Oops, that answer wasn't quite right. Click here to learn about the Unlimited Membership. Gotta say it I grew-up in family of railroaders in the 40s and 50s Back then the trains were on the job no matter what Both steam and diesel ruled the rails than.. Large/small operations did not matter, they were all the job In bad weather, even extreme bad weather trains and railroaders were on the job There were delays at sure, but they were the job Today Wimps rule (my observation) Another observation from my persective, with all the mergers, past and future seems service has become less/poorer and less depenable. I am sure there would be one off outlying examples from before that, but canceling whole trains with no alternate transportation at the drop of a hat is a relatively new phenomenon and that is why people who have followed the industry for a while find it frustrating. Or not. Bags of good quality are sold as well. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. There are 12 unions representing 115,000 workers who must vote to approve the tentative deals. The westbound Empire Builders today and Thursday have also been cancelled. (Thomas Boyd, Thomas Boyd). Members enjoy 15% off any purchase in our store. An Amtrak train carrying 66 passengers collided with a tractor-trailer in Sharon on Monday, according to Vermont State Police. Just an average joe's guess.. and freezing cold for the holiday around here too. An email with password reset instructions is on the way. Value Fare For Value Fare tickets in Coach and Acela Business Class: Another standard and bastion of transportation bites the dust or should I say snow Why Sign In? News & Reviews News Wire Amtrak suffers more long-distance cancellations, delays: Analysis, Empire Builder, California Zephyr, Capitol Limited routes hurt by weather, mechanical setbacks. Since then I've followed up with further emails but of course there's been nothing from Amtrak. I managed to get a gate attendant at another flight to check my flight. Amtrak has also canceled some service from Grand Rapids to Chicago, nixing service on its Pere Marquette 370 train, for Dec. 22-24, and from Chicago to Grand Rapids on the Pere Marquette 371. According to the Amtrak Alerts Twitter feed, the eastbound Chief scheduled to depart Los Angeles today (Wednesday, Feb. 22) has been cancelled due to severe weather conditions, while the westbound Chief that left Chicago on Tuesday, Feb. 21, will terminate in Albuquerque for the same reason. When it wasnt safe at all to drive and roads and airports were all shut down, the passenger trains struggled through. And these are having long term economic, social, and political consequences. Other long-distance woes The westbound Empire Builder approaches the Deerfield, Ill., Metra station on Jan. 20, 2023. Joseph C. Markfelder. Perception is part of the problem. And nothing seems to have come of it. Amtrak canceled three of its long-distance routes out of Chicago this week as the company gears up for a potential railroad workers' strike.. Why it matters: A labor contract dispute between railroad workers and freight rails could lead to the U.S.'s first railroad strike in nearly three decades, impacting more than 21,000 route miles the company operates outside of the northeast, per CNN. For all that, two planes with mechanical problems, United got me to SeaTac Washington only five hours late. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Subscribers, sign in to access exclusive content. A few inches. Train Cancellations- 3/04/2023. We've received your submission. Here are the Midwest cancellations to and from Chicago for Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday, Dec. 22, 24, and 25. Don't miss this look at the history of America's most influential builder of locomotives. the trip has already been cancelled by Amtrak) which I'm afraid to click because it'll probably give Amtrak some reason to delay the refund further, or not process it at all, since it'll look like the trip is being cancelled by the passenger. Chicago-Pontiac, Mich.: Train 352 (2:15 p.m. from Chicago); 353 (8:50 a.m. from Pontiac). . Who really made me feel welcome and important as a frequent flier. I called Amtrak to see if I could get on a train to Miami but they didnt have anything available until the 30th. The. Perhaps Amtrak is being proactive. The. With one set of Auto Train equipment out of position, both departures were canceled the following day to reset the service; it has been mostly been running on time ever since. But this was not an awesome time.. Reply Join Today! Cascades Train 500 is currently operating approx. Southwest totally let me down yesterday. Ensure a safe, slow approach from others with this railroad-themed logo mask! With one set of Auto Train equipment out of position, both departures were canceled the following day to "reset" the service; it has been mostly been running on time ever since. Ensure a safe, slow approach from others with this railroad-themed logo mask! We are about 2 hours late with lots of freight and a switch issue, If it's any consolation - I also heard many flights are also cancelled, In regard to the "all-weather" mode, one of the modern problems that works against that is home locations for employees. Airline passengers who fail to claim their checked. Members enjoy 15% off any purchase in our store. Click "Train Status" on the top bar of the homepage and enter a few key pieces of information to learn when a train will be arriving. There I stood in line for over 2 hours until I could get to the single ticket representative who somehow was managing to hold on to her sanity. Conductor Sergio Loza makes a check of Oregon's new Amtrak Cascades in 2014. An Amtrak long-distance train. Click here to learn about the Unlimited Membership! Why do people do this to themselves? continues to be updated on Amtraks website. Enter the email address or member number associated with your account. The Amtrak Alerts Twitter feed attributes these to mechanical issues; so were both running more than 6 hours late this evening (Monday, Dec. 19). It was finally annulled at Sacramento, Calif., running 16 hours late. Why Sign In? Amtrak announced the cancellation of three long-distance, nationwide routes that rely on freight lines beginning on Tuesday, citing a potential strike from railroad workers by the end of this week. @RescueTeam It was booked for April 18 (SF departure). Amtrak Cancellation Policy. Unlimited Members, sign in to enjoy sitewide access. 14h Palmetto Train 89, which departed New York (NYP) on 3/1, is currently operating approx. Chicago-St. Louis: Trains 301 and 305 (7:15 a.m. and 5:20 p.m. from Chicago); trains 300 and 306 (4:30 a.m. and 5:40 p.m. from St. Louis), Chicago-Milwaukee: Trains 329, 333, and 337 (6:10 a.m., 11:05 a.m., and 3:15 p.m. from Chicago); trains 332, 336, and 340 (8:05 a.m., 1:05 p.m., and 5:45 p.m. from Milwaukee), The National Weather Service forecast for Chicago as of 5 p.m. Monday calls for heavy snow, strong winds, and bitterly cold temperatures beginning Thursday and says the worst conditions will develop Thursday evening into Friday evening, with a full-fledged blizzard possible accompanied by dangerously cold temperatures.. Bedroom. Get great snapshots of railroading history in Art Petersons newest book. Did the refund page request your credit card information? Cancellations after 24 hours: You will receive an eVoucher worth 75% of the price of your ticket, which you can use to book future Amtrak tickets. When stuff happens the entire show shuts down. It was due in Winslow at 6:18 a.m. (Update: According to Amtraks online train status feature, that train arrived in Albuquerque at 2:46 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 23, which would be 15 hours, 26 minutes after its scheduled arrival of 11:20 a.m. on Wednesday.). . Southwest had to divert a plane at Ronald Reagan National Airport, but found another and got me home to Milwaukee about two hours late. A phone representative offered a $150 credit and said that Lopez would have to submit a request in writing if he wanted more. Oh, and a lack of spare equipment at end points to make up entirely new trains in the advent of excessive delay time. Looking at Amtrak's website, I see that there is service departing at 8:50 pm/20:50, but is segmented. The trains to be canceled on Thursday are the Auto Train (Washington to. You have to speak directly to the refund department. Analysts have warned of gasoline shortages in the Northeast if workers strike, as 300,000 barrels of crude oil are transported by rail every day, according to the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers. Neither care much about the passenger. Meanwhile, airlines have their infrastructure of airports and radar monitoring of flights built and maintained by local and federal governments, enabling profitable flights. -Immediately freeze all commitments for Amtrak funding re new routes and equipment until the current corporate management and Board of Directors are dismissed. The unions who represent conductors and engineers who drive trains have held out hoping the railroads address additional issues, such as their strict attendance policy making it difficult to take time off. SW didnt have another plane available to replace it. Mail: Requests of refunds for cash must be sent in via mail. (MLive file photo)Joel Bissell | MLive.com. Amtrak has also canceled some service from Grand Rapids to Chicago, nixing service on its Pere Marquette 370 train, for Dec. 22-24, and from Chicago to Grand Rapids on the Pere Marquette 371 from Dec. 23-25. The Zephyr leaving Chicago on Jan. 19 was held for 6 hours at Winnemucca, Nev., after getting stuck behind a disabled Union Pacific train; following more congestion delays, it eventually limped into Emeryville, Calif., more than 12 hours late at 4:58 a.m. this morning (Sunday, Jan. 22). The delay came getting longer and my gate was changed 3 times before the gates local board suddenly dropped all reference to my flight. What About Amtrak? Flying naturally is faster and quicker if flying between the major hubs or major cities. Amtrak representatives did not immediately provide comment on Danovichs description of her experience. There was a hearing led by two Republican Senators a while back that grilled Gardner and Coscia about those bonuses. Ticket Changes and/or Cancellations. ! " This story has been shared 156,203 times. -To what extent were the worst possible decisions to reduce schedules and buy-out or lay-off seasoned operational/maintenance employees attributable to the basic lack of railroad experience in the corporate management and Board; how the dearth of competent and correct decision-making has caused the inordinate delay in conducting scheduled maintenance on equipment; cancelling trains; reducing consists; for the lack of experienced T&E crews, on-board staff, and maintenance/repair; what has been the dollar cost for recruitment and training? (Also, if you buy their ripoff insurance, the vouchers don't expire. Nothing. AmTrak is working around-the-clock to monitor such kind of events and alert their passengers HERE. Fun times. Yep, do that every day, and just checked again. Who has more info about the LSL route cancellation somewhere west of Albany. All rights reserved (About Us). You are using an out of date browser. Passwords are case sensitive, should be at least 10 characters long and should include 1 uppercase and 1 lowercase alpha character, 1 number and 1 special character. This is the version of our website addressed to speakers of English in the United States. Value fares allow you to get a full refund if you cancel eight days or more before departure. Statement by Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner January 31, 2023. In addition to Zephyr issue cited above, recent examples are two eastbound Capitol Limiteds leaving Chicago on Jan. 17 (more than 2 hours late) and Jan. 20 (over 5 hours late, after the locomotive broke down just outside the station). Changes after 24 hours: A change fee of 25% of the ticket price will apply, as well as any applicable difference in ticket price. and On Monday afternoon, Tuesdays Builders were also cancelled. Here are the Midwest cancellations to and from Chicago for Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday, Dec. 22, 24, and 25. Please enter a valid station, city, or address. Senator with a huge fat blue D next to his name, Charles Schumer. White House announces 'tentative' deal to avert rail strike Struggling from a timekeeping standpoint is the eastbound Chief that left Los Angeles on time on Tuesday. Danovich said her train got delayed twice, first shortly after 9 p.m., about 20 miles north of Vancouver. by Maverickstation1. At 5:44 p.m. MST, it was reported to be awaiting a crew change in Winslow, Ariz. This is the current business model whether airlines, RRs, hospitals, financial, etc maximize profits through bare bones staffing so if one person quits, retires, dies the whole house of cards comes down then they use this as an excuse for the poor or limited svcs. It rings a familiar tone to the tactics the RRs used to drive off psgrs so they could justify eliminating routes. Chicago mechanical does not have a glowing reputation amongst the troops. Amtrak's first round of cancellations, announced Monday, began to hit U.S. stations Tuesday, with trips canceled on three long-distance trains connecting Chicago to the West Coast. Remember when people flocked to passenger trains in bad weather because trains were more reliable even with 25 year old steam heated equipment? But shes not happy her husband had to risk the roads two times, or that Amtrak seemed to keep her and others in the dark for too long about the reasons for the delays, or that Union Station kicked her and several other waiting passengers out into the cold. Tove Danovich didnt think she had cause for concern as she boarded the Portland-bound train Wednesday evening. The affected routes include some trains in the Northeast Corridor and a New Orleans route. However, a separate CSX freight train hit a vehicle . Phone: Refunds may be processed by calling 1-800-USA-RAIL (1-800-872-7245). Ian, a reporter with the Washington Post, did some investigating, and here you go. Amtrak has suspended some of its most storied and picturesque routes this week in preparation for an impending rail worker strike that could further upend supply chains and damage the US economy.. It is really a much different situation than 2015? The Pere Marquette also makes stops in St. Joseph/Benton Harbor, Bangor and Holland. Other commuter railways such as Chicagos Metra have also announced they will be forced to begin cutting service on Thursday. Related: Dangerous Flash-Freeze definitely in play for this evening: Close look at timeline. This includes reservations booked with points. By clicking Join, you acknowledge you have read and agree to the program terms, including the binding arbitration agreement, in the Amtrak Stations: Refunds may be processed at stations with Amtrak ticket offices. In this day and age, equipment being adversely effected by the elements, one has to wonder, Wimps, and more Wimps, I grew-up in family of railroaders in the 40s and 50s. Members enjoy 15% off any purchase in our store. A running list of trains not operating continues to be updated on Amtraks website, but the information may not always reflect last-minute changes. Seems to me with all the mergers and such, service in general has been on a steady decline One other commentin this day and age I fine interesting that equipment cant withstand weather extremesBlizzers are not new, happens every year. Amtrak said the early cancellations before a strike were meant to avoid passengers becoming stranded mid-route on multiday trips. Im on 7 heading to Essex now and this morning I got the call that my Thursday train is canceled. One Missouri River Runner round trip, the morning train out of St. Louis and afternoon departure from Kansas City, Mo., is also not operating those days. Photos: Passengers stuck on delayed Amtrak train nearly 29 hours to arrive in Central Florida. But as long as the shareholders receive bigger dividends who cares about the customers theyll come back they have no alternatives & if they dont theres plenty more rubes to be had! Amtrak workers are not involved in the labor dispute, but the railroad operates almost all of its 21,000 route miles (33,800 km . This what happens when the nation depends solely on just one form of transportation to get peopleto where they need to go. Not all service between Grand Rapids and Chicago has been canceled and Amtrak is still operating some trains between the two destinations, as of Friday morning, Dec. 23 just not on the 370 or 371. It turned out bags were sitting outside on carts at the original boarding gate. Then theres my favorite airline, Southwest and all my frequent flier points. The company has scheduled daytime trackwork in January and February over the last decade, but at least this year Mardi Gras falls the week after the work is set to conclude. If delayed, the average for each routes eastbounds hovered in the 3- to 4-hour range, enough to miss most Midwest Corridor connections. Once crew turn patterns are interrupted for an extended duration, adverse effects are likely to last for days. Love those middle seats. The 33-year-old newly published author and freelance journalist was happy to return home. That turned out to be wrong. The problem, no planning/coordination on the part of Amtrak Ops and the host railroadsits that simple. Amtrak's service cancellations of long-distance trains that take effect on Jan. 24 will mean that trains will not depart from their terminal of origin on consecutive days, Trains magazine reported on its website on Monday. However. Only the federal government screwed up and kept running trains.. The strike could put additional strain on the already log-jammed supply chains and could escalate already high inflation costs. There is too much dependence on airlines and highways. While Amtrak workers are not involved in the ongoing labor dispute, over 21,000 of track miles outside of the northeast corridor Boston to Washington D.C. are owned and maintained by freight companies. Other trains on these routes will continue to operate, though many are already sold out both Thursday and Friday. You can always visitAmtrak.comto learn the real-time status of a train. Why were those funds not used for the intended purpose to maintain equipment, run trains, and maintain skilled employees? Ive met many really nice SWA employees, whether flight deck, cabin, check-in or gate. A file photo of passengers walking along an Amtrak train on a track at Union station in Washington, DC on July 18, 2021. Atlas shrugged. On the other hand, two Chief and Empire Builder arrivals were early and one California Zephyr was only 1 hour, 10 minutes late, so on-time performance is possible. Classic Railroad Scenes: Railroads at Work. Was able to rebook for Friday. And while were talking about Southwest Airlines, lets keep the railroads into our discussion of utter depravity. Get great snapshots of railroading history in Art Petersons newest book. CN reaches paid sick time agreements with four unions in U.S. 2023 National Garden Railway Convention is in Santa Clara, Second Vancouver, B.C., Cascades round trip set to roll Monday. # $ % & ' ( ) * + , - . The train left a Washington D.C. suburb on Monday and was supposed to arrive Tuesday morning in Central Florida. California Zephyrs continue to operate between Chicago and Emeryville, Calif., but are experiencing various delays, according to the Amtrak Alerts feed, for issues including freight train interference, mechanical delays, and crew rest issues. more, You seem to have JavaScript disabled. I would say Wednesday afternoon till Friday night.. maybe saturday by 6am. I live 50 miles from the nearest commercial airport and there are a couple of options for getting home from there. Posted by blue streak 1 on Friday, July 29, 2022 5:31 AM. Doesn't look like a scam. Amtrak suffers more long-distance cancellations, delays: Analysis. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Due to poor and bumbling management at Amtrak and these paper and pencil pushing executives who couldnt even manage a grocery store properly but do know how to count their bonuses and deposit them in their accounts and have now brought Amtrak down to the lowest levels of respect and virtually no confidence in train travel or trust. I will use my balance on the NEC traveling 1st class on the Acela then no more Amtrak for me. Of course no one at Amtrak ever anticipates the arrival of winter. A month later, Amtrak sweetened the offer to $200. Would that any with authority and interest to change the things you cite take up your cause. While private enterprise does some things well, under current finacialist ideology too many parts of our economic life have broken down. That permitted its cars and locomotives to turn back to Chicago the same day, rather than miss a timely eastbound departure after completing the westbounds off-schedule trek to the Bay Area. The valuable contents are removed from the bags and sold separately to customers local and national. How to buy Amtrak Tickets? We are officially a third-world country because a snowstorm shuts down all railroad operations. How to Check Real-Time Train Status Visit Our Website You can always visit Amtrak.com to learn the real-time status of a train. Is it possible that cancelling the train is not actually Amtrak - that the cancellation is actually due to problems with or direction from the host RR? Unless Amtrak and the host railroad collectively can come up with a credible contingency plan for being able to rescue a trainfull of passengers from the middle of nowhere in the middle of a prolonged blizzard, in today's, litigious society the tendency would be to opt towards caution leading to cancellation rather than trying a hail Mary and hope for the best. I looked for the smallest line I could find at a ticketing desk in the terminal gates area. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Amtrak #53 auto Train 9 hours late/Auto Train delays and cancellations Dec 2019. Winterized diesel fuel solves the problem with gelling(thats what happens to diesel in extreme cold, it gels and doesnt flow)so thats not the problem. And it only takes a few dominoes to make the rest to start falling. 6 departed at 4:20 p.m. instead of the scheduled 9:10 a.m. Amtrak alerts notifications on Twitter and the companys website attribute mechanical issues as the reason for delays to long-distance trains every day.
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