Amtrak Not Doing Well

Can't comment on the dining car, but my few experiences with Amtrak none of the trips were even remotely on time.Random delays were hours long once you left the station.

 

An 11hr trip wound up taking like 17hrs,would have been much faster and far less aggrivating to drive.

Yes, Tom, read the article in Trains.  There is a vast disconnect between the administration and the real world, kind of like Congress and us.  This country needs more trains; let's get rid of the masses of cars and trucks clogging the roadways.  It's happening but maybe not in time to help Amtrak.  We often ride the Missouri River Runner to Kansas City and find that experience to be a big improvement over fighting the big rigs on I-70.

Leyland, that's correct. I've ridden on a few shortline trains, but not Amtrak, but I will comment of when I'm going along on I480 Westbound through Garfield Heights Ohio where the NS Mainline goes under, the traffic is at a standstill sometimes, but you see NS Trains moving right along under the freeway. In my opinion, trains are the best way and most efficient way to travel. As to waht Rick said, to give an example, I sometimes go to Berea Ohio to watch trains and also watch the Berea Railcam, and noticed one day when Amtrak 48 Lakeshore Limited usually runs between 4 and 5AM in the morning came through about 8 to 9AM. So it's defientely late. So I can see that that day Amtrak was running very very late.

I rode from Denver to Salt Lake City on June 10. Dining car service was outstanding! Train was late, and I know there are lots of current timekeeping issues, but I have no complaints at all about the equipment or the onboard service.

 

If you scroll back to June 16, you can read my report and see photos of "Riding through the Rockies on June 10."

 

 

 

I prefer to take the train than drive.  The Missouri River Runner service has greatly improved and will add new double decker cars next year.  St. Louis to Chicago will be running at 110 mph.  Although not Amtrak, Texas hopes to build high speed rail between Dallas and Houston by 2021 that will take 90 minutes to travel between these two super cities.  There is tremendous excitement in the Dallas area for bullet trains to Houston.  Missouri River Runner trains are full despite the old equipment still in place.  Amtrak dining car food is good but expensive compared to local restaurants.  Amtrak is under direction to try to recover its costs.  As Muggs indicates, traveling by train is much less stressful than fighting overwhelming truck traffic on I-70.  If railroads want to capture more traffic they should look at LCL and intermodal opportunities.

Bill, that's great. It could also be, that different Amtrak trains have different issues like one might have outstanding service and the other, like the gentleman in the Trains Magazine, had not such a good exprience on Amtrak. An yes I did see your pictures. Also Portland Rose is also right about the Truck traffic. Truck traffic on freeways gets worse all the time. A lot of times Semi's will come into your lane with no turn signal or not even letting you know and just cuts over. Trains don't do that unless a switch, that's the best part.

Amtrak is consistently on just about every list you will encounter of "worst managed companies."  We ride it a lot up and down the east coast and we take it because it is the only rail passenger service available - it is both the best and the worst, but still I don't want to drive into Manhattan, etc., when we go there, so we take the train.  .

About the only thing stressful about the Missouri River Runner is the Wi-Fi.  If you can do without it, it's a scenic ride when the windows are clean.  On our trips the seating has been clean and comfortable.  The River Runner used to be the most on time train on the Amtrak fleet.  Their on time record has slipped due to track work on the western part of the state, and that will improve when the project is completed.  Taking the train is still a lot healthier than "playing with trucks" on the Interstate!

I've ridden Amtrak a few times. The big problem is that Amtrak is a "guest" of the freight railroads and is subject to the freight schedules. Some trains, like the Sunset Limited, are chronically late because they have to wait in sidings for freights to pass (according to staff I talked to on the train, UP treats them pretty badly). The Southwest Chief wasn't too bad from LAUPT to Flagstaff but then the track through that route is mostly double-tracked.

 

From what I've heard, the Northeast Corridor runs pretty well, but I think there are two reasons for that. One is that there have historically been commuter train lines in that area. The other is that a lot of those weasels in Washington, DC use the Northeast Corridor to get to and from "work".

Matt you nailed it. People forget that Amtrak is a government service. It is finance by our tax dollars. It is only in existence for the President to deploy troops in case of an emergency. Amtrak was a stop gap to continue service until another private entity would pick it up. Unfortunately,  nobody could make a business case for it. A passenger train on a freight service railroad is just a liability private railroads don't want.

As far as Diner car service. Depends on the trip. Denver to Chicago the food was fantastic. However a trip from Detroit to Chicago is more of a microwave snack bar. No grill or fresh food at all.

 

Future rail travel is going to change. Amtrak is seeing more passenger traffic in Michigan than it can handle.

 

The state of Michigan by 2015 and the AATA will be instituting a new passenger service from Howell Michigan to Ann Arbor which will be partially funded by the Federal Highway Administration!

http://www.mlive.com/news/ann-...650k_federal_gr.html

 

These transit cars were unveiled at the Owosso Steam festival and will be soon in service.

 

Added service will also be increased between Ann Arbor to Detroit Metropolitan Airport to Dearborn as well.

 

In this light, with increase service now this a better opportunity for a food service to offer better eats on these trains... instead of "Amtrak" food.

 

 

Matt is right about Amtrak on mainlines with freights. The only issue there would be riding Amtrak is if some part of the main gets bottlenecked with trains.

Have you ever thought of FLYING. DUH!!

 

Just took The Empire Builder from Seattle to the midwest.

13 hours late going and 12 hours late returning.

Oil train traffic in North Dakota was the cause.

I feel for the AMTRAK employees on the train that have

to deal with the customers, and try to make the best of

a bad situation every day. A sad situation for all.

If Amtrak print a timetable with departure and arrival times and they don't meet those criteria, then are passengers entitled to any compensation?

 

How do people arrange deadlines for meetings, flight connections etc if the timetable can't be adhered to?

 

It sounds that if Amtrak is very much secondary to freight then possibly it should be scrapped entirely if it can't serve the public

Have you ever thought of FLYING. DUH!!

 

Yes I have, and have had worse experiences with planes. i.e. two days and a night to go 750 miles. From my Amtrak experiences (Builder, Zephyr, Starlight, Chief, Capitol, Lake Shore, Cardinal, Silver Star and a few locals) nearly all of the delays were caused by other sources; stalled freights, stuck drawbridges, washouts, and collisions with motor vehicles.

 

However, our last trip was an eye-opener. The rolling stock is looking mighty shopworn. Our motive power shut down less than a mile out of Chicago...the rest of the trip fared not much better. Bottom line is, Amtrak needs a physical overhaul. Much of the rolling stock is over 25 years old, some looking like they've never seen a wrench.

 

The employees? They've always been helpful - frazzled - but helpful. For dining service, I'll put my bet on the Builder.

 

Neil

   

 

Pick up this month's Harpers Magazine as it has an extensive photographic and journalistic essay on Amtrak in the form of a reporter riding Amtrak finding the good, the bad and the ugly."The Lost Glory of America's Railroads.." is pro-passenger rail nut it doesn't flinch in taking a first person look at Amtrak's woes. It should be required reading for Congress.

I traveled round-trip from Tucson to Washington, DC. on the Sunset and the Crescent last

fall with sleeping car accommodations both ways. We were on time at all major stations, thanks to a heavily padded schedule. Meals were good (especially dinner, with steak or salmon and red wine) and the equipment, although definitely showing its age, was still comfortable. We had some pretty rough riding in east Texas, but never left the rails!

 

I believe that the enabling legislation for AMTRAK actually gives its trains priority, but that the company does not attempt to enforce this provision against its host lines for various reasons, both political and practical.

 

I'm going to Chicago from Kingman, AZ next month on the Southwest Chief. I hope we arrive on the advertised (3:15 pm) so that I can pick up my rental car in Chicago before the place closes, and not have to spend the night in the city. I'm coming back to Tucson from Atlanta on the Crescent and the Sunset, so I'm hoping for the same good performance I experienced last year. 

See the following link for more information about dispatching priority for AMTRAK:

 

http://narprail.org/news/narp-blog/2062-otpaug12

Yes and have done so in the past WHEN IT WAS AFFORDABLE.

 

However, I have 5 people in my family, and all 5 of us were able to travel to Washington DC to visit relatives via Amtrak for the price of one round trip plane ticket.

 

I/we had never taken a trip by train before, thought it might be a worthwhile experience enjoying the scenery and such and save over a thousand bucks.

 

I can drive to D.C. in less time with less aggrivation for the same amount of cash.

 

DUHH

http://www.narprail.org/resour...bvious-and-otherwise

Amtrak serves me just fine. 

 

And I really would not to think I would have to drive everywhere but I will not fly again until the airport Gestapo are gone.

Oh, and Amtrak owns the Northeast Corridor which is why it works so much better there.  And freight trackage rights have penalty clauses for not keeping on schedules that interrupt Amtrak's services.

 

But schedules are 4 letter words to freight railroads.

I understand that. Espicaially when you have a 100+MPH Acela passing a 30MPH freight.

I seriously doubt that happens, as the freights are kept pretty far away from the Acela Trains, and other 100+ MPH Amtrak trains.

That's right no freight trains on the Acela route. Unless its a maintenance of way train

Every time I come to the US I do some Amtrak travel. I really like it. The last time I was there, I went from New York to Orlando Fl. The train was comfortable, the dining car food was beautiful, good service too. The return trip was equally good, and not too late. I hope Amtrak expands it's services.

J Daddy, can't really say there isn't no freight, if you go to youtube and watch the video, Best Day of Freight Trains on the NEC, it has some freights. As to what Hot Water said, you are correct about that. But I did see one time in a picture of NS 8101 the CofG Heritage ES44AC sitting with an ethanol train and an Acela passing it in the snow. And to what Dave said, yes I hope so to about Amtrak expanding, even though that the proposed high speed route from Cleveland to Columbus to Cinnattii never happened. But still Amtrak is trying other locations. Also there Heritage Units are great to.

Until recently I had my own airplane that flies at about 140 knots.  Even at that speed I could be half way to my 1000 mile destination before I could clear security.  The hassle of flying commercial is about as bad as Amtrak.  Someday travel will be so complicated we will go back to the old days of train travel by private railroads.

I travel for business on Amtrak. I meet with  Amtrak personnel so delays are understood. Bottom line if you are traveling short distances than Amtrak makes perfect sense.

Anything longer than a 5 hour trip, drive or fly, unless the travel by train is the vacation.

Detroit to Chicago makes perfect sense, 30 dollars for adults, kids are 15, and the trip from Ann Arbor to Chicago is 4 hours. Trains speeds have increased in areas of over 110 mph. Amtrak has specials too, so watch for pricing details.

The Freight train delay issue will be eliminated soon on this leg of the trip, with the double track complete in 2015 and concrete ties with heavier rail will increase speeds across the area.

Newer cars will be added soon to replace the amfleet I and II cars.

 

Nice thing is I can go to Chicago for a weekend, not worry about parking and the hassle of traffic, enjoy the downtown and return with little stress.

 

Never in the last 40 years have I seen an improvement in any Passenger service as I have seen in the last 2 years. 

 

I believe if Amtrak outsourced the Food service provider for the short haul it would improve the experience. Hmm... I will bring this up in the next meeting....

 

 

 

 

LOL, and I don't mean laugh out loud, but lots of luck getting a bureaucrat the change from "that's the way we have always done it."

We have been to Chicago for my sons graduation from Navy boot camp and the dining service was great and the food was very good. We have been going to York on Amtrak the last few times and it beats the 7 hour drive from Boston all day long! All good experiences on Amtrak so far and would not hesitate at all to go Amtrak.  We are planing the York trip this October and there is something about taking the train that makes it an even more special event!

Amtrak is small potatoes - financially - to the railroads.  When they first started paying incentives in the late 1980's, we at the Santa Fe were able to make 9 million dollars a year by keeping the  Southewest Chief and the San Diegans on time.  Today, that 9 million dollars is not nearly a significant to BNSF, although, unlike some other roads, they have integrity to attempt to run the passenger trains on time.  Traffic has surged to the point that the railroad has become overloaded and nothing is on time, but it will get better as soon as the new employees and new locomotives are working.  Amtrak will benefit.  But the incentives are not big enough to be missed.

Concerning "new employees" in train & engine service, there is now becoming a really serious shortage. One of the biggest problems, is the hugely expanding oil field business in the Dakotas. The oil field companies and their support organizations are rapidly drawing the road crew employees away from the CP and BNSF, since they pay so much more in wages. It has gotten so bad that the CP is having to provide FREE HOUSING up in that territory, in order to keep their current employees.

 

Almost every railroad has such increased business levels, that the operating crew shortage is at, or above, critical levels.  

So this is what is going on... NS and CSX have been having the same issues... hiring like crazy.

Hartman:

 

Please don't dispair. Traveling by train is MUCH more comfortable than being packed in a flying sardine can or dodging continuous flocks of 18 wheelers who think the road is theirs. Just keep in mind...

   There COULD be delays, don't plan on a tight schedule.

   If at all possible, travel when schools are in. Otherwise the train will be loaded with vacationing families, which isn't necessarily bad if the parents keep track of their little cherubs.

   If you can afford the sleeper, it's worth it for the quiet...but it is cramped.

   Check the station times carefully...some arrivals and departures are 3AM. Plan accordingly.

  

It was sooo comfortable to sit in the diner with a full Thanksgiving dinner while watching motorists sliding through a snow storm in central Ohio. No worries other than should I have another cup of coffee.

 

Neil

 

Amtrak still my preferred means of travel

 

clem

I had thought about taking Amtrack from Jacksonville FL to visit family in Los Angeles CA but to do that I would have to ride to DC, then Chicago, then to LA. Almost five days by train. I could drive there faster and would still cost less.

Every year for the past (almost) decade I take the Crescent from NY to Atlanta (March) and the Pennsylvanian (July) NY-Pittsburgh.

 

We've been on-time all the time. Mostly because Norfolk Southern's dispatchers  seem to know what they're doing--in one case getting us into Pittsburgh by wrong-railing us into downtown, "racing" next to a hot intermodal through the suburban 'Burgh. (In case you haven't guessed, I'll be taking that same trip next week)

 

The biggest delay I remember is coming back from one of those Pittsburgh trips, when the AEM7 put on for the last leg Philly-NYC died on departure. Here it is below, just completely kaput--it couldn't even push the train all the way back into 30th street, and diesels had to tow it back into the yard.

 

 Since no spare electrics were available, we were put on the next arriving Regional, which had enough room for our train's entire load in the rearmost cars.

 

My dining car experience on the Crescent was adequate. I certainly wouldn't avoid it based on past experience (you do have to account for it being a bit pricey). The cars do look like throwbacks to the 1950's (which they are, quite literally):

 (the above pic was taken at about 9-10pm after the last seating cleared out)

 

I read somewhere that Amtrak when it started out was covering 20% of its expenses via revenue. Nowadays that figure is around 85%. But capital funding was always the big bugaboo dragging the carrier down. Hopefully the equipment freed up by the Midwest/California bilevel car purchases (and the Siemens diesels to go along with them) will give Amtrak some breathing room to address growing ridership coachwise. At least on the long-distance coaches, you can't beat the legroom:

 

 

 

In the meantime remember the Viewliner II's starting to come off the line in NY. The reason "only" 130 cars are being built is because these were funded out of higher-than-expected revenue (meaning without Congresscritter help)--and that's as far as they could go by that method. But no question these are desperately needed--the Heritage equipment is starting to break down in "interesting" ways according to insiders on other forums, and the sleepers/dorms are in the order because they give the biggest bang for the buck, revenue-wise.

 

---PCJ