Train to Coachella Music Festival Reduces Cars
by Kristin Underwood, San Diego, CA on 07.13.08
This years Coachella festival was the first of its kind with its own train and train station. To help reduce the carbon footprint of a 3-day music festival held in the desert, organizers found a way to make one giant carpool – that came in the form of the Coachella Express. After a year of planning between Coachella, Global Inheritance, Golden Voice and Amtrak, this train idea got, well, rolling.
Any Coachella camper was allowed to ride the train free of cost and it was sold out (roughly 500 people), showing that attendees thought it was a great idea too. But that’s not all, train riders were treated to the musical styling’s of DJ Junkie XL, given free ice-cream sandwiches and VIP wristbands for all three days. They also got Coachella Express t-shirts. Score! The biggest bonus – not having to circle the lot 15 times just looking for a parking space.
The train went from downtown Los Angeles out to the City of Indio, leaving Thursday afternoon and returning home Sunday morning. Officials estimate that the train took roughly 500 cars off the road, also eliminating congestion at the event and reducing the Coachella carbon footprint.
Passengers were dancing, talking, and getting psyched up before the event. Kind of like a party before the party - sure beats sitting in traffic for four hours. The train was so successful this year that event planners are already working to ensure a Coachella Express train runs again next year.
Coachella is a three-day music festival held each spring in Indio, California. There are multiple stages and dozens of acts performing each day. Temperatures usually are in the 90-100s F each day, with an audience of thousands attending each year.
You too can score a one of a kind Coachella Express t-shirt by sending an email to Coachella Express.
More about trains and Coachella
Coachella
Global Inheritance
Air Travel and Climate Change: Take the Train
Awesome! Yeah Coachella! I believe they built a temporary platform on an already existing track that goes from LA through Indio. Not sure though...
(LA times wrote http://articles.latimes.com/2008/apr/25/entertainment/et-coachella25 )
Wouldn't this be great for Burning Man?
Love the idea, but Amtrack just sucks hard.
The US needs to nationalize their rail system, and slowly privatize it again to different management. Prefrably calling in experts from the EU and China to teach them how to run a successful rail system.
Again, Amtrack is shitte.
Great idea! All my peeps here in San Diego, carpool to coachella, but that still, there is a lot of commuters on the highways. I think you could get 500 Cochellians easy from San Deezy... ;-) Organizers could easily get a train from Solana Beach, or Downtown. Lets make it happen!
great work.
Or better yet, Japan.
I tried sending an email to the one provided in the article and got a bounce back. Is it correct?
this is awesome except that a lot of people going to coachella fly in to palm springs (cheaper and closer) and also it only goes to indio with no shuttles taking you the rest of the way people still would have to rent cars to get to the actual festival.
progress though!
They also did carpooling and gave away great prizes. They are pioneers in making festivals go green and these early steps are what lead to real change - here are some others
Cheers - Eric - http://blog.pickuppal.com