Amtrak Passenger services may return to the Gulf Coast

[jis]

I don't think it's "fiefdom protection" that's messing things up...again, let's be honest: There wasn't exactly a need for all of this ten years ago, when Amtrak ridership was stuck in the low 20 million range and the LD trains were staggering back from the damage Warrington's fare hikes inflicted. I very much doubt that Amtrak was pressed enough for equipment to need "regular" equipment leases between the 1980s and the early 2000s (when we started seeing sleepers cut for want of equipment...the Three Rivers, the Twilight Shoreliner, and the Silver Palm all went under Warrington IIRC). Before that, the demand would have been at most a few sleepers (which have been a bit more chronically short over the years). So there wasn't the business to justify a substantial leasing operation for about 20 years.

You really have to see the idiocy that goes on in the Tri-State area (well quadri state as in NY, CT, NJ, PA) among the various government run agencies running passenger rail service to know what fiefdom protection is all about. It is possible that it is not that bad elsewhere, but I doubt it.

 

[user 1215]

I noticed they removed the dotted line for the Sunset East from the map in the latest timetable, not exactly a hopeful sign. hboy:

I'm wondering how many of y'all caught this? It's gone. Kaput. No longer temporary. Not only is the dotted line in the timetable gone, but so are all the cities East of New Orleans.

 

[MrFSS]

I noticed they removed the dotted line for the Sunset East from the map in the latest timetable, not exactly a hopeful sign. hboy:

I'm wondering how many of y'all caught this? It's gone. Kaput. No longer temporary. Not only is the dotted line in the timetable gone, but so are all the cities East of New Orleans.

 

[johnny.menhennet]

I noticed they removed the dotted line for the Sunset East from the map in the latest timetable, not exactly a hopeful sign. hboy:

I'm wondering how many of y'all caught this? It's gone. Kaput. No longer temporary. Not only is the dotted line in the timetable gone, but so are all the cities East of New Orleans.

The map does show a solid grey line on the national system, and last time I checked I swear that the dotted line was still on the foldout map. I still see the 20 note which means that the suspension is still active. On the foldout map, it actually is still there. But I believe that all of the cties have not been on the actual timetable itself for a few years. A town like Madison, FL is still in the Timetable at the front, so I don't know what you are saying. It is all still there.

 

[Trogdor]

The November 2011 individual timetable for the Sunset did not have any dotted line between New Orleans and Florida. The May 2012 national timetable does have the dotted line.

Only thing different is there is no longer a bunch of stations with [20] instead of station times.

 

[saxman]

Perhaps they just wanted to save a little ink? Amtrak, by law, has to give 180 notice to terminate a route. This has never been done. The route remains "suspended."

 

[user 1215]

Most reference on the website had between removed, too.

As far as the May 7 timetable, the grey line is ossified in the legend as "other Amtrak routes".

Take note 20 out, and the route is completely truncated.

 

[johnny.menhennet]

Most reference on the website had between removed, too.

As far as the May 7 timetable, the grey line is ossified in the legend as "other Amtrak routes".

Take note 20 out, and the route is completely truncated.

I suppose, except for the fact that the stations are still listed in the directory at front.

 

[Ispolkom]

Amtrak, by law, has to give 180 notice to terminate a route. This has never been done. The route remains "suspended."

Take note 20 out, and the route is completely truncated.

Only if the timetable is legal notice of route abandonment, which I doubt.

 

[user 1215]

Everyone keeps talking about this 180 day rule. I believe there is plenty of precedence to show that rule following is not one of Amtrak's most prominent qualities.