Amtrak and VIA combined system map

[wayman]

The Amtrak timetable's system map used to include VIA, but hasn't for a year or few now. So I put one together, adjusting the scales and perspectives of Amtrak and VIA maps to fit them together.

Click on the map to go to the full-size version with readable city names:



You really, really don't want to know how many different Photoshop layers that Canadian map got divided into!

At some point I'll start looking at interconnectivity points a bit more. Obviously, Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver are direct connections. With short non-train (but possibly not pub-trans-able) connections, Detroit/Windsor, Port Huron/Sarnia, and St.Albans/Montreal. With creativity, Portland/Halifax (CAT Ferry), Bellingham/Victoria (ferry). With creativity and tremendous dedication (and considerable expense), Bellingham-to-Skagway-to-PrinceRupert (ferry, ferry; I can't find a single-trip Amtrak-to-PrinceRupert connecting ferry). Things I have no idea about yet but which look like there might be a bus or something, GrandForks/Winnipeg.

If I get really ambitious, I'll add additional highly-useful non-train connections between routes (like Amtrak Thruway bus routes and non-Thruway buses providing valuable links), notable commuter rail lines, other rail lines which connect to Amtrak/VIA (Santa Fe Southern, Grand Canyon), and lengthy notable other rail lines (Cumbres & Toltec, Rocky Mountaineer, etc). Also, Alaska (Alaskan RR, Skagway). ("If I get really ambitious" probably means "if I get bored next week" )

Meanwhile, my main reason for doing this was so I could have a full North American map to color in to record my progress (using more Photoshop layers for the highlighting):

If you want to do likewise, just download the full-size system map, open it up in Photoshop, and use a roughly 60% opacity 15-pixel brush to highlight routes you've traveled I'm using separate layers for each route, which means that when multiple routes traverse the same track section (like the NEC/Crescent/Cardinal, the CL/LSL, etc) the highlighting gets darker. For the one route I've taken that's no longer on the Amtrak map (Three Rivers to Chicago) I just eyeballed it.

(No, after some consideration I don't think I'll bother adding Mexico just to include the Copper Canyon line. Alas, RIP Mexican passenger railroads.)

 

[yarrow]

nice, thanks

 

[MrFSS]

Nice job.

Puts into perspective how close Winnipeg is to North Dakota. Same there isn't a connection from the EB to The Canadian.

 

[Ispolkom]

Things I have no idea about yet but which look like there might be a bus or something, GrandForks/Winnipeg.

Ooh! Ooh! This one I actually know. Jefferson Bus Lines has a Grand Forks-Winnipeg bus. The times aren't very convenient, but the link exists. Alas, the Winnipeger between St. Paul and Winnipeg last ran more than 40 years ago.

Nice map!

 

[the_traveler]

Thanks for the having the boredom - I meant time - to do the map! Great job! B)

Ooh! Ooh! This one I actually know.

You didn't raise your hand!

 

[wayman]

Things I have no idea about yet but which look like there might be a bus or something, GrandForks/Winnipeg.

Ooh! Ooh! This one I actually know. Jefferson Bus Lines has a Grand Forks-Winnipeg bus. The times aren't very convenient, but the link exists. Alas, the Winnipeger between St. Paul and Winnipeg last ran more than 40 years ago.

Nice map!

Ooh, thanks for the bus info and link!

Speaking of things which last ran ... a while ago, I'm now working on some layers for 1980 service. I've got the full Amtrak 1980 route map, and I'm adding in various cut VIA routes (the southern transcon, the Atlantic, the Evangeline) that ran in that year; it also gives me an excuse to play with Mexico's system, since it was in full swing then

The Atlantic looks like it would have been a very fun ride. I wonder if Maine and New Brunswick might ever put state funds into reviving it... but it's probably way too complicated to have a new train cross international borders--twice on the same route!--in North America these days Funny, and now it's so much easier to do just that in Europe!

 

[Madbuster]

Cool, Thanks for sharing your hard work.

 

[Guest]

actually, was curious... how about mexico...

 

[transit54]

At some point I'll start looking at interconnectivity points a bit more. Obviously, Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver are direct connections. With short non-train (but possibly not pub-trans-able) connections, Detroit/Windsor, Port Huron/Sarnia, and St.Albans/Montreal.

I'll offer you some help with St Albans. There's no connection from St Albans, but the connection can be done.

For a same day, connection, get off the Vermonter at Essex Junction. Take the #2 Essex Junction bus from the train station (leaves at 9 PM) to downtown Burlington. Get off and walk to the Greyhound terminal and jump on the next bus bound to Montreal. Of course, this works M-F. Saturday the bus service doesn't run late enough to meet the train and there is no Sunday service on the line. But the distance could be closed with a quick cab ride on Sat or Sun.

Alternatively, May-October, one can take the Essex Jct bus and then spend the night and the next morning. Then, they can walk down to the waterfront and take the Burlington to Port Kent ferry and board the Adirondack. But the ferry only runs May-October (see ferries.com). There are other ferries, but none are accessible by transit, though I wouldn't be surprised if some point down the road a bus connection is formed with the year-round, 24 hour Grand Isle-Plattsburgh ferry. I've heard thoughts of this around the office, but its probably a few years away (I work for the transit agency up here).

 

[wayman]

Well, how about Mexico? as one commenter mentioned. Sadly, Mexico's national railroad privatized in 1998 and at that point nearly all passenger service ceased. All that's left today are routes from Chihuahua to Los Mochis (the Copper Canyon route, two trains daily) and from Felipe Pascador, Zacatecas to Torreon, Coahuila (one train in each direction weekly), and the latter isn't even advertised (someone on TrainOrders happens to know about it, and said it was definitely running as of 2007). This wouldn't make a very interesting map, especially as neither of these comes anywhere close to joining with Amtrak.

So I went back in time to 1980, when Ferrocarriles de Nacionales Mexico was still in full swing, before the last several rounds of dramatic VIA route closures, and of course back to the days when Amtrak ran many, many more trains than today:



There are almost certainly some VIA routes I've missed! I've moved the Canadian to its earlier route (and added the Super Continental, which is today's Canadian), I've added the Atlantic (which was easy, since it's on Amtrak's map as it crosses Maine), and I've added the Evangeline (on Nova Scotia). I didn't find much about other VIA routes, but I'm sure the information is out there. (Also, the map itself is wrong for 1980: Nunavet didn't become a separate territory until 1999!)

For the FNM, I found even less hard information. I reconstructed routes based on numerous travelogs and other sources as best I could and drew them onto a rail network map. The routes are color-coded: purple still run today, dark blue ran until 1998 (when FNM privatized), and light blue had been discontinued by 1998 but would have still been running in 1980. I suspect there are even more 1980-era routes than I've shown.

Whew! (Well, ok, Alaska and ferries and such remain for another time...)

 

[MrFSS]

There are almost certainly some VIA routes I've missed! I've moved the Canadian to its earlier route (and added the Super Continental, which is today's Canadian),

The old Canadian route from Calgary to Kamloops is now being used by The Rocky Mountaineer. It is a spectacular ride if you get a chance to take it. Absolutely First Class all the way.

 

[gswager]

I remember when I passed through Mexicali, Baja California (east of Tijuana [san Diego]) before 1990, I saw a passenger train parking in downtown Mexicali. It made me wondering if I could have a chance to ride to further south. Sadly, few years later it was gone.

 

[jackal]

Waiting for that Alaska map to be added...

...and then someday hopefully you'll be able to link the ARR to the rest of the continental railroad system!

 

[Joel N. Weber II]

Waiting for that Alaska map to be added...
...and then someday hopefully you'll be able to link the ARR to the rest of the continental railroad system!

Is that going to be before or after it becomes possible to catch a train from New York City to London?

 

[Joel N. Weber II]

Ooh! Ooh! This one I actually know. Jefferson Bus Lines has a Grand Forks-Winnipeg bus. The times aren't very convenient, but the link exists. Alas, the Winnipeger between St. Paul and Winnipeg last ran more than 40 years ago.

Page 82 of my copy of the Amtrak System Timetable seems to think there's a Fargo-Winnipeg bus. Not sure why the timetable prefers the connection at Fargo if the connection could also be made at Grand Forks.

Is there track from Grand Forks to Winnipeg that happens to be maintained in decent condition for conventional speed passenger trains?

 

[Cascadia]

Things I have no idea about yet but which look like there might be a bus or something, GrandForks/Winnipeg.

Ooh! Ooh! This one I actually know. Jefferson Bus Lines has a Grand Forks-Winnipeg bus. The times aren't very convenient, but the link exists. Alas, the Winnipeger between St. Paul and Winnipeg last ran more than 40 years ago.

Nice map!

I've taken that bus, from Minneapolis to Winnipeg, actually there might have been 2 bus companies involved, something called Triangle Transportation, don't know if that exists anymore?

Anyway the trip from Mpls to Winnipeg left in the middle of the night from that Greyhound station in downtown Minneapolis, that was really unpleasant and scary being there in the middle of the night. Luckily they had very active and aggressive security guards.

Had a little layover in Fargo and it was amusing talking to some drunks at dawn outside the station, they were actually really funny guys.

Long trip on the bus, like 12 hours. It would still be at least 6 from Grand Forks wouldn't it?

 

[chertling]

At some point I'll start looking at interconnectivity points a bit more. Obviously, Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver are direct connections. With short non-train (but possibly not pub-trans-able) connections, Detroit/Windsor, Port Huron/Sarnia, and St.Albans/Montreal. With creativity, Portland/Halifax (CAT Ferry), Bellingham/Victoria (ferry). With creativity and tremendous dedication (and considerable expense), Bellingham-to-Skagway-to-PrinceRupert (ferry, ferry; I can't find a single-trip Amtrak-to-PrinceRupert connecting ferry). Things I have no idea about yet but which look like there might be a bus or something, GrandForks/Winnipeg.

I can't speak to the others, but there is a cross border bus that runs from Downtown Detroit to Windsor via the "Detroit Windsor Tunnel".

* Catch DetroitTransit Bus #53 (inbound) directly outside the Detroit Amtrak station and take it to Woodward and Randolph (Right next to the Detroit Windsor Tunnel's USA Portal)

* Transfer to the TransitWindsor "Tunnel Bus" and get off at Park and Goyeau streets in Windsor.

* Walk one block Southeast to Goyeau and Wyandotte

* Catch TransitWindsor bus #2 (heading Northeast) and get off at Wyandotte and Walker

* Walk one block Northwest to VIA station at Riverside and Walker

I don't know the service frequency offhand, but a transfer is possible. I researched this extensively when planning my Hockey Railtrip as our original plan was to catch games in Detroit, Toronto, Ottawa Montreal and Buffalo... but the NHL schedule didn't work out, thus the Northeast focused Hockey Railtrip next month. Our plan would have been to stay overnight in the Detroit/Windsor area, so I don't know whether there is a feasible short layover connection between Amtrak and Via.

http://www.citywindsor.ca/001209.asp - Information on the "Tunnel Bus"

 

[jackal]

Waiting for that Alaska map to be added...
...and then someday hopefully you'll be able to link the ARR to the rest of the continental railroad system!

Is that going to be before or after it becomes possible to catch a train from New York City to London?

Before, obviously, since the only way you'll be able to catch a train to London would be via Alaska after they build the trans-Bering-Strait tunnel/bridge from Alaska to Russia!

 

[Ispolkom]

Page 82 of my copy of the Amtrak System Timetable seems to think there's a Fargo-Winnipeg bus. Not sure why the timetable prefers the connection at Fargo if the connection could also be made at Grand Forks.
Is there track from Grand Forks to Winnipeg that happens to be maintained in decent condition for conventional speed passenger trains?

There is main track (whatever BNSF means by that) between Grand Forks and Winnipeg, and there actually is a lot of cross-border traffic, especially when the Canadian dollar is strong. But I can't imagine instituting a cross-border train. Look at the customs problems Amtrak has with the Cascades to Vancouver, and had with the Chicago-Toronto train.

I'd forgotten about that note in the timetable. It doesn't make any sense, because it isn't as though the train arrives in Fargo at any better hour. Occasionally on a late westbound Empire Builder I've been eating breakfast when we've stopped in Grand Forks, but I almost always sleep through Fargo. Two thoughts: 1) Fargo's train station is downtown, near the bus station, while Grand Forks' Amtrak station is located outside of town, 2) [anti-Fargo rant typical of a western North Dakotan deleted]