NEW YORK — The Federal Railroad Administration will conduct an independent review of operations at New York’s Penn Station to determine whether expansion of the number of station tracks is needed as part of renovation plans, Amtrak’s Andy Byford said Friday. Byford made his first public comments since being named to oversee the project at […]
CHICAGO — On short notice, Amtrak has cancelled one Chicago-St. Louis Lincoln Service round trip for more than a week as of Thursday, July 17, and implemented a complicated Floridian cancellation scenario that began Friday, July 18, and runs through Aug. 3. Other regional services and long-distance trains continue to suffer hours-long delays, cancellations en […]
LOS ANGELES — A former Amtrak employee has been sentenced to 25 months in prison for conspiring to steal nearly $1 million in pandemic-related unemployment insurance benefits and fraudently obtaining more than $63,000 in sickness benefits, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California has announced. In sentencing on Thursday, July 17, 2025, […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak lacks an overall strategy to improve service to passengers with disabilities, leading to disjointed efforts that are not well coordinated between departments, the Amtrak Office of Inspector General said in a report issued Tuesday (July 15, 2025). The report credits Amtrak with increased engagement with disability advocacy groups over the last six […]
CHICAGO — Amtrak’s Borealis reached the 250,000-passenger milestone during the July 4th holiday weekend, the passenger operator has announced. The train, funded by the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois, launched in May 2024. It continues to exceed initial passenger estimates, carring more than 18,500 passengers in its first month and reaching 100,000 riders in […]
NEW YORK — Amtrak is cautioning passengers that Northeast Corridor operations may experience delays this morning (July 15, 2025) because of heavy rain overnight, while area transit agencies are also recovering from the storm. An Amtrak customer advisory says overnight weather impacts have led to some trainsets arriving later than usual, which may lead to delays […]
LANCASTER, Pa. — Amtrak’s Keystone Service is currently disrupted by flooding, with delays to continue into the evening after some service was suspended between Lancaster, Pa., and Harrisburg, according to the Amtrak NEC social media feed. Amtrak first reported the problem about 3:50 p.m. ET today (July 14, 2025), reporting that service had been suspended […]
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department and Norfolk Southern have reached a settlement in principle regarding the railroad’s handling of Amtrak’s Crescent. Government lawyers disclosed the agreement in a court filing last week, which requested additional time to finalize the settlement. U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson approved the parties’ request for a 60-day extension. […]
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ARLINGTON, Texas — The Heartland Flyer passenger service has received a one-year funding reprieve, thanks to a decision by the federally designated planning organization for the Dallas-Fort Worth area to divert funding from regional highway tolls to cover the Texas portion of the train’s operating grant. The Regional Transportation Council of the North Central Texas […]
CHICAGO—Most trains on Amtrak’s capacity-constrained network ran close to on time while handling big passenger loads throughout the Thursday-through-Sunday weekend, although some travelers’ plans were inconvenienced as a result of problems both within and beyond the company’s control. A number of challenges impacted long-distance trains in addition to those News Wire previously outlined [see “Buses […]
Every time an acquaintance or travel writer returns from Europe and sets foot on American soil, you’ll hear the same refrain: “Oh, if only we had passenger trains like that.” What they mean, of course, is that Amtrak cannot possibly compare. Not on frequency, not on speed, not on equipment, not on stations, not on […]
