No, it’s an equipment shortage. Amtrak VP Harris said as much during his comments to RPA. Reading between the lines, Amtrak didn’t expect to be running many long distance trains in the future, so many cars were placed in storage and maintenance was deferred.
Make that read Amtrak planned not to run many long distance trains in the future. Congress upset their apple cart, but not unexpectedly.
Moreover, when things are done well, executives almost always find ways to reward themselves. Most of Amtrak's executives and Board need to find elsewhere to make their money and reputation and be terminated for cause. They have intentionally put cars in long-term unmaintained status and grossly mis-planned their needs.
Innnnteresting. It's possible they have a lot of unexpected sick time due to Covid or something. Still, this shows mismanagement. Get that letter written!
Based on the current Congressional landscape, which is outright ordering Amtrak to provide daily service, that would basically amount to management tendering its resignation letters. So it seems unlikely. On the other hand, maybe Mr. Gardner wants to quit -- who knows?
They haven't got the brains to make their plan secret. That's why so many people are complaining about the SWC blunder, the cars not being available, the high prices, the lack of timetables, the food disaster, amtrak.com problems and everything else.
I've said it before. When the executives gets it right, they get honored, perks, promotion and $$. So when he gets it wrong, they need to suffer the consequences.
And your point? Prices for off-season are still out of sight. That's why there may be rooms available. I thought I paid way too much for rooms on my upcoming trip west but when I check, the prices are now laughable. If I could sell my rooms at those prices, I would then take the money, fly first class, and have enough left over for a 2019 Amtrak trip. I know. I did two then including one at Christmas time.
Not sleepers.
Hmmm. Just curious, if it arrives early and you board, would you be able to cancel after you're already on board? Although the conductor would have to scan your ticket on the platform.
The utter incompetence of this company is unbelievable. And now we have to subract an entire trainset worth of cars after the builder. (as usual, I’m sure all but two cars will go long term storage/damaged) The only time they ever really focused on repairs to damaged but not totally destroy ours as with Obama stimulous funds. Perhaps it’s time to consider something like converting the CONO to single level and re-assigning those cars to the western trains?
A perfect way to frame these losers, “haven’t got the brains to make it secret.” It’s amazing that people like this end up
Time to clean house and get a new board in and get new managers.
If they really put cars into unmaintained long term storage, they need to all be fired and the company needs a reset.
???
unmaintained or mothballed
It is a constant frustration. Anderson, on behalf of the Trump Administration, Mick Mulvaney, and the Heritage Foundation, really planned to do away with the long distance trains. I believe the three day per week was fully intended to be permanent. The election really messed that up. The long distance trains have nine lives. They’re popular, not costly to operate, and literally serve as the basis for all future passenger rail expansion. The Boardman years were largely lost years. They were a time when Amtrak could have presented a vision. Moorman was brought in to wreck it, and picked Anderson to finish the job. Thankfully, it didn’t happen.
