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Service will expand to include spring trips
By Bob Downing
Beacon Journal staff writer
Published on Tuesday, Dec 25, 2007
The $2 fare for bicyclists to board the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad was a big hit in 2007, and officials are anticipating even bigger things.
The Bike Aboard! fare will remain $2, and the service will be expanded next year, said Steven Wait, president and chief executive of the Peninsula-based tourist railroad.
In 2008, the $2 fare for cyclists will be offered on weekends in March, April, May and September. During June, July, August and October, the service will be available Wednesday through Sunday.
In 2007, the special fare was offered as a pilot project from June 9 through October on trains from Akron and Independence into the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
About 6,500 bicyclists — mostly families with children — paid $2 to ride the train to or from the park and to pedal on the popular Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail, Wait said.
''It was huge, far bigger than we ever expected,'' Wait said of the ridership.
He said officials were anticipating perhaps 2,000 to 3,000 riders in the first year.
The railroad and the National Park Service are optimistic that Bike Aboard! might generate 13,000 riders in 2008, Wait said.
It is not a big moneymaker but provides a new service to get people to and from the 33,000-acre federal park, and that's valuable, he said.
Park officials are thrilled with the program and expect that Bike Aboard! will be a long-lasting institution in the Cuyahoga Valley, said John Debo, superintendent of the park.
Bicyclists can ride the train to eight stops in the park and then pedal back. Or they can pedal into the park, flag down a train at one of the designated stops and ride the train back.
Bicyclists will get a seat in the passenger car if space is available, or they might have to stand. Their bikes are loaded into railroad baggage cars.
Bike Aboard! tickets are available from the railroad's Peninsula office and will be mailed out. Tickets also are available at the Akron Northside and Rockside stations, the Peninsula Depot and the Cuyahoga Valley National Park Association store in Boston Township. Cash, checks and credit cards are accepted.
Train conductors at the eight boarding stations will accept only cash.
Wait said one change for 2008 will be getting more volunteers or possibly hiring part-time railroad staffers to load and unload bicycles at the Peninsula Depot.
Peninsula, with train service from Akron and Independence, was often busy and the lack of staffing created some delays on busy days this year, he said.
Bicyclists were generally able to get seats aboard the passenger trains, although a few groups were turned away from nearly filled trains, he said.
For information, call 800-468-4070 or visit http://www.cvsr.com.
Bob Downing can be reached at 330-996-3745 or bdowning@thebeaconjournal.com.
The $2 fare for bicyclists to board the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad was a big hit in 2007, and officials are anticipating even bigger things.
Get the full article here.
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