It's being touted as a high-speed "Road Train" between Buffalo and Albany which looks to learn from the expensive missteps of previous plans to connect Upstate New York. According to Tim Tielman, Executive Director of the Campaign for Greater Buffalo History, Architecture & Culture, this concept is exploring using the Thruway median rather than purchasing a new right-of-way.
Tielman joined WBFO this morning to outline the effort which will utilize a series of design studios at the University at Buffalo and Cornell University to find solutions. The goal is to develop an "articulated vehicle" that would travel at 100 miles per hour.
"We call it a 'road train' because it consists of various parts and we want the imagery of a wide, comfortable, quiet ride and disassociate from the negative imagery that buses might have," Tielman said.
While improving travel time to the state capital would be helpful, Tielman says a major goal is to boost the prospects for Buffalo and other Upstate cities.
"What Cornell and UB studios will be working on is how do we make downtowns very efficient? How do we link this road train to the local transportation systems?"
