# Mid-Atlantic/NE snowstorm and Amtrak



## sppunk (Dec 18, 2009)

I am planning on taking Amtrak's Keystone from Harrisburg to NYC Saturday morning, and hope to return from NYC to Harrisburg via the Keystone Sunday early afternoon.

At this time, there is a major winter storm predicted with upwards of a foot of snow between Harrisburg and Philadelphia (where there is a stop at 30th St) and from Philadelphia to NYC Saturday afternoon until late Saturday night. The snow should be moved out by midnight or 2 a.m. Sunday.

My question is: Is it wise for me to go ahead and travel and expect the train to operate Sunday afternoon? I've not been here for a big snow event (8-14 inches) and have no idea if Amtrak travel through the NE and Keystone lines shuts down.

I will not go to NYC and eat the money already spent on show tickets and hotel if there is a high chance of Amtrak cancellations/delays Sunday. Thanks in advance!


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## OlympianHiawatha (Dec 18, 2009)

I would say there is a very good chance your train should be alright, although maybe a bit late. When the roads and airports are dead in the water from bad weather, the trains are usually still rolling, albeit slower than normal.


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## Heading North (Dec 18, 2009)

Others may have more experience in this than me, so please do chime in... but for most winter storms in the Northeast, Amtrak does keep running, although it can be a slow go. It's hard to tell right now.

In some cases, only two of the four tracks between New York and Philadelphia are able to stay open, and that means half the capacity (think of a four-lane highway narrowing to two). If it's really bad, there may also be some slowdowns Sunday to try to get the tracks in better shape for the Monday morning rush hour.

It depends on the kinds of "delays" that would affect your decision, and it's hard to tell before the snow's on the ground. I wouldn't expect things to be right on time, just as a bus or a car probably wouldn't be perfectly on time in those conditions. But I also wouldn't expect the sorts of major delays (several hours) that you often see at airports when bad weather hits.


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## Guest (Dec 18, 2009)

Thank you - it's usually a 3:15 run (with the 10 minute layover in Philly). I'm perfectly OK with it taking longer and can easily hop on early trains ... but I can't not be home Sunday night so being stuck in a traincar somewhere between NYC and Philly or in Philly itself isn't a good situation for my family!


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## j653 (Dec 18, 2009)

My best guess is that you will be fine. The brunt of the snow is expected in Central Pa. Saturday afternoon and evening.


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## acelafan (Dec 18, 2009)

j653 said:


> My best guess is that you will be fine. The brunt of the snow is expected in Central Pa. Saturday afternoon and evening.


Agreed here, some delays but hopefully nothing like they get out west. I'm on #98 Silver Meteor right now headed for DC, then a Regional tomorrow morning to go onto Boston. Looking forward to seeing some snow while riding Amtrak!


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## Tony (Dec 18, 2009)

I would add to the expect delays, to plan for delays. Make sure you are all set to have a longer than expected train ride. I would bring extra money to buy food, or better, bring some of your own along. That includes possibly soft drinks too.

Hay if the train is really late, you might be able to re-coop the cost of your theater tickets, but selling extra sandwiches for $50 a piece. :lol:


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## Bill Haithcoat (Dec 18, 2009)

I was watching CNN at 2.55 pm this Friday afternoon 12/18/09. The weatherman was mentioning the major highways and suspected all of them will have trouble.

Then he finally swooped his hand over the whole map and said something like, "I guess the train will be the safest way". If was just an off-hand remark but I will take it!! Hearing anything half way complimentary about the train is much appreciated.

Dare I say that his gestures imply that he even knows there are trains besides just those in the N.E. corrider?


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## Pastor Dave (Dec 18, 2009)

I went Philadelphia - Pittsburgh on the Broaway Limited several years ago during an awful storm. Other than being a few minutes late, I don't remember any problems.

What I do remember was a poor woman who somehow got caught in the vestibule between cars an when the car door finally opened she looked like a snowman. But she laughed about it and we shared the laugh with her.

Enjoy your trip!!


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## acelafan (Dec 18, 2009)

Bill Haithcoat said:


> I was watching CNN at 2.55 pm this Friday afternoon 12/18/09. The weatherman was mentioning the major highways and suspected all of them will have trouble.
> Then he finally swooped his hand over the whole map and said something like, "I guess the train will be the safest way". If was just an off-hand remark but I will take it!! Hearing anything half way complimentary about the train is much appreciated.
> 
> Dare I say that his gestures imply that he even knows there are trains besides just those in the N.E. corrider?


Isn't that the truth! A nice plug for passenger rail.


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## ALC Rail Writer (Dec 18, 2009)

I just saw on CNN their weatherman said "the train is probably the safest here between New York and Virginia-- these roads are going to be BLOCKED."

He had previously said flights will be ruined.


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## AlanB (Dec 18, 2009)

In over 10 years of watching things, I think that I've only seen one occasion where Amtrak totally shut down and gave up. Often they'll cancel half the trains because of a really bad snow storm, but usually they still get through.

All that said, based upon the current forecast, I'd say that your real worry would be getting to NY. IMHO it's far more likely that trains on Saturday will have the biggest problems and not so much on Sunday, at least for where you're' traveling. If one was going to/from Boston, then Sunday would remain a big potential problem.


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## MrEd (Dec 18, 2009)

Spokeswoman Karina Romero said in an e-mail that the company was preparing for a snowstorm expected to dump up to 20 inches of snow on the Washington region.

Romero says extra crews will be on duty in part to ensure that the overhead wires electric trains use to get power do not get a buildup of ice. Extra locomotives, all of which are equipped with snow plows, would be available if the company needs them.

Romero says Amtrak does not anticipate delays, but she recommended travelers make a reservation before heading to the station and check on the status of trains using Amtrak's Web site.

http://www.nbc12.com/Global/story.asp?S=11701393


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## the_traveler (Dec 18, 2009)

While I think that the trains will run fine - even if a little late - I think the *REAL* problem will be driving or walking to and from the train stations! :blink:

I was planning on taking a point run on Saturday afternoon, but will postpone - because I think that I'll have trouble on the drive to and from the station!


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## lsa (Dec 18, 2009)

thank god i be on lake 4 limited.


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## DET63 (Dec 18, 2009)

As an aside, would anyone like to go out and videotape the trains when there's ice on the wires? You should be able to get a pretty fireworks display from the arcing.


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## sppunk (Dec 18, 2009)

We're leaving Harrisburg at 9:30, and getting into NYC around 12:45 p.m. Snow won't really pick up from Philly to NYC until 2 or 3 p.m. so we'll have no issues getting there (ahead of the snow).

I'm confident coming home won't be too bad - thanks everyone for your kind remarks and input. I love Amtrak and the Harrisburg-NYC route is great, if only a tad cheaper ...


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## Guest (Dec 18, 2009)

they just need a few of these, then there would be no problems ever


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## Shanghai (Dec 18, 2009)

The latest forecast for Northern New Jersey and New York City is 12 to 18 inches.

Eastern Long Island will have blizzard conditions.

I think the snow is coming late tonight / early tomorrow morning.

Good Luck.


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## lsa (Dec 19, 2009)

as long i get to chicago on time!


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## MrFSS (Dec 19, 2009)

Must be getting pretty bad in Virginia.

*Story*


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## amamba (Dec 19, 2009)

DH took the NE regional this morning from BOS to PVD and he said it was PACKED, but luckily still on time (left BOS around 11:30 am). He did say that most of the northbound trains coming from WAS and NYP were delayed.


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## acelafan (Dec 19, 2009)

amamba said:


> DH took the NE regional this morning from BOS to PVD and he said it was PACKED, but luckily still on time (left BOS around 11:30 am). He did say that most of the northbound trains coming from WAS and NYP were delayed.


I can confirm #82 and #88 originating in Richmond - both are delayed by a few hours heading north. I'm in WAS now and it's still snowing steadily.


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## The Metropolitan (Dec 19, 2009)

Local news here in Baltimore just reported that the Bears have not yet made it into Baltimore for their game tomorrow, and are quite possibly going to fly to New York and take the train into town instead!


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## Bob Dylan (Dec 19, 2009)

The Metropolitan said:


> Local news here in Baltimore just reported that the Bears have not yet made it into Baltimore for their game tomorrow, and are quite possibly going to fly to New York and take the train into town instead!


"..I might take a plane,I might take a train,

If I have to walk I'll get there just the same.." :lol:

The Bears will once again be the Cubs!!! :lol:


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## the_traveler (Dec 19, 2009)

The Metropolitan said:


> Local news here in Baltimore just reported that the Bears have not yet made it into Baltimore for their game tomorrow, and are quite possibly going to fly to New York and take the train into town instead!


If they can't fly into Baltimore due to the weather, how do they expect to fly into New York? :huh: The weather is going to be the same - or worse!


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## wayman (Dec 19, 2009)

MrFSS said:


> Must be getting pretty bad in Virginia.
> *Story*


My parents reported an hour ago that it's 12" just outside their door (Lynchburg), and appears deeper out in the open (but they don't want to venture further outside!). They said there were 24" reported in Charlottesville by noon today! Still falling heavily in both places.

Heavy snow all day in Philadelphia. The forecast for Philadelphia at Wunderground.com says "Current Conditions: Heavy Snow Blowing Snow Freezing Fog"! Freezing Fog is a World of Warcraft magic spell. It may also be a technical weather term I'm unfamiliar with, but I think a meteorologist is just having a little fun :lol:


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## Guest (Dec 19, 2009)

WMATA has cancelled ALL bus service and ALL above-ground rail service!

http://www.wmata.com/about_metro/news/Pres...?ReleaseID=4196


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## AlanB (Dec 19, 2009)

It only started snowing in NY about an hour ago, around 2:00 and it's still very light at this point. So getting into NY would be possible. However I heard around 1:00 maybe on the weather channel that the DC airports had been shut down. No flight in or out.


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## the_traveler (Dec 19, 2009)

Still no snow falling on the ground in RI. The radar has shown snow all around for hours!


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## AlanB (Dec 19, 2009)

the_traveler said:


> Still no snow falling on the ground in RI. The radar has shown snow all around for hours!


The air mass over NY, RI, Boston is so dry that it gobbles up the initial moisture. We had the same thing here in NY, from at least 10:00 AM till around 1:30 to 2:00 before the first flakes hit the ground.


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## Bob Dylan (Dec 19, 2009)

the_traveler said:


> Still no snow falling on the ground in RI. The radar has shown snow all around for hours!


Could it be that RI is so small that the wind blows the snow into Mass? :lol:


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## PRR 60 (Dec 19, 2009)

AlanB said:


> It only started snowing in NY about an hour ago, around 2:00 and it's still very light at this point. So getting into NY would be possible. However I heard around 1:00 maybe on the weather channel that the DC airports had been shut down. No flight in or out.


BWI and National are closed. Dulles is open, but with very limited operations. I bet the Beltway is a little slice of heaven today.


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## The Metropolitan (Dec 19, 2009)

the_traveler said:


> The Metropolitan said:
> 
> 
> > Local news here in Baltimore just reported that the Bears have not yet made it into Baltimore for their game tomorrow, and are quite possibly going to fly to New York and take the train into town instead!
> ...


Don't shoot the messenger!

http://www.wbaltv.com/news/22014880/detail.html



> "Other possibilities obviously would be considerations to send them to another city northeast of her and train them down and get them here."


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## DivMiler (Dec 19, 2009)

PRR 60 said:


> I bet the Beltway is a little slice of heaven today.


Thanks for the laugh, *PRR 60*. The sarcasm just poured off the screen.


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## Tygercat (Dec 19, 2009)

We have between 18 and 24 inches here in Millersville, MD (near BWI), and it is still steadily snowing. BWI airport is closed down. It is very quiet here with no airplanes going overhead. At this moment, MTA website says "minor delays" for buses and light rail, subway is OK, major disruptions for Maryland Mobility.


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## Big Iron (Dec 19, 2009)

MrFSS said:


> Must be getting pretty bad in Virginia.
> *Story*



HokieNav would know the place very well. I-81, around MP 124 in Montgomery County, closed in both directions for the better part of 8 hours. Still moving at a crawl in some areas. Trafficland.com has good views of the VA highways. Interesting to see people walking thier dogs in the middle of an interstate. No passnger trains in that vicinity.


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## afigg (Dec 19, 2009)

PRR 60 said:


> BWI and National are closed. Dulles is open, but with very limited operations. I bet the Beltway is a little slice of heaven today.


According to the TV news, Philadelphia airport is also closed, but JFK and LaGuardia are still open. From the predicted snowfall maps I saw this morning, the worse part was expected to be in a wide band from central VA to north central NJ. The storm is moving up the coast, so it makes sense for the Bears to fly into one of the NYC airports ahead of the storm and then try to take Amtrak south to Baltimore. But the snowfall is so intense this afternoon here where I am in Sterling, VA (NW of DC), one has to wonder if Amtrak can keep enough of the NEC tracks clear to keep the trains moving. However, the current train status info at the Amtrak website shows that most trains from NYP to BAL are running only 10 to 30 minutes late.

The DC Beltway has to be a total mess. With Washington Metro shutting down for the above ground part of it's system; parts of I-81 out to the west reportedly closed, lousy day to travel by car or air.

As for the Bear, I wonder how it works for a large sports team making last minute travel arrangements on Amtrak? Do they try to book tickets for everybody on regular trains? What happens if there are not enough seats left? "Ok, let's get the defense to Baltimore first and they will have to stop the Ravens until the offense gets there?" :blink: Seriously, can they charter Amtrak to add a extra Amfleet car or two to the consist of a Regional headed from NYP to Baltimore on short notice?


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## Shanghai (Dec 19, 2009)

I'm in Northern New Jersey, 24 miles west of Manhattan. We have about 1 inch of snow now with a forecast of 8 to 12 inches.

Newark, JFK and LGA were operating on schedule at 1:00pm with lighter than normal passenger loads.

The major direction of the storm is central NJ, eastern Long Island and over the water to Boston.

The_Traveler may be lucky and avoid the heavy snowfall.

I have my snow blower ready to go - tomorrow morning!!


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## wayman (Dec 19, 2009)

afigg said:


> According to the TV news, Philadelphia airport is also closed, but JFK and LaGuardia are still open. From the predicted snowfall maps I saw this morning, the worse part was expected to be in a wide band from central VA to north central NJ. The storm is moving up the coast, so it makes sense for the Bears to fly into one of the NYC airports ahead of the storm and then try to take Amtrak south to Baltimore. But the snowfall is so intense this afternoon here where I am in Sterling, VA (NW of DC), one has to wonder if Amtrak can keep enough of the NEC tracks clear to keep the trains moving. However, the current train status info at the Amtrak website shows that most trains from NYP to BAL are running only 10 to 30 minutes late.


I also wonder how the 49ers are getting to Philadelphia for their game tomorrow. Theoretically they would be arriving into town today, but maybe they arrived Friday ahead of the storm? The start-time of the game has been pushed back to 4:15pm (not sure what the original start-time was going to be, but the delay is a big news story here).

I like your theory of sending the defense down first in the event there isn't enough space for everyone


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## PRR 60 (Dec 19, 2009)

wayman said:


> I also wonder how the 49ers are getting to Philadelphia for their game tomorrow. Theoretically they would be arriving into town today, but maybe they arrived Friday ahead of the storm? The start-time of the game has been pushed back to 4:15pm (not sure what the original start-time was going to be, but the delay is a big news story here).
> I like your theory of sending the defense down first in the event there isn't enough space for everyone


The 49ers arrived PHL Friday night.

Flight Info

The game was scheduled to start at 1pm. The delay is to permit the stadium to get cleaned. Snowballs and Eagles fans are a lethal combination.


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## the_traveler (Dec 19, 2009)

Shanghai said:


> The major direction of the storm is central NJ, eastern Long Island and over the water to Boston.The_Traveler may be lucky and avoid the heavy snowfall.
> 
> I have my snow blower ready to go - tomorrow morning!!


I hope you're right. But if as you say "eastern Long Island and over the water to Boston", right in between is ... Rhode Island!  They're still calling for 10-15 inches and blizzard conditions! But as of 5:15, still no snow - I was just out driving!

I have something better than a snow blower - it's called a sister and her fiance! :lol:


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## wayman (Dec 19, 2009)

PRR 60 said:


> Flight Info


I'm curious, how do you know this was the 49ers' flight?



> The game was scheduled to start at 1pm. The delay is to permit the stadium to get cleaned. Snowballs and Eagles fans are a lethal combination.


So far as I know, Ed Rendell isn't going to be there -- if he's pelting anyone with snowballs this weekend, it's the state legislature! That reduces the odds of a snowball pelting at the Eagles game a bit


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## John Bobinyec (Dec 19, 2009)

The east map (Amtrak Status Maps) is lit up like a Christmas tree. Half the trains are "missing".

John Bobinyec

http://www.trainweb.org/capt/AmtrakMapsForwardEast.html


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## Dovecote (Dec 19, 2009)

One local DC tv station reported 22 inches of snow so far in Harpers Ferry. It is still snowing here as well as in DC. Predictions are that it will continue to snow significantly in these areas until around 8-9:00 PM. There was a live report from Union Station that reported the average delay time going north on Amtrak ranges from 60 to 90 minutes. Also, the average wait time to catch a cab there ranges from 45 minutes to an hour.


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## acelafan (Dec 19, 2009)

Dovecote said:


> One local DC tv station reported 22 inches of snow so far in Harpers Ferry. It is still snowing here as well as in DC. Predictions are that it will continue to snow significantly in these areas until around 8-9:00 PM. There was a live report from Union Station that reported the average delay time going north on Amtrak ranges from 60 to 90 minutes. Also, the average wait time to catch a cab there ranges from 45 minutes to an hour.


I came through WAS today - most delays seemed to be in that range for service on the NEC, but my train was delayed 4.5 hours. Once we got underway we still managed to reach 110MPH on the straight segment in central NJ through blinding snow. Pretty cool!


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## pennyk (Dec 19, 2009)

I just saw a story on CNN about an Amtrak train without power just outside Alexandria, VA. A woman on the train was being interviewed. She was traveling from Atlanta to Washington and was complaining. She said she wanted to be compensated immediately because there was no power for 30 minutes, the rest rooms are not working, and they only fed the passengers rice. It sounded like she was in coach. The CNN commentator said they would try to get in touch with Amtrak to get the story from them.

BTW - it was beautiful in Orlando today.


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## Bob Dylan (Dec 19, 2009)

The local news just showed some video of the DC area, sure DIDN"T make me homesick! They mentioned the airports being shutdown, the delays out of here going to the NE (even though it was 70 today with sun! )and that Amtrak had extra crews on duty in case the overheads froze up or snow had to be cleared! 

That woman complaining must be a lawyer (sorry Penny!) or have in mind getting a windfall from Amtrak! There's a word for her but won't use it here, it's still early!I'd rather have the rice than the infamous beefstew served on the western trains, and 30 minutes down, wow, guess the airlines,busses and vehicles are all rolling up 85 on time! 

Ya'll stay warm and stay out of the snow, were fixing to watch the Cowboys hopefully finally win a December game, tough assignment in the Big Easy, wish I could be there for sure!


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## OlympianHiawatha (Dec 19, 2009)

pennyk said:


> I just saw a story on CNN about an Amtrak train without power just outside Alexandria, VA. A woman on the train was being interviewed. She was traveling from Atlanta to Washington and was complaining. She said she wanted to be compensated immediately because there was no power for 30 minutes, the rest rooms are not working, and they only fed the passengers rice. It sounded like she was in coach. The CNN commentator said they would try to get in touch with Amtrak to get the story from them.
> BTW - it was beautiful in Orlando today.


Why do I have a hunch that woman has probably never ridden Amtrak before. Rice only? She must not like the Dinky Moore Stew that was likely offered with it :lol:


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## pennyk (Dec 19, 2009)

jimhudson said:


> The local news just showed some video of the DC area, sure DIDN"T make me homesick! They mentioned the airports being shutdown, the delays out of here going to the NE (even though it was 70 today with sun! )and that Amtrak had extra crews on duty in case the overheads froze up or snow had to be cleared!
> That woman complaining must be a lawyer (sorry Penny!) or have in mind getting a windfall from Amtrak! There's a word for her but won't use it here, it's still early!I'd rather have the rice than the infamous beefstew served on the western trains, and 30 minutes down, wow, guess the airlines,busses and vehicles are all rolling up 85 on time!
> 
> Ya'll stay warm and stay out of the snow, were fixing to watch the Cowboys hopefully finally win a December game, tough assignment in the Big Easy, wish I could be there for sure!


I am guessing the complaining woman was not a lawyer (and I do not take any offense with your calling her a lawyer in a derrogatory manner), but I assume there are lawyers out there willing to assist her if she claims she has suffered damages as a result of this train delay. I am not a personal injury lawyer, but I cannot believe that she has any case. If she were not on a train, she would still be in Atlanta or stuck in a car on an interstate or stuck on a runway somewhere. Unfortunately, there are people out there that think they should be compensated for every thing that goes wrong in their lives (and there are lawyers willing to help them [for 30%]).

Train delays happen in good weather; in bad weather, what do you expect?


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## ExtonFlyer (Dec 19, 2009)

anyone know anything about the rumored train that has been stuck in Alexandria for 24 hours? Not seeing anything published on major media just yet....and sounds a bit fishy to me - but Twitter is all a flutter about it right now. I see local news reporters requesting leads from folks who have family on the train - trying to get info.

Anyone know which train they may be referring to?? Or can someone confirm that this is bogus? I'd like to put a stop to the rumors in twitter if I can.


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## PRR 60 (Dec 19, 2009)

wayman said:


> PRR 60 said:
> 
> 
> > Flight Info
> ...


The info comes from a poster at airliners.net who follows the team flights. The 49ers practice facility is in Santa Clara near San Jose, so a wide-body charter from SJC to PHL would make sense.

As for the game, I hope the Eagles are not running Santa out at halftime. With all that snow in the stands, that would just be asking for it.


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## AlanB (Dec 19, 2009)

ExtonFlyer said:


> anyone know anything about the rumored train that has been stuck in Alexandria for 24 hours? Not seeing anything published on major media just yet....and sounds a bit fishy to me - but Twitter is all a flutter about it right now. I see local news reporters requesting leads from folks who have family on the train - trying to get info.
> Anyone know which train they may be referring to?? Or can someone confirm that this is bogus? I'd like to put a stop to the rumors in twitter if I can.


The Crescent is currently estimated to be a bit over 10 hours late into NY and it's still not reported as having arrived into DC, putting it 11+ hours down into DC. Guess they're hoping to make up some time on the NEC, once they get there.


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## B&Ofan (Dec 19, 2009)

I was just at South Station (no snow yet) but 2 trains (82 & 194) are listed as 5 hours late. The board already lists 195 (Sunday) as cancelled.


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## Acela150 (Dec 19, 2009)

I've seen trains from 4 hours 30 minutes late to 45 minutes late. STUPID SNOW! Hey Pennyk can you bring that sun north??

Stephen


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## AlanB (Dec 19, 2009)

There's nothing stupid about snow. :angry:

It's wonderful!!!!!!!!


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## pennyk (Dec 19, 2009)

ExtonFlyer said:


> anyone know anything about the rumored train that has been stuck in Alexandria for 24 hours? Not seeing anything published on major media just yet....and sounds a bit fishy to me - but Twitter is all a flutter about it right now. I see local news reporters requesting leads from folks who have family on the train - trying to get info.
> Anyone know which train they may be referring to?? Or can someone confirm that this is bogus? I'd like to put a stop to the rumors in twitter if I can.


I think it is a misinterpretation of the CNN interview with the woman on the Crescent. I think that the woman was mentioning that the trip was taking 24 hours and the interviewer thought she said she was stuck in Alexandria for 24 hours. The woman had boarded in Atlanta and was traveling to Washington. She and the CNN interviewer were clearly on different wave lengths.

I saw the news report in the 7pm hour and do not know if it has played again, since I am no longer watching CNN.

BTW, we are having a cold front in Orlando. It will be in the 40's tomorrow morning. Brrr (just kidding).


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## afigg (Dec 19, 2009)

AlanB said:


> The Crescent is currently estimated to be a bit over 10 hours late into NY and it's still not reported as having arrived into DC, putting it 11+ hours down into DC. Guess they're hoping to make up some time on the NEC, once they get there.


Looking up the status, the northbound Crescent was only 55 minutes late when it left Lynchburg, VA at 7:02 AM. It was then 4 hrs and 41 minutes late when it left Charlottesvile. Which makes sense because the really heavy snow fall moved into central and north VA this morning. Must have been a really slow train ride from LYH to CVS. Then it departed Manassas 5 hours and 8 minutes late at 1:40 PM and must have come to a complete stop to get to 12 hours late into ALX. The snowfall was really heavy this afternoon where I am in Sterling, VA- got around 10"-12" of snow in less than 5 hours.

If I was on that train, I might have bailed and gotten off in Alexandria and checked into a hotel.


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## lsuagl (Dec 19, 2009)

My son is on the southbound Crescent right now stuck in Alexandria. Been there for about 2-3 hrs so far. The train left New York Penn at 2:15 on time and all was well until now. He has heard rumors on the train about something frozen on the track and being repaired. He's in a roomette so he's comfy at least.


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## GG-1 (Dec 19, 2009)

pennyk said:


> BTW, we are having a cold front in Orlando. It will be in the 40's tomorrow morning. Brrr (just kidding).


i will see your 40's and Double it  :lol:

Aloha

btw: Just to rub it in I went to the beach about 4:30pm.


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## tp49 (Dec 19, 2009)

AlanB said:


> There's nothing stupid about snow. :angry:
> It's wonderful!!!!!!!!


Spoken like a man who doesn't have to shovel snow when it comes down. 

I hated shoveling snow so much that I moved someplace where if I want to see snow I have to drive to it.

My friend's scheduled to fly out of Dulles tomorrow morning. Somehow I don't think that's going to happen.


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## AlanB (Dec 19, 2009)

tp49 said:


> AlanB said:
> 
> 
> > There's nothing stupid about snow. :angry:
> ...


Huh? :unsure:

I have to be in Allentown, Pennsy tomorrow by 3 PM for the family Christmas get together. I'll be busy shoveling my car & driveway out tomorrow morning, maybe even heading out in a half an hour after the news to move some of it now, even though there's probably only 6 or 7 inches down now, with 10 to 15 expected and perhaps even 18. And they're giving out Manhattan numbers, with this storm Queens should have more.



tp49 said:


> My friend's scheduled to fly out of Dulles tomorrow morning. Somehow I don't think that's going to happen.


He might have a chance. I know that National shut down earlier today, but I'm not sure if Dulles fully shut down.


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## Amtrak839 (Dec 19, 2009)

AlanB said:


> He might have a chance. I know that National shut down earlier today, but I'm not sure if Dulles fully shut down.


Dulles kept 1 runway open, but I believe the only flights coming and going were international.

Regarding the Crescent, this to me sounds like total failure of the switches at AF interlocking. It lost 7 hours between MSS and ALX. If they were stopped at AF the entire time, I wonder why they couldn't have reversed the train 3-4 miles into the Backlick Road VRE station and bussed passengers from there to WAS (weather made that too difficult?).


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## wayman (Dec 19, 2009)

AlanB said:


> I have to be in Allentown, Pennsy tomorrow by 3 PM for the family Christmas get together. I'll be busy shoveling my car & driveway out tomorrow morning, maybe even heading out in a half an hour after the news to move some of it now, even though there's probably only 6 or 7 inches down now, with 10 to 15 expected and perhaps even 18. And they're giving out Manhattan numbers, with this storm Queens should have more.


I brushed my car off a couple hours ago -- 15 inches were on it, and more expected overnight. But it was all very loose powder, and came off with relative ease. Getting the driveway shoveled so I can get the car _out_, and seeing whether the roads are ploughed so I can actually _go anywhere_, well, those are other questions I'll deal with later. But brushing 15 inches, and then maybe another 8 inches, sounded a lot easier than brushing 23 inches in one go!

The idea being that I wanted to get things to the point where there's at least a chance I can drive to the train station tomorrow, of course  Assuming SEPTA is running... they theoretically are running, but normally I hear hourly grade crossing whistles from my house, and today and this evening, silence....

Alan, I was just in Allentown Thursday evening! Didn't have any sightseeing time at all, just up for a meeting and back. I'll ask you for restaurant rec's if I find I'm headed back any time soon  Too bad the Liberty Bell Limited stopped running in 1951, it would have been much nicer than the highway.

Eric, you're having such a good time laughing at us today, aren't you? :lol: :lol: :lol:


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## GG-1 (Dec 19, 2009)

wayman said:


> Eric, you're having such a good time laughing at us today, aren't you? :lol: :lol: :lol:


Not At, but about. But next year when I am in Semi-retirement in Los Vegas you can get even as I face their winter.

2 notes I would rather be on a slow train than stuck in a car, bus or airport anyday. The lack of not hearin the train whistle, sound does not carry well in the soft,wet snow.

Aloha


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## Bob Dylan (Dec 20, 2009)

GG-1 said:


> wayman said:
> 
> 
> > Eric, you're having such a good time laughing at us today, aren't you? :lol: :lol: :lol:
> ...


Don't you mean when it's 120 in the summer Eric?  Also no trains anymore in Lost Wages so it'll be the van or a flight to civilization to catch a train!


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## Bob Dylan (Dec 20, 2009)

Looks like the Crescent #20 takes the prize for the most delay, it's 13+ hours late out of WAS for NYP, next seems to be the CAP #29, it's slow going towards CHI in the mountains no doubt! Looks like the NY trains are doing pretty good, did the snow play out before it got to NY and New England! How bout them Cowboys!!


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## the_traveler (Dec 20, 2009)

AlanB said:


> There's nothing stupid about snow. :angry:


Only stupid drivers who think that if they drive fast that they can get there faster!


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## AlanB (Dec 20, 2009)

jimhudson said:


> Looks like the Crescent #20 takes the prize for the most delay, it's 13+ hours late out of WAS for NYP, next seems to be the CAP #29, it's slow going towards CHI in the mountains no doubt! Looks like the NY trains are doing pretty good, did the snow play out before it got to NY and New England! How bout them Cowboys!!


I'm not really sure why the Capitol should be having too many issues, unless it had trouble just getting out of the yard or the station. But the mountains shouldn't matter to it. This storm is coming up the east coast out over open water. With each passing mile going west, the Capitol is moving further and further out of the snow belt. The heaviest snows are along the coast, not inland.

This is especially true as you move up the coast towards Philly and NY, where it is now snowing heavily and has been for a few hours. Probably got at least 8 down on the ground now, and potentially at least another 5 to 8 still to come. Eastern PA, where I'm headed tomorrow will see far less, especially northern PA. Philly in the south eastern corner should see a foot, maybe a bit more. Allentown about 80 miles due north should see almost a foot. Move north another 50 miles to Stroudsburg and they're expecting around 6 to 8. Move north another 50 miles, and slightly west to Scranton in the north eastern corner, they'll have a light dusting.


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## ALC Rail Writer (Dec 20, 2009)

jimhudson said:


> Looks like the Crescent #20 takes the prize for the most delay, it's 13+ hours late out of WAS for NYP, next seems to be the CAP #29, it's slow going towards CHI in the mountains no doubt! Looks like the NY trains are doing pretty good, did the snow play out before it got to NY and New England! How bout them Cowboys!!


Dare I take a drive to ALC to see the CL pass during the day?


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## the_traveler (Dec 20, 2009)

GG-1 said:


> btw: Just to rub it in I went to the beach about 4:30pm.


Me too - but I didn't jump in the ocean! :lol:


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## Bob Dylan (Dec 20, 2009)

Well I looked it up and it was 7+ Hours late leaving WAS, hard to make that up! As usual you were right Alan, guess ALC can see the CAP in the sunlight and warmer temps since it shouldnt get there until breakfast time with that kind of

start! Did anyone find out if the Cubs made it to Philly, had to laugh about the Eagle "fans", one year they did boo Santa Claus so could see them throwing snow balls @ the old guy! Thanks for the weather reports guys, I'm really SHOCKED!SHOCKED! that Alan is going to drive to Penn! :lol:


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## Green Maned Lion (Dec 20, 2009)

It seems to me that some of these trains have taken a powder.


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## AlanB (Dec 20, 2009)

jimhudson said:


> Thanks for the weather reports guys, I'm really SHOCKED!SHOCKED! that Alan is going to drive to Penn! :lol:


Well if New Jersey Transit would hurry up and restart service to Allentown PA and Stroudsburg Pa, then I wouldn't have to drive. But alas, no service yet and they've only just barely started on rebuilding the Lackawana Cut Off, which would bring service back to Stroud. Nothing much at all, other than people dreaming, is happening on the Allentown front.


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## amtrakwolverine (Dec 20, 2009)

i for one don't have to shovel when we get hit with snow. I have 2 snowblowers with electric start.


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## battalion51 (Dec 20, 2009)

A couple of other side notes.

I have a friend who is in Atlanta right now trying to get to Baltimore. His flight yesterday was obviously cancelled. He tried to get a ticket on the Crescent, but it's sold out until Monday. Flights are supposedly resuming on Monday, so he's going to just fly back north. Makes you kind of wonder why they're not trying to add some crush capacity on the long distance trains...

The Vermonter struck and killed two people yesterday just south of Randolph. It was an elderly couple. The train was terminated due to the lack of a Medical Examiner. All passengers were bussed down to Springfield. They were supposed to spin 56 at Springfield, but it was running late, so I don't know if that spin happened at Springfield or if they possibly used a Shuttle set to get the passengers to New Haven and spun the train there.


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## ExtonFlyer (Dec 20, 2009)

wowza - awoke to see that both southbound Florida trains really had a tough night. The Silver Star 91 departed Raliegh at 6:18am (9 hours and 5 minutes late). On a good day, it should have been about 3 states and 480+ miles south by that time!

The Silver Meteor 97 had similiar troubles (departed Alexandria after 4:45am - just short of 9 hours behind).

Wonder how the pax and crew are fairing....food must be on short supply and patience I'd imagine must be running on about empty. Still...I'm impressed that the trains continue to press on!!


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## Hanno (Dec 20, 2009)

amtrakwolverine said:


> i for one don't have to shovel when we get hit with snow. I have 2 snowblowers with electric start.


As someone who has shoveld a lot of snow :angry: I consider the snowblower one of the greatest inventions in the modern history of mankind! 

Of course I'm in Florida right now (took the Auto Train south last week) and the only thing I have to contend with is too much sunshine which is difficult to shovel.


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## Guest (Dec 20, 2009)

Im scheduled to leave out of baltimore to washington dc today and then from dc to chicago. The website has no info available for train 195 at 1:40 could it be canceled? i am sitting on hold eith the 1800 number trying to find out whats happening. what would happen if it was canceled? my train from dc to chicago seems to be on time.


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## AlanB (Dec 20, 2009)

It's hard to say for sure, right now the website is saying that 195 is disrupted. That could mean that it's been cancelled or it could mean that it's just running very late.

If I were you considering the delays because of the weather, I'd head to the station as early as possible and have them put you on the next arriving train south to DC, so that you don't miss the Capitol. Or if you have another way of reaching DC, take that option rather than risking missing the Capitol.


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## Ryan (Dec 20, 2009)

Big Iron said:


> MrFSS said:
> 
> 
> > Must be getting pretty bad in Virginia.
> ...


Not only do I know the place very well, I was almost one of the stranded motorists! We drove from my house in Odenton (just north of Annapolis) to my soon to be Mother-in-laws house in Newport News, VA Friday night. The snow started before we were out of Maryland, and 301 as we approached 95 was completely blocked with stranded cars. I was able to pull a U-turn and go down some back roads (a harrowing experience in the dark with 6 inches of snow on unfamiliar roads) and get to 95, only to take 90 minutes to go 10 miles. Once we broke free of that, it was about 50 miles of traveling 20-25 MPH until we got to Williamsburg and things cleared up. It took 8 hours and 40 minutes to make the 200 mile trek down here, we finally arrived at our hotel at 3 in the morning.

Until I decided to turn around and try an alternate route, I really thought that we'd be sleeping on the side of 301 - I was fully prepared with food and water in the truck (I drive a 4wd Chevy Suburban), a full tank of gas, a shovel and some sleeping bags.

Looking at the traffic cameras, it looks like 95 and the beltway have been cleared down to pavement, so I'll be leaving presently to make the trip home (not that there's going to be work/school for any of us tomorrow).


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## wayman (Dec 20, 2009)

AlanB said:


> Philly in the south eastern corner should see a foot, maybe a bit more.


Philly? Try 23.2 inches! If I didn't have photographic evidence that I cleared the snow off my car last night, nobody would ever believe me, to look at it this morning.


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## ExtonFlyer (Dec 20, 2009)

First news items I have seen that shares any real details........Amtrak Running on Reduced Schedule - MyFoxPhilly


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## wayman (Dec 20, 2009)

ExtonFlyer said:


> First news items I have seen that shares any real details........Amtrak Running on Reduced Schedule - MyFoxPhilly


I'd love to see statistics of the form:

Number of passengers with reservations to depart from PHL International Airport on Saturday: X(1)

Number of them who actually departed PHL-IA and got to their ultimate destination within 3 hours of scheduled arrival time: X(2)

Number of passengers with reservations to depart from PHL 30th St Station on Saturday: Y(1)

Number of them who actually departed PHL-30th and got to their ultimate destination within 3 hours of scheduled arrival time: Y(2)

... And the same statistics for Dulles, National, BWI, Newark, JFK, and La Guardia; as compared with the most relevant Amtrak stations for each.

I think it would be a very impressive advertising coup for Amtrak if someone could find all those numbers and distribute them via media channels.


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## Big Iron (Dec 20, 2009)

HokieNav said:


> Big Iron said:
> 
> 
> > MrFSS said:
> ...


I bet the Robert Norris Bridge was alot of fun. It's narrower than an Amcan.


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## AlanB (Dec 20, 2009)

Guest said:


> Im scheduled to leave out of baltimore to washington dc today and then from dc to chicago. The website has no info available for train 195 at 1:40 could it be canceled? i am sitting on hold eith the 1800 number trying to find out whats happening. what would happen if it was canceled? my train from dc to chicago seems to be on time.


If you're still reading this, and haven't already gone to the station, I would highly recommend that you head for the station and see if you cannot get your tickets switched to train #153. It left NY 2 hours 16 minutes late and is estimated to arrive into DC in time to catch the Capitol Limited. The next train, #155, is still showing no status at this time so it is unclear if it will run or not. And #195 would be behind #155, so if both of those were to be 2+ hours late, then you could potentially miss the Capitol if you wait for them


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## Bob Dylan (Dec 20, 2009)

Good morning to all the snowbirds up there in the NE! Hope everyone is dug out, warm and if on a train @ least getting to eat something other than rice! Looks like the Crescents, the Cards and a few regionals along with the Silver trains got hit the worst and ALC got to watch #29 while eating lunch in Alliance, that's pretty late!! 

I think Amtrak deserves kudoos for their work during this storm, hope the media ,local and national, give them their due and don't let malcontents like that woman penny mentioned poision the view that people that don't know about trains have!

Dont miss the winters @ all, glad I'm not on the Beltway or 95 but wouldnt mind being on a train up there in the NEC, it's late, show me the beef stew! :lol:

How bout them Cowboys! Go Niners and Redskins! (Heresy down this way but it helps the boys win the East!!) :lol:


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## amamba (Dec 20, 2009)

jimhudson said:


> Good morning to all the snowbirds up there in the NE! Hope everyone is dug out, warm and if on a train @ least getting to eat something other than rice! Looks like the Crescents, the Cards and a few regionals along with the Silver trains got hit the worst and ALC got to watch #29 while eating lunch in Alliance, that's pretty late!!  How bout them Cowboys, lets go Bears andRedskins!


Still snowing up here in Providence, but it should stop within the next couple of hours (I hope!).


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## the_traveler (Dec 20, 2009)

As of 1:30 PM, it's just stopped snowing in KIN! 

I'm not sure how much we got, but I guesstimate that Chez Traveler received about 1 1/2 feet - at least. (It's hard to tell with all the drifting.) But with the blowing wind, our deck was covered!

The strange thing about that? :huh: It's covered, but without windows!


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## Ryan (Dec 20, 2009)

Big Iron said:


> I bet the Robert Norris Bridge was alot of fun. It's narrower than an Amcan.


It was ... special. Only 6.5 hours to get home (the trip usually takes 3). Of course the 2 hours I saved on the trip home I just spent shoveling enough snow to get into my parking space!


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## acelafan (Dec 21, 2009)

jimhudson said:


> Good morning to all the snowbirds up there in the NE! Hope everyone is dug out, warm and if on a train @ least getting to eat something other than rice! Looks like the Crescents, the Cards and a few regionals along with the Silver trains got hit the worst and ALC got to watch #29 while eating lunch in Alliance, that's pretty late!!
> I think Amtrak deserves kudoos for their work during this storm, hope the media ,local and national, give them their due and don't let malcontents like that woman penny mentioned poision the view that people that don't know about trains have!
> 
> Dont miss the winters @ all, glad I'm not on the Beltway or 95 but wouldnt mind being on a train up there in the NEC, it's late, show me the beef stew! :lol:
> ...


Hi all, I wanted to post some of this last night but it was a little snowy upon my arrival into BOS on #82...and I was preoccupied trying to get to the curb without getting blown over by all the snow...wow!

We arrived into BOS 6h 36m hours late - and all in all it wasn't that bad...sitting in a nice cozy Amfleet watching the winter wonderland outside is a heck of a lot better than sitting at a closed airport in my book!

The first big delay for #82 came in ALX where some switches apparently froze as reported by Amtrak839 - and this caused things to back up quickly. #82 and #88 both got stuck in that mess (as well as other trains behind them, obviously) but then there was some sort of additional problem in WAS where #82 and #88 were delayed for another few hours. Ironically, I was coming up on #98 from Miami and scheduled to transfer to #82 in WAS. I was worried that since #98 was 3 hours behind I was somehow going to miss my connection to #82 in WAS - and what a silly thought that turned out to be!

When I boarded #82 in WAS at 1:30PM (scheduled departure 10:20AM) there was no HEP since the crew was switching engines. Fair enough...about 20 minutes went by and it was apparent they were still trying to switch engines since the train jolted a tad. But then it jolted and jolted and jolted a good bit more, but the power never came back. So...it was obvious they were having some sort of problem with the engine change.

About an hour passed by and the passengers started asking the conductors (who were very surly....understandably...but still a little overly rude) about the delay. Basically the staff gave a reason which I don't understand fully - the on board attendant said the frozen switch(es) in ALX caused some sort of damage to the diesel engine and now they were having a hard time moving the diesel off our train onto separate tracks in WAS. (?) Maybe the various cables and other hardware got frozen in place? He said the locomotive was damaged by frozen switches, which I don't really follow but of course I don't work for the railroad!

About 10 minutes later, they pushed our train backwards about 1 coach-length, and we sat for another 20 minutes before one final lurch occurred and the HEP came back on. The remaining passengers then boarded the train and we departed 4h 45m late shortly thereafter. The funny thing is that once we started moving everyone in my coach started clapping! It was great. *I give Amtrak maintenance kudos to all their hard work, because while they were working on the engines, the snow never let up and the platforms were covered in snow every 30 minutes! It was a true blizzard.*

So we finally left WAS and we had no further problems all the way into BOS. A good old AEM-7 pulled us there through all the wind and snow (I forgot to note its number) and the other delays accrued in route because we didn't hit maximum speed on the NEC. The highest speed I recorded on my GPS was 112MPH in central NJ on that straight section of track, and then we hit about 90 on the section between PVD and BOS. Most of the time we were going 75-80 or so. I imagine the engineer had really terrible visibility, and while there are cab signals, it's just not safe to have a 9 car train barreling along without the ability to see down the track! My favorite part of the route was along the Connecticut shoreline - the tracks are smooth and we just kept moving along while I-95 was crawling.

When we all got off in Boston, the whole train looked like a giant icicle! I wish I had stopped to take a picture of it but it was so darn cold. Even a few of the vestibules had 4 or 5 inches of snow in them - you needed a shovel to remove all the snow! Apparently some of the doors became frozen in their positions and the crew had to leave a few doors open...even while the train was traveling. The doors frozen shut caused some passengers to have to move to different coaches for detraining. The vestibule I departed from in BOS had a large collection of "rime ice" if anyone knows what that is - it's when ice collects to frozen surfaces in high winds such as at the top of mountains. So I have to say those Amfleets take a licking and keep on ticking - plus they were so comfortable and quiet throughout the trip and plenty warm.

Overall the delays didn't bother me - it was great to look out the snow-covered windows and watch the storm from inside the train. My family thought I was crazy to not mind a 6 hour delay, but I still think it's better than dealing with closed airports and airline delays.

Below are a few pics.

Alexandria in the snowstorm of December 19, 2009:







From my seat on #82, looking at a snowy switcher:






A pair of HHP-8's in the snow:






Corridor Clipper:






A few delays on the NEC, Dec 19 2009:


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## Trainmans daughter (Dec 21, 2009)

The CNN story about the Crescent stranded in Alexandria yesterday made me sick. That woman should be banned from ever traveling on Amtrak again. What did she expect Amtrak to do? Make the snow stop falling? Proceed even though there was something wrong ahead? Yes, maybe there could have been better communication with the passengers, but she probably wouldn't have listened anyway. What a whiner!

She mentioned paramedics being called to attend to someone in another car. If paramedics could make to to the train, I'm sure that Dominoes Pizza could have, also. She was certainly unhappy with the "meager bowl of rice" she had received onboard. And how about just bailing and calling a taxi to take her to a nice warm hotel just down the street? It isn't as though she was in the middle of nowhere! She was in Alexandria, for gosh sakes!

OK, I know I'm ranting. One of my biggest pet peeves is people who percieve themselves to be victims. How about personal responsibility, or just plain making the best out of a bad situation? Do you know she had coached the other passengers in the car to call out pitifully "Help us, please!" What a crock.

My granddaughter spent the weekend with us as usual, and saw the CNN report and also witnessed my rant. (Yes, I kept my rant under control since she's only 7 years old). I promise I didn't use any words she would get in trouble for at school. When I was done, she said, "You know what I'd have told her? 'Put on your big girl panties and just deal with it!'" That's my girl!!


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## Pastor Dave (Dec 21, 2009)

AlanB said:


> jimhudson said:
> 
> 
> > Thanks for the weather reports guys, I'm really SHOCKED!SHOCKED! that Alan is going to drive to Penn! :lol:
> ...


NJT is also has the bus lines lobbying against expansion into PA. It would take a lot of business from them.


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## Guest_sweet tea_* (Dec 21, 2009)

egad, 29 is running late again today -- granted 3.5 hours versus yesterday's 8 or 9....

hope the one leaving WAS today does better, as i'll be on it! we're connecting to the eagle to LRK once in CHI, so we have a few hours to play with, but i'd like to spend that time in my traditional way: eating potato pancakes and bratwurst at the christkindlmarket. and if it's 9 hours...well, it's a good thing we have some friends in chicago.


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## Neil_M (Dec 21, 2009)

Trainmans daughter said:


> The CNN story about the Crescent stranded in Alexandria yesterday made me sick. That woman should be banned from ever traveling on Amtrak again. What did she expect Amtrak to do? Make the snow stop falling? Proceed even though there was something wrong ahead? Yes, maybe there could have been better communication with the passengers, but she probably wouldn't have listened anyway. What a whiner!
> She mentioned paramedics being called to attend to someone in another car. If paramedics could make to to the train, I'm sure that Dominoes Pizza could have, also. She was certainly unhappy with the "meager bowl of rice" she had received onboard. And how about just bailing and calling a taxi to take her to a nice warm hotel just down the street? It isn't as though she was in the middle of nowhere! She was in Alexandria, for gosh sakes!


Some people seem to think that they are above just sitting it out because of bad weather, I would have shoved her off the train and told the moaning old bat to sort herself out!


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## Heading North (Dec 21, 2009)

Just to share my experience with the snow, and Amtrak, on Saturday: Friday night I headed up to Baltimore for a Christmas party, expecting to take 66, which I discovered was sold out. I took the 10:30 pm MARC train instead (last one) in the light snow, and we came into Penn Station just a few minutes behind (around 11:35).

When I tried to head back on Saturday afternoon, there were maybe a handful of cars on the road in Baltimore, and no cabs in sight... I walked about a mile and a half down Charles Street toward Penn, and got there at 5:15 pm to find that Train 161 from Boston was 40 minutes late, and would be arriving in about 10 minutes! There were no other southbound trains on the departure board. I boarded around 5:30, and it was a fast trip south until we hit New Carrollton and hit "congestion" (my guess is delays related to the switches into WUS?)... probably sat there for at least a half hour. A few irate passengers considered walking over to the Metro station, but I reminded them that WMATA was shut down above ground. The conductor mentioned that we were immediately behind Train 19 (we were both stopped in the station at the same time, the rear of our train couldn't fit) and there'd be half an hour in DC to get from one train to the other. We pulled into Union Station about 7-7:05 (an hour and a half late), and I made my way to the DC metro, where my normal ride of 10-20 minutes turned into an hour. (At least my stop is underground!) So, running time Baltimore-DC came to be 90 minutes, about double the usual, but moving nonetheless!

All in all, most people were in good spirits to actually be getting to a destination, and the cafe car stayed open until we arrived (and probably did pretty well revenue-wise once the delay was announced!)... only a handful that I saw in the cafe were really upset about it, and frankly, there was no great reason to be.


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## George Harris (Dec 21, 2009)

Trainmans daughter said:


> The CNN story about the Crescent stranded in Alexandria yesterday made me sick. That woman should be banned from ever traveling on Amtrak again. What did she expect Amtrak to do? Make the snow stop falling? Proceed even though there was something wrong ahead? Yes, maybe there could have been better communication with the passengers, but she probably wouldn't have listened anyway. What a whiner!
> She mentioned paramedics being called to attend to someone in another car. If paramedics could make to to the train, I'm sure that Dominoes Pizza could have, also. She was certainly unhappy with the "meager bowl of rice" she had received onboard. And how about just bailing and calling a taxi to take her to a nice warm hotel just down the street? It isn't as though she was in the middle of nowhere! She was in Alexandria, for gosh sakes!
> 
> OK, I know I'm ranting. One of my biggest pet peeves is people who percieve themselves to be victims. How about personal responsibility, or just plain making the best out of a bad situation? Do you know she had coached the other passengers in the car to call out pitifully "Help us, please!" What a crock.
> ...


Love it.

A few months ago on an Emeryville to Fresno trip we had a similar dingbat.

Setting: Stalled Sacramento to Bakersfield train in siding, now 2 hours late. On time Oakland to Bakersfield pulls past it, backs into siding and couples on. While dealing with the power and control jumpers, the normal lighting, AC, etc is shut down. Now, this is being done in the dark, not by shop forces, but by the regular crew and hooking up between a cab car and the front of the engine. We are shut down in total for about 35 minutes.

About 10 minutes into this, one woman gets up and says, what is going on? (The situation had been very clearly explained over the PA system.) Then goes off into, they can't keep us locked up like this, followed by, I have got to get out of here. She goes to one of the pop out windows and starts playing with the handle on the zip out strip. (At least we are on the lower level.) After a few minutes of this, she then goes to the door, and starts trying to get the cover off the emergency door release. Fortunately her lack of sense seems go also include incompentency in following directions and handling emergency devices. She then walks up and down the car going on about how it is wrong to keep people locked in the car like being in a cage until finally the lights come on. She then settled down until the next smoke stop. The smoke stop ran a little long because some of the crew wanted a smoke break.

I was ready to go try to stop her from getting the window out, but her fumbling made it seem unlikely that she would succeed, so I stayed put.


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## rail_rider (Dec 21, 2009)

Acelafan, that was a great description of your trip! Wish I had been on there with you. All that extra time on a train, what I would give for a ride like that! Loved the pictures too they helped tell the story and gave me a feel for what it was like. Whenever I ride I always pack extra snacks and sodas just in case we get delayed. The adventure is a lot more fun when your prepared.


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## GG-1 (Dec 21, 2009)

Aloha

Our radio news reported on two brothers on east coast who got caught in the storm, one took a Amtrak train and was "almost 9 hours late" getting home. the other brother is in a backlog of waiting for seats that may take 3 days to resolve. Wonder when the second brother heads for the train.


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## Guest (Dec 21, 2009)

George Harris said:


> Trainmans daughter said:
> 
> 
> > The CNN story about the Crescent stranded in Alexandria yesterday made me sick. That woman should be banned from ever traveling on Amtrak again. What did she expect Amtrak to do? Make the snow stop falling? Proceed even though there was something wrong ahead? Yes, maybe there could have been better communication with the passengers, but she probably wouldn't have listened anyway. What a whiner!
> ...



Sounds like she was claustrophobic and had a panic attack.

Gord


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