Dear friends of Regional Rail:

The next regular monthly meeting of the Regional Rail Working Group
(RRWG) will be held on
Wednesday, January 27, 2010, 6-8pm (meeting will start promptly at 6pm)
Conference Room, NYPD Downtown Center
104 Washington Street (just north of Rector Street), Lower Manhattan.

Please note that this a change of date.

There will NOT be a meeting this Wednesday, December 16, 2009, as
originally planned.

I apologize for the change. Regrettably there seemed to be too many
conflicts during the Holidays.

[On a brighter note -- I'm recovering from my broken ankle to the point
I'm now allowed to hobble around without a wheelchair.]

While the RRWG will not meet this month, we will set aside a half hour at
the end of the next Auto-Free New York meeting next Tuesday, December 15,
2009 6-8pm, at the same location, to catch up on a few initiatives,
including:

(1) efforts to persuade the new Christie Administration to advance a
better plan for the new Hudson River passenger rail tunnels

(2) thru-running at Penn Station, building on the initial demonstration
of weekend football specials

(3) one-seat ride: Manhattan-JFK Airport, via Aqueduct Casino

The AUTO-FREE NEW YORK meeting will be combined with the vision 42
working group where there will be an interesting presentation:

"A New Civic Vision for the Grand Concourse: Fewer Cars, More Green
Space, and a Modern Light Rail Line for the Bronx"
Erika Mathias, Landscape Designer, AECOM

(Erika will substitute for her colleague Taewook Cha, who was called home
to Korea due to an illness in the family.)

This will be a fascinating presentation for all advocates of more
sustainable cities.

For more information about this program go to Auto-Free New York's
website: www.auto-free.org

After the presentation there will be a quick update on initiatives to
reduce car use, enhance public transit and remake streets to favor
initiatives.

Regional Rail is a critical part of this comprehensive strategy, and I
would urge all RRWG members to attend.

Best wishes for the holidays and good luck in 2010!

If you cannot make these meetings please forward your comments so that we
may share them with others.

The purpose of the RRWG is to develop and advance plans for converting
the region's commuter rail lines into a regional rail system, with fast,
frequent service and affordable, integrated fares.

Regional Rail issues are discussed on our website: www.rrwg.org


The Working Group includes:

Empire State Passengers Association
NJ Association of Railroad Passengers
Lackawanna Coalition
Five Towns Rural Transit, Inc.
Committee for Better Transit
Institute for Rational Urban Mobility
Sane Aviation for Everyone, Inc. (SAFE)

geo

George Haikalis
Chair, Regional Rail Working Group
One Washington Square Village, Suite 5D
New York, NY 10012 phone: 212-475-3394

geo@irum.org     www.irum.org    www.auto-free.org      
www.vision42.org     www.rrwg.org