WASHINGTON — Amtrak is scrapping plans for a new generation of bi-level passenger equipment to replace its aging Superliner fleet, announcing that it will instead move ahead with developing a single-level fleet for use across its system. The company said in a press release that the move reflects “extensive analysis of the challenges associated with […]
NEW YORK — Amtrak and rail transit operations are essentially back to normal today (Wednesday, Feb. 25) after disruptions that began Sunday night because of a blizzard passing through the Northeast. As of 7:15 a.m. CT, the train status feature of Amtrak’s website shows no cancellations or delays for Northeast Corridor trains originating in Boston […]
NEW YORK — Amtrak service remains subject to significant disruptions on the Northeast Corridor, with a large number of cancellations already announced today (Tuesday, Feb. 24). Service between New York and Boston, shut down since mid-morning on Monday, was tentatively scheduled to resume as of 8 a.m. ET, according to the most recent Amtrak customer […]
EAST LAMPETER TOWNSHIP, Pa. — An Amtrak maintenance worker was killed today (Monday, Feb. 23) when struck by a train near Lancaster, Pa. The incident occurred about 11:30 a.m. in East Lampeter Township, just east of Lancaster. The Lancaster County Coroner’s Office has identified the victim as 39-year-old Jeremy Charles of Holtwood, Pa. He was […]
NEW YORK — Amtrak is reporting large-scale cancellations and most rail transit operations in the Northeast are shut down or operating on a limited basis today (Monday, Feb. 23) following a blizzard that passed through the area overnight. The National Weather Service is reporting snowfall totals for the last 24 hours of 20 inches or […]
MEMPHIS — Three passengers were injured on Sunday (Feb. 22) in a low-speed collision between Amtrak’s City of New Orleans and a Canadian National freight train. Amtrak said in a statement that the incident occurred about 11 a.m. in New South Memphis, Tenn., when southbound train No. 59, which was stopped, was “contacted by a […]
NEW YORK — Amtrak is making “service adjustments” today (Sunday, Feb. 22) and Monday, Feb. 23, because of dangerous weather conditions, the passenger railroad said on Saturday. New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority, NJ Transit, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, and CTRail’s Hartford Line and Shore Line East have also announced service changes. More than 50 […]
WASHINGTON — Federal Railroad Administration officials have briefed the Rail Passengers Association on a plan that would recast Amtrak as a holding company that would oversee separate entities responsible for operations, equipment management and leasing, and infrastructure and construction. According to a statement on the RPA website, there are only cursory details of how the […]
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — The Santa Barbara County Association of Governments has approved plans to help fund expanded Pacific Surfliner passenger service, which would create a rail commuting option for Ventura County residents working in the Santa Barbara area. The new service could begin in late April or early May. At its Feb. 19 meeting, […]
TRUCKEE, Calif.— The eastbound California Zephyr arrived in Truckee today (Feb. 20) just after 1 a.m. Pacific Time, 11 hours late. But it won the battle against massive snowdrifts that had shut down parallel Interstate 80 through the Sierra Nevadas. Televised news reports like this one described multiple I-80 closures throughout a week that saw […]
KEARNY, N.J. — Work is about 25% complete on the cutover of the first track of the new Portal North Bridge, Amtrak and NJ Transit officials said at a Thursday news conference at the construction site. “We’re on track and on schedule,” Jason Hoover, Amtrak assistant vice president, major programs-bridges, said, according to a NorthJersey.com […]
HAMDEN, Conn. — The union official who represents Amtrak engineers has taken exception to a claim by Metropolitan Transportation Authority CEO Janno Lieber that Amtrak “feared the competition” when it withdrew support for proposed Metro-North service between New York City and Albany, N.Y. “The issue is not about competition,” wrote Patrick W. Darcy Jr., general […]
