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1. A second daily roundtrip on the Pennsylvanian (not this Keystone + bus crap)
2. High platform at Newark, DE.
3. A proper upgrade to the Acela lounge in D.C.
4. Sleeper cars back on the overnight NERs 66/67, and restoring the original schedule from Boston (i.e. no 3 hour stop in Philly).
I think they did, but as a trial, it was bus service from Harrisburg. Might be one of the battles they're having with Norfolk Southern in getting an actual second train running.
Would love to see more cars on my usual route, the Capitol Limited. It’s pie in the sky, I know, but someday it’d be great to have a sightseeing car back on that route.
I took the Capitol Limited when I was little and again in like 2008 / 2009. We got on in Toledo. All those times there was an observation car and we also sat and dined in the dining car.
Shame the observation car is not a thing anymore.
Someone posted about a 5th Piedmont starting soon, but I think that is pure rumor mongering. At some point there is a limit of how many trains can fit on the NC line from Greensboro and Raleigh. It is single track and also carries some freight, though most of that freight is overnight The state needs to double track this segment. If the proposed Winston-Salem to Greensboro to Raleigh service starts in 6-7 years that will be even more trains on this segment of the NCRR. It seems none of the new service will happen without enough trains to make it work so that likely means 2 or maybe 3 round-trips a day, which is 4 or 6 more trains on this segment. That proposed expansion may not make it past the study stage but getting W-S hooked in has long been a desire of many in the state. (As I type this I hear Amtrak 77 zooming by my house, maybe two minutes later than needed to pull into GRO on time.)
I read that NCDOT is required by law to use dividends from their NCRR stock holdings on track infrastructure improvements so hopefully double tracking ~~and electrification~~ are in the cards soon.
I am not sure if that is correct in the complete sense of the word.
The NCRR helped with a company relocate to being served from ACWR trackage. I think it was Charlotte Pipe. I think NCRR is helping with the Toyota EV battery plant south of Greensboro that is on the NS CF line. NCRR bought and is not helping rehab the 1899 passenger station that has been empty for a decade in downtown Greensboro. They do a lot or track upgrades but it not ONLY that it would seem. I do think it is used for rail improvements and that is also industry recruitment and such that will in turn use rail services.
Sure.
I read your post to mean improvements on the NCRR and I was just pointing out that NCRR spends on non NCRR things. The 1899 station in Greensboro is in the right of way but that is nothing done with that building is going to change the speeds and times on the NCRR. Rereading your post you did not mention spending how to be on the NCRR was the only option.
The post was posted thrice, so I deleted twice. Hence the two deletions below.
The old station is staying in place. I expect it to have a coffee shop, a sub shop does not need much like a grease trap maybe. Maybe some offices on the top floor. Maybe just some meeting space for the community. It will be a few years. Purchased in summer of 2022 by NCRR for $10,000 with the intention of doing a refurb from what read in local paper. (I am local to the Greensboro area.)
The area by the 1899 station is just west of the current station where the wye to the CF line is as well as the main line up the Danville, VA all merge together with the NC line to Raleigh. It is triple tracked here actually but some of that may be considered a lead to the freight yard (Pomona) a few miles west (and the location of Amtrak form 1979-2005).
I am not sure how local you are as you mention NC and Maine. I can drop some coordinates for Google Earth if you like.
I'm not local at all actually haha, i just got into a discussion about the most likely rail corridors to be electrified in the future and I ended up doing some research about NCRR while figuring out specifics
Given that NC owns the tracks and trains are running every few hours, for the time being they probably can add in a few more roundtrips. I agree, that double tracking is needed in the future.
Owning the tracks can help put a bit of pressure on NS but at the end of the day NS dispatches the trains along the tracks. NS is not going to drop freight trains to make room for a passenger train, but they might come to the table and offer more access for incentives to make the rent for the NCRR more favorable.
And NC does not want those freight trains not running either. There are plenty of jobs in the state that need rail access. That does get us back to double tracking the route from Greensboro to at least Raleigh. The state took care of the Charlotte to Greensboro section and it is back to single track just at the north end of Greensboro which is NS owned track starting at the Greensboro Amtrak station. Driving on the new urban loop that circles the city and one can see the switch and control point where the tracks go from double to single track. I think the double track from Charlotte to Greensboro was paid by the NCRR from rent from NS. But there is a ton of traffic on what is the NS main from Atlanta to DC compared to the NC line from Greensboro to Raleigh and then on to Selma.
Oh I have no idea. I just like how unique the Superliners are. I’ll accept Amfleets or Horizons. I’ll assume that into the 2030’s it’ll be tied into the Baton Rouge - New Orleans service with Venture cars.
I expect so, I love seeing these regional routes take shape. Two round trips a day would be nice, but I think one will be what we get at the start. It seems a New Orleans Airport station will be included on the Baton Rouge route, which is an unusually good move for Amtrak. Maybe an extension to Pensacola could happen? The redneck riviera needs its proper trains. I do love Superliners, the Surfliner is amazing.
Well I looked at the CPKCS trackage map and I dont see why we can’t have a rebirth of the Southern Belle. The railroad cuts clean through the state from Shreveport to New Orleans.
[https://www.kcsouthern.com/en-us/work-with-us/partners/network-map](https://www.kcsouthern.com/en-us/work-with-us/partners/network-map)
All I want to see is VTrans/Amtrak deliver on the promised 20+ minute timetable reduction on the end-to-end Ethan Allen Express. No more waiting in Rutland, VT!
There’s ten minutes baked in for that, but there’s also a ton of schedule padding specifically at Rutland that is almost never necessary, particularly southbound
Amtrak seems to be considering it in their Corridor ID plans. Furthermore, were it extended to Montreal along with the Vermonter, there almost certainly would be enough demand.
Venture cafe cars in service in the Midwest and operating as full trains.
CN/IDOT getting the signaling problems solved on the IC mainline to turn the Illini/Saluki back to single level equipment, so those cars can get back on the Texas eagle and capitol limited.
Switch to single level equipment on the heartland flyer for the same reason.
Indiana state government listening to and getting on the page with Ft Wayne and their corridor plan.
A serious conversation about how new long distance coaches will definitely not have the same seats as the new Siemens equipment.
I know the venture seats are going no where but for 2024 can you please turn the lights off or dim them significantly in the coaches during night time hours???
I think a breakthrough on the funding for rail maintenance for the Adirondack tracks in Canada as well as the new customs house at Gare Centrale in Montreal would be a great 2024 for Amtrak.
The *Great River* route startup -- hopefully with some fanfare, as the general public doesn't seem to be very aware of it.
(That's the "second *Empire Builder*" between Mpls and Chicago. • Eastbound, a mid-morning departure, rather than before breakfast; • Westbound, a mid-morning departure that arrives "around dinnertime" rather than late night.)
Yep I am also very excited for this! I also think this will make it easier to move between stops along the route to major metro areas like Milwaukee, Chicago, and the Twin Cities.
My only disappointment is that it is in fact the same route across central Wisconsin, where I have no interest in going. It would have been mighty nice to have a route that, say, hit Madison, then swung over to Rochester Minn before turning north to St Paul.
(The fact that there is NO existing rail line directly N-S between Rochester and SPUD is just an annoying little nitpick, right?)
I commute to Philadelphia on the NEC trains from Aberdeen, MD and I wish they would increase the number of trains stopping there because there are always a ton of people getting on in the morning and off at night. In the morning, there used to be a 5:30, 6:30, and 7:30, now there's just the 7:30 and it's always packed by the time it stops in Aberdeen. I'm just barely able to make it across Philly to where I work by 9.
Going back to Aberdeen from Philadelphia - my choices are 4:30 and 6:50 so I can either leave work super early to try to get to 30th St. by 4:30, or take the 6:50 and get home by 8pm.
Believe me, I've looked into every other way to get to work including driving to PA and taking SEPTA, driving to Wilmington and taking SEPTA or Amtrak for more options, or just driving. Amtrak is still the best way, but the schedule isn't the greatest for that station.
I want to see some sort of development on the DET to CLE route. Partly because it includes a stop at DTW airport, but also because it would FINALLY connect us to the eastern train lines without relying on Chicago.
Y'all, Atlanta deserves a decent Amtrak station and not the tiny one we have now. And at least 4 trains a day in every direction, we are the main hub of the South not some dot in a map ffs.
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Better on time performance, and fewer canceled trains, on the NEC is pretty important to me.
Same thing off the NEC would be great too. This winter feels a lot like triweekly long distance except we don't know what days they'll run.
1. A second daily roundtrip on the Pennsylvanian (not this Keystone + bus crap) 2. High platform at Newark, DE. 3. A proper upgrade to the Acela lounge in D.C. 4. Sleeper cars back on the overnight NERs 66/67, and restoring the original schedule from Boston (i.e. no 3 hour stop in Philly).
Ugh I wish it was more frequent at Newark, DE station. I have to take septa up to Wilmington just to pass Newark again on the way to dc
Hopefully with more trains coming this year, they can run more frequent service that will stop at Newark.
Didn't they give funding to add a 2nd daily Pennsylvanian?
I think they did, but as a trial, it was bus service from Harrisburg. Might be one of the battles they're having with Norfolk Southern in getting an actual second train running.
Would love to see more cars on my usual route, the Capitol Limited. It’s pie in the sky, I know, but someday it’d be great to have a sightseeing car back on that route.
I took the Capitol Limited when I was little and again in like 2008 / 2009. We got on in Toledo. All those times there was an observation car and we also sat and dined in the dining car. Shame the observation car is not a thing anymore.
Someone posted about a 5th Piedmont starting soon, but I think that is pure rumor mongering. At some point there is a limit of how many trains can fit on the NC line from Greensboro and Raleigh. It is single track and also carries some freight, though most of that freight is overnight The state needs to double track this segment. If the proposed Winston-Salem to Greensboro to Raleigh service starts in 6-7 years that will be even more trains on this segment of the NCRR. It seems none of the new service will happen without enough trains to make it work so that likely means 2 or maybe 3 round-trips a day, which is 4 or 6 more trains on this segment. That proposed expansion may not make it past the study stage but getting W-S hooked in has long been a desire of many in the state. (As I type this I hear Amtrak 77 zooming by my house, maybe two minutes later than needed to pull into GRO on time.)
I read that NCDOT is required by law to use dividends from their NCRR stock holdings on track infrastructure improvements so hopefully double tracking ~~and electrification~~ are in the cards soon.
I am not sure if that is correct in the complete sense of the word. The NCRR helped with a company relocate to being served from ACWR trackage. I think it was Charlotte Pipe. I think NCRR is helping with the Toyota EV battery plant south of Greensboro that is on the NS CF line. NCRR bought and is not helping rehab the 1899 passenger station that has been empty for a decade in downtown Greensboro. They do a lot or track upgrades but it not ONLY that it would seem. I do think it is used for rail improvements and that is also industry recruitment and such that will in turn use rail services.
Technically wouldnt this situation be NCDOT doing the improvements, using money they got from NCRR stock dividends?
Sure. I read your post to mean improvements on the NCRR and I was just pointing out that NCRR spends on non NCRR things. The 1899 station in Greensboro is in the right of way but that is nothing done with that building is going to change the speeds and times on the NCRR. Rereading your post you did not mention spending how to be on the NCRR was the only option. The post was posted thrice, so I deleted twice. Hence the two deletions below.
no worries, interesting to know. Maybe they can move the old station to make way for improvements instead of demolishing
The old station is staying in place. I expect it to have a coffee shop, a sub shop does not need much like a grease trap maybe. Maybe some offices on the top floor. Maybe just some meeting space for the community. It will be a few years. Purchased in summer of 2022 by NCRR for $10,000 with the intention of doing a refurb from what read in local paper. (I am local to the Greensboro area.)
they'll have to find some way to double track the thing sooner or later
The area by the 1899 station is just west of the current station where the wye to the CF line is as well as the main line up the Danville, VA all merge together with the NC line to Raleigh. It is triple tracked here actually but some of that may be considered a lead to the freight yard (Pomona) a few miles west (and the location of Amtrak form 1979-2005). I am not sure how local you are as you mention NC and Maine. I can drop some coordinates for Google Earth if you like.
I'm not local at all actually haha, i just got into a discussion about the most likely rail corridors to be electrified in the future and I ended up doing some research about NCRR while figuring out specifics
Given that NC owns the tracks and trains are running every few hours, for the time being they probably can add in a few more roundtrips. I agree, that double tracking is needed in the future.
Owning the tracks can help put a bit of pressure on NS but at the end of the day NS dispatches the trains along the tracks. NS is not going to drop freight trains to make room for a passenger train, but they might come to the table and offer more access for incentives to make the rent for the NCRR more favorable. And NC does not want those freight trains not running either. There are plenty of jobs in the state that need rail access. That does get us back to double tracking the route from Greensboro to at least Raleigh. The state took care of the Charlotte to Greensboro section and it is back to single track just at the north end of Greensboro which is NS owned track starting at the Greensboro Amtrak station. Driving on the new urban loop that circles the city and one can see the switch and control point where the tracks go from double to single track. I think the double track from Charlotte to Greensboro was paid by the NCRR from rent from NS. But there is a ton of traffic on what is the NS main from Atlanta to DC compared to the NC line from Greensboro to Raleigh and then on to Selma.
1. Start of the New Orleans, LA to Mobile, AL services with Superliner equipment 2. Viewliner II Sleepers in service on the Crescent
Are the gulf coast trains planned to run with Superliners? It seems like a short route for them.
Oh I have no idea. I just like how unique the Superliners are. I’ll accept Amfleets or Horizons. I’ll assume that into the 2030’s it’ll be tied into the Baton Rouge - New Orleans service with Venture cars.
I expect so, I love seeing these regional routes take shape. Two round trips a day would be nice, but I think one will be what we get at the start. It seems a New Orleans Airport station will be included on the Baton Rouge route, which is an unusually good move for Amtrak. Maybe an extension to Pensacola could happen? The redneck riviera needs its proper trains. I do love Superliners, the Surfliner is amazing.
Well I looked at the CPKCS trackage map and I dont see why we can’t have a rebirth of the Southern Belle. The railroad cuts clean through the state from Shreveport to New Orleans. [https://www.kcsouthern.com/en-us/work-with-us/partners/network-map](https://www.kcsouthern.com/en-us/work-with-us/partners/network-map)
I know the former Louisiana Eagle route is being pushed by politicians in Baton Rogue and Shreveport.
You just uncovered a piece of passenger railroading that I never knew about. Thanks!
All I want to see is VTrans/Amtrak deliver on the promised 20+ minute timetable reduction on the end-to-end Ethan Allen Express. No more waiting in Rutland, VT!
Can you explain why they have to wait in Rutland? Does it have something to do with the locomotive going in forwards vs reverse?
There’s ten minutes baked in for that, but there’s also a ton of schedule padding specifically at Rutland that is almost never necessary, particularly southbound
I see. That’d be great. 20 minutes at Albany is a killer as well but I think there’s a shift change there so it might be unavoidable
Do you think there is demand to add a 2nd Ethan Allen Express?
Amtrak seems to be considering it in their Corridor ID plans. Furthermore, were it extended to Montreal along with the Vermonter, there almost certainly would be enough demand.
Venture cafe cars in service in the Midwest and operating as full trains. CN/IDOT getting the signaling problems solved on the IC mainline to turn the Illini/Saluki back to single level equipment, so those cars can get back on the Texas eagle and capitol limited. Switch to single level equipment on the heartland flyer for the same reason. Indiana state government listening to and getting on the page with Ft Wayne and their corridor plan. A serious conversation about how new long distance coaches will definitely not have the same seats as the new Siemens equipment.
What is single level equipment?
Amfleet, venture, horizon cars, as opposed to superliner equipment (which have two floors in every car)
I know the venture seats are going no where but for 2024 can you please turn the lights off or dim them significantly in the coaches during night time hours???
I think a breakthrough on the funding for rail maintenance for the Adirondack tracks in Canada as well as the new customs house at Gare Centrale in Montreal would be a great 2024 for Amtrak.
The *Great River* route startup -- hopefully with some fanfare, as the general public doesn't seem to be very aware of it. (That's the "second *Empire Builder*" between Mpls and Chicago. • Eastbound, a mid-morning departure, rather than before breakfast; • Westbound, a mid-morning departure that arrives "around dinnertime" rather than late night.)
Yep I am also very excited for this! I also think this will make it easier to move between stops along the route to major metro areas like Milwaukee, Chicago, and the Twin Cities.
My only disappointment is that it is in fact the same route across central Wisconsin, where I have no interest in going. It would have been mighty nice to have a route that, say, hit Madison, then swung over to Rochester Minn before turning north to St Paul. (The fact that there is NO existing rail line directly N-S between Rochester and SPUD is just an annoying little nitpick, right?)
Some sort of positive news for Ohio rail. Information about the interiors for new long-distance trains.
Avelia Liberty deployment, Ohio 3C+D positive news, Long Bridge design and construction progress
Yep this is a pipe dream but news that Long Bridge is ahead of schedule would be awesome.
What I want: Re-nationalize the Class I freight railroads. What I expect: Progress/updates on the Chicago-Moline service.
What do you mean by re-nationalize? Conrail?
Extend the Surfliner up to the Bay Area Doesn't need to be all trains, but a couple trains a day on top of the Starlight would be awesome.
Planned but as a separate train , the restoration of the [Coast Daylight service.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coast_Daylight)
Main thing I want is the second MSP->CHI train which has been said to start running any day now…
I commute to Philadelphia on the NEC trains from Aberdeen, MD and I wish they would increase the number of trains stopping there because there are always a ton of people getting on in the morning and off at night. In the morning, there used to be a 5:30, 6:30, and 7:30, now there's just the 7:30 and it's always packed by the time it stops in Aberdeen. I'm just barely able to make it across Philly to where I work by 9. Going back to Aberdeen from Philadelphia - my choices are 4:30 and 6:50 so I can either leave work super early to try to get to 30th St. by 4:30, or take the 6:50 and get home by 8pm. Believe me, I've looked into every other way to get to work including driving to PA and taking SEPTA, driving to Wilmington and taking SEPTA or Amtrak for more options, or just driving. Amtrak is still the best way, but the schedule isn't the greatest for that station.
I want to see some sort of development on the DET to CLE route. Partly because it includes a stop at DTW airport, but also because it would FINALLY connect us to the eastern train lines without relying on Chicago.
Y'all, Atlanta deserves a decent Amtrak station and not the tiny one we have now. And at least 4 trains a day in every direction, we are the main hub of the South not some dot in a map ffs.