WASHINGTON — The National Park Service “Trails and Rails” volunteer lecture program has been cancelled on five Amtrak trains and shorteneed on three others this year. The changes are the result of the result Amtrak’s decision to withdraw what had been complimentary food and overnight lodging expense payments to the volunteers [see “Trails and Rails threatened,” “Passenger,” February 2018 TRAINS].
Trains where the program has been cancelled are:
— City of New Orleans, New Orleans-Greenwood, Miss.
— Sunset Limited, New Orleans-Beaumont, Tex.
— California Zephyr, Denver-Grand Junction, Colo.
— Texas Eagle, Fort Worth-San Antonio, Tex.
— Maple Leaf , Albany/Rensselaer-Utica, N.Y.
Those where it has been abbreviated are:
— Empire Builder: 2017, Seattle-Havre, Mont.; 2018, Seattle-Wenatchee, Wash.
— Crescent: 2017, Atlanta-New Orleans; 2018: Atlanta-Birmingham, Ala.
— Southwest Chief: 2017: La Junta, Colo.-Albuquerque, N.M.; 2018, La Junta, Colo.-Las Vegas, N.M.
Returning routes include:
— New York-Washington, D.C. (Northeast Regional)
— New York-Albany/Rensselaer, NY (Adirondack, Empire Service)
— Saratoga Springs-Westport, N.Y (Adirondack)
— Chicago-St. Louis (Lincoln Service and Texas Eagle)
— Chicago-Niles, Mich. (Wolverine Service and Blue Water)
— Seattle-Portland, Ore. (Coast Starlight)
— Santa Barbara-San Jose, Calif. (Coast Starlight and Pacific Surfliner)
— Los Angeles-San Diego (Pacific Surfliner)
— Oklahoma City-Fort Worth, Tex. (Heartland Flyer)
Although some programs operate daily—usually from May to Labor Day—most have specific days of operation and café car lecturers won’t be on every departure or every segment. A complete list of 2018 days of operation and trains is now posted on the National Park Service website.
