Trouble on October's first Empire Builder

[Yumacool]

My wife and I boarded the westbound Empire Builder in Minneapolis on Sept. 29th, bound for a connection with the Coast Starlight in Portland that would take us home to California. Little did we know that both locomotives would fail and we would end up arriving in Portland over 14 hours late. This is the longest delay we’ve experienced in our 30 years of riding trains. Following are some experiences and observations:

• We first experienced a major delay of about three hours west of Staples, Minnesota, when one of the locomotives failed. This happened during the night, but then the second locomotive failed in Grand Forks, North Dakota. We ended up spending eight hours there. Eventually, a BNSF freight locomotive came to the rescue.
• Rather than a relatively short station-stop in Minot, the duration extended to over two hours. In addition to the train being watered and the locomotives fueled, mechanics worked on the engines. I don’t know how successful they were.
• When we arrived in Spokane, we experienced another long delay. We ended up departing the station over 14 hours down.
• The onboard staff seemed to know little about the situation. I was concerned, in particular, because the lateness of the train meant we would miss our connection with the Coast Starlight in Portland. A kindly ticket agent in Minot checked the computer and informed me that Amtrak would most likely put us up for the night in Portland, then accommodate us on the next day’s Starlight. That proved to be the case, though no one could tell us anything more until we arrived in Portland. It would have been nice if Amtrak had communicated something to the onboard staff, who knew and shared little.
• My wife and I were traveling by sleeper, and in checking the Amtrak website, I could see that only coach seats were available on the following day’s Starlight. The Minot ticket agent assured me that Amtrak would find sleeper space for us on the Starlight, which proved to be the case. I was grateful for this, but I didn’t find out for sure until our 1:30 a.m. arrival in Portland.
• To Amtrak’s credit, it did bring onboard free food for the last several meals. I’m sure this was much-appreciated by the many coach passengers. This included pizza in Grand Forks, Subway sandwiches in Minot, donuts, muffins and fruit the following morning, stew and rice for lunch, and Subway sandwiches for all after leaving Spokane.
• Although the trip worked out okay, and we safely arrived at our California destination, though a day late, our largest gripe was the lack of information shared. Taking the Empire Builder is a long ride, and the additional 14 hours made it even longer. I wish someone onboard had proactively taken us aside to explain how Amtrak typically handles these types of problems to give us some reassurance. This never happened. Rumors flew among the passengers, but none was batted down. The ticket agent in Minot proved quite helpful, but it only occurred because I sought her out. Most passengers were left up in the air. The lack of shared information was probably the worst part of the trip.
• One other quick observation related to food availability in the diner. At the first lunch of the trip, I ordered the plant-based hamburger. The waiter apologized and told me that none had been loaded in Chicago. At dinner, I asked for a roll, and again was told that none had been supplied. The dinner salad came in a small bowl, unlike previous diner meals. Were they running out of salad greens? Amtrak has a traditional dining menu that is fairly small and is the same for all western trains. Why is it that commissaries cannot properly stock trains at the beginning of the trip?
• As all Amtrak trips, I still enjoyed the overall experience – the passing scenery, the relaxation, the connection with history. Amtrak has been underfunded for decades and often just does the best it can. I always hope for the best, but still feel sad when that “best” falls short.

 

[daybeers]

Yikes, sorry about the delay and lack of communication. Was this with P42s or ALC-42s?

 

[BlackDiamond]

I assume that even with both locomotives failed, they were still able to provide head end power, since the BNSF freight locos would not?

 

[PaTrainFan]

Regrettable experience, especially given it was a mechanical issue with both locomotives. My biggest gripe with Amtrak over the years in delay situations is an inconsistency in the communications. Blood pressure in most can be lowered effectively through regular announcements, even if no new information is avalable. Leaving people in the dark literally and figuratively) is inexcusable.

 

[Bob Dylan]

Regrettable experience, especially given it was a mechanical issue with both locomotives. My biggest gripe with Amtrak over the years in delay situations is an inconsistency in the communications. Blood pressure in most can be lowered effectively through regular announcements, even if no new information is avalable. Leaving people in the dark literally and figuratively) is inexcusable.

As most of us know, often Passengers with Scanners know more about situations on Amtrak than the OBS,who often are kept in the dark since they don't have Radios, and the Conductors often don't share with them!

And in serious situations, say Accidents involving injury or death, even when they are informed, don't share with the passengers.

Amtrak isn't known for being a Sharer of Information!

 

[British Rail]

I was on this train too, my first big Amtrak journey - I live outside the US but visit regularly for business. I arrived in Seattle at 2am Monday instead of 11am Sunday, and got four hours of sleep before having to start work!

Two further issues to note (one good, one bad) is that at Minneapolis St. Paul, boarding was delayed while police arrested a passenger who'd been abusing the Amish folks on the train.

On the plus side, I was given a $200 credit for my next trip without even asking. The train staff, despite not being updated, were still absolute angels and I appreciated their dedication, especially the unscheduled impromptu dinner on the final leg from Spokane to Seattle.

 

[Eric in East County]

• Although the trip worked out okay, and we safely arrived at our California destination, though a day late, our largest gripe was the lack of information shared.

This is one advantage to traveling with a scanner. You can listen in on information being passed between the conductor and the dispatcher, the conductor and the engineer, the conductor and the station master, etc. Much of what you'll hear is not usually shared with the passengers.

 

[zephyr17]

This is one advantage to traveling with a scanner. You can listen in on information being passed between the conductor and the dispatcher, the conductor and the engineer, the conductor and the station master, etc. Much of what you'll hear is not usually shared with the passengers.

Scanners are great for keeping up on the operations of the train, but will tell you nothing about reaccommodation of passengers.

OBS generally do not know any more than the passengers themselves. Several times my car attendants, knowing I had a scanner, have come to and asked me what was happening during delays.

Conductors know what is happening operationally, but will not know how passengers will be reaccomodated.

The only way to find out what the reaccommodation plan is is to call the 800 number, AGR, or getting to a station agent. Often the reservations will have been updated by the time you call. Even then the agents may not know details about the hotels, they are pretty much limited to what they see in ARROW.