How Risky would this Be?

[Buckeye]

Hi! First post here, and a total noob to amtrak. Rather this fall or next fall, I would like to visit Dover, Delaware.

The Capitol limited gets here (Elyria, OH) around 12:30 AM, and hits Washington DC (Union Station) around 12:40 PM. The Train to Wilmington, Delaware (Northeast Regional) departs DC around 3PM, another at 4PM, and a third at around 5PM, they hit Wilmington around 4:30,5:30 & 6:30 respectively. (I'm shooting for the first one). Here's tricky part #1: The Delaware transit system's (DART) last stop at the Wilmington Amtrak station is at 6:50 PM which would be taking me to Dover.

Return route, theres 2 options from Wilmington:

Northeast Regional 125 to Union Station (DC)1:20 - 3PM, Capitol Limited leaves at 4:05.

NE Regional 84 to Penn Station (NYP) 12:30PM-2:20 PM, Lakeshore Limited leaves at 3:45.

I'm planning on option 1 but more on that later...

What are the chances of all of this happening without a hitch? (for DC- Wilmington, I am guessing the latter two trains are options if I'm late for the fist one)

Does the train go through the Abandoned Dover stop? If so, could I ask them to make that stop if the need be?

Also, if for some reason I am forced to go the Penn Station route back to Elyria: Would my arrival and departure trains be in the same area of the station? (I hear Penn Station can be a zoo, so I'm trying to avoid it as much as possible. It's giving me a cheaper rate for Union Station too!)

Should I do/plan anything different with any of this?

I am grateful for any help! Thank you!

 

[AlanB]

Buckeye,

It's always hard to calculate the odds, but I'd say you've probably got at least a 75% chance that you'd make at least one of those connections to Wilmington. But there simply is no way to guarantee it.

The train does not go through Dover, the closest it would ever get is Newark, still some 40 miles north of Dover. Draw a line from Baltimore through Newark to Wilmington and you'll have the route of the train more or less. They wouldn't and could not have made the stop in Dover anyhow if indeed the train ran that way, as there would be liability issues and other issues.

As for NY, all Amtrak trains board from the same area of the station, but Penn Station is a multi-level station. The lowest level is the track level, above that is what's known as the LIRR level, and above that is the Amtrak & New Jersey Transit level.

The Lake Shore generally leaves from track 6 or 7. Your train from Delaware could arrive on any track from 5 to 15, depending on the whims of the dispatcher, other traffic, and things going on in terms of work on tracks or platforms. You cannot remain at track level, and frankly wouldn't want to anyhow as the odds of the train leaving from the same track are very low.

The problem is going to come that if you hit the wrong escalator, you end up on the LIRR level and not the Amtrak level. Pick the correct escalator and you'll land on the Amtrak level right where you'll need to leave from for the next train. You'd need to try and find the escalator marked "concourse level" so as to go directly to the Amtrak level. If you hit the LIRR level, then just find another up escalator (there are several) or a set of stairs leading up to reach the Amtrak level.