EB - Lateness Problems This Summer

[yarrow]

train 8 arrived 46 min early into spokane at 11:59 pm and as of 6:45 am is evidently still sitting in spokane. enquiring minds want to know what happened this time

 

[NY Penn]

Brushfires have caused #28 to become stuck in WA somewhere. Therefore 8 will sit there until 28 arrives.

Which could be a long time.

 

[yarrow]

now scheduled to leave spk at 8 am. also freight congestion probably secondary to the fires as i understand it. poor eb

 

[NY Penn]

8 hours late already? Wow. I'm surprised.

Wait a minute. I'm not.

EDIT: Amtrak expects it to make up 4 hours by the time it arrives in CHI. I highly doubt that.

EDIT2: I noticed that 8(26) and 28(26) have different ETAs in CHI. How's that possible?

 

[guest]

8 hours late already? Wow. I'm surprised.

Wait a minute. I'm not.

EDIT: Amtrak expects it to make up 4 hours by the time it arrives in CHI. I highly doubt that.

EDIT2: I noticed that 8(26) and 28(26) have different ETAs in CHI. How's that possible?

Hey all the estimates at this point are fantasy times so maybe the Amtrak people decided to have a little fun and play with all our minds?

Faux nee Fox News reports that the Empire Builder Schedule has been nominated for a Best Fiction of 2012 Award!!

 

[yarrow]

and then of course there is (to quote from the yahoo eb group)"impassable track" between havre and malta

 

[NY Penn]

By the time the train gets there, that will be fixed and there will most likely be another derailment somewhere.

 

[guest]

and then of course there is (to quote from the yahoo eb group)"impassable track" between havre and malta

That's from The Train of La Mancha: To Dream the Impassable Dream

about a poor little choo-choo fantasizing about being on time!

 

[amamba]

The poor EB this summer! Best wishes to the staff and all the pax on board the delayed trains.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

Why does the #8 have such poor luck? It used to have pretty decent OTP. The #7 has a lot less delays and better OTP. Maybe because it reaches the "danger zone" at the end of the trip, where bushfires are raging.

 

[NorthCoastHiawatha]

Why does the #8 have such poor luck? It used to have pretty decent OTP. The #7 has a lot less delays and better OTP. Maybe because it reaches the "danger zone" at the end of the trip, where bushfires are raging.

Niether have had much luck over the past few years honestly. Someone on here once said the EB has replaced the CS has the train regarded as always being chronically late.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

Why does the #8 have such poor luck? It used to have pretty decent OTP. The #7 has a lot less delays and better OTP. Maybe because it reaches the "danger zone" at the end of the trip, where bushfires are raging.

Niether have had much luck over the past few years honestly. Someone on here once said the EB has replaced the CS has the train regarded as always being chronically late.

I thought that it's the Cardinal and Sunset Limited, replacing the CZ!

 

[johnny.menhennet]

The Card may be consistent in its delays now, but the CS was much much worse, flat out. Routinely arriving LAX at 7 the next morning was normal, and it was the southbound that always had it worse off. It was called Coast Starlate for a reason.

 

[NY Penn]

#8(26) is only 7 hours late departing West Glacier, MT.

 

[Guest traveler]

I have tickets on the Saturday, July 28 EB departing Seattle to North Dakota. I see that The #7 train incoming to Seattle that is scheduled to turn into the #8(28) has been service disrupted. Amtrak customer service is talking about bother 7 and 8 are being turned because they are so late. Does anybody have information on what the effect will be on the 8's Saturdaydeparture from Seattle. To date I have not gotten the dreaded bustitution call but should I be expecting it.

Appreciate the help and information. Very helpful for the occasional Amtrak traveler.

 

[yarrow]

I have tickets on the Saturday, July 28 EB departing Seattle to North Dakota. I see that The #7 train incoming to Seattle that is scheduled to turn into the #8(28) has been service disrupted. Amtrak customer service is talking about bother 7 and 8 are being turned because they are so late. Does anybody have information on what the effect will be on the 8's Saturdaydeparture from Seattle. To date I have not gotten the dreaded bustitution call but should I be expecting it.

Appreciate the help and information. Very helpful for the occasional Amtrak traveler.

if 7/27 are too late to get to sea and pdx in time for tomorrow's departure amtrak may turn the train in spokane and bus passengers from sea and pdx to spokane and start the train portion of your trip there. as far as delays between spokane and dakota, who knows? keep checking with amtrak

 

[yarrow]

by the way, 7/27(26) has dropped off the status maps after wtn and is now listed as a service disruption

 

[yarrow]

7/27 has an eta in spk of around 8 am tomorrow. it will be turned there and, i believe, bus provided between spk and sea and pdx

 

[AlanB]

EDIT2: I noticed that 8(26) and 28(26) have different ETAs in CHI. How's that possible?

Because ARROW doesn't understand that they are the same train east of Spokane. It sees them as 2 different trains, which is what is needed in order to prevent ARROW from selling someone a seat or a sleeper in the Portland section when that person wanted to go to Seattle.

So the system at that time was calculating the run time for #8 based upon its early arrival into SPK and the run time for #28 based upon its running late.

 

[guest]

EDIT2: I noticed that 8(26) and 28(26) have different ETAs in CHI. How's that possible?

Because ARROW doesn't understand that they are the same train east of Spokane. It sees them as 2 different trains, which is what is needed in order to prevent ARROW from selling someone a seat or a sleeper in the Portland section when that person wanted to go to Seattle.

So the system at that time was calculating the run time for #8 based upon its early arrival into SPK and the run time for #28 based upon its running late.

Maybe they should rename Arrow HAL? :help:

 

[EB_OBS]

Yes, #7(26) and #27(26) will terminate in SPK. #8/28(28) will originate in SPK with on-time buses departing Seattle and Portland and making stops to SPK.

If all goes as planned then #8(28) will depart SPK on-time at 1:30AM.

 

[yarrow]

ok, maybe i have ocd regarding the eb because we live along its route, maybe it's because we have a mid-september trip connecting to the cl or maybe it is something else. but, what is going on? i look at trains on the eb route today: 7 left chi over 2 hours late, 8 is 3 hours late arriving. 7 and 27 are over 5 hours late and not yet to sea/pdx. yesterday's 8 is 3 hours late and yesterday's 7 (the star of the group)is only an hour and a half late. this is not new. it has been going on at least since may. fires, freight congestion, freight derailmets, broken equipment, crews running out of time and on and on. but the eb schedule still says it will get you there on time. is smilin' joe boardman aware? when is amtrak going to let people know they can't operate this train at anything like its published schedule?

 

[Mackensen]

ok, maybe i have ocd regarding the eb because we live along its route, maybe it's because we have a mid-september trip connecting to the cl or maybe it is something else. but, what is going on? i look at trains on the eb route today: 7 left chi over 2 hours late, 8 is 3 hours late arriving. 7 and 27 are over 5 hours late and not yet to sea/pdx. yesterday's 8 is 3 hours late and yesterday's 7 (the star of the group)is only an hour and a half late. this is not new. it has been going on at least since may. fires, freight congestion, freight derailmets, broken equipment, crews running out of time and on and on. but the eb schedule still says it will get you there on time. is smilin' joe boardman aware? when is amtrak going to let people know they can't operate this train at anything like its published schedule?

Probably about the same time BNSF admits it can't safely operate freight trains on the Hi Line. Look back through this thread and it's a catalog of BNSF derailments.

 

[NY Penn]

There hasn't been one in a while now, and OTP is still rather abysmal.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

Why is the EB still so late? What's the reason for each delay? If not derailments than what? Can people just start chiming in?