KIRKWOOD, Mo. — Well-wishers who turned out Monday morning to welcome the restored second daily Missouri River Runner at the venerable Kirkwood train station, and other stops from St. Louis to Kansas City, Mo., included travelers riding train No. 311 west for the first time since it last operated on Jan. 3, 2022, when state […]
TAMPA, Fla. — City of Tampa officials have voted to spend $1.5 million to refurbish Tampa Union Station, a 1912 structure which remains in use for Amtrak service. WTSP-TV reports the funds will go for updating restrooms, repairing windows and doors, and replacing the intricate façade. Once those repairs are complete, the city plans to […]
WASHINGTON — Passengers who booked reservations between Sept. 11 and Oct. 2, 2022, on the Silver Meteor, or on the two days a week when the Crescent and City of New Orleans had not been running, will have to change their travel plans. Daily operation of those trains is now scheduled to commence in both […]
OAKLAND, Calif. — Three people were injured after an Amtrak Capitol Corridor train hit on-track maintenance equipment late Friday morning, disrupting rail service for several hours. The San Jose Mercury News reports a front-load tractor owned by Union Pacific was working on the middle of three tracks when it was struck by San Jose-bound train […]
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The owner of the dump truck involved in June’s derailment of the Southwest Chief has a federal judge to halt a lawsuit by Amtrak and BNSF Railway, saying the federal investigation of the accident prevents it from responding to allegations. KMBC-TV reports MS Contracting says federal law prevents the company from […]
Looking for the loneliest Amtrak station in California? Consider Lompoc-Surf, population: zero, an alternative to crowded California passenger stations. You won’t worry about parking your car, long walks to trackside, or even other people. There may be about 40 million people in California, but unless they are waiting for the train, or someone on it, […]
The resumption of two daily round trips on the St. Louis-Kansas City, Mo., Missouri River Runner will be marked with ceremonies at cities along the route, Amtrak says. The second round trip, restored through funding approved by the Missouri General Assembly and Gov. Mike Parson, resumes Monday, July 18 [see “Second ‘Missouri River Runner’ to […]
KEYTESVILLE, Mo. — The family of a woman killed in the June 27 derailment of Amtrak’s Southwest Chief has filed a wrongful death suit in the county where the accident occurred, naming the company whose truck was struck by the train, BNSF Railway, and a BNSF employee as defendants. Rachelle Cook, 58, of De Soto, […]
MISSOULA, Mont. — The agency seeking to revive Amtrak service through southern Montana has added a significant new member — the state’s Department of Transportation. The Missoula Current reports that the department has joined the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority as an ex officio member, a move described by authority Chairman Dave Strohmaier as “a […]
WASHINGTON – Amtrak has urged federal regulators to reject Canadian National’s quest to obtain Kansas City Southern’s former Gateway Western trackage as a condition of the proposed Canadian Pacific-KCS merger. CN aims to create a new single-line route dubbed the Springfield Speedway that would link Kansas City and St. Louis with Chicago, Detroit, and Eastern […]
NEWARK, N.J. — The manager of a New Jersey gas station has pleaded guilty in a case in which admitted to billing approximately $78,000 in fraudulent fuel charges to Amtrak and more than a dozen other customers. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey said in a press release that Umer Hassan […]
CHICAGO — The first 10 days of July have seen significant departure and timekeeping issues for Amtrak’s long-distance trains traveling west and south of Chicago, with few passengers able to make planned transfers at the end of their trips. And even those who did make connections often faced significant timekeeping delays. An example: Passengers riding […]
