A Chicago-bound Amtrak Hiawatha passes the station at Deerfield, Ill., on Dec. 24, 2016. Almost all Amtrak corridor service in and out of Chicago will resume Friday after cancellations on Wednesday and Thursday. TRAINS: David Lassen CHICAGO — With temperatures expected to bottom out at minus-23 degrees and wind chills in the minus-50 degree range […]
Replacing Southwest Chief service over Raton Pass with a bus bridge would have a high price for communities along the route, according to a new report. Bob Johnston WASHINGTON — A bus bridge replacing the Southwest Chief between Albuquerque, N.M., and Dodge City, Kan., would lead to annual economic losses of more than $116 million […]
CHICAGO — Today’s Empire Builder departures from Chicago and Seattle have been cancelled, reflecting weather concerns across the Amtrak train’s northern route. Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said the cancellations were a mutual decision by Amtrak and BNSF Railway, which hosts the train for the majority of its route. Amtrak had previously modified schedules for many […]
Led by the “Salute to Veterans” cab car, an Amtrak Hiawatha kicks up snow as it passes through the Healy Metra station in Chicago on Dec. 30, 2018. Service on the Hiawatha and other trains from the Chicago hub is being modified in advance of severe winter weather. TRAINS: David Lassen CHICAGO — With extreme winter […]
NORFOLK, Va. — Amtrak will add a second train to Norfolk beginning March 4, the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot reports. Amtrak spokeswoman Kimberly Woods told the newspaper the schedule has yet to be finalized, but a press release from the city of Norfolk said the train will have a mid-morning depature. The new train, like the current […]
CHICAGO — For the second time in recent years, debris has fallen on people and a platform serving Metra passengers at the north concourse of Chicago Union Station. The latest incident occurred at Track 5 about 5 p.m. Tuesday. Two people were taken by Chicago Fire Department personnel to a hospital for treatment, but were […]
Amtrak plans to resume normal operations today, following two days of cancellations and other schedule changes in advance of the winter storm that moved through the Northeast over the weekend. The passenger railroad had cancelled some long-distance trains into and out of New York and Boston on Saturday, as well as a number of trains […]
A Northeast Regional train rolls into New Haven on June 16, 2018. Until Jan. 31, 1999, all Amtrak Boston-bound trains swapped electrics for diesels here. Because of concerns over ice, Amtrak used diesels instead of electrics for some Northeast Corridor trains this weekend. Bob Johnston NEW YORK — Predicted ice, snow, and plunging temperatures drove […]
NEW YORK — Amtrak has expanded its cancellations and schedule modifications for Sunday to include Empire Service trains. The moves are in advance of a winter storm approaching the Northeast. In addition to its previously announced cancellations and changes [See “Amtrak cancels trains, modifies schedules in advance of storm,” Trains News Wire, Jan. 18, 2019], […]
Could future Amtrak trains in the Northeast look something like this? A Brightline train awaits boarding in Miami on Jan. 11, 2019. Amtrak has issued a request for proposal for new single-level passenger cars; the Brightline cars, built by Siemens, are the newest intercity equipment in the U.S. and the basis for cars on order […]
NEW YORK — In keeping with recent practice, Amtrak has cancelled some trains and modified schedules for others this Saturday and Sunday because of a forecast for a major winter storm. Service has been cancelled on Saturday and Sunday for three trains: the Chicago-Washington Capitol Limited; the Chicago-New York/Boston Lake Shore Limited, and the Indianapolis-New […]
Amtrak’s “Beef short rib” meal Bob Johnston WASHINGTON — Characterizing the change as an “evolution,” Amtrak says sleeping car passengers will have new meal options on the Chicago-New York/Boston Lake Shore Limited and Chicago-Washington, D. C., Capitol Limited starting this week. On June 1, 2018, Amtrak reduced dining car staffs on those trains from a […]
