut through in less than 3 minutes with Oxy Propane:

[video=youtube;w00FzhU8PVE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w00FzhU8PVE[/video]
 

windeguy

Platinum
Jul 10, 2004
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Perhaps you prefer oxy acetylene?

[video=youtube;xQXMTPpw8vM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQXMTPpw8vM[/video]
 

PICHARDO

One Dominican at a time, please!
May 15, 2003
13,280
893
113
Santiago de Los 30 Caballeros
You do realize that the materials cost to perform those actions in the DR far outranks the profits per linar foot cut away? Like I said in my post!

The other thing is that those rails you see getting cut, are not the ones in use nowadays in hybrid rail systems.
The contact surfaces of the rails are not plain steel anylonger. You need a very expensive type of blade to cut it and it's only done by means of torch or plasma at a very high degree of heat unlike before.

If they used regular steel rails on hybrid systems, the wear and heat problems would make them impossible to upkeep.
These alloys are far tougher to cut by conventional means as you posted examples of.

It just ain't gonna happen. Period.
 

windeguy

Platinum
Jul 10, 2004
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The rails cut in the videos I show are not "ordinary" steel. They are the steel used to make rails.


What is the exact alloy used in these magical new rails, likely used only in the DR, and only able to be cut with alien technology and what is the Brindle hardness number of these rails?
Harder than 400 HB?