Tough week for western long distance trains NEWSWIRE

CHICAGO – Keeping trains running through the so-called “polar vortex” in the center of North America and massive weather systems impacting the West Coast with heavy rains and snow have taken their toll on timekeeping. Here’s a quick recap from north to south:

Canadian: Westbound VIA Rail train No. 1 due into Vancouver, B.C., Feb. 16., was spotted at Jasper, Alta., that day running 22 hours late. It had departed Toronto one hour, 49 minutes late on Tuesday but encountered significant Canadian National freight train congestion. The train did manage to roll through St. Lazare, Manitoba, 10 miles east of the Saskatchewan border more than a day before CN derailed 37 oil cars there at 3:30 a.m. Saturday morning, according to a Winnipeg Free Press report quoting CN spokesman Jonathan Abecassis. Thanks to generous padding, the westbound train arrived into Vancouver at 11:09 a.m. Pacific Time Sunday, slightly more than 17 hours behind schedule

Meanwhile, eastbound train No. 2 departed Vancouver four hours late on Friday with locomotive problems. Trains subscriber Neil Lang was aboard at Jasper when the two trains staged a rare meet at Jasper. However, by Sunday afternoon the eastbound Canadian had to be recrewed west of Viking, Alberta, already more than 14 hours late waiting for three westbound CN freights. The good news: Lang tells Trains News Wire that VIA’s service manager was told tracks had been cleared at the site of Saturday morning’s derailment. It left Winnipeg 14 hours late at 1:56 p.m. Monday afternoon.

Empire Builder: Eastbound No. 8 due into Chicago on Mon., Feb 11., arrived at 9:17 a.m. Tuesday morning, 17 hours and 23 minutes late. That day’s both westbound and eastbound Builders were cancelled. Through the week timekeeping improved somewhat, but then relapsed at the end of the week. Eastbound Chicago arrivals were almost 11 hours late Friday (2:31 a.m.) and 9 hours tardy on Saturday (12:57 a.m.). Westbound Empire Builders arrived into Seattle close to on-time Friday and Saturday mornings but Sunday’s train left Chicago on time Friday but continued to lose time, arriving Sunday at 5:02 P.M. The day’s eastbound departure was delayed four and a half hours, until 9:09 p.m. instead of 4:40 p.m.

Coast Starlight: The Seattle-Los Angeles overnight train has been fighting snow in Oregon south of Eugene and slow orders along the route all week. Before Sunday’s arrival into L.A. 46 minutes past the scheduled 9 p.m. time, Starlights on three of the four previous days arrived at 1:03 a.m., 4:17 a.m., and 5:28 p.m. Thursday (due Wednesday evening). Los Angeles shop forces had enough Superliners to assemble a northbound train on Thursday and get it out close to on-time. From the south, delays into Eugene averaged from two to nearly five hours late every day.

California Zephyr: Thursday’s train clocked into Chicago almost 11 hours late (1:39 a.m.). The longest delay, though, occurred on the Zephyr that departed Emeryville, Calif., nearly on-time Thursday morning but arrived Denver more than six hours late. It left the Mile High City close to 10 hours late Saturday morning, then arrived into the Windy City at 10:53 a.m. Sunday. This delayed Sunday’s Chicago departure by three hours. Into Emeryville, Calif., westbound Zephyr arrivals at the end of the week ranged from three-and-a-half hours late (Saturday) to nine hours (Sunday’s train arriving at 1:15 a.m. Monday morning., in turn delaying today’s departure).

Southwest Chief: With little freight congestion and good BNSF Railway handling all the way, delays were minimal; Chiefs arrived early or within 30 minutes of scheduled time into both Chicago and Los Angeles more than 70 percent of the time, with two instances of 6 hour delays.

Sunset Limited: Though the train only has two weekly departures through March 7 owing to Union Pacific trackwork east of El Paso, Tex., a westbound Sunset headed to Los Angeles was stopped at Tucson, Ariz., following a washout west of Yuma, Ariz., on Feb 14. The eastbound Sunset that was supposed to leave Los Angeles Friday evening instead originated at Tucson almost five hours late on Saturday, spent two and a half hours at San Antonio (even though the Texas Eagle was not held; connections were bused) and arrived into New Orleans more than four hours late at 1:59 a.m. Monday morning. The blockage has been cleared; today’s Sunset arrival into Los Angeles was only 40 minutes late.