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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — The board of directors of the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments has directed its staff to prepare a formal agreement for commuter rail service between Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, following a meeting of the organization on Wednesday, KEYT-TV reports. The proposal would add an early-morning Metrolink trip for commuters […]
LAKE CITY, Minn. — Gearing up for the May 21 launch of the Chicago-St. Paul Borealis, Amtrak ran a special test train between the two cities on Tuesday, May 7, using the planned Horizon and Amfleet equipment and operating on the train’s schedule. The trip included all scheduled stops. The special is shown here in […]
WASHINGTON — President Biden’s nomination last week of experienced railroad chief executive Ron Batory to Amtrak’s board of directors checked a number of boxes. But his main contribution will likely be the perspective he gained during a stint as Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration that provided a ringside seat to Amtrak management’s business practices […]
NEWARK, N.J. — A New Jersey doctor has been sentenced to 26 months in prison for his role in a health-care fraud targeting Amtrak, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced. Muhammad Mirza, 51, of Cedar Grove, N.J., had previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. The sentence was imposed by […]
MOBILE, Ala. — The City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment today unanimously approved the special zoning exception requested by Amtrak for a temporary station platform and adjacent parking in Mobile, a necessary step forward in the slow-moving effort to launch Gulf Coast passenger service between Mobile and New Orleans. CSX and the Port of […]
MOBILE, Ala. —“Hopeful” is the key word in the status report on Gulf Coast passenger service submitted by Amtrak, CSX, Norfolk Southern, and the Port of Mobile to the Surface Transportation Board last week. The May 1 report was required by the STB after a February hearing and subsequent explanation of delays was short on […]
SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. — Use of some 500,000 cubic yards of sand as a buffer has been added to the Orange County Transportation Authority’s plans to protect the Surf Line through San Clemente, the Orange County Register reports. The route used by Metrolink commuter trains, Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliners, and BNSF freight traffic has been plagued […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak has issued two Requests for Information seeking to provide high-speed wi-fi connectivity along the 450-mile Northeast Corridor, the company announced Thursday, May 2. One of the requests seeks to identify organizations interested in deploying a fiber network along the NEC; the other seeks metrics to understand the market demand along six subsections […]
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden will nominate former Federal Railroad Admininstration Administrator Ron Batory and Elaine Marie Clegg, CEO of Valley Regional Transit in Idaho’s Ada and Canyon counties, to serve on Amtrak’s Board of Directors, the White House announced today (May 2). Batory, now a resident of New Mexico, and Clegg, of Boise, Idaho, […]
LEE’S SUMMIT, Mo. — Amtrak’s Missouri River Runners will resume operation on Thursday, May 2, after four days of cancellations, the company announced this afternoon. Union Pacific informed the passenger operator that it would be able to accommodate the two daily St. Louis-Kansas City round trips as cleanup continued following the Sunday derailment of a […]
CHICAGO — Amtrak will launch a second daily train between Chicago and St. Paul, Minn., the state-sponsored Borealis, on May 21, the passenger operator announced today. The train, using Horizon coaches and a café car, will offer Business Class service. It will substitute for one of the current Hiawatha round trips on the Chicago-Milwaukee portion […]
LEE’S SUMMIT, Mo. — Amtrak’s Missouri River Runners will be cancelled for a fourth straight day on Wednesday, May 1, Amtrak announced tonight (Tuesday, April 30). Service on the route between St. Louis and Kansas City, Mo., will continue to be covered by chartered buses. Trains 318 and 319, which normally provide through service to […]
